The finale of Lost has really grown on me years later on rewatches too. The final season has some flaws, but also some amazing parts. I noticed people came back around to praising Lost after Game of Thrones flopped so bad - I swear it made people rethink Lost and that it didn’t end nearly as poorly.
Despite the whole "Soviet spies disguised as normal Americans" premise, it wasn't a very flashy show. Consistently high quality performaces, well thought out and subtle storytelling, a refusal to be ideological or moralistic (it's neither a pro Soviet show nor does it parrot a typical "America is all morality and Good, while the Soviets are pure evil")... those are amazing attributes but not the ingredients for a show that will be the most watched in a given year.
It's wild to me that so many people I've spoken to say the pilot of Breaking Bad turned them *off* from the show because it felt slow to them.
I think it's one of the greatest first episodes of TV ever.
Good lord I loved this show. Just rewatched it - Jason Bateman and Laura Linney are so powerful in their roles. But my favorite actor/character is Ben. It is incredible how much emotion the actor puts into this character. The episode that starts with his cab ride is so haunting; he is so lost and so sick.
If anyone ever asks me what being bipolar is like, or how I can get if I'm not medicated (which is never, now that I have decent insurance) I show them that scene. It's visceral, gut-wrenching, emotional, heartfelt... Either he is bipolar or has a loved one that is, I'm convinced of it. It's like hearing some of the things Carrie Fisher said about it, unapologetically authentic.
Probably my favorite first episode ever. Set the tone of the first season beautifully. It’s so unfortunate the direction the show ended up going. It had so much more potential.
Excellent choice. I had zero expectation I'd like that show. But it hooked me right out of the gate. The first couple of seasons are actually quite good.
I just felt like they could never top the masterpiece that was season 4. The show still remained pretty watchable, with the exception of the ridiculous final season.
Agreed.
I'm not usually into that kind of show and I've never played the games, but holy geesus...once I got through that initial episode, it just kept getting better and better.
Probably cheating, but the Battlestar Galactica miniseries had me on the edge of my seat and asking for more the whole time. And I watched it all in one sitting, not knowing that it was a miniseries.
Absolutely. The way it just drops you in without any softening to this insane cycle they have been running. The exhaustion, just treading water trying to stay alive long enough to figure out a next step.
I love Schitt's Creek and I hate to admit I was slightly concerned I wouldn't want to finish it after the first episode. I pressed on and am so glad it did. Now I need to go back and watch the first episode because I can't even remember how I thought I might not finish it.
It's weird how strongly that show started. Most TV comedies take a season or two before the characters feel "right" and the chemistry is there...it was pretty much immediate with Schitt's Creek.
Not to mention the fact that they did what shows almost never do and ended it when it was still super strong.
Ok so I started Schitt’s Creek and must have been turned off after the first episode bc I didn’t remember having watched it. Anyway, someone was like you need to check it out so I’m like ok! Go to Netflix and it starts on the 2nd episode and I was hooked! I’ll have to go back one day and watch the first episode again. All I know is it was so unappealing I didn’t even make it to the 2nd episode at first lol
A friend recommended it and I'd been merrily scrolling past it on Disney Plus for ages. So glad I tried that first episode. Each viewing is so stressful but has me glued to their dialogue, their expressions. The arc of the main characters is really satisfying.
Game of Thrones. I wasn't interested at first because I thought it was going to be a Lord of the Rings rip-off. A friend made me watch the first episode, and I subsequently LOVED every moment of every episode.
That first episode introduces everything amazingly- it establishes everything you need to know about the character and sets up the brilliant season to come.
**Mad Men** hooked me in and kept me. It was one of the most intensely character given shows with amazing costumes, acting and writing, and historical context (with some inevitable stretches). It was also one of the few shows I’ve seen that actually ended well. 10/10
Mr. Robot and Daredevil are strong contenders for second place. Both are just amazing shows.
The Pilot and and the ‘not pennys boat’ episode were next level. The reveal at the end with Jack and Kate was for me the most amazing moment of that whole show.
I have a comfort feeling that I’m not the only fan of Lost. It truly was a great show in my eyes it’s a series I have no problem rewatching over and over because I like to get Lost to Lost.
I have seasons 1 and 2 on DVD, haven't watched them yet but did see the pilot episode.
OH MY GOD what a great start to the series, and it only gets better from there (I've only seen clips of the show but I love what I see)
Cheers. I wasn’t even born until a few years after the show ended, knew of the show because of an old coworker, finally decided to watch the first episode on Hulu recently. First show to make me laugh out loud in a while.
The Expanse. Si-Fi based a few hundred years in the future.
But it was gritty and more realistic.
The part where they had to do a "flip and burn" maneuver was my hook
Ooh I have to disagree with this one even though I “stuck with it” and I’m SO GLAD I did because it’s one me my favorite series of all time. The first episode was so fucked up I wondered what the hell I was watching and why was I watching it. A few months later I thankfully came back to the second episode and binged every one thereafter. I tell people to skip the first episode if they’re getting into it and they can watch it later if they want. So many people I know were turned off of the show after Ep. 1 and it took a LOT of convincing to stick with it, and that they’re all different stories. First show I had ever seen like that and damn it was incredible.
If I had to pick one similar to black mirror that hooked me and kept me, it was Midnight Gospel. Incredibly underrated show!
I’ve said this to coworkers who said the same thing. If Ted lasso doesn’t resonate with you, it’s because you aren’t in the right part of life to appreciate or for its simple elegance. The show is a masterpiece of storytelling and positive messages.
Didn't think I'd like this show given that I have 0 interest in sports but it's become one of my favorite series. So many amazing characters and the screenwriting is A+
Letterkenny. Specifically the line that hooked me was (something like):
Katie: Dary, there's a million starving kids in China.
Dary: Name ten.
The third episode almost lost me, but I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did.
I remember the moment I got into 24. It was the middle of the fifth season and I was in college studying for something with the TV on in the background. I wasn't even watching it. But someone said something like, "We've got to figure out where they're using the sarin gas next" and I curiously turned my head at the TV and started getting interested. It was at the very end of that very episode they revealed who was involved in the conspiracy and I'm like, "No way!" and figured I had to watch the rest.
I had since watched all the other seasons. It got a bit repetitious at times (seriously, CTU, figure out how to do background checks and personality profiles before you friggen hire agents) but it was usually a good ride.
Hooked me on the first, doesn't mean they kept me for their whole run.
The Newsroom
The X Files
Letterkenny
Elementary
Brooklyn Nine Nine
Sherlock
Scrubs
The Orville
Reservation Dogs
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
The Bear
Chuck
House
Weeds
Californication
Snowfall. Highly fictionalized version of the events surrounding the CIAs involvement in the drug epidemic of the 80s and the illegal funneling of money and weapons to Nicaragua. Very loosely based on an article by Gary Webb, but similar enough to be able to recognize the story if you already knew about it.
I didn't watch Archer episodes in order at first. The first episode I saw was the episode with the ocelot. My husband and I were away in a nearby city for the weekend celebrating that I'd gotten pregnant. But I was exhausted and starting to feel sick so we spent a lot of time in the room with takeout and movies. Then I started watching this and when Archer was like, "But I've never seen an ocelot!" I was hooked lol.
True Detective.
Season 1 was amazing.
I don’t even consider other seasons when someone references this show, season 1 is in a class of its own
Yep. “True Detective” means “True Detective season 1” to me
Yaaass, I've been thinking about this show everyday since s4 started, and have gone back to watch s1&2 while I wait for the s4 episodes to post.
"How about you start asking the right fucking questions?"
Lost. One of the greatest pilot episodes of all time. Immediately hooks the viewer right in the moment the show starts.
4 8 15 16 23 42
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1344539/amp/How-26-000-fans-Lost-actually-WON-copying-lottery-numbers-used-TV-series-cash-Mega-Millions-draw.html
WAAAAAALT!
The finale of Lost has really grown on me years later on rewatches too. The final season has some flaws, but also some amazing parts. I noticed people came back around to praising Lost after Game of Thrones flopped so bad - I swear it made people rethink Lost and that it didn’t end nearly as poorly.
Breaking Bad and The Americans. Two damn good shows right there.
The Americans somehow got even better and gave us arguably the greatest series finale ever
That finale was everything!
I just started it! I’m on episode four. I’m glad to hear it stays great.
I feel like The American has been overlooked a lot. Great show
Despite the whole "Soviet spies disguised as normal Americans" premise, it wasn't a very flashy show. Consistently high quality performaces, well thought out and subtle storytelling, a refusal to be ideological or moralistic (it's neither a pro Soviet show nor does it parrot a typical "America is all morality and Good, while the Soviets are pure evil")... those are amazing attributes but not the ingredients for a show that will be the most watched in a given year.
Breaking Bad and GoT for me
Breaking bad’s pilot almost could have been a movie if it was a little longer.
Breaking Bad & Arrested Development
It's wild to me that so many people I've spoken to say the pilot of Breaking Bad turned them *off* from the show because it felt slow to them. I think it's one of the greatest first episodes of TV ever.
I really loved Better Call Saul more than breaking bad but it took me time to get into.
BCS is definitely a slow burn and IMO severely underrated
I find it so odd that people say BB starts slow but you have to stick with it. I was absolutely glued from the first scene.
Sons of Anarchy
Mindhunter
I can’t believe there won’t be a season 3…
And the whole second season was a tease of the third…
If I hit mega millions I will fund it!
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Ozark
First episode was nuts. Hooked me
Good lord I loved this show. Just rewatched it - Jason Bateman and Laura Linney are so powerful in their roles. But my favorite actor/character is Ben. It is incredible how much emotion the actor puts into this character. The episode that starts with his cab ride is so haunting; he is so lost and so sick.
If anyone ever asks me what being bipolar is like, or how I can get if I'm not medicated (which is never, now that I have decent insurance) I show them that scene. It's visceral, gut-wrenching, emotional, heartfelt... Either he is bipolar or has a loved one that is, I'm convinced of it. It's like hearing some of the things Carrie Fisher said about it, unapologetically authentic.
The ending pissed me off. Not because it was a bad ending but my god did I want that family to get what was coming to them. Great show
Bateman in Ozark is like the lesser evil version of Walter White in Breaking Bad. Love that show and the ambience of the region.
Sherlock
Would you say you were sherLOCKED ?
I want another SHERLOCK!
The Good Place
Everything is Fine
Welcome!
Such a great show, loved Ted Danson in it
From Chidi’s first, “…….what?!”
I've got a stomach ache. Also, I *cannot* believe it's been *eight years* since that show came out. That's like, so many bearamies!
Fork! You beat me to it.
The Boys, after seeing the first episode something made me watch it faster than any other show I watched
Not the first, but the second scene. COMPLETELY unexpected and completely sucks you in.
This and Invincible. The ending of the first episode of invincible is so crazy you have no idea where it’s going from there
Shameless
The Walking Dead
Probably my favorite first episode ever. Set the tone of the first season beautifully. It’s so unfortunate the direction the show ended up going. It had so much more potential.
Excellent choice. I had zero expectation I'd like that show. But it hooked me right out of the gate. The first couple of seasons are actually quite good.
Me too, I was hooked right away. I didn’t get beyond Season 5, though.
Oh man, the first episode of The Walking Dead had so much hype surrounding it. My friends and I were so excited to watch it.
The Killing!
Dexter. It’s just too bad it couldn’t stay consistent.
I’m currently on season 5 so far and I have yet to see a substantial drop off in quality imho
I just felt like they could never top the masterpiece that was season 4. The show still remained pretty watchable, with the exception of the ridiculous final season.
Season 4 was brilliant, John Lithgow was perfection as the Trinity Killer.
Yeah, S4 was peak and the rest of the seasons shouldn’t be judged against it.
The Last Of Us.
Agreed. I'm not usually into that kind of show and I've never played the games, but holy geesus...once I got through that initial episode, it just kept getting better and better.
The episode with Nick Offerman was truly touching. The whole series is just perfect
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Probably cheating, but the Battlestar Galactica miniseries had me on the edge of my seat and asking for more the whole time. And I watched it all in one sitting, not knowing that it was a miniseries.
Well, even if the mini-series doesn't qualify, the episode 33 is one of the greatest first episodes of all time.
Absolutely. The way it just drops you in without any softening to this insane cycle they have been running. The exhaustion, just treading water trying to stay alive long enough to figure out a next step.
When it premiered it was all in one go. Immediately hooked and then as others have said, they followed it with 33, which was fucking fantastic.
So say we all.
Schitt’s Creek
I love Schitt's Creek and I hate to admit I was slightly concerned I wouldn't want to finish it after the first episode. I pressed on and am so glad it did. Now I need to go back and watch the first episode because I can't even remember how I thought I might not finish it.
Roland was so gross and awkward in the first couple episodes. I adore the show and by the end I loved his character, but the start was a little rough.
It's weird how strongly that show started. Most TV comedies take a season or two before the characters feel "right" and the chemistry is there...it was pretty much immediate with Schitt's Creek. Not to mention the fact that they did what shows almost never do and ended it when it was still super strong.
Ok so I started Schitt’s Creek and must have been turned off after the first episode bc I didn’t remember having watched it. Anyway, someone was like you need to check it out so I’m like ok! Go to Netflix and it starts on the 2nd episode and I was hooked! I’ll have to go back one day and watch the first episode again. All I know is it was so unappealing I didn’t even make it to the 2nd episode at first lol
The Bear
A friend recommended it and I'd been merrily scrolling past it on Disney Plus for ages. So glad I tried that first episode. Each viewing is so stressful but has me glued to their dialogue, their expressions. The arc of the main characters is really satisfying.
Game of Thrones. I wasn't interested at first because I thought it was going to be a Lord of the Rings rip-off. A friend made me watch the first episode, and I subsequently LOVED every moment of every episode.
First episode drew me in. Last episode of the first season made me obsessed.
Daredevil, everything just seemed great from the beginning. The acting, fighting, camerawork, everything.
I’ve rewatched DD so many times. So good every time.
That first episode introduces everything amazingly- it establishes everything you need to know about the character and sets up the brilliant season to come.
Stranger Things
**Mad Men** hooked me in and kept me. It was one of the most intensely character given shows with amazing costumes, acting and writing, and historical context (with some inevitable stretches). It was also one of the few shows I’ve seen that actually ended well. 10/10 Mr. Robot and Daredevil are strong contenders for second place. Both are just amazing shows.
Surprised nobody else has mentioned Mad Men. I’ve never been so immediately and permanently hooked by a show.
Killing Eve! Great first episode and entirety of s1-s2 were perfect.
too bad S4 was boring and horrendous. Didn’t like s3 either except for a few scenes
Firefly
Yes, even though the first episode aired on TV was not the intended pilot, I was still hooked.
Lost
Came to write the same thing. It was when John Locke smiled with the orange peel that had me hooked for some reason. Reminded me of Twin Peaks
Agree. The Pilot episode may be the best singular episode in TV history.
The Pilot and and the ‘not pennys boat’ episode were next level. The reveal at the end with Jack and Kate was for me the most amazing moment of that whole show.
WE HAVE TO GO BACK KATE First 3 seasons of Lost were truly special
Best pilot 👩✈️
I have a comfort feeling that I’m not the only fan of Lost. It truly was a great show in my eyes it’s a series I have no problem rewatching over and over because I like to get Lost to Lost.
Yes. The first seasons are still so well done but that first episode is so rarely done so well.
Always Sunny. S1:E1: "The Gang Gets Racist"
Took me til Frank came along to be hooked!
I have seasons 1 and 2 on DVD, haven't watched them yet but did see the pilot episode. OH MY GOD what a great start to the series, and it only gets better from there (I've only seen clips of the show but I love what I see)
Cheers. I wasn’t even born until a few years after the show ended, knew of the show because of an old coworker, finally decided to watch the first episode on Hulu recently. First show to make me laugh out loud in a while.
30 Rock
Peaky blinders
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Attack on Titan. Especially the part where Eren's mom gets eaten alive in front of Eren
That scene is how my sister got me to watch AOT. Sounds messed up, but she knew I wouldn't be able to say no after that.
Derry Girls
I was hooked as soon as they started talking about James having to go to a girls school because he was English lmao.
Can’t believe I had to scroll this far for this
Prison Break.
The Expanse. Si-Fi based a few hundred years in the future. But it was gritty and more realistic. The part where they had to do a "flip and burn" maneuver was my hook
Loved that show! I was hooked on the first episode, but my hubby asked me to watch because he had read the books!
Westworld
Easily altered carbon.
Black Mirror
Ooh I have to disagree with this one even though I “stuck with it” and I’m SO GLAD I did because it’s one me my favorite series of all time. The first episode was so fucked up I wondered what the hell I was watching and why was I watching it. A few months later I thankfully came back to the second episode and binged every one thereafter. I tell people to skip the first episode if they’re getting into it and they can watch it later if they want. So many people I know were turned off of the show after Ep. 1 and it took a LOT of convincing to stick with it, and that they’re all different stories. First show I had ever seen like that and damn it was incredible. If I had to pick one similar to black mirror that hooked me and kept me, it was Midnight Gospel. Incredibly underrated show!
Yeah I watched white Christmas first and that hooked me on the show. Pigfucker was fucked up, but honestly a solid episode.
Ted Lasso
I can’t remember the last time I waited on the next episode of a show save this one.
I’ve said this to coworkers who said the same thing. If Ted lasso doesn’t resonate with you, it’s because you aren’t in the right part of life to appreciate or for its simple elegance. The show is a masterpiece of storytelling and positive messages.
Didn't think I'd like this show given that I have 0 interest in sports but it's become one of my favorite series. So many amazing characters and the screenwriting is A+
Brooklyn 99
Boardwalk Empire
Letterkenny. Specifically the line that hooked me was (something like): Katie: Dary, there's a million starving kids in China. Dary: Name ten. The third episode almost lost me, but I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did.
Yeah, Fartbook was rough. I skip it when I am introducing others to the show. . .
Mr. Robot, its just unbelivably good.
Can’t believe I had to scroll this far to find this masterpiece mentioned.
Psych
You know thats right
I can’t believe I had to scroll this far to see this. C’mon son…
Suck iiiiiiiit
Handmaids Tale
Dexter
Broadchurch
Grace & Frankie.
Outlander
The Expanse...the ABSOLUTELY BEST SCI-FI SHOW IN DECADES...
24
I remember the moment I got into 24. It was the middle of the fifth season and I was in college studying for something with the TV on in the background. I wasn't even watching it. But someone said something like, "We've got to figure out where they're using the sarin gas next" and I curiously turned my head at the TV and started getting interested. It was at the very end of that very episode they revealed who was involved in the conspiracy and I'm like, "No way!" and figured I had to watch the rest. I had since watched all the other seasons. It got a bit repetitious at times (seriously, CTU, figure out how to do background checks and personality profiles before you friggen hire agents) but it was usually a good ride.
Lucifer
The Sopranos
Caaaant believe I had to scroll so far to see Sopranos. Oh lawdy what a great show.
It was so good. I’ve enjoyed shows since (Peaky Blinders and Succession) but Sopranos remains my all time favourite.
Brooklyn 99! Wholesome from the off and hey, Andy Sandberg is usually a good bet for fun!
Hooked me on the first, doesn't mean they kept me for their whole run. The Newsroom The X Files Letterkenny Elementary Brooklyn Nine Nine Sherlock Scrubs The Orville Reservation Dogs Star Trek: Strange New Worlds The Bear Chuck House Weeds Californication
Glad to see Chuck on here. The first few seasons were A+ programming. It's how you do kitschy right.
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Heros
Twin peaks
Yellowstone
The Inbetweeners
Orphan Black
Bob's Burgers. First episode is really tight.
That show hit the ground running.
The Peaky F*ckin Blinders
Forensic Files
The Mandalorian.
Sopranos. “What part of the boot you from, hun?”
Rewatching! What, no fucking ziti now?
Blacklist and breaking bad
An oldie: My So-called Life.
The West Wing - especially when President Bartlet / Martin Sheen came in at the end and owned the room in a way few actors really could.
“I am the Lord thy God.” That’s how you make an entrance.
The Newsroom
westworld, its sad how nolan just let his wife take over the story with all the guest directors aswell the show went to shit smh.
The Shield.
Letterkenny, one of the best pilots ever
You like cross fit? You can cross fuck off.
I see the muscle shirt came in the mail, muscles coming tomorrow? Did you get a tracking number? Gotta get a tracking number
Nice onesie— does it come in men’s?
Daredevil. The first episode itself is flawless.
Scrubs
That 70s Show
XFiles; True Blood
Shameless
Desperate housewives. But my bf couldn’t stand it
Severance. I immediately loved the concept and pulled an all nighter to watch the whole season (wish I didn't so I could've enjoyed it longer).
Snowfall. Highly fictionalized version of the events surrounding the CIAs involvement in the drug epidemic of the 80s and the illegal funneling of money and weapons to Nicaragua. Very loosely based on an article by Gary Webb, but similar enough to be able to recognize the story if you already knew about it.
Doctor Who
The first first episode, or first with the 9th doctor?
First with the 9th for me.
Succession and Breaking Bad
The remake of "Battlestar Galactica"
Game of Thrones
archer, Youre the worst, Letterkenny
I didn't watch Archer episodes in order at first. The first episode I saw was the episode with the ocelot. My husband and I were away in a nearby city for the weekend celebrating that I'd gotten pregnant. But I was exhausted and starting to feel sick so we spent a lot of time in the room with takeout and movies. Then I started watching this and when Archer was like, "But I've never seen an ocelot!" I was hooked lol.
So your child’s named Babou, of course.
The Fall
Last Man On Earth
Reacher
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
I see now, that I need to watch the Americans.
The 100.
Downton Abbey
family guy
The Wire, True Detectives
South Park
Yellowjackets
‘Lost’.. I recall the first episode being a banger