‘I definitely needed a lie-down after that!’ The most gripping television episodes ever
Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse from 2003
The show kicks off with the MI5 agents confined during a training exercise concerning a fictional terrorist event, monitored by two government representatives. As events unfold, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical weapon has been unleashed. The tension ratchets up as incoming communications show a catastrophe taking place outside, and gets worse as the boss appears to be infected, with the two officials trying to exit, pushing the protagonist portrayed by Matthew Macfadyen to choose between firing at them or letting them go and potentially infecting the secure MI5 headquarters. As this is Spooks, his decision is predictable.
Threads (1984)
Threads had minimal funding yet among the scariest shows I have ever watched because of the stark reality and bleak government data. Viewed it recently following the initial broadcast; I used to visit the pub in Sheffield shown in the series which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements that were transmitted. Still absolutely terrifying after three and a half decades.
Severance – The We We Are (2022)
The season one finale of Severance has to be right up there in terms of gripping installments. I was throughout the episode actually sitting tensely, straining every sinew with Dylan to maintain his grip on the controls that allowed the Innies to remain active, while shouting to the Innies to get their truths out there. The concluding高潮 – “she survives!” – was like an eruption.
The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief
Episode five of the third series of Industry caused my heart to pound. I had to pause and get up and depart the area multiple times due to the immense extent of the wanton self-destruction I was witnessing. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit in his job and domestic life – buried in financial obligations to illegal creditors because of his compulsive gambling, taking such risks on a wager involving sterling that might cost his firm millions. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, uses copious drugs and alcohol and wins, loses, wins, is brutally attacked. Every time you think things cannot decline more, it worsens. Redemption seems possible as the installment closes yet he wastes the chance, leading to terrible outcomes in the season finale. Certainly required a rest afterward!
The 2007 Peep Show episode Holiday
Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday features such degrees of awkwardness that it’ll have you standing up for the full show, riddled with anxiety. The tension escalates once Jeremy and Mark find themselves being compelled to falsify about the canine they by chance collide with and subsequent attempts to dispose of it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode questioning whether it truly can be worse than incineration, and it turns out to be!
The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)
Nothing I have seen has been as tense as when I first saw the second season finale of The West Wing. The installment begins with the consequences of the death (in a traffic accident) of the president’s personal secretary and builds to a peak with a situation in Haiti, and the fallout from the non-disclosure about the president’s MS condition, coupled with verification of his aim to seek re-election. Superb programming. Never bettered.
The 2018 Bodyguard premiere episode
The beginning of the UK show Bodyguard, with the protagonist on a train with his young son, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He observes a woman in Islamic attire heading to the toilet and senses something is wrong. The explosive disposal specialists are summoned, enter the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Suspense rises to a practically unendurable point, until yes, the vest is diffused.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body (2001)
Buffy arrives at her residence to discover her mother has died of natural causes, which is the most unusual type of death in this supernatural show. The show features no musical score, a sullen tone, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.
The 2007 The Sopranos finale Made in America
The final scene of the final episode of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you watched it when it originally aired, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, had all been defeated. This seems similar to the first season’s finale, right? “Recall the minor details.” But the mood is bizarrely ominous. Almost Twin Peaks levels of terror. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow parks. Tony sadly tells Carmela difficulties are arising with another member of his team working with the government. Meadow parks. Odd persons arrive at the eatery. Look at Tony(?) Meadow continues to park. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony glances upward. Don’t stop. It halts. My heart dropped from my mouth roughly 20 minutes after.
The 2016 The Walking Dead episode The Last Day on Earth
I kept late hours to see this show in the early morning. It was extremely gripping after the establishment of antagonist Negan discovering the characters, cruelly taunting his victims and then keeping the death a mystery (finished with an unresolved situation). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
