‘I definitely needed a lie-down after that!’ Your most gripping television episodes ever
The 2003 Spooks episode I Spy Apocalypse
The episode begins with the intelligence unit locked down while undergoing a drill concerning a fictional terrorist event, monitored by two government representatives. As things progress, it appears that there really has been an attack and a chemical agent deployed. The suspense builds as reports reveal a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and gets worse as the superior shows signs of exposure, with the two officials trying to exit, forcing Matthew Macfadyen’s character to choose between firing at them or permitting their exit and risking contaminating the sealed MI5 offices. Given it’s Spooks, it is unsurprising which one he chooses.
Threads from 1984
Threads had minimal funding yet among the scariest shows I have ever watched due to its harsh realism and dismal official figures. Saw it not long ago after seeing the first airing; I often attended the bar in Sheffield shown in the series which underscored the actuality and the offhand factual official statements that were transmitted. Continuing to be utterly horrifying decades on.
The 2022 Severance episode The We We Are
The concluding episode of Severance’s debut season has to be right up there among intense episodes. I spent the entire episode actually sitting tensely, pushing alongside Dylan to hold the switches that sustained the Innies’ extended time, while screaming at the Innies to reveal their realities. The ultimate peak – “she’s alive!” – resembled a outburst.
Industry – White Mischief from 2024
The fifth episode of Industry’s third season made my pulse quicken. I had to pause and get up and exit the space repeatedly due to the immense extent of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani is in deep shit in his job and domestic life – up to his eyeballs in debt to illegal creditors owing to his uncontrollable gaming, engaging in dangerous ventures on a wager involving sterling which may result in huge losses for his employer. Naturally, he embarks on a betting frenzy, does tons of drugs and drink and experiences wins and losses, is severely assaulted. Each instance you believe the situation cannot deteriorate further, it worsens. There’s hope of redemption at the end of the episode yet he wastes the chance, with horrifying consequences in the concluding part of the season. Definitely needed a lie-down after that!
Peep Show – Holiday (2007)
Peep Show itself isn’t necessarily a stressful show. Yet the installment Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it’ll have you standing up the whole episode, permeated with worry. It all ramps up as Jeremy and Mark discover being compelled to falsify about the canine they by chance collide with and following tries to eliminate it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode wondering if it might be more awful than cremation, and it is possible!
The 2001 The West Wing episode The Two Cathedrals
Nothing I have seen has been as tense than the first time I watched the season two finale to The West Wing. The show opens with the fallout of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s private assistant and escalates to a高潮 involving a Haitian emergency, and the repercussions of the secrecy regarding the president’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis, along with affirmation of his plan to seek re-election. Excellent TV. Unsurpassed.
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 spots a Muslim woman going into the loo and senses something is wrong. The explosive disposal specialists are summoned, board the train, and attempt to convince the woman to remove her explosive vest. Suspense rises to an almost unbearable degree, until, finally, the vest is neutralized.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer – The Body from 2001
Buffy comes into her home to find her mum has passed away due to natural factors, which is the rarest form of demise in this paranormal series. The episode has no background music, a gloomy atmosphere, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.
The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)
The final scene of the final episode of the show was pants-wettingly tense. And if you viewed it when it first premiered, you – initially – were uncertain of the reason. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all overcome. Surely this has the feel of the season one ending? “Think about the small elements.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The family gathers in a diner. Meadow finds a parking spot. Tony sadly tells Carmela difficulties are arising with yet another of his crew cooperating with the officials. Meadow secures a parking space. Strange people enter the restaurant. Look at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony selects a song on the jukebox. Meadow finds a spot. The door chimes, a person comes in. It isn’t Meadow, she remains parking. Tony looks up. Continue. It stops. My spirit fell about 20 minutes later.
The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth from 2016
I stayed up to watch this episode during the night. It was so intense after the buildup of bad guy Negan locating the survivors, savagely teasing his prey and then keeping the death a mystery (ended on a cliffhanger). The point-of-view shot from the victim and the muffled sounds – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season
