‘I absolutely had to rest after that!’ The most gripping episodes of TV ever

Spooks – I Spy Apocalypse (2003)

The show kicks off with the Spooks team confined during a training exercise about a potential terror incident, supervised by two Home Office agents. As things progress, it becomes clear a real incident has taken place and a chemical agent deployed. The suspense builds as reports reveal a crisis unfolding beyond their walls, and escalates as the boss appears to be infected, and the government agents endeavor to depart, compelling the character played by Matthew Macfadyen to choose between firing at them or letting them go and risking contaminating the sealed MI5 offices. This being Spooks, his decision is predictable.

The 1984 production Threads

The production was inexpensive but arguably the most terrifying series I have ever watched due to its harsh realism and bleak government data. Viewed it recently having watched the original; I frequently went to the Sheffield pub shown in the series which emphasised the reality and the offhand factual official statements that were transmitted. Remaining completely frightening 35 years later.

Severance – The We We Are from 2022

The first season finale of Severance has to be right up there among intense episodes. I remained for the whole show actually sitting tensely, straining every sinew with Dylan to hold the switches that allowed the Innies to remain active, while yelling at the Innies to get their truths out there. The final climactic moment – “she survives!” – felt like an explosion.

The 2024 Industry episode White Mischief

Episode five of the third series of Industry caused my heart to pound. I needed to stop and stand and depart the area multiple times owing to the vast degree of the wanton self-destruction I saw. Rishi Ramdani faces serious trouble professionally and personally – up to his eyeballs in debt to loan sharks due to his addictive betting, taking such risks on a wager involving sterling that might cost his firm millions. Inevitably, he starts a gaming binge, uses copious drugs and alcohol and alternates between success and failure, is brutally attacked. Each instance you believe the situation cannot deteriorate further, it does. Redemption seems possible as the installment closes yet he wastes the chance, with horrifying consequences during the season’s final episode. Certainly required a rest afterward!

Peep Show – Holiday from 2007

Peep Show is not inherently a tense series. But the episode Holiday includes such amounts of embarrassment that it can cause you to stand for the full show, filled with nervousness. The tension escalates when Jeremy and Mark realize having to lie about the dog they accidentally run over and later efforts to get rid of it. You then occupy the remainder of the episode wondering if it might be more awful than cremation, and it is possible!

The West Wing – The Two Cathedrals (2001)

No other viewing has been as gripping compared to my initial viewing the second season finale of The West Wing. The episode starts with the aftermath of the passing (in a road incident) of the president’s personal secretary and reaches a crescendo involving a Haitian emergency, and the effects of the withheld information about the president’s MS condition, along with affirmation of his plan to run for another term. Excellent TV. Unequaled.

Bodyguard – episode one (2018)

The start of the British program Bodyguard, with the hero aboard a train alongside his juvenile boy, is for me one of the most intense episodes ever. He spots a Muslim woman entering the restroom and senses something is wrong. The bomb diffuser experts are called, get on the train, and try to persuade the woman to take off her suicide vest. Suspense rises to an almost unbearable degree, until yes, the vest is diffused.

The 2001 Buffy episode The Body

Buffy enters her house to find her mum has passed away from natural reasons, which is the most unusual type of death in this supernatural show. The installment lacks any soundtrack, a somber mood, and we view the installment through the lens of Buffy’s astonishment upon finding her mother.

The Sopranos – Made in America (2007)

The ultimate sequence of the series finale of the series was extremely nerve-wracking. And for those who saw it during its initial broadcast, you – at the start – didn’t understand the cause. Tony’s enemies, real and imagined, were all vanquished. Doesn’t this resemble the season one conclusion? “Think about the small elements.” However, the vibe is oddly threatening. Nearly Twin Peaks-like fear. The clan sits in an eatery. Meadow stops the car. Tony sorrowfully notifies Carmela problems are brewing with yet another of his crew collaborating with the authorities. Meadow secures a parking space. Odd persons arrive at the eatery. Stare at Tony(?) Meadow is parking. Tony puts a record on the jukebox. Meadow parks her car. The bell rings, someone enters the restaurant. Can’t be Meadow, she’s still parking. Tony glances upward. Continue. It ceases. My spirit fell around 20 minutes subsequently.

The Walking Dead – The Last Day on Earth (2016)

I stayed up to watch this episode during the night. It was incredibly tense after the establishment of antagonist Negan discovering the characters, savagely teasing his prey then not knowing who he killed (finished with an unresolved situation). The first-person perspective of the victim and the subdued noises – ugh! {We then had to wait for season seven|We then needed to await season