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Spoiler Alert: This list contains spoilers for multiple TV shows.Over the course of the last 15 years, television has delivered some of the heaviest episodes that the small screen has seen at any point during the 21st century. What makes an episode of television heavy can vary greatly. Perhaps it's deeply poignant, or overwhelmingly nerve-racking, or so dense that you need to take a few minutes to gather your thoughts after the credits roll. Whatever the case, these are some of the greatest pieces of television that the world has gotten since 2011.
Regardless of what it is that makes them feel so heavy, these episodes are so emotionally oppressive that they're definitely not for the faint of heart. Those with the stomach to watch shows as heavy as The Leftoversor BoJack Horseman, however, will at some point be treated to episodes that are easily among the best of modern times—no matter how emotionally or intellectually hefty they are.
"International Assassin"
'The Leftovers' Season 2, Episode 8
Over the course of the last 15 years, HBO has been delivering several of the greatest shows of the 2010s and 2020s, and The Leftovers is undoubtedly one such masterpiece. Based on co-creator Tom Perrotta's 2011 novel, this post-apocalyptic gem is imbued with subtle sci-fi and supernatural elements, but what really makes it stand out is just how emotionally riveting its character-driven drama is.
There are several episodes from the show that prove why it's one of the most flawless three-season shows ever, but few are better than "International Assassin." It's one hour of perfect television that's unlike anything else the medium, and certainly The Leftovers itself, had ever attempted before. Highly surreal and anchored by Justin Theroux at his best, the episode dives deep into the psyche of our protagonist through a dreamlike journey unlike any other. It's thematically dense, emotionally weighty, and psychologically intense.
"Fishes"
'The Bear' Season 2, Episode 6
With its final season having finally seen the light of day, The Bearhasn't lost the title that it earned since day one: one of the greatest TV shows of the last decade. As phenomenal as it is, though, it's also a series that constantly delights itself in being as anxiety-inducing as possible, and there's no episode of The Bear more anxiety-inducing than "Fishes."
With its impressive score of 9.6, it's not only the third highest-rated episode of the show on IMDb, but also one of the highest-rated TV episodes of all time on the platform. It's a flashback episode of pure emotional intensity and non-stop family drama. It's loud, it's frenetic, it's full of masterful performances, and it's the heaviest episode from a show that's already full enough of heavy episodes.
"9:00 P.M."
'The Pitt' Season 2, Episode 15
Medical dramas aren't typically the kinds of pieces of prestige television that bring themselves to unprecedented acclaim, but then again, HBO Max's The Pittis no ordinary medical drama. The team behind the series set out to make the most accurate show the genre had ever seen, and the consensus seems to be that they succeeded. But as focused on realism as it is, The Pitt never forgets to spend time on incredibly intense character-driven drama.
But while the first season of the show felt more focused on intensity, the second felt more focused on heaviness, and that comes to a boiling point in the season finale. One of the heaviest TV episodes of the last 20 years, Season 2's "9:00 P.M." sees the arc of every character come to a realistic yet emotionally explosive breaking point. There's poignancy, there's bittersweetness, and there's plenty of tears to be shed.
"The Train"
'This Is Us' Season 6, Episode 17
It's technically not a soap opera, but This Is Usis such a deeply emotional and melodramatic tear-jerker masterpiece that it can pretty much be described as one of the highest-quality soap operas primetime television has ever seen. Throughout its final two seasons, too, it remained one of the saddest shows of the 2020s, a sadness that reached its pinnacle in the final stretch of the sixth and final season.
Though "The Train" is the penultimate episode of the season, it feels like nothing but the series finale in spirit. Episodes about a character's death can often feel unnecessarily melodramatic and manipulative, but not this one. Its approach is gentle, loving, and gorgeously realistic—which arguably only makes it hit even harder.
"Ozymandias"
'Breaking Bad' Season 5, Episode 14
There's a good reason why "Ozymandias" from the fifth and final season of Breaking Badremained the only episode in television history to have a perfect rating of 10/10 on IMDb for the longest time. It truly is that masterful of an episode, the moment where the final season of one of the best American drama shows of all time reaches an explosive point of no return.
There are multiple ways in which "Ozymandias" can be described as heavy. Whether it's because of its nail-biting suspense, its overwhelming emotional intensity, its gut-wrenching character moments, or its nigh-unbearable moments of tension, it's definitely not an easy piece of television to get through. Those with the stomach for it, though, will be treated to what may just be the greatest episode in the history of television.
"Episode 3"
'Adolescence' Season 1, Episode 3
The miniseries format has been on a bit of a roll throughout the 2020s, and Adolescenceis undoubtedly one of those new miniseries that are perfect from start to finish. Hugely dramatic but all too realistic, this crime drama may only be four episodes long, but those four episodes carry some of the heaviest intensity that anyone could possibly find in any miniseries from the decade thus far.
Adolescence's "Episode 3," like the rest of the series' episodes, is shot in a single take. The difference here is that the episode isn't sprawling like its two predecessors and successor are. Instead, it's an uncomfortably intimate, entirely dialogue-driven piece mostly just between two characters. Largely thanks to Owen Cooper and Erin Doherty's powerhouse performances, it's quite an emotionally draining 52 minutes of television.
"Church and State"
'Succession' Season 4, Episode 9
Though it's infused with plenty of brilliant hints of comedy, Successionis undeniably a drama show—and one of the best of the last 15 years, for that matter. Full of twists, backstabbings, and deliciously ironic character moments, this Shakespearean tragedy for the modern age is an absolute masterclass in every respect, one of those being the creation of immensely heavy episodes of television.
Though the final season's "Connor's Wedding" is one of the greatest TV episodes of modern times, as well as Succession's highest-rated, it's actually that same season's "Church and State" that's the show's heaviest episode, part of why it's one of those perfect drama shows that get better with each rewatch. Anchored by its exceptional cast and its thematic weight, this episode that's primarily about the funeral of a key character makes it shocking just how easy it is to shed a tear for these otherwise immensely unpleasant people.
"Vichnaya Pamyat"
'Chernobyl' Season 1, Episode 5
Chernobylis far and away one of the greatest miniseries not just of the 21st century, but of all time. The nuclear disaster of the titular power plant in 1986 is one of the most historic disasters in the modern history of humanity, and as such, making a television adaptation of such an event was never going to be an easy task. The team behind this show, however, managed to make the most perfect miniseries of the last 20 years.
The entire series is phenomenal, but the finale in particular, "Vichnaya Pamyat," is one of the greatest episodes of television that the world has seen throughout the last 15 years. It's also, however, an episode that takes a very strong stomach. Personal tragedy, historical injustice, and moral outrage are all thrown into a pot and allowed to reach their explosive boiling point in this episode, an absolutely brutal piece of television that's nevertheless essential viewing for pretty much anyone and everyone who likes television.
"The View from Halfway Down"
'BoJack Horseman' Season 6, Episode 15
If you had told people back in 2014 that Netflix's brand-new show about a talking horse who's also a washed-up sitcom actor from the '90s would end up being one of the saddest, most emotionally complex, and most philosophically profound animated shows ever made, they likely wouldn't have believed you. Then again, there's nothing that BoJack Horseman is if not that: absolutely unbelievable.
But aside from being one of the most universally beloved Netflix shows, BoJack also has what's perhaps the heaviest penultimate episode in the history of television. "The View from Halfway Down" isn't just a surreal trip through the titular character's subconscious: It's a riveting philosophical treatise on depression and an immensely powerful statement against suicide that somehow doesn't break up the pacing or energy of the show's final season. It's immensely heavy, but a masterpiece nonetheless.
"The Rains of Castamere"
'Game of Thrones' Season 3, Episode 9
Based on George R. R. Martin's hugely acclaimed series of fantasy epic novels, Game of Thronesmay have eventually come to a disappointing conclusion, but it's still one of the best fantasy series ever made. Those who only expect whimsical magic and beautiful wonders from a fantasy show, however, are better off looking elsewhere. For all its merits, there's no denying that Game of Thrones is such a dark, heavy, and frequently harrowing series that not just any kind fan of fantasy television would be able to get through it.
Even the strongest, toughest, most cold-hearted of Game of Thrones viewers, however, struggled their way through "The Rains of Castamere." How could they not? Brutally bleak, violent, and nihilistic, this was the episode that really made it clear that absolutely no one in this show was ever fully safe. Impeccably paced and impossible not to be shocked by, "The Rains of Castamere" is the televisual version of an audience's sense of hope being bulldozed and then burnt to ashes.
