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  1. #1
    Extraordinary Member
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    Default Your favorite first episodes of TV series

    What are some of your favorite first episodes of TV series over the years.

    Off the top of my head for me:

    The Andy Griffith Show
    Beverly Hillbillies
    All In The Family
    Cheers
    The Cosby Show
    Veronica Mars
    This Is Us

  2. #2
    Spectacular Member Obeythemoderators's Avatar
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    The Alien Costume part III was the first episode of Spider-man the animated series that I ever saw. Even to this day I think it is definitive portrayal of Venom.
    Last edited by Obeythemoderators; 04-01-2020 at 08:44 AM.

  3. #3
    Death becomes you Osiris-Rex's Avatar
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    Supergirl.
    Gotham.
    The Neighborhood.
    Young Sheldon.

  4. #4
    Astonishing Member AndrewCrossett's Avatar
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    Lost had a great first episode.

  5. #5
    Astonishing Member TheRay's Avatar
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    The Brady Bunch
    The Amanda Show
    Golden Girls
    Frasier
    The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
    Buffy the Vampire Slayer
    How I Met Your Mother
    Full House
    Fuller House

  6. #6
    Ultimate Member Riv86672's Avatar
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    The first ep. of Three’s Company immediately popped into my mind, so going w. that.

    If the question is, like Obeythemoderators went with, my first ep. of NCIS got me hooked. It was a S4 outing.
    NCIS investigate when the body of a man (with a toe in his stomach) is found in a chimney chute on a marine base with the team discovering that he might have been a serial killer.
    They figure everything out by the end, but Gibbs (who until then I’d only known from the movie Summer School) wonders out loud, how’d the tie get in the guy’s stomach to begin with.

  7. #7
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    If we’re talking first episode produced and Broadcast, then I might offer up the first episode of Arrow. Which was a pretty strong premiere outing of the first season’s fundamental strengths, and managed to make the city and island plotlines both immediately engaging - the city plot had seriously slick action scenes and a pretty straightforward but fruitful plot, but the island plot got kicked off with Papa Queen going “horrible equations” on the life boat.
    Like action, adventure, rogues, and outlaws? Like anti-heroes, femme fatales, mysteries and thrillers?

    I wrote a book with them. Outlaw’s Shadow: A Sherwood Noir. Robin Hood’s evil counterpart, Guy of Gisbourne, is the main character. Feel free to give it a look: https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asi...E2PKBNJFH76GQP

  8. #8
    Extraordinary Member Zero Hunter's Avatar
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    Orphan Black.

  9. #9
    Mighty Member LifeIsILL's Avatar
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    The Walking Dead...the pilot episode is the only good episode they've done.

  10. #10
    Incredible Member Marvelgirl's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by LifeIsILL View Post
    The Walking Dead...the pilot episode is the only good episode they've done.
    Things got very repetitive with The Walking Dead that's why.

  11. #11
    Astonishing Member Godzilla2099's Avatar
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    Stranger Things
    Power Rangers RPM
    The Mandalorian
    I Love Lucy
    The Honeymooners
    Miami Vice

  12. #12
    Invincible Member numberthirty's Avatar
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    In strictly "Mechanical..." terms, the pilot episode of Supernatural did a pretty brilliant job of getting the viewer up to speed after dropping them into the middle of a story that was about twenty-three years in.

  13. #13
    Invincible Member numberthirty's Avatar
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    Along the same line, the first episode of Sons Of Anarchy(or Mayans M.C.) did a pretty solid job of the same thing as the above series.

  14. #14

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    As far as good pilots/first episodes, I'd pick:

    - All in the Family - even if Edith and Gloria weren't fully formed.

    - Cheers - certainly Shelly Long had Diane nailed from the get-go

    - Golden Girls - great pilot even if they had to reshape the Sophia character to eliminate the Alzheimer's angle. Ditching the male companion/cook was also the right choice

    - Dynasty had a great 3-hour premiere episode. I still have a fondness for the first season when it took itself seriously

    - Smallville -
    great pilot that was so packed with material you'd think it was a 2-hour episode, but never felt cramped.

    - Desperate Housewives


    - Lost

    - Mary Tyler Moore Show - one of the best pilots in TV history. It really set up her two supporting casts (home and office) perfectly. Memorable material for Lou Grant, Rhoda, and Phyllis. It had spunk!

  15. #15
    Boisterously Confused
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    To my mind, no single episode of any Star Trek series surpassed "The Cage."

    ETA: "Lower Decks" got real close, but requires a mountain of backstory to fully appreciate.
    Last edited by DrNewGod; 03-24-2020 at 07:43 PM.

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