10 TV Shows Where The First Episode Was The Best

10. Heroes  

If you didn't catch it when it premiered back in 2006, it can't be overstated just how much hype there was surrounding the premiere of NBC's superhero series Heroes.

That astonishing pilot episode, "Genesis," focused on its main characters discovering they have superpowers in creative and unforgettable fashion, most notably cheerleader Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere) repeatedly testing out her newfound invulnerability.

But beyond that, that opening hour instantly immersed viewers in an incredibly rich, fully realised world - and one teeming with mysteries fans couldn't wait to unravel.

While the rest of Heroes' first season was certainly good-to-great, it's clear that most of the creative juice was pumped into that exceptional pilot. 

The second season was then famously impacted by the 2007-08 Writers Guild of America strike, after which the show never fully regained its momentum, resulting in its cancellation after four seasons.

That first episode went so damn hard that nothing else had a hope of living up to it.