10 Greatest TV Episodes Of All-Time

1. Pilot (1.1 & 1.2) - Lost

In the wake of its misguided and disappointing falling from grace, Lost has since been reduced to the kind of TV show reserved for making fun of. Essentially, most of humanity seems to agree that the first two seasons of the show were fantastic, whilst the remaining four were lackluster, confused and appeared to have been made up on the spot. Regardless of all that, Lost's declining popularity does nothing to diminish the sheer power of what is perhaps the greatest episode of television ever produced: its first.

The most expensive pilot ever produced at the time of making, "Pilot" broke new ground for the medium of television, as director J.J. Abrams (who has since moved onto a little series called Star Wars) brought a sense of the cinematic to the small screen, as a group of survivors find themselves trapped on a strange, uninhabited island after their plane crashes mysteriously and leaves them stranded. Nobody can deny the initial excitement of getting to know all the characters and trying to work out what was really happening.

And then there were the flashbacks, which honed in on hero doctor Jack, escaped convict Kate, and the enigmatic hunter Locke, all of whom would go on to become some of TV's most iconic characters. The true beauty inherent to Lost's first (and finest) hour, of course, stems from the way in which it promised so much: you really did need to see the next episode, and you believed in the show. Lost made "next week" feel like a necessity. All these years later, and it's still impossible to shake off the impact of this pilot.

Like this list? Agree or disagree? Think we've missed out an episode that you believe should have made the cut? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.