Sometimes a TV show airs that just works; these are the programs where plot and character arcs are established with such finesse that you can guarantee a show's success right from the word 'pilot'. Just watch The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad to be hit with this must-tune-in-again factor. On the flipside, some shows just about get the greenlight for a pilot episode, they maybe get aired but are subsequently deemed to be duds and enter television's rather large graveyard. A great case in point here is the 2011 rehash of Wonder Woman, which has only been seen - and subsequently loathed - by an unlucky few. There's also that in your face pilot that throws all of the action and style at viewers - Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Terra Nova - without actually having a hope in heckfire of holding our attentions for a full season order. These are just a few of the types of series openers we have all encountered at some point in our viewing careers, but with this feature what we're really interested in bringing to your attention is the pilots that changed TV in some way. These are the episodes that were the beginning of something new, original and blazed a trail for others to follow. Everybody loves a game-changer and across the next ten clicks you will happen across some TV gems that in their own right bucked a new trend, caused changes in the industry or were just so damn impactful we are still in awe of them today. Let the appreciation ensue...
Shaun is a former contributor for a number of Future Publishing titles and more recently worked as a staffer at Imagine Publishing.
He can now be found banking in the daytime and writing a variety of articles for What Culture, namely around his favourite topics of film, retro gaming, music, TV and, when he's feeling clever, literature.
