10 Strongest Pilot Episodes Ever That Set Their TV Shows Up For Huge Success

10. The Sopranos ( 1999–2007)

Ruthless, brutal, and merciless, but mob bosses are people, too — and their lifestyle takes a heavy toll on their mental health. An infamous New Jersey gangster seeks help and relays the events of his personal and professional life to his counselor, gripping you from the pilot episode with his bloody honest revelations and humanity.

You can watch The Sopranos on Hulu and Prime Video.

9. Supernatural ( 2005–2020)

The Winchesters are not only decent rifles but also great monster hunters. Supernatural follows two brothers who are roaming the US in their car searching for (you guessed it) supernatural threats to exterminate. From the first episode, you become invested in their search for their father and determination to help people.

You can watch Supernatural on Hulu, Netflix, and Prime Video.

8. The X-Files (1993–2018)

Speaking of the supernatural and unexplainable, The X-Files knows all about it. The show’s pilot immediately sets it up for success: once you meet the two FBI agents, the believer and the skeptic, and feel their chemistry and determination to find the answers to the most mysterious cases, you’re already on the hook. Welcome home!

You can watch The X-Files on Hulu and Disney Plus.

7. Firefly ( 2002–2003)

If you scratched your beard after reading this title, you’ve come to the right list — because it won’t take more than one episode for Firefly to make you obsessed with it. Following a renegade space crew on the run from authorities, it’s often dubbed as one of the best and most underrated sci-fi TV shows, and rightfully so, may we add!

You can watch Firefly on Hulu, Disney Plus, and Prime Video.

6. Sherlock ( 2010–2017)

If you don’t know the pain of waiting two years to only get three episodes, you haven’t watched Sherlock when it aired… But if you’d stumbled across its pilot out in the wild, you’d definitely become addicted to it. While short with only 12 episodes, this modern take on the classic story is the ultimate “morphine or cocaine” for fans.

You can watch Sherlock on Hulu, Netflix, and Prime Video.

5. Dexter ( 2006–2013)

If you don’t think one episode is enough to fall in love with a protagonist, Dexter will hook you up with an even better offer: take a glance at its pilot and you’ll want to see this noble serial killer’s story to its end. Captivating and dark, following this reverse Batman who solves crimes at day and commits them at night is addictive as hell.

You can watch Dexter on Hulu, Netflix, and Prime Video.

4. Lost (2004–2010)

It’s really hard to not immediately turn on the next episode when the pilot shows a literal plane crash that leaves a random group of very different people on an island in the middle of nowhere and conflicts start emerging immediately, isn’t it? That’s exactly how Lost hooked its audience — and wow, that was one mouthful of a line.

You can watch Lost on Hulu, Disney Plus, and Prime Video.

3. The Walking Dead ( 2010–2022)

The Walking Dead did the perfect job with its first episode: it gave the viewers just enough information about the protagonist that they’d care about him… And then tossed both the audience and the Sheriff into an entirely unknown and dangerous world of man-eating walking corpses with zero context. How can you turn that off?

You can watch The Walking Dead on Netflix, Disney Plus, and Prime Video.

2. Game of Thrones ( 2011–2019)

While Game of Thrones didn’t have its notoriously enormous budget at the start, its creators managed to create the perfect cliffhanger hook in its pilot episode. While it starts pretty slow and might even feel boring at first, its shocking ending is enough for you to sit there, mouth open, looking at the credits — and turn on Episode 2.

You can watch Game of Thrones on Max.

1. Breaking Bad ( 2008–2013)

The very premise of Breaking Bad is bizarre: a chemistry teacher dying of cancer decides to become a drug kingpin to save up some money for his family. But that’s the thing that’s so gripping about this series’ pilot. You don’t think this idea will work out but you desperately want to believe it will… So you have to keep watching.

You can watch Breaking Bad on Netflix.