Best pilot episodes

[cws]

I don't think the Golden Girls pilot was that great tbh - it had loads of potential, but ultimately there were things that had to be fixed once it went to series (like dropping the gay housekeeper).

I agree about the gay cook,but it was still funny.

 

[DallasFanForever]

I don't think the Golden Girls pilot was that great tbh - it had loads of potential, but ultimately there were things that had to be fixed once it went to series (like dropping the gay housekeeper).

I agree that the GG pilot definitely wasn’t “great” material. There were many episodes in that first season that I would say are far better. It’s more of a pilot to watch just for historical purposes and of course for the laughs.

 

[Willie Oleson]

They managed to get me hooked right away

Then maybe it would be interesting to look at the streaming shows that never lived up to their pilot potential.

 

[ClassyCo]

Pilot episodes are tricky to get just right. Almost all TV shows employ some form of "tweaking" after their pilots have aired. For instance, THREE'S COMPANY did something like three different pilots in the late-'70s, with each one of them featuring a different actress as airhead Chrissy Snow. It wasn't until ABC chief Fred Silverman got Suzanne Somers aboard as Chrissy that the pilot finally sold and the show debuted as a mid-season replacement in 1977.

I know all four lead actresses of THE GOLDEN GIRLS often spoke highly about the quality of their pilot episode. And while I agree it was certainly a solid start, I don't think it was as "great" as they made it out to be. There were some kinks that needed to be ironed out, most notably the subtraction of Charles Levin as Coco, the "fancy man in the kitchen." For me, and as for the producers, Coco was just one note too many in the core ensemble. Once Estelle Getty was brought aboard as a permanent fixture as the smart-mouthed Sophia, the presence of Coco wasn't needed. It was clear the focal point of the show would be the relationship between the four women and Coco would simply be in the way.

I've seen other pilots that were quite good at establishing the atmosphere of their respective shows, but they're rare.

 

[Willie Oleson]

THE BIG VALLEY, because it almost looked as if it was going to be a Wild West soap opera.

 

[Toni]

Here are a few:

1- The O.A.
2- Dallas
3- Moonlighting
4- Game of Thrones
5- Dynasty
6- Orphan Black
7- Sense8
8- Revenge
9- Empire

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Columbo had two very strong Pilot episodes.



1968's Prescription: Murder was based on the1962 stage play (itself based on a 1960 episode of an anthology series The Chevy Mystery Show).

While the Lt. Columbo presented here is not quite "fully-formed" compared with the one we'd come to know, it's a terrific story and it's easy to see why it had such legs to stand up to repeated interpretations. In fact it feels more like a filmed play rather than a TV pilot, and since it was perhaps not intended to run to series at this point arguably isn't a true Pilot. Whichever way you look at it, though, it's great.

A few thoughts from a recent rewatch:

I loved the leisurely pacing, and the fact that the first act with the murder is its own unique little play. The story takes the time to really get into the psyche of the characters, raising the stakes and getting complete investment from the audience. The strangling didn’t occur until some twenty plus minutes into the episode, and we didn’t meet Lt. Columbo until a third of the way into the ninety five minute film. And it didn’t become a murder investigation until later still. When we’ve watched the perfect murder play out, only for the returning “killer” to be told his wife isn’t dead, we know it’s going to be quite a ride.

[Warning: This is spoiler-filled.But with Columbo it's all about the chase anyway]:

Then in 1972 came Ransom For A Dead Man, which was pretty much the fully-formed Columbo.

​

I feel Prescription: Murder is a stronger story, but this one was great as well (but then anything less than a great Columbo episode was an extremely rare bird for some time into its run).


And some musings from my recent rewatch:

The sparring between Columbo and Leslie is enjoyable. Particularly how their relationship changed, with her initially looking down on him and him allowing that situation in order to function below the radar. There’s a great scene when he returns from using the toilet and marvels at the lemon shaped soaps that he didn’t want to use as they’re so perfect. Eyes wide, he asks what happens when one is used and placed on top of the others? How does she stop it from sticking to them? “It’s a problem”, acknowledges Leslie with perplexed amusement.

Columbo himself, is more dishevelled and “lived-in” than on his previous outing, and shaping up to be the character that springs to mind when his name is mentioned. The hair is fuller and more tousled. The raincoat practically permanently worn. The green cigar is in hand. Pens are regularly misplaced or fumbled for.

There’s a really nice bit of business when Leslie’s stepdaughter Margaret - convinced of Leslie’s guilt - comes to find him eating chilli at a cafe where he’s evidently a regular and he seems to struggle to divert his attention from his spicy lunch. “The crackers make the dish”, he tells her profoundly as he breaks them and sprinkles them on.

With the speedy opening act and the slightly convenient denouement I found this a less compelling episode than Prescription: Murder. But it’s certainly still a very good episode, which gives us a Columbo who feels closer to the finished article and some important character details - from the crackers on chilli to the fear of flying - that help set the tone for a terrific series.

 

[Angela Channing]

I thought the pilot of Lost was an exceptional piece of television. It had everything including great drama, mystery, action, the introduction of a fascinating diverse group of chatacters and intrigue.

I also thought the pilot for Desperate Housewives was very good. I felt the series went off the boil quite quickly but the opening episode was excellent.


Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) also had a really strong opening episode which set up the premise of the entire series.

Money Heist (La Casa de Papel) and Elite also had outstanding opening episodes.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Wonder Woman is an example of them getting it right third time (after getting it very wrong twice).

1975's pilot The New Original Wonder Woman is one of my most rewatched TV episodes. It's a real achievement. It looks classy, captures the four colour spirit of the comics character and - most importantly, it has one of the all-time best castings for a live action interpretation of a superhero. Lynda Carter is stunning, gives it her all and gets the balance perfect between square-jawed earnestness, innocence and fun.

The supporting cast is terrific and impressive, with some big names. Some of them camp it up quite a bit (Batman '66 being about the only frame of reference at the time), but it all seems to gel and work.

And it has one of the most fun TV catfights (which Doug Cramer claims helped convince the powers that be at ABC that an Alexis/Krystle fight could work):

​

A few of my thoughts as I rewatched this a few years ago:

What really grabbed me this time round was how good it looked. And how expensive. So much effort had been put into the Forties period sets and dressings. They haven't just changed the hairstyles and thrown in the occasional old car. There are streets of realistic looking exterior period sets. Scores of extras all looking era-appropriate. And huge indoor sets: apartments; hospitals; Nazi headquarters. With gorgeously dismal greens and greys everywhere. At times it's still quite clear from some details that it was made in 1975, but the production values say otherwise. It occurred to me while watching that it's now being watched on TV screens far larger than would have been imagined at the time it was produced. And those screens show off a very impressive amount of detail that make it feel very cinematic.

Then there's that cast: Red Buttons; Stella Stevens; Cloris Leachman; Henry Gibson. It's a little like watching a Seventies disaster film full of stunt casting. What's interesting here are how many different acting styles are going on: Stevens goes for arch camp; Buttons for larger than life sitcom charm; Gibson wouldn't seem out of place in 'Allo 'Allo; Leachman is overwrought and quite neurotic, giving WW's mother a Joan Crawford air. It's perhaps telling about people's frame of reference for superheroes at the time. Some of the performances feel tailor made for Adam West's Batman series, while others feel like they hark back to the jingoism of mid-century black and white superhero shorts. Lynda Carter plays it mostly completely straight. Waggoner does the same but his deep tones and puffed-up chest machismo are almost like a satire of heroic types. In other words he's Zapp Brannigan.

The story is the classic WW origin, about to be retold in the upcoming feature film. To date, though, this is the definitive screen version of the story. The balance of humour and drama feels good here. It's easy to imagine this being a way to satisfy both young viewers who are absorbed by the simple story and the adults who are forced to watch with them who can chortle at the silly humour. I know that the older I get the funnier this seems.

The two previous attempts, by the way, consisted of a silly William "Batman" Dozier produced and narrated sitcom pilot called Who's Afraid Of Diana Prince? (which shows up in its entirety on video sharing sites every now and then, if one can sit through it).

And the failed 1974 Wonder Woman, which was a very different animal from the comics character, but not without its own appeal:

Crosby doesn't resemble any incarnation of Wonder Woman before or since. A blonde, jumpsuit-wearing, motorbike riding, high-kicking woman whose secret identity is barely secret. Much has been written about this version resembling the comic book character's Emma Peel influenced powerless period which ended a couple of years before the film was shot (why begin a contemporary series based on a concept that's several years out of date anyway? There's nothing older than yesterday's news, particularly amongst the show's target demographic). But her powerlessness and penchant for martial arts are just two of the many ways this film digresses from the Wonder Woman legend. About the only concession to the WW of the comic are the amazons and a tongue-in-cheek reference to her invisible plane.

But not being true to the original doesn't mean this isn't fun and enjoyable. It manages both. Crosby is one of the best elements here. She has good screen presence and is charismatic enough. If one can get past this concept being Wonder Woman in name only then it becomes enjoyable. In content and tone this feels very much like the natural bridge between The Avengers and Charlie's Angels. Indeed, Diana's mix of glamour and cool felt very much like it set the tone for the Angels - still two-and-a-half years away at this point.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

In terms of soap, the ninety minute Home and Away pilot is a favourite of mine. It sets up the story and characters perfectly, from the "origin" of the foster family (told through flashbacks and dialogue) to the requisite opening episode "big life change" (Tom turning 40, being laid off work and the family uprooting from the city to a small coastal town).

There are arcs for all the characters and it gives just enough closure to be satisfying while laying some seriously tantalising pipework for the series it was hoped would follow (Floss's prophecy of the death of one of the Fletchers would hover over the series until it became a key plot device and was eventually fulfilled - of a fashion - over one hundred episodes into the series proper).

The scenery is gorgeous, but the most warmth comes from the incredible chemistry between the actors.

(I've just noticed the balloons hovering overhead like a phallic invitation for Mary Whitehouse to hate watch the new series).​

And of course Dynasty sprang straight to mind, but that's already been summed up perfectly:

I think the 1980 pilot for DYNASTY, the first three-hour pilot for series in history, was really excellent -- it was just exactly what it was and needed to be, conveying everything the subsequent series should have been and wanted to be yet became far too middling and self-conscious to achieve (at least, not for very long).

The direction, the script, the music score, the casting, the overall tone, the quiet majesty -- it was almost holy.

 

[Jimmy Todd]

Wonder Woman is an example of them getting it right third time (after getting it very wrong twice).

1975's pilot The New Original Wonder Woman is one of my most rewatched TV episodes. It's a real achievement. It looks classy, captures the four colour spirit of the comics character and - most importantly, it has one of the all-time best castings for a live action interpretation of a superhero. Lynda Carter is stunning, gives it her all and gets the balance perfect between square-jawed earnestness, innocence and fun.

The supporting cast is terrific and impressive, with some big names. Some of them camp it up quite a bit (Batman '66 being about the only frame of reference at the time), but it all seems to gel and work.

And it has one of the most fun TV catfights (which Doug Cramer claims helped convince the powers that be at ABC that an Alexis/Krystle fight could work):

​

A few of my thoughts as I rewatched this a few years ago:






The two previous attempts, by the way, consisted of a silly William "Batman" Dozier produced and narrated sitcom pilot called Who's Afraid Of Diana Prince? (which shows up in its entirety on video sharing sites every now and then, if one can sit through it).

And the failed 1974 Wonder Woman, which was a very different animal from the comics character, but not without its own appeal:

It also had a wonderfully catchy theme song. I'm surprised a disco version wasn't released as a single
That was also a great fight scene. I can see how it inspired Krystle and Alexis' first "cat fight." Too bad Alexis didn't have a lamp hanging from the ceiling by a chain in her studio

 

[cijimccashin]

Desperate Housewives
Revenge
And I honestly really loved how to get away with murder pilot.

 

[Jock Ewing Fan]

Married with Children
Moonlighting
Taxi
All in the Family (after two unaired pilots. I would add that the actress who played Gloria in the 2nd pilot was really good, and I think
she would have been a good casting decision, nothing against Sally S)
The Maude episode on All in the Family, and The Jeffersons episode on AITF when the family was leaving were
in effect pilot episodes)
Frasier (I always preferred Frasier to Cheers)
Two and A Half Men

 

[Mel O'Drama]

It also had a wonderfully catchy theme song. I'm surprised a disco version wasn't released as a single

Well, there's this one, released back in 1979:

That was also a great fight scene. I can see how it inspired Krystle and Alexis' first "cat fight." Too bad Alexis didn't have a lamp hanging from the ceiling by a chain in her studio

Ha ha. Yes... I'm sure Linda Evans would have been game for a swing.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Revenge

That's a good one too. I was so sure I was going to LOVE this series.

 

[Willie Oleson]

And how about TITANS, a new soap starring Victoria Principal (of all actors). It looked like it could be something big.

 

[Willie Oleson]

Pilot episodes are tricky to get just right. Almost all TV shows employ some form of "tweaking" after their pilots have aired

But isn't it the un-tweaked pilot that got it absolutely right that makes it a very good and memorable pilot?

 

[ClassyCo]

But isn't it the un-tweaked pilot that got it absolutely right that makes it a very good and memorable pilot?

Yes, I suppose so. But I can't -- right now anyway -- think of a spotless pilot that didn't undergo some type of tinkering before it went to the air.

 

[Monzo]

What's the opposite of Best Pilot Episodes? Worst Series Finales! Variety just publised a list of of Worst Series Finales.

The Worst Series Finales of All Time

The worst series finales in TV history include 'Game of Thrones,' 'Lost,' 'Sopranos,' 'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Ozark.'

variety.com

Some shows (Lost, Roseanne, How I Met Your Mother) made both lists.

 

[bmasters9]

Another one of the best, IMO, was that one of that hit ABC 1969-76 medical series Marcus Welby, M.D., titled A Matter of Humanities, which was an ABC Movie of the Week (OAD Wed. March 26, 1969 on ABC); Robert Young was the title character here (as in the series), and it set up how he set up his general practice in Santa Monica, CA, and found his partner, Dr. Steven Kiley (James Brolin), among other things.

Here is that pilot in full: