The 20 Most Cinematic Television Episodes of All Time

Created by Igor_Brynner.

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Some might consider putting the words “cinematic” and “television” together in one sentence a heresy. How could a medium largely confined to entertaining an audience that never wants to be challenged, be compared to what is one of the greatest art forms of our generation? How can its fragmented, disjointed, recklessly infantile structuring ever come close to mirroring the meticulousness and the patience of great cinema? But time and again, and especially in the last 10 years, they have been brought together over and over.

As film studios became decidedly more focused on tentpole filmmaking, and content-driven storytelling shifted to independent platforms, TV gradually became an appealing venue for film artists to explore concepts that required both budgets and sovereignty.

As it became more and more frequent and premium and standard cable networks became just as popular as network, the very audiences that were content with confetti-like comedy and cop dramas, became the most impassioned receptors of auteur work, just as film audiences showed up in droves to spend their earnings on baseless drivel.

With the advent of streaming services and the ability to watch entire seasons of a television show at once, the line between the two industries is fading away. Which is why it is fascinating to look back and contemplate how television makes for such great cinema and here are 20 of the most cinematic TV episodes of all time – evidence of that reflection:

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Last updated on Jun 18, 2018; source