4 Hated TV Episodes That Really Aren’t as Bad as Everyone Insists

Some TV episodes are so controversial, they earn reputations for being hated — but these four aren’t nearly as bad as everyone insists. Even the greatest TV shows have their highs and lows. And when a series is truly special, its low points tend to stand out, paling in comparison to the surrounding chapters. It’s one thing for a mediocre series to deliver a middling installment. However, with hits like Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, viewers have higher expectations. When an episode fails to meet them, audiences remember.

This is how certain TV episodes become warnings or running jokes; just look at Lost‘s “Stranger in a Strange Land,” which the internet will forever know as the episode where Jack gets a tattoo. People refer back to it with exasperation, as it’s the one episode of the ABC series that genuinely stands out as “bad.” Other series have these installments, too, though not all of them deserve the amount of hate they receive.

4) “The Bells” – Game of Thrones

The backlash surrounding Game of Thrones Season 8 stems from several controversial choices, from making Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright) king to defeating the Night King (Vladimir Furdik) in a single episode. However, the most divisive chapter of the final season has to be “The Bells.” Game of Thrones‘ penultimate episode sees Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) burning King’s Landing, giving Cersei (Lena Headey) one of the show’s most anticlimactic fates and resulting in all the other issues that follow.

There’s a lot of debate about whether Dany’s Mad Queen twist in “The Bells” should have happened, and it’s a huge reason the installment is regarded so poorly. While some of the writing does feel rushed or out of character — remember when Jon (Kit Harington) had lines, and Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) was clever? — “The Bells” isn’t all bad. By modern fantasy standards, it has some of the best cinematography we’ve seen. The performances are also incredible, and there are a few satisfying moments scattered throughout. (We finally got Cleganebowl, and that has to be worth something.)

3) “The Lost Sister” – Stranger Things

Stranger Things Season 2 is a fairly solid follow-up to the show’s first chapter, exploring the aftermath of Will’s (Noah Schnapp) disappearance and Eleven’s (Millie Bobby Brown) arrival in Hawkins in really interesting ways. One episode takes viewers out of the main story and Hawkins, however — and it will forever be remembered negatively for it. Season 2, Episode 7, “The Lost Sister,” brings Eleven to Chicago in search of her sister, Kali, who is part of a street gang that regularly steals and doles out justice to Hawkins Lab’s lackeys.

Kali pushes Eleven to embrace this lifestyle, but Stranger Things‘ lead realizes that she’s needed in Hawkins — and that violently seeking vengeance isn’t something she wants any part of. Stranger Things Season 4’s Rainbow Room backstory has to jump through hoops to work with this subplot, and the series doesn’t properly revisit it for multiple outings. As such, “The Lost Sister” has become a point of contention for fans. I’d argue it’s necessary to Eleven’s character growth and isn’t that dull, despite feeling shoehorned in. Its reputation is understandable but a bit exaggerated. And it’s possible Stranger Things Season 5 returning to this storyline will foster a new appreciation for it years later.

2) “The Great Divide” – Avatar: The Last Airbender

Avatar: The Last Airbender has three incredible seasons and very few dips in quality, which might be why viewers have fixated on “The Great Divide.” The 11th episode of Season 1, “The Great Divide” does feel like filler; there’s no contesting that. However, in an animated series where many early installments are contained and episodic, this isn’t so jarring. Additionally, the Nickelodeon show is from the era of television that still embraced filler episodes. And at under 30 minutes per chapter, it’s not that much of a slog to get through.

“The Great Divide” also gets flak for being heavy-handed with its messaging, which is then complicated by Aang’s lie at the end. There’s a valid argument to be made that Aang doesn’t learn anything useful from this installment, his main takeaway being to lie. However, it’s a pretty comical twist, and it leans into the reality that, sometimes, peace isn’t achievable just by doing the right thing. It’s not the best episode of The Last Airbender, but it’s not as terrible as people claim. Amid all the series’ wins, it’s easy to overlook.

1) “Fly” – Breaking Bad

Breaking Bad Season 3, Episode 10 is either a masterpiece or a travesty, depending who you ask, and a surprising number of people view “Fly” as the latter. To be fair, “Fly” is a bottle episode, and those tend to be divisive and treated like filler. However, Breaking Bad‘s is masterfully crafted, turning its central conflict — a fly contaminating the lab — into a clever metaphor for Walter White’s (Bryan Cranston) guilt. In that context, one has to admire the writers’ obvious talent for capturing the inner worlds of these characters.

The back-and-forth between Walt and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) is also fantastic, despite nothing really happening on the surface. From Jesse’s hilarious explanation of Ebola to the moment he captures a raisin and laments that the fly has “skills,” the dialogue is a great reminder of why Breaking Bad is such a hit. And despite the slower nature of “Fly,” the stakes are actually high; as Walter notes, there’s no more room for error. A contamination like this could cost both characters their lives.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

10 TV Show Twists That Fooled No One