New kids on the block: Rating the top 4 pilot episodes from recent months
Emma Boyne, Contributor
In today’s age, finding a TV show that hasn’t been done is difficult. With repeated plots, stereotypical characters and lack of invigorating dynamics, I’ve struggled to hang on to a series because of the time commitment. And why do I usually quit TV shows? The answer: because I couldn’t get past the first episode. Pilot episodes are more than important. They introduce the entire show and try to convince you why you need just another taste of what’s going to happen next.
This week, I tasked myself with sitting down and watching four different pilot episodes, each from a newer series that has gotten audiences talking.
4. The Glory
Date of Release: 2022, new season in March
The satisfaction of a well-written revenge plot is something almost everyone can relate to and enjoy. Currently one of the top three K-Dramas on Netflix, the show introduces each character with precision and motive. We see the main character, Dong Eun, grow from a scared and tormented girl to a strong and independent woman, seeking justice against those who abused her both physically and mentally. Each person who tormented her is on her hit list, and she’s ready to kill to get what she wants.
While the storyline does follow the classic bully plot where rich people don’t get consequences, the TV show draws more appeal by not focusing on the torment, but rather focusing on Eun herself.
I did enjoy the premise and the character, but the episode itself wasn’t as strong of a pull as many of the others on this list.
The episode sets the scene, and has viewers saying “alright, let’s see what’s next,” but doesn’t have that “I need to know” feel to it. I will probably continue to watch the show, and I definitely know that the satisfaction of revenge will have me content, but I’m waiting to see if the later season pulls me in more than this episode.
3. The Last of Us
Date of Release: 2023
When I say I was excited for this show, that is an understatement. A fungal zombie infection, or any zombie outbreak, is sure to catch my attention, especially when it relates to a renowned video game. It begins like a typical zombie start up where we meet a typecast jumbled old military man, Joel, who tries to help his family escape this viral outbreak.
The beginning is a classic, and I do love zombie movies, but it is a bit cliche for the purpose of pilot episodes. Where the show really got me focused is the jump forward where we meet Ellie, a strong female character who has the mouth of a sailor. Both Joel and Ellie are really well casted, and the dynamic between the two grisly and hardened characters is refreshing.
While this episode was probably more cliche than The Glory, the hype around it (as well as my own inner nerd) has me biased in putting it at number three. We get to see life after the zombie outbreak, and don’t have to wait for the plot to unfold slowly and unnervingly. I enjoy that characters know what to do, and know why they are doing what they do.
After this episode, I’m excited to try and spot Calgary throughout the series, and again, I can’t wait to see how the plotline unfolds.
2. White Lotus
Date of Release: 2021, new season released 2022
White Lotus has been the talk of the town since season 2 released, with a star-studded cast and a well-developed sinister secret hiding behind each character. With all the chatter, I had to see what audiences were so intrigued about.
The pilot episode brings us to the White Lotus hotel, with a variety of different guests staying for a variety of different reasons.
Each family or person has a different issue or reason that brings them to the White Lotus, and the more we see these characters interact, the more we question: what is really going on here? Each relationship seems out of place, or off, and each character struggles to truly relax at the hotel. While each character and the introduction of the show feels comedic and almost typical, you can tell that something isn’t quite right at the White Lotus, foreshadowed by the birth of a baby while a new hire is on the job, an unexpected and surprising moment that has audiences on the edge of their seats wondering why and how will this impact the future, and if it’s an omen for episodes to come.
With seemingly simple characters that I’m sure have much deeper and complex backgrounds, the draw of the darkness behind colour and light is one of my favourite tropes and appeals to the series. Definitely on my to finish list, I’m already growing anxious to see how backstories and interactions intertwine, and how White Lotus might reveal the secrets of the guests.
1. Yellowjackets
Date of Release: 2021, new season coming in March
I don’t say this lightly; this is possibly one of the best pilot episodes I have ever, and I mean ever, seen.
With jarring and jumping timelines, the beginning opens with a brutal cult-like murder, and we can only guess at who is dying, why they’re dying, and who did it. We jump to months earlier, where we meet a strong group of girls playing soccer, working hard to get to nationals. We meet each character, and discover their dynamics, interactions and overall personalities.
The first episode has audiences trying to piece together a puzzle that has yet to even be explained, and while the plane crash happens at the end of the episode, we can already understand just how impactful the few years in isolation really were. We get to also meet the characters years ahead, trying to forget and forgive their past selves and lives, and we wonder what really happened out there?
I’ll make the confession that I ended up staying up until the early hours of the morning to finish the series, entrapped in the motives and consequences, eyes-wide and curious as to the actions taken in each episode. With a mix of timelines, you don’t feel bored and you fall in love with the sick and twisted newness of the new-turned cult soccer team and how they will survive, but more importantly, who will survive.
