Best single episode in TV history

"As god as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."

 

From the animated comedy division, Futurama had several.
"Parasites Lost" is simply awesome. Fry eats a worm-infested sandwich and the crew shrinks down to microscopic size to root them out of his colon. Not only was it a nicely done parody of "Fantastic Voyage," there were tons of great one-liners zipping around in just about every scene. Easily one of the best episodes of a great series.
"The Problem with Popplers" was in the same vein. Lots of great one-liners that just keep you rolling from start to finish.

There were also two outstanding "serious" episodes. "Jurassic Bark" is a well known board favorite. "Godfellas" was a surprisngly deep take on religion that doesn't really hit you how philosophical it is until the final few scenes.

 

Two Cathedrals, The West Wing.

 

Thanks, Ruckus. Now I won't be able to click on this thread without wanting to hug my dog.

 

For comedy, I nominate "The Puffy Shirt" Seinfeld episode.
For serious, "Love's Labor Lost" is a good one. I can't remember exact episode names but NYPD Blue episodes where Sipowicz dealt with heartbreak were powerful, like Bobby dying or Andy Jr. dying. There were also some standout episodes of Third Watch.

 

I came on to mention "The Shield" finale, but there were a whole bunch of other episodes worth mentioning. The one before the finale and the season five finale, when something major happens that I won't mention because I don't want to spoil it. And yes, the Armadillo episode was a good one, too.

 

'The Contest' and 'The Betrayal' are among the best overall episodes for any comedy, and 'The Chinese Restaurant.'
But they aren't as jokey as some other episodes.

Either 'The Strike' or 'The Serenity Now' is my personal favorite.
I love the Elaine subplot in 'The Serenity Now' when she develops 'shiksappeal.'
Great Elaine moment: Right now every able-bodied Israelite in the tri-county area's driving pretty hard to the hoop.

 

Seinfeld episodes are tough because there tends to be so much happening in each one. But I agree on Puffy Shirt ... it had a little of everything, but what made it work is lots of Frank and Estelle Costanza ... Frank with the whole silver-dollar thing in the restaurant, Estelle wanting George to take the civil service exam. And then he gets the hand-modeling job and we get this priceless exchange:

Estelle: Georgie ... do you want some jello?

Frank: Why did you put the bananas in there?

Estelle: GEORGE. LIKES. THE BANANAS!!!!!!

Frank: SO LET HIM HAVE THE BANANAS ON THE SIDE!!!!!!

George: Alright! Please, please! I cannot have this constant bickering! Stress is very damaging to the epidermis! Now, I have an important photo session in the morning - my hands have got to be in tip-top shape, so please - keep the television down, and the conversation to a minimum.

ESTELLE: But Georgie.. what about the jello?

GEORGE: I'll take it in my room.

 

Surprised to find no Simpsons mentions over the first two pages. Homer at the Bat and 22 Short Films about Springfield are brilliant.

Another vote for Lost and The Constant. Hard to believe that aired almost five years ago.

 

what does a yellow light mean?

 

Stoney beat me to it, but in the sit-com division, it's hard to top WKRP's Thanksgiving episode.

In the stand-alone drama division, one that sticks out for me was the Law & Order season-ender where Lenny Briscoe fell off the wagon and Claire Kincaid was broadsided after pouring him home. The suddenness of it was just stunning.