15 Best TV Scenes Of 2025 (So Far)

As we enter the final months of 2025, TVLine is looking back at the past year in television, continuing with our list of the best TV scenes.

Some of our picks are memorable for making us bust out loud laughing, others because they absolutely broke our hearts, and a third category for... well, everything in between. But the one thing all of these scenes have in common is that we won't be forgetting about them anytime soon. Even if we wanted to.

As always, we should remind you that this list is a spoiler minefield if you aren't fully caught up on any of the shows mentioned. Our list of the year's best scenes includes unforgettable moments from "1923," "911," "Andor," "The Bear," "Gen V," "Hacks," "Overcompensating," "Peacemaker," "The Pitt," "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City," "Severance," "The Studio," "Task," "The Traitors" and "Will Trent." Don't want to be spoiled? Turn back now!

Read on to see TVLine's picks of 2025's best TV scenes, then drop a comment with your own favorites. Which moments would you add to this list?

Paramount+'s "Yellowstone" spinoff sure made us wait, eh? After physically separating newlyweds Spencer and Alexandra (aka "Alex") in the Season 1 finale — when he was thrown off an ocean liner after inadvertently killing her former fiancé, oops! — the series forced viewers to endure nearly an entire season of the lovers pining for each other as they fought to reunite. Spencer worked belowdecks, got shot at while smuggling bootleg booze and battled a train-hopping hobo to the death. Alex snuck away from her parents' prison, er, estate, made it through Ellis Island's grueling intake process, and was mugged and sexually assaulted before nearly freezing to death on the drive to Montana. Did it make logical sense that Spencer was able to spot his wife, waving in the snow, from the window of his train car? Nope. Did we care as he hopped off the back and the pair ran toward each other and embraced for the first time in months? Also nope! They kissed, he picked her up to carry her to safety, and she informed him he was going to be a father... and as far as we're concerned, that's where the series finale ended and you can't convince us otherwise. — Kimberly Roots

The "9-1-1" fandom has had, shall we say, thoughts about Buck and Eddie's relationship on the ABC procedural since Ryan Guzman's character was first introduced back in Season 2. After just six short years of waiting, Maddie finally asked her brother the question on all of those fans' minds in Episode 11 of Season 8: Do you have feelings for Eddie?

Buck, who came out as bisexual a season prior, vehemently denied having unspoken feelings for his bestie, an assertion that Oliver Stark has stood by in multiple TVLine interviews. But even if fans didn't get the official #Buddie confirmation they've been waiting for (and will still wait for... as long as it takes), it was satisfying to see the show finally address on screen what so many people had been talking about online.

"I was a little surprised by how head-on we wanted to face it," Stark told TVLine at the time. "Mostly surprised in the sense of wanting to tread carefully. You don't want to upset anyone, and you don't want to lead anyone on in the wrong direction. I've really learned to just trust in the writing of this show. Tim [Minear] is a master of what he does, and I place my fate — or Buck's fate — in his hands. If he thinks it's best to confront it head-on, then I do too."

Cassian Andor and his fellow rebels did whatever they could to weaken the Empire across the two seasons of Disney+'s Star Wars prequel... but the biggest blow may have come from a simple speech. In Season 2's ninth installment, Mon Mothma addressed the Galactic Senate in the horrifying wake of the Ghorman Massacre and spoke truth to power, accusing the Empire of committing "unprovoked genocide" against the Ghorman people and announcing herself as a rebel in disguise.

Mothma's powerful words — "The death of truth is the ultimate victory of evil" — ring especially true in today's chaotic political landscape, and Genevieve O'Reilly poured her heart and soul into every syllable, with Mothma bravely putting her life on the line for the greater good. The scene "was everything I was hoping for," O'Reilly told EW.com. "That's like the best gift you can get as an actor." And it was a gift for us, too. — D.N.

For all the flak it takes for not actually being a comedy — take it up with the Emmys, people! — Hulu's kitchen dramedy tops just about every other show on TV when it comes to authentic emotional moments between people just talking. Season 4 delivered another one with Episode 7, aka the big wedding episode, with countless Berzattos and Faks gathering for the nuptials of Richie's ex Tiff.The supersized installment was a dizzying blur of laughter and fun cameos (hi, Brie Larson!), but the highlight came when Richie and Tiff's daughter Eva was too shy to dance with Tiff's new husband Frank and hid under a table. Richie joined Eva under the table, accompanied by Frank and Claire, and they were soon joined by Carmy, and Nat, and Sydney... Eventually, the entire guest list was under that table, as they went around confessing what they're afraid of to help Eva feel less alone. It was sweet, it was funny, it was "The Bear" at its best. Although we're still wondering exactly how big that table was. — Dave Nemetz

It would have been satisfying enough to see the evil Thomas Godolkin defeated by in the finale of "Gen V" Season 2, but in typical "Boys" fashion, the spinoff went the extra mile by delivering a final face-off we won't soon forget. We loved seeing the "lesser" Supes of God U get to put their freaky talents to use against their high-and-mighty enemy, from Ally (aka Bushmaster) using her namesake to pin Godolkin down, to Black Hole helping everyone enter the fray via his... well, you know.

We could feel the new power coursing through Marie as she defeated Godolkin, a wonderfully ironic twist, considering he was the one who pushed her to become stronger. And the fact that the show managed to work in one last tribute to the late, great Chance Perdomo ("That was for Andre!") made this a battle for the books.

Season 5 of HBO Max's Jean Smart-led dramedy was all about Deborah achieving her dream gig — hosting a late-night TV show. But watching that dream go up in flames in under one season was not only shocking, but brilliantly executed and acted. After facing pressure from the network to host problematic guests and cut killer jokes, "Late Night With Deborah Vance" was already on high alert. But after Ava's loose lips revealed a network secret to the press, the network gave Deb an ultimatum: Fire Ava or lose the show. She chose to walk away.

"Yes, this is goodbye," Deborah said to her live audience in the season's penultimate episode. "I loved going to bed with you every night. Sorry I'm finishing too quickly! This was my dream, and I'm so happy I got it. But the dream changed... and so did I." Smart filled Deborah's last late-night hurrah with so much emotion and heart, we couldn't help but watch it more than once, eyes growing tearier by the second. — Nick Caruso

"Overcompensating" delivered a heart-wrenching scene in the most unexpected of places: a college Halloween party. In fur and fringe, Benny and Miles took over the dance floor as Lewis and Clark, embarking on a night full of flirtation. It all seemed to be building to Benny's first hook-up — though he was still trying to pass as a straight man — when Miles asked him if they could ditch the party to go back to his empty dorm room. But when the shot widened, we saw Miles was motioning to a girl he'd just met, not Benny. Upon realizing the night may not have been what he thought it was, Benny was left standing alone on the dance floor, stunned, and on the verge of tears. Across the room, his bestie Carmen looked on, having witnessed the entire interaction. They headed toward each other, and Carmen said, "I love you." Through tears, Benny said it back, and for the first time, he didn't have to overcompensate for anything; Carmen saw him for who he was, and it only strengthened their bond. In the end, the scene masterfully punctured the show's absurd veneer with coming-of-age realness at just the right time. — Claire Franken

When it comes to memorable scenes, "Peacemaker" has always been an embarrassment of riches, but there was something about this one that was just so... satisfying. The only thing we like more than one Nazi being defeated, it's an entire pool full of Nazis meeting their fitting end, and the latter is exactly what we got in Season 2 Episode 7. The moment came as Adebayo was on the run from a small hoard of Earth-X Nazis, which she led into a pool, where Judomaster gave them the shock of a lifetime. ("Zippity zap, b*tches!") That final shot of a single Croc floating among the Nazis' lifeless bodies was merely the cherry on top. The post-rescue scene of Adebayo and Judomaster bonding over a game of Scrabble was also an excellent touch. — Andy Swift

Newly minted Emmy winner Noah Wyle earned TVLine's Performer of the Week for his harrowing turn in The Pitt's 13th episode, which ends with our hoodied hero collapsing on the floor of PTMC's pediatric ward. When Robby wheeled Jake into the makeshift morgue — the same room where he'd taken his mentor off ECMO four years earlier — his PTSD spiked. And after an inconsolable Jake asked why he couldn't save his girlfriend, mass-shooting victim Leah, all bets were off. The pain of the previous 13 hours — losing Mr. Spencer, then Nick, then Amber, now Leah — finally crushed him. He rushed Jake out, then curled into a ball, face bright red, sobbing uncontrollably. Wyle had warned us it was all building to this moment, but we never could have predicted just how completely Robby would shatter — or how extraordinary Wyle would be in bringing him there. — Ryan Schwartz

Apple TV's cerebral sci-fi thriller kept us guessing throughout Season 2, from Helena posing as Helly to whatever the heck was happening with those goats. But it saved the best surprise for last, with Mark S. running through the halls of Lumon with his presumed-dead wife Gemma in the final moments of the season finale. They looked headed for a blissful reunion away from Lumon's evil clutches, but as Gemma passed through the exit doors, Helly ran up and called out for Mark... and Mark froze.

The suspense was agonizing as Mark looked back and forth between his Outie's wife Gemma, screaming for him to join her, and his work wife Helly, who's really the strongest connection this Innie has ever known. In the end, Mark ditched Gemma to run off with Helly, bathed in red light as Mel Tormé's haunting "The Windmills of Your Mind" played underneath. It was an absolute triumph of acting, writing and filmmaking: shocking at first, but actually inevitable, the more we thought about it. We did feel bad for poor Gemma... and we can't wait to see how it all turns out in Season 3. — D.N.

Asking us to pick the best scene from the debut season of Apple TV's "The Studio" is like asking us to pick between our children — assuming our children were let loose in Las Vegas, tripping on shrooms. Which brings us to our pick!

Episode 9 of the industry-focused comedy sent the gang to Sin City for CinemaCon, where an already stressful situation became infinitely more so when psychedelics were introduced into the equation. (Ain't that always the case?) But hey, our jobs weren't on the line here, so we relished every second of studio head Griffin's (Bryan Cranston) descent into FUBAR territory. And the nacho monster was hardly alone; it wasn't long before the whole group realized they'd unknowingly taken an alarmingly high dose of magic mushrooms ("Is that why I'm so f**king high?!" asked Kathryn Hahn's Maya), resulting in one of the year's most magical moments. — A.S.

HBO's tense crime drama threw plenty of action and twists at us across its seven episodes, but it's the quieter moments that actually resonated the most. Case in point: Mark Ruffalo's FBI agent Tom had been pursuing Tom Pelphrey's thief and kidnapper Robbie for most of the series when their paths finally intersected in Episode 5, with Tom stumbling upon Robbie and getting taken hostage. Robbie ordered Tom to drive at gunpoint — and that's where things got really interesting.

As they drove, the conversation turned from pressing matters to more philosophical ones, as Robbie opened up about the murder of his brother Billy, and Tom told him about his past life as a priest, with a few teasing jabs traded back and forth. They weren't cop and robber during that car ride; they were just two people connecting over what they had in common. (It was some of Ruffalo and Pelphrey's best work, too.) No, Robbie and Tom didn't ride off into the sunset together as best friends, but that scene still lingers in our minds as a prime example of "Task's" unshakeable humanity. — D.N.

Traitors Boston Rob Mariano, Danielle Reyes, Bob the Drag Queen and Carolyn Wiger were a straight up hot mess in Season 3, and it all began when Rob went after Bob at the Episode 4 roundtable. Yes, Bob did suggest that one of the castle's late arrivals (which included Boston Rob, Wes Bergmann and Derrick Levasseur) was probably a traitor, and that's all B.R. needed to target his fellow traitor and turn the tables against him. In one of the season's best roundtables, Bob the Drag Queen did everything he could. He swore to God that he wasn't a traitor (oops). He stood "ten toes down," promising that he'd never tell a lie. He even tried to hold a figurative mirror up to Rob's face, trying to heave his opponent's attacks back at him. It was all for naught, and Bob was banished with 11 votes to his name. It was a riveting, edge-of-your-seat reality showdown that lit the season — and our TV screens — on fire. — N.C.

ABC's acclaimed police drama danced its way to an Emmy nomination with Season 3's 13th hour. After Will ingested some of Olas Collective's "soul water," both he and the audience were transported to a disco fantasia at APD headquarters, where the entire ensemble — Ramón Rodríguez, Erika Christensen, Jake McLaughlin, Iantha Richardson, Sonja Sohn, Gina Rodriguez... even Betty! — tripped the light fantastic to Donna Summer's "Let's Dance." It was completely unexpected, not to mention wildly out of character for the show. And yet, we couldn't wipe the smile off our faces when Will came down with a (Saturday Night) fever. The entire sequence, dazzling and disorienting in equal measure, captured a rare moment of levity amid the procedural's grit. Suffice it to say, the nod for outstanding choreography was more than deserved — and proof that even "Will Trent" knows how to let loose every once in a while. — R.S.

If you're looking for the perfect party game for your next gathering with close friends, boy do we have one you'll love — that is, assuming you want everyone to end the night as enemies. In the Season 5 finale of "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City," the ladies went around the table sharing the meanest, nastiest texts they've sent about the other women in an effort to clear the air and move forward. Spoiler alert: No air was cleared and no relationships moved forward. Instead, tears were shed, new insults were thrown and friendships were damaged beyond repair. 

It may have been difficult to watch, but it was an instant-classic scene, which is no easy feat for a Bravo show — there's a lot of competition already. Our personal "favorite" (aka the darkest thing we've ever heard) was what Angie K. said about new cast member Bronwyn Newport: "I like her business plan, marrying a guy who has one foot in the grave and one on a banana peel." All we can say is, we hope Bronwyn's husband Todd stays far away from the produce section. — A.S.