10 Best TV Episodes Of 2026 (So Far)

A whole lotta good television has already aired this year across broadcast, cable, and streaming — and some of those TV episodes have been so good, we're still thinking about them months later.

A night on the town for the "Abbott Elementary" educators. An incredibly stressful shift at "The Bear." (More stressful than usual, that is.) A milestone "NCIS" outing that brought the departure of a longtime cast member. These installments, and seven others, made the cut for our list of 2026's best TV episodes to date, part of our ongoing Year in Review (So Far) series.

Also on our list: a sophomore "BEEF" hour that brought to light some horrors of our health care system, a "Hacks" episode that delivered a Deborah/Ava kiss (!), and a Patricia-centric "Widow's Bay" offering that stood out in an overall impressive freshman run, among others.

But we won't spoil all of our picks right away. Keep scrolling to see all of our favorite TV episodes in 2026 (thus far), then drop a comment with your own selections!

We hated seeing Janine and Gregory's picture-perfect romance get shattered this season on ABC's schoolhouse comedy, but we did love seeing those two let loose on separate nights out on the Philly bar scene, drowning their post-breakup sorrows in a tidal wave of booze. Tyler James Williams was hilarious enough as a sloshed Gregory kept bugging the DJ to play "This Is Why I'm Hot" again, but Quinta Brunson was the episode's clear MVP, with Janine getting buck wild after a few Long Island iced teas, firing off savage insults at Ava and grabbing other people's mozzarella sticks as they passed by. (We love a buck wild Janine.) Throw in an "Avatar" movie night for Melissa, Barbara, and Mr. Johnson and Jacob throwing down a dizzying array of dunks (!) on the basketball court, and this episode showed how much fun the "Abbott" crew can have when they step out of the classroom. — Dave Nemetz

The fifth and final season of Hulu's culinary dramedy mostly spanned a single day and night at Carmy and Sydney's restaurant, and all the obstacles they faced — a biblical rainstorm, a crush of overbooked guests, a depleted pantry — culminated in this episode, where the chefs and staff put on one hell of a service anyway. The extended episode ran 52 minutes, and we felt absolutely spent by the end of it, watching Carmy and his crew go the extra mile to make this meal one that their guests would never forget. (Even the accident-prone Neil Fak managed to provide vital customer service to a VIP diner.) It was "The Bear" at its very best, blending nail-biting tension with raw emotional crises — Carmy dropping a dish at the last second was truly heartbreaking — and then bringing it all back home with a sweet reminder that, through it all, whether they like it or not, these people will always be family. — D.N.

Season 2 of Netflix's grudge-fueled anthology was all about money: who has it, who doesn't, and how everyone is driven by it, no matter how much they have or don't have. That all came into focus in the fourth episode, which tackled our nation's health care crisis in stark, horrifying terms, spinning a nightmare scenario where a pain-ridden Ashley was forced to jump through ridiculous hoops and endless paperwork just to get seen by a doctor in an ER. It played out like a "Black Mirror" episode, with Ashley learning what a deductible is and being forced to calculate exactly how much she's willing to spend out of pocket to stop the crippling pain she's feeling. It was darkly comedic at times — poor Ashley was still asking about her deductible while being prepped for surgery — but it was also the kind of sharply acidic satire "BEEF" specializes in, holding up a mirror so we can see how broken our system has become. — D.N.

After deciding she wanted to wear Carol Burnett's Bob-Mackie-designed jumpsuit during her big Madison Square Garden performance, Deborah and Ava went undercover as a romantic couple to woo a fellow comedian who didn't particularly care for Deb that much. When they found themselves at the doorstep of Kelly Kilpatrick (played by the phenomenal Cherry Jones), the woman who owned the outfit in question, Ava was forced to moonlight as her boss's "girlfriend" in order to curry favor and snag the 'fit. From there, she worked overtime to make Deborah as uncomfortable as possible, leading to all sorts of touchy-feely flirting... and even some kissing! The episode also featured Leslie Bibb as Kelly's free-spirited wife, Monica, and just hanging out with these uninhibited women for this one-off episode was an absolute riot. — Nick Caruso

Henry Muck's deep depression and family trauma set the stage for Kit Harington to deliver a dramatic acting clinic in the HBO financial drama's fourth season. As life seemed to crumble around the listless Henry, the episode slowly peeled back his layers, eventually revealing that the horror he witnessed as a child was his father's suicide. And that horrifying moment had haunted him ever since. Not only did the episode explore the depths of Henry's character, it also explained why the man's mental health was struggling so much. The "Game of Thrones" vet rose to the challenge, delivering a performance full of anger, unease, and heartbreak — another heavy, yet beautifully executed installment of one of TV's most underrated greats. — N.C.

CBS' hit procedural has a lengthy history behind it — 23 seasons' worth, and counting — and that history informed and enriched this bittersweet installment, which saw Rocky Carroll's director Leon Vance killed in the line of duty, with Carroll exiting the cast after nearly two decades. The landmark 500th episode served up a twisty mystery as Vance raced to prevent the NCIS team from being shut down, and it also included plenty of fun nods to the show's past, including a deep-cut callback to the show's second episode ever. Knowing all that history made Vance's goodbye all the more emotional, as he had a heart-to-heart with the ghost version of Ducky before reuniting with his late wife Jackie. It was both a perfect send-off for a beloved "NCIS" character and a perfect gift to "NCIS" fans, rewarding them for their years of loyal service. — D.N.

Most medical dramas revolve around the doctors, which is why Season 2's sixth episode stands apart for devoting an entire hour to the nurses whose compassion and resilience make emergency medicine possible. Directed by series star Noah Wyle, this remarkable hour focuses on the people doing the hands-on work — comforting frightened patients, training the next generation, and somehow finding the strength to do it all again the next day. Reigning Supporting Actress Emmy winner Katherine LaNasa is particularly great as charge nurse Dana Evans, whose lingering trauma from a Season 1 assault is reawakened when a frustrated patient grabs Emma's arm. Later, after Dana walks Emma through preparing Louie's body after his death, the young nurse asks a question Dana cannot answer: "Why do you keep coming back?" Season 2 never circles back to it, yet LaNasa's performance makes clear that Dana never stops asking it of herself, giving the episode an emotional resonance that lingers long after it ends. — Ryan Schwartz

Season 50's celebrity cameos were the most polarizing elements of the celebratory season, but when MrBeast showed up with a Super Beware Advantage, our interest was certainly piqued. Not only did the episode contain the fan-favorite Survivor Auction, but once MrBeast spilled the tea about his mystery briefcase, the castaways (and we) were shook. One player flipped a coin and called it in the air. If that player guessed it right, he was not only safe, but would earn an immunity idol and increase the final prize to $2 million. Guess wrong, and suffer an instant elimination from the game. (Thanks to Rick Devens, the season's victor wound up winning double the cash.) Tense, shocking, and just dang fun, the MrBeast twist will forever go down as one of the game's biggest and bravest moments ever. — N.C.

When Lisa Rinna is given a task, you know she's gonna make a meal out of it. Enter the deadly amulet, a stunning accoutrement given to her to pull off one of the show's most wicked murders in plain sight. Despite the fact that the cast was on its toes — if you're invited to a couture evening in Alan Cumming's castle, some dire business is about to go down — Lisa was able to get Yam Yam Arocho dragged out of the game (literally, and by masked henchmen!) by getting him to touch her precious accessory. But that wasn't all! The electricity and drama carried over to the roundtable where, despite defending her "air kiss" on Yam Yam's cheek at the banquet, the fierce and feisty Housewife (and, yep, Traitor!) was banished from the game. — N.C.

It's always a treat to watch a star be born on our TV screens, and that's exactly what happened with British actress Kate O'Flynn, who turned her municipal assistant Patricia into one of this year's best characters with Episode 4 of Apple TV's breakout hit. Desperate to give her social life a boost (and stick it to Widow's Bay's snobbiest clique), Patricia followed the steps in a recently discovered self-help book to throw the perfect party... only to discover with horror, later on, that the book was really a demonic tome of some sort, and her soirée had possessed all of its attendees. Every beat of Patricia's emotional journey — from her elation that the party was a hit, to the mortifying reveal that her party tiara was actually an antler headdress — was played by O'Flynn with pitch-perfect authenticity, and the "Rhythm of the Night" dance floor sequence proved how cleverly "Widow's Bay" can inject legitimate horror into otherwise light-hearted moments. — Rebecca Luther

What have been your favorite TV episodes of 2026 thus far? Tell us below!