The Scariest & Disturbing Television Episodes: Vol. 1

Hello and welcome to my blog! Those of my fellow bloggers that know me, I am repeating this opening dialogue and thinking about doing so for the rest of this blog's lifeline (It kind of is suitable for a horror host, isn't it?). For those of you who don't, it is simple. I am your host, one who prefers the balance between the glorious embrace for light and the twisted love for the dark. Ever since I was little, I loved horror (Even though a lot of people thought I was crazy). I thought it was natural for anyone to have a curiosity to see what the dark side is like. Not everything is as evil as it seems since often times we may witness the dramatic side of it. Often times it has a comedic side. Other times it even has romantic feelings for you, but for now let's talk about tonight's showcase. I showcase several things from both the critically acclaimed, the cult gems, the unique messes, or the unknown and forgotten. I also tend to rate some of them (Depending on if they can be rated). Tonight is going to be a very special occasion (Not because it's Thanksgiving). I have recently taken a keen interest on lists of creepy and terrifying television shows that I have watched throughout my life and find them immensely disturbing for all ages. There will be some cartoons on here also. Just because anything is animated doesn't mean it cannot be creepy. I will also give a brief summary of each episode as to not leave anyone in the dark, but I will not completely spoil it's entirety also. If anyone seems to think that I have forgotten or ignored an episode, do not worry, for I haven't watched them yet and will be making another list like this in the future. I will now like to present to you my compilation of: The most creepiest & scariest television episodes of all time....

Night Gallery: The Cemetery

This was the opening pilot to Night Gallery, an anthology series created by Rod Serling which garnered a beloved cult following status. This was also Rod Serling's scariest episode. The story focuses on jeremy Evans, an ungrateful nephew who's uncle, William Hendricks, is deathly sick and is taken care of by his butler, Osmond Portifoy. Jeremy kills his uncle solely for his wealthy inheritance. Much to Osmond's dismay, Jeremy inherits to house and the wealth. As Jeremy happily celebrates Will's death, his focus suddenly shifts on a peculiar painting his uncle made of the nearby family graveyard. After Osmond abandons Jeremy due to his vulgar behavior, Jeremy is left alone with the ever-changing painting of his uncle William rising back from the dead.

Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories: The Umbrella Goddess

The 8th entry of the highly appraised new anime series, Yamishibai. The anime is noteworthy of it's animation style created similar to kamishibai, the art of Japanese paper puppetry. It tells of a young boy named Kenji deciding to visit his friend Takeru during the summer. Everything goes well until Kenji is left alone with an eerie woman holding an umbrella with her teeth. After Kenji mentions this lady to Takeru, the parents overhear and panic. The father locks Kenji up in the shed outside and warns him to never open the door for anyone until the following morning. Out of confusion, Kenji obliges and decides to wait it out, until his friend visits him and then the mayhem ensues.

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour: The Final Escape

During the 60's, famous acclaimed host Alfred Hitchcock had his own anthology of psychological short stories. His other stories didn't have much of a surprising impact as much as "The final Escape" did. The episode featured John Perry, a bank robber who finally gets captured and is sentenced to 15 years in prison. This prison also happens to be a labor camp, which the state feels fine with placing John there. The story also happens to revolve around another inmate Doc, who is the oldest member of the camp. Doc dreams of seeing his granddaughter, who is in serious need of an operation, but fears his own condition being in the way. John overhears this and makes a deal with him: If Doc can help John escape from the camp, John will help finance in the operation Doc's granddaughter needs. The plan seems completely perfect, except one tiny problem.

The X-Files: Home

This episode is extremely disturbing and violent (Obviously not exactly for the faint of heart here). It also deals with one of society's most tabooed topics. The most well known "Monster Of The Week" episode takes us to Home, Pennsylvania where our famous duo, Fox Mulder & Dana Scully, are called on about the mysterious discovery of a deformed infant which was buried in a baseball field. The local sheriff tries to warn them about the Peacock family, a group of brothers who own a farm right next to the field. The duo learned that the brothers never left the farm for an entire decade after the death of their parents. The duo believes that the Peacock brothers kidnapped and continuously rape a woman inside their home. That idea goes down the drain when they find something far more sinister inside.

Hey Arnold!: Ghost Bride

During the run of Hey Arnold!, the most notable episodes fans remember revolve around the 4th graders investigating a local urban legend. Even though the show is set in a comedic slice-of-life style, this episode is more creepier than the others featured during the entire run. Gerald, Arnold's best friend, recalls the local myth since he is reigned "The Keeper of the Tales", even though Curly is upset over the decision. The story mentions a young woman who is excited about her upcoming wedding. The day it finally happens, she has been waiting for hours for her fiancé to show up. A week later she finds out her ran off and married her sister instead, which greatly angers the bride. On the same night, she dresses herself up in her wedding gown, carries an ax all the way to their house and dismembers them in their sleep. When the police arrive, she is found singing the "Wedding March" before she jumps out the window to her death. When the team decides to investigate the local graveyard, Helga is left out solely on the basis that she is a girl. She then decides to prank the boys back by playing as the bride, but things then take a sudden turn for the worse.

MTV Fear: Mina Dos Estrellas

Though it was also another mark on MTV furthering from anything music related (And also the fact it contained screwed up challenges), MTV Fear was a memorable reality game show that threw random people into "haunted" locations around the world (I say haunted like that since some of the areas actually don't exist.) and make them do challenges for two nights in order to win money. The interesting part of MTV Fear is it's "uninvolvement", that being no camera crews or no help for the two days (They were only accompanied by night vision cameras on their chest). The only connection to the outside world is a computer logged into the MTV Fear website. The most notable place was called Mina Dos Estrellas, an abandoned mine in Mexico where it is currently ravaged by a Nahual, a type of shapeshifting creature. The team was so paranoid that it remains the only time everyone quit. Yet the challenge was brought back up again to see if anyone could complete the dares.

Hora Maracada: El Último Metro

A popular Mexican series that ran during the late 80's, it developed a small cult following. The most horrific stories are ones that can actually happen; Meaning no supernatural crap. In this episode, a woman goes to the Department of Information to complain when around 3:00, everybody in the building magically disappears. She is about to head home in disappointment until two men kidnap her and take her to the building's basement, where she is questioned about her health by several odd people. In a state of confusion (and dehydration), the woman becomes more scared when the continue to examine her and mention how much in "great condition" she is. All of this happening to her before she can reach the last metro back home.

Doctor Who: Blink

Whovians and Horror junkies alike always remember this creepy episode (And the most terrifying species). The episode takes The Doctor and his companion Martha, back in time to warn a girl named Sally about these creepy aliens who are trying to have their hands on the TARDIS for pure evil (and a satisfying appetite I believe). Except these are not you're average species of alien, no they have a clever disguise on Earth. They look exactly like angel statues you would find at a grand Catholic church, except they mostly cover their eyes from freezing into place, giving them the title "Weeping Angels". These creatures feed off human existence (If they touch you, you get sent back in time to where you were never born, thus leaving behind an energy aura of your existence for them to swallow up.) The entire episode mainly focuses on Sally and her best friend'd brother Larry trying to take the TARDIS back to the Doctor before the Weeping Angels control it.

XxxHolic: Summer Shade

Even though XxxHolic is a occult supernatural series, and several of it's episodes make us feel a bit scared, the one that takes the cake for scariness is definitely Summer Shade. The story is setup at a beach house that Yūko, the time witch, and her timid helper, Kimihiro Watanuki, rent out for the summer occasion. They are accompanied by Watanuki's crush (Himawari Kunogi), his "rival" (Shizuka Dōmeki) and their outgoing companion Mokona. The scenes with them are often cut by a woman writing on the walls of a darkened room, waiting for a certain lover to come back. During their stay, Watanuki is afraid of going to the ocean (Since he can see the spirits of the dead) and Dōmeki continues to ask if he needs help. In the middle of the night, Watanuki hears scratching coming from the other side of the wall, though he confirms his room at the end of the hall. He then finds a hidden door and enters the exact room the woman was writing in, much to his shock of meeting the local "inhabitant".

Criminal Minds: The Lesson

Criminal Minds is noteworthy as a shocking investigation series, with all of the episodes cringe-inducing. A memorable episode starts with the BAU team locating several bodies in Arizona inside strange coffins. The victims were killed off in the most bizarre fashion: Hair dyed black, the body parts are all dislocated and victims died from hanging (Even though they've been hanged several times before death hit them). Believing it to be a ritualistic murder (It got strengthened when the 3rd victim had holes pierced through his hands), the team tries to fill in Adam Rain as a crazed holy fanatic. It's up until he kidnaps a father and son that they realize what his real goal is: To use the victims as marionettes to reenact a certain incident that traumatized Adam.

Courage The Cowardly Dog: King Ramses' Curse

A fan favorite animated series, Courage The Cowardly Dog featured the titular character facing off monsters of all kinds to protect his beloved owner, Murielle, and her antagonizing husband, Eustace. It took it's family friendly rating to it's limits without reaching a mature audience rating (Thank God there's slapstick humor). Even though it's hard to pinpoint which episode scared the crap out of viewers, this one is often the most viewed throughout. It tells of a stolen slab that Courage digs up and brings back home. Eustace, at first glance thinking it's garbage, decides to keep it due to the news report claiming it's worth. The spirit of King Ramses heeds Eustace to return the slab or face three plagues, each one worse than the last. Thinking it is a professor who recently tried to claim it from him earlier, Eustace refuses, thus putting him and the rest of the farmhouse in horrible danger.

The Hitchhiker: Killer

An interesting Canadian anthology series that's quite a gemstone, featuring stuff like nudity that we be too taboo and censored for audiences like the U.S. The series has a strange unnamed hitchhiker (Whom is our beloved host) arriving to a random location where something terrible is always going to happen. The most chilling and most well acted episode (Even though it still has some cheesy performances) is simply titled "Killer" where a young girl named Meg Kinderly is horrified to find everyone in her home dead. The killer is still roaming around the grounds while Meg, stuck to a wheelchair, is only armed with her shotgun. She runs around the house trying to hide herself from them while several disadvantages are thrown at her, such as the power going out. Since there is no help for Meg, she then decides to have a final showdown with the killer while still playing a tension driven hide & go seek.

Tales Of The Unexpected: The Landlady

Roald Dahl is a strange comedic genius, being quite the king of irony himself. He has written actually some great works with a lot of them containing some sense of humor (Even if it's twisted). He also had a show based solely on his works, including the extremely unsettling. If you think he couldn't write such great horror, then have a look at this episode, which tells of a young man named Billy Weaver who is on a business trip. He happens to stumble across a local Bed & Breakfast, where he meets the strange landlady who immediately (And I mean fast as fuck) greets him with open arms and a smile. He at first feels welcomed with the motherly attitude the landlady sports, but is soon realizing the eerie setting he's in due to the lack of guest appearances (Which she claims that there are more upstairs) and the feeling he's heard of the guests before. It all leads off to one of the greatest ironic twists of television.

Okay, and here we go....

I'm not going to rate these episodes on how I feel about them (That would take more time to analyze). It is up to you guys to debate on which is scary, since everyone has different fears and experiences. I will mention that it is an incomplete list, as there are many more creepy episodes and series than this. So do expect of me returning every once in a while to contribute to this list. I am also interested in making other lists as well (Since TV episodes aren't the only interesting things here). Other than that, I really hoped you've enjoyed today's post. I will be hopefully seeing you all very soon. Buenas Noches!