TV Fireworks: 25 Most Explosive Moments
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THE AMERICANS
We're not sure who was more surprised by Elizabeth and Philip's big reveal: Paige, who now knows her parents are spies, or the viewers, who never actually thought they'd clue her in.
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ARROW
Sure, Sara's (actual) death set Season 3 in motion, but it was Oliver's (seeming) demise at the hand of Ra's that blew up the narrative bigtime, leaving us (theoretically) wondering how the show would possibly go on!
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THE BLACKLIST
We figured Liz had something major planned for the NBC drama's second season finale, but killing General Connolly and landing on the FBI's Most Wanted list?! Boom.
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BROOKLYN NINE-NINE
It would have been nice to have some fireworks on hand to celebrate Jake and Amy's big season finale kiss; we had to settle for jumping up and down and screaming. It just didn't have the same impact.
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CASTLE
In a thrilling one-two punch that brought to an end the 3XK mythology, Castle lured Jerry Tyson into a lethal trap while Beckett broke free from her own confines and gutted Dr. Nieman with her scalpel.
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EMPIRE
Jamal needed to prove himself as the rightful heir to the Lyon family dynasty, and threatening to toss Beretti off a balcony was a pretty explosive — not to mention effective — way to get that done.
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GAME OF THRONES
We've never wanted to redefine the word "dead" as much as when Jon Snow painted the ground red at the close of Thrones' fifth season. And with no more George R.R. Martin books for the producers to draw from, it's anyone's guess as to what the future holds (or doesn't) for our favorite crow.
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GREY'S ANATOMY
And, of course, the moment that seems to merit a spot in every TV-related slideshow. (Don't make us recount the sad specifics.)
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HANNIBAL
Hannibal blithely popping an ice pick into Sogliato's head during dinner was enough to make the realest of Real Housewives remark, "Wow, that was an tense meal."
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HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER
Sure, we could have gone with one of the season's multiple murders for this honor, but none were as explosive as Connor's copy-room rendezvous with Pax. (If only Pax were still alive to tell us what exactly Connor did that made his eyes water...)
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THE LEFTOVERS
The townsfolk took "bringing down the house" to a whole new level when they torched the Guilty Remnant's headquarters. (Nice, guys. Real hospitable.)
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MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.
What's to become of Simmons? We have yet to see. Thus, Season 2's most explosive moment is when Skye, after being exposed to the Terrigen mist, "exploded" forth from her chrysalis as something decidedly... inhuman.
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ONCE UPON A TIME
In Season 4's final moments, the identity of the Dark One — whom we have almost exclusively known as Rumplestiltskin — was transferred to, of all people, Emma the Savior. A walk on the dark side for Miss Swan, indeed.
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ORPHAN BLACK
As with our McDreamy slide, we'd rather not relive the loss of Dylan Bruce's Paul Dierden. Just know that it happened... and that we wept.
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PERSON OF INTEREST
It had been a year-and-a-half since Team Machine received a reality check about the razor's edge they regularly walk along — but then they (and viewers) got socked in the gut when Shaw took one (actually, several) for the team, dying (or "dying") in a hail of bullets as she secured safe escape for Root et al.
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PRETTY LITTLE LIARS
You'd think we'd be used to Rosewood residents coming back from the dead by now, but Mona's return in the Season 5 finale — and in full Alison garb, no less! — was pretty mind-blowing. Finding out "A" is (allegedly) Charles was merely the icing on the cake.
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REVENGE
Sometimes, the most explosive TV moments are literal explosions, like when Victoria Grayson — with only a few episodes remaining in Revenge's run — decided to blow her Hamptons mansion sky high. (It was such a cool moment that we're willing to forgive Madeleine Stowe for straight-up lying to us about her character's "demise.")
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SECRETS AND LIES
Seeing Ben take the fall for Tom's murder, then learning the truth — that his daughter Abby was the real killer — was a one-two punch we weren't expecting at the top of the ABC drama's freshman season.
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THE SLAP
This one seems oddly appropriate for the Fourth of July Weekend: Remember when Zachary Quinto hit that kid at his family barbecue? That was... a thing that happened.
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SLEEPY HOLLOW
Ichabod reawakening in the present day was enough to wrap our heads around, but when the supernatural drama threw time travel into the mix — sending Abbie back to the Age of the Ich — it officially changed the game.
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SONS OF ANARCHY
We can't say we didn't see this coming, but Jax killing Gemma — you know, his mother — as payment for offing Tara was still one of the most upsetting TV moments in recent memory.
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SUPERNATURAL
Even though we figured Sam wouldn't meet his true demise, we're still including Demon Dean's attempt to kill his brother on this list. Frankly, we're stressed out whenever a Winchester is in danger.
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TEEN WOLF
Seeing Lydia kick butt and embrace her banshee powers (during a flash-forward) in the Teen Wolf Season 5 premiere was the ultimate tease for long-suffering fans of Holland Roden's character. We want more bad-ass Lydia and we want it now!
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THE VAMPIRE DIARIES
Sorry, Vince and Owen, but nobody crashes a wedding like TVD's Kai. In less than a minute, the biggest bad of Season 6 managed to kill Jo and her unborn twins, then decimate who-knows-how-many members of his own coven — not to mention put the show's leading lady in mortal danger. It was very stressful.
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THE VOICE
It's only fitting that we end our gallery with Kimberly Nichole's performance of "House of the Rising Sun" on The Voice, because she brought. the. house. down.
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