Summary

• TV shows with well-executed twists can captivate audiences and keep them engaged episode after episode.
• The best shows use twists to explore themes, develop characters, and demonstrate effective long-term planning.
• Audiences love unpredictable surprises in their shows, mirroring the unexpected turns of real life.

The most engaging TV shows continue to shock audiences with satisfying plot twists. Narrative twists and cliffhangers are the foundation for addicting television that can keep viewers binge-watching one episode after another until it's over. However, twists alone aren't always enough. Many shows attempt to subvert expectations and shock audiences with twists that don't feel appropriately earned. Nothing leaves a bad taste in the audience's mouth like an overtly confusing or unfulfilling twist.

There are many TV series that mastered the use of twists, providing captivating entertainment through tasteful subversion. Great plot twists aren't just to entertain viewers by throwing them off their guard. Series that have properly utilized twists have used them to explore the show's themes, develop characters, and powerfully display the effects of long-term planning. Many of the best TV shows of all time maintained their dramatic value through unpredictability. After all, life is full of unexpected turns, so it's no surprise that audiences love a gratifying surprise in their shows.

10 Severance (2022-)

Severance is one of the most shocking, mysterious ongoing shows.

Despite the vast amount of shows released on a multitude of streaming platforms, high-quality, intriguing mystery series filled with plot twists are strangely hard to find. Apple TV+'s Severance fits perfectly into the niche with shows like Lost and Westworld, with its first season centered around a mind-blowing plotline with crazy twists and turns in a mix of dystopian science fiction and psychological thriller. Boasting an all-star cast with Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, and Christopher Walken, Severance is one of the best shows on Apple TV+ right now.

9 The Leftovers (2014-2017)

HBO's The Leftovers was filled with ambiguous twists regarding how characters handled their grief.

The Leftovers is a TV show that never got the attention it deserved despite being a perfect follow-up to shows like Lost and Twin Peaks. Starring Justin Theroux and created by Damon Lindelof, the HBO series takes place in a world where 2% of the population randomly disappeared in an event called the Sudden Departure. The Leftovers explored how different characters reacted to such a catastrophe and was filled with absurd and convoluted twists as the plot developed. The first few episodes are often considered a slow start, but getting over the hump is worth it.

8 Mr. Robot (2015-2019)

Mr. Robot used plot twists to explore the show's themes.

Mr. Robot, the USA Network series that starred Academy Award winner Rami Malek, was a psychological thriller about a cybersecurity hacker suffering from mental health issues. The series was renowned for its mind-bending plot twists, continuously keeping viewers on the edge of their seats through its four seasons. Mr. Robot explored themes of identity and reality through shocking revelations about the characters and narrative perspective of the show.

7 Fargo (2014-)

Fargo mixes humor into its most shocking moments.

Fargo has been one of the most underappreciated shows on TV since it started in 2014, despite having movie star actors like Kirsten Dunst and Ewan McGregor and more headlining different seasons. Each season has explored a different set of characters surrounding the events of an absurd crime, with events continuing to escalate with shocking plot twists. In previous seasons of Fargo, these twists were often as darkly comedic as they are surprising, as the show has focused on balancing humor with its twisted events.

6 True Detective (2014-)

HBO's True Detective is filled with psychological and investigatory twists.

With season 4 fast approaching in January 2024, True Detective has been one of the most captivating ongoing series filled with awe-inspiring twists. Like Fargo, True Detective is an anthology series with different movie star casts each season, following detectives investigating brutal murders. The show's previous seasons carefully examined the psychology of detectives involved in complex investigations, and the solutions to these mysteries shocked even the most devout mystery fans.

5 Dark (2017-2020)

Netflix's Dark used time as a tool for clever twists planned for the long term.

One of the best Netflix originals and one of the platform's most popular international shows was Dark. The German sci-fi thriller was a mind-bending experience involving time travel and familial relationships in a small town. Numerous characters and timelines allowed for a complex, interwoven narrative, and as the series developed, plot twists surrounding the convoluted timeline deepened the story. Dark masterfully utilized shocking plot twist moments to keep the audience engaged.

4 Breaking Bad (2008-2013)

Breaking Bad was one of the most addicting shows ever, filled with shocking plot twists.

While many TV shows with incredible plot twists are mystery-centric, Breaking Bad was loaded with character and plot-driven subversion. Regarded as one of the best TV shows of all time, Vince Gilligan mastered the art of complex, intelligent screenwriting that's also easily accessible and powerfully engaging with Breaking Bad. The series started with a unique, captivating concept as high school chemistry teacher Walter White ed the methamphetamine trade. As Walt delved deeper into the criminal underworld, the plot continuously grew more intense, overloaded with twists and turns.

3 Game Of Thrones (2011-2019)

Any episode of Game of Thrones could end with an enormous twist.

Many of television's most sacred plot twists happened on Game of Thrones, a series that constantly broke the hearts of its audiences through backstabs, betrayals, and gruesome character deaths. When season 1 of HBO's hit fantasy series aired, the idea of killing essential protagonists in such a manner was unheard of. Main characters on television were generally protected by plot armor, and the notion that any character could die at any moment in Game of Thrones made for shocking, addicting television. Even beyond deaths, George R.R. Martin's world is filled with incredible twists.

2 Twin Peaks (1990-1991, 2017)

Twin Peaks revolutionized the idea of a serialized mystery filled with twists and reveals.

Many modern TV shows would not exist without Twin Peaks, which set a precedent for serialized drama with complex characters and psychological intrigue. The series' central appeal was its ongoing mystery, a revolutionary concept for television, which previously saw the mystery genre in procedural shows that wrapped up events in one episode. The mystery of Laura Palmer's murder is still captivating to modern film and television lovers, and the often surreal mysteries of Twin Peaks and Twin Peaks: The Return are some of the most shocking and inventive TV has ever seen.

1 Lost (2004-2010)

Lost used plot twists to develop new mysteries, constantly keeping the audience hooked.

No series has been as synonymous with plot twists and mystery intrigue as Lost. The ABC drama, which followed the survivors of a plane crash landing on a seemingly uninhabited island, was constructed around its central puzzles. From the pilot episode, viewers were cleverly introduced to mysteries of varying sizes. The series gradually answered many of those mysteries with plot twists while constantly paving the way for new ones. For viewers who like complex and often ambiguous stories that they can analyze, there's no better TV show than Lost, which still holds up nearly two decades after its premiere.