Top 10 Hardest TV Scenes to Watch
#10: Wendy Gives Up on Her Brother “Ozark” (2017-22)
Top 10 Awkward Wendy Williams Moments
We all know how complicated family dynamics can be. But the relationship between Wendy and her brother Ben was especially catastrophic. In the third season of “Ozark,” she takes in her sibling because he’s having trouble keeping a job because of his Bipolar disorder. While staying there, Ben becomes wise to the money laundering ways of his sister’s family. He eventually gets in so deep that the cartel sees him as a problem. When criminals order Ben’s death, the audience initially thinks that Wendy will protect him. But she ends up abandoning an unwitting Ben at a restaurant before giving up his location to those who wish him dead. We struggle to look at Wendy as she grapples with what she’s done.
#9: Buffy Finds Joyce “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1997-2003)
Top 10 Most Shocking Buffy the Vampire Slayer Moments
Having to be a teenage vampire slayer can definitely put a strain on personal relationships. While Buffy’s role as a supernatural fighter often put her at odds with her mother Joyce, the two loved each other immensely. Unfortunately, after a long struggle with a brain tumor, Joyce dies from a brain aneurysm quite suddenly. In a gut wrenching scene, Buffy finds her body. The young slayer’s desperate cries for help and long walk away from her mom are absolutely devastating. Buffy had seen more terrible things than we can count by this point. But this is one of the worst moments she had to endure.
#8: What Happens to The Dogs “Chernobyl” (2019)
Top 10 Reasons To Watch Chernobyl
This miniseries follows the true and extremely harrowing story of the Chernobyl disaster, a nuclear accident that took place in the Soviet Union in the late 1980s. While nearly everything about this series is difficult to experience, episode four offered a particularly painful moment. There were a plethora of terrible jobs that had to be done in the aftermath of the accident. A few of the local troops were asked to slay domestic and wild animals alike to avoid spreading contamination. One soldier happens to come across a group of abandoned puppies. When he can’t bring himself to go any further, his comrade handles the dark task. Even though we don’t see the graphic details, it’s still a rough viewing experience.
#7: Rue’s Entire Breakdown “Euphoria” (2019-)
Top 10 Most Heartbreaking Euphoria Moments
On “Euphoria”, Zendaya plays Rue, a teenager who struggles with addiction. We constantly see her kind and sympathetic side. But that doesn’t mean the show ignores the ugly side of things. In a season two episode, Rue’s mother discovers that her daughter has relapsed and gets rid of all of her drugs. What follows is an hour of terror where Rue proceeds to rip apart all of her relationships. She throws the most hurtful things she can in the faces of the people who love her. She’s physical, she’s nasty, and the whole episode is a horrifying thrill ride you can barely stand to watch. Kudos to Zendaya for getting through this, because we almost didn’t.
#6: Wallace’s Death “The Wire” (2002-08)
Long before Michael B. Jordan was a household name, he was still delivering devastating performances. Back in 2007, Jordan gave his all to one of his earliest roles as Wallace on “The Wire.” He played a 16-year-old wrapped up in a turbulent world of illegal substances on the streets of Baltimore. Wallace served as the heart of the show –an example of a good kid caught up in a terrible situation. When he tried to get away from this dark world, Stringer Bell not only called for the kid to die but ordered the young man’s best friends to carry out the act. Watching Wallace die is one of the bleakest things about the show. And for “The Wire,” that’s saying a lot.
#5: The Failed Airplane Rescue “The Boys” (2019-)
Top 10 Fight Scenes From The Boys
Amazon’s “The Boys” is a show that firmly believes that if superheroes were real, they would cause a lot of collateral damage. One of the most horrific incidents of supe negligence comes when a superpowered duo tries to rescue plane passengers from hijackers. During the save, the hero Homelander accidentally damages the plane’s controls. Upon realizing he can’t save all the passengers in time, he opts to let the flight crash. He threatens anyone who challenges him. Additionally, when his partner Queen Maeve tries to save a few people, Homelander forces her to leave them behind. What makes this scene particularly difficult to swallow is the knowledge that the passengers may have made it if the supes didn’t try to be heroes.
#4: Adriana’s Murder “The Sopranos” (1999-2007)
Nothing about “The Sopranos” is particularly easy to watch, if we’re being honest. The show is chock-full of bloody, violent ends. Tony’s gut-churning curb stomp of Coco in season six is definitely gruesome. But nothing was harder to stomach than the murder of Adriana la Cerva. Far into “The Sopranos'” run, Christopher’s fiance Adriana was shaping up to be one of the show’s only truly good characters left. But when Adriana revealed to Christopher that she was working as an FBI informant, we knew she wasn’t long for this world. The show manages to trick you right up until the last second. For a moment, you believe that maybe, just maybe, she’ll make it out. Suddenly, that hope is crushed.
#3: Negan Kills Glenn “The Walking Dead” (2010-)
Top 20 Best Negan Moments from The Walking Dead
It’s always hard to watch a beloved fan-favorite character die. But with Glenn, we really could barely stomach it. When he and his friends were captured by the villain Negan, we could tell something horrible was about to unfold. In order to punish the group, Negan threatened to kill one of their members. We see the survivor Abraham brutally beaten with a bat. Right before the nightmare ends, Negan is struck by the hero Daryl. This act of defiance convinces Negan to slay Glenn too. The way Negan continuously hits the survivor, the horrific makeup and the fact that Glenn’s pregnant wife Maggie watched everything was nearly impossible to bear. The scene is gruesome and heartbreaking in equal measure.
#2: Walt Lets Jane Die “Breaking Bad” (2008-13)
“Breaking Bad” has no shortage of stomach-churning scenes. There are tons of terrible events that happen throughout the series. We nearly went with Todd’s shooting Andrea at her home right in front of her boyfriend Jesse. (xref) However, the fate of another love interest was somehow more uncomfortable to watch and served as a harbinger for the bad that was to come. In season two, Walt happens upon Jesse and his girlfriend Jane after they’ve spent a night using illegal substances. Jane, who is sleeping on her back, gets sick and starts to choke. Instead of helping her by just turning her over, Walt just watches. It’s sickening and just one of many early clues that Walt is terrible.
#1: The Red Wedding “Game of Thrones” (2011-19)
Top 10 Game of Thrones Moments That Made Fans Rage Quit
The Red Wedding has become almost synonymous with tragedy and despair among diehard “Game of Thrones” fans. Even those who haven’t seen a single episode get this dark reference. After Robb Stark was sworn to marry one of Walder Frey’s daughters, he married a woman named Talisa instead. Everyone thinks the problem will be solved if the young man’s uncle weds the promised bride instead. But alas, Frey is not so moved. During the wedding reception, the jilted man and his warriors hit Starks and their allies with a bloody surprise attack. A pregnant Talisa, a dire wolf, Robb and his mother all die in horrific ways. Even if you know it’s coming, this wedding makes for a gruesome viewing experience.
