"It Made My Heart Stop, Crawl Up Into My Throat, And Then Try To Choke Me" – 15 Tense AF TV Episodes That We're Still Thinking About

"I was just on the edge of my seat, listening out for a noise or a sudden movement.

There are some TV show episodes that have us on the edge of our seats the whole time. I recently shared some of the TV moments that had my heart racing, and people kindly chimed in with some of their own.

HBO

So, here are 15 more tense AF TV moments that made us sweat:

🚨Warning – this post contains spoilers, so if you don't want something spoilt, just skip over it!🚨

1. The Handmaid's Tale

Hulu

"The episode with the fake hanging. Or the escape scene with the train coming."

—pennyguide

2. Game of Thrones

HBO

"I thought the episode with Cersei blowing up the Sept of Baelor was one of the most tense episodes of the series. Six seasons and we never had an intro like that with the piano music and you just knew something was about to go down."

—pennyguide

3. One of Us is Lying

Peacock

"Maeve’s betrayal. I was on the edge of my seat. Definitely didn't expect that."

—chronicpessimist

4. The Rookie

ABC

"The episode with Chan’s kidnapping – tense. In fact, I still can’t hear 'Dream a Little Dream of Me' without feeling claustrophobic."

—lornajw

5. The Walking Dead

AMC

"The episode when we first meet Negan, and then the next episode – YIKES. It changed the characters. Changed the show. And changed the viewer."

—ivyfig

6. Grey's Anatomy

ABC

"There are so many! The plane crash and the hospital shooter top the list."

—desireedallas

7. Glee

Fox

"The school shooting scene. That show had some wacky moments for sure. But watching Brittany crouching in a bathroom stall alone trying to cry silently was so tense."

—enimsekips

8. Criminal Minds

CBS

"When Hotch's wife dies – it's stuck with me for sooooo long."

—reneebarnes2

9. CSI

CBS Productions

"When Nick is buried alive."

—reneebarnes2

10. M*A*S*H

CBS

"'Abyssinia, Henry' – Radar comes in and announces that Henry Blake's helicopter went down when he was on his way back home to his family."

—matdyjames

11. M*A*S*H (again)

CBS

"The episode 'Heal Thyself' – a very competent, war seasoned and charismatic doctor has a nervous breakdown seeing all the bloodied bodies after a battle. At the end he's just sitting there freaking out because he can't get the blood off his hands (there's no blood) and he's just completely broken."

—matdyjames

12. Buffy the Vampire Slayer

The WB

"Buffy waking up in her own coffin. I am claustrophobic and have had many nightmares about waking up in coffins. So that scene freaked me the hell out. Watched just the trailer of that Ryan Reynolds film Buried and noped out after about six seconds."

—matdyjames

13. Vigil

BBC One

"There's a scene in Vigil's season two premiere that made my heart stop, crawl up into my throat, and then try to choke me. It was brief but I was properly scared for those few seconds. The show came back with a bang and then some."

—ravenbard

14. The Last of Us

HBO

"Episode 7, 'Left Behind'. For the entire duration of their time in the mall, I was just on the edge of my seat, listening out for a noise or a sudden movement. You just knew an infected was going to come out and tear Ellie's happiness apart. Riley's monologue at the end was heartbreaking too."

–bendzialdowski

15. Severance

Apple TV+

"'The We We Are' – first of all, there's the tension with the innies attempting to find out the truth. Then added to that is the stress of the race against time as they attempt to do all this without their boss finding out, and of course the cliffhanger at the end!"

What's the most tense TV moment you've seen? Let us know in the comments below!