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The Best Episodes of Thriller Season 1

Every episode of Thriller Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Thriller Season 1!

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Thriller is an American anthology television series that aired during the 1960–61 and 1961–62 seasons on NBC. The show featured host Boris Karloff introducing a mix of self-contained, macabre weird-horror and morbid, hitchockian crime stories,

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Thriller Season 1 Episode 1 - The Twisted Image
    7.0/10(412 votes)

    #1 - The Twisted Image

    S1:E1

    When the paths of a disturbed young man (consumed with the idea of taking over the life of his boss) and a disturbed young woman (obsessed with the same man) cross, the results are disatrous.

    Director:Arthur Hiller
    Writers:James P. Cavanagh, William O'Farrell

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  2. Thriller Season 1 Episode 2 - Child's Play
    5.7/10(303 votes)

    #2 - Child's Play

    S1:E2

    A young boy with an unhappy homelife gets dangerously absorbed in his imagination.

    Director:Arthur Hiller
    Writer:Robert Dozier

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  3. Thriller Season 1 Episode 3 - Worse Than Murder
    6.9/10(278 votes)

    #3 - Worse Than Murder

    S1:E3

    A man dies and leaves a diary describing how he and his sister murdered a woman. The sister's unscrupulous daughter-in-law uses the diary for blackmail.

    Director:Mitchell Leisen
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. Thriller Season 1 Episode 4 - The Mark of the Hand
    6.3/10(243 votes)

    #4 - The Mark of the Hand

    S1:E4

    An eight-year-old girl is accused of murdering a man and then trying to kill again.

    Directors:Maxwell Shane, Paul Henreid
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Thriller Season 1 Episode 5 - Rose's Last Summer
    6.9/10(263 votes)

    #5 - Rose's Last Summer

    S1:E5

    When an aging film actress dies under mysterious circumstances a friend and her former husband try to find out what happened to her.

    Director:Arthur Hiller
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. Thriller Season 1 Episode 6 - The Guilty Men
    6.1/10(215 votes)

    #6 - The Guilty Men

    S1:E6

    The inner workings of a crime syndicate are examined as their mouthpiece lawyer wrestles with his conscience over the future of the organization.

    Director:Jules Munshin
    Writer:Unknown

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  7. Thriller Season 1 Episode 7 - The Purple Room
    7.5/10(316 votes)

    #7 - The Purple Room

    S1:E7

    A man who inherits a house from his brother has one night to decide whether or not to stay - if he leaves, his cousins will inherit the house instead. He expects his cousins to try and frighten him into leaving, but could the strange happenings be more than pranks?

    Director:Douglas Heyes
    Writer:Douglas Heyes

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  8. Thriller Season 1 Episode 8 - The Watcher
    6.8/10(240 votes)

    #8 - The Watcher

    S1:E8

    A twisted zealot seeks to kill all those he feels are sinners.

    Director:John Brahm
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. Thriller Season 1 Episode 9 - Girl With a Secret
    6.8/10(229 votes)

    #9 - Girl With a Secret

    S1:E9

    When the wife of a government agent inadvertently discovers the details of one of his missions she becomes a girl with a secret that must be kept at all costs.

    Director:Mitchell Leisen
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. Thriller Season 1 Episode 10 - The Prediction
    7.3/10(240 votes)

    #10 - The Prediction

    S1:E10

    A phony clairvoyant suddenly starts having genuine premonitions. Will he be able to save those closest to him when he sees death in their future?

    Director:John Brahm
    Writer:Donald S. Sanford

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  11. Thriller Season 1 Episode 11 - The Fatal Impulse
    7.1/10(234 votes)

    #11 - The Fatal Impulse

    S1:E11

    A canidate for Mayor is told he won't live through the next day. The police are sent to protect him and we follow their actions as well as those of the potential killer.

    Director:Gerald Mayer
    Writer:Philip MacDonald

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  12. Thriller Season 1 Episode 12 - The Big Blackout
    6.2/10(206 votes)

    #12 - The Big Blackout

    S1:E12

    A former alcoholic is haunted by a past he can't remember. Will he be able to stay alive long enough to unravel the mystery?

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. Thriller Season 1 Episode 13 - Knock Three-One-Two
    7.1/10(216 votes)

    #13 - Knock Three-One-Two

    S1:E13

    A man desparate for money decides to enlist the help of a serial killer in getting the cash he needs from his wife.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. Thriller Season 1 Episode 14 - Man in the Middle
    6.1/10(192 votes)

    #14 - Man in the Middle

    S1:E14

    A man overhears the kidnapping and murder plot of two unsavory characters and tries to prevent it from being carried out despite the fact that his own life is in danger.

    Director:Fletcher Markle
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. Thriller Season 1 Episode 15 - The Cheaters
    8.4/10(370 votes)

    #15 - The Cheaters

    S1:E15

    A pair of very unusual glasses allow the wearer to see the absolute truth about whatever they look upon. We see what happens as they pass from one owner to another.

    Director:John Brahm
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. Thriller Season 1 Episode 16 - The Hungry Glass
    8.1/10(380 votes)

    #16 - The Hungry Glass

    S1:E16

    A young couple buy a run-down, old mansion surrounded with legends about the lack of mirrors and the deaths of many former tenants. On their first night in the house they are frightened by strage visions, inexplicably intertwined with mirrors and glass.

    Director:Douglas Heyes
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. Thriller Season 1 Episode 17 - The Poisoner
    7.4/10(226 votes)

    #17 - The Poisoner

    S1:E17

    A man in nineteenth century England disposes of his family members one by one - his weapon of choice? - an undetectable poison concealed within his ring.

    Director:Herschel Daugherty
    Writer:Robert Hardy Andrews

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  18. Thriller Season 1 Episode 18 - Man in a Cage
    6.0/10(172 votes)

    #18 - Man in a Cage

    S1:E18

    A man arrives in Tangier looking for his missing brother who seems to have been involved in some shady dealings.

    Director:Gerald Mayer
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. Thriller Season 1 Episode 19 - Choose a Victim
    7.3/10(201 votes)

    #19 - Choose a Victim

    S1:E19

    A wealthy girl takes up with a mercenary beachbum. Together they plot to kill her uncle for his money

    Director:Richard Carlson
    Writer:George Bellak

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  20. Thriller Season 1 Episode 20 - Hay-Fork and Bill-Hook
    6.9/10(209 votes)

    #20 - Hay-Fork and Bill-Hook

    S1:E20

    A young detective is sent to the English countryside to investigate a strange murder. His wife, who has accompanied him, soon finds herself a target of the locals who believe she is a witch.

    Director:Herschel Daugherty
    Writer:Alan Caillou

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  21. Thriller Season 1 Episode 21 - The Merriweather File
    7.6/10(205 votes)

    #21 - The Merriweather File

    S1:E21

    When a man discovers a body in the trunk of his car the harder he tries to prove his innocence the more guilty he looks. Do the attempts on his wife's life have anything to do with this strange case?

    Director:John Brahm
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. Thriller Season 1 Episode 22 - The Fingers of Fear
    7.4/10(200 votes)

    #22 - The Fingers of Fear

    S1:E22

    A child murderer is on the loose. A mentally disturbed man is arrested for the crimes, but a determined police lieutenant isn't sure they have the right man.

    Director:Jules Munshin
    Writer:Robert Hardy Andrews

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  23. Thriller Season 1 Episode 23 - Well of Doom
    7.7/10(247 votes)

    #23 - Well of Doom

    S1:E23

    A man is kidnapped on the eve of his wedding and held prisoner by a ghoulish creature claiming to be the devil himself.

    Director:John Brahm
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. Thriller Season 1 Episode 24 - The Ordeal of Dr. Cordell
    6.5/10(190 votes)

    #24 - The Ordeal of Dr. Cordell

    S1:E24

    A research scientist accidentally discovers a strange gas that penetrates his gas mask and the effects are most bizarre - now every time he hears a bell it sends him into a murderous rage.

    Director:László Benedek
    Writer:Donald S. Sanford

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  25. Thriller Season 1 Episode 25 - Trio for Terror
    7.4/10(205 votes)

    #25 - Trio for Terror

    S1:E25

    Three separate tales: a man murders his uncle for the inheritance, but the uncle is no oridinary man; a man wins a fortune gambling, but may not live to enjoy it; a serial killer meets an odd fate.

    Director:Ida Lupino
    Writer:Unknown

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Season 1 Ratings Summary

"The Twisted Image" is the best rated episode of "Thriller" season 1. It scored 7/10 based on 412 votes. Directed by Arthur Hiller and written by James P. Cavanagh, William O'Farrell, it aired on 9/13/1960. This episode is rated 1.3 points higher than the second-best, "Child's Play".