Atlanta Top 10 Episodes: One of the Greatest Shows Ever. Giving us some of the Most Unique Experiences. 

(Dec. 2, 2022 ● Oslin Pierrette)

After finishing the series finale episode of Atlanta, I can give a definitive top 10 episodes of one of the greatest TV shows of all time. This team had an amazing knack of giving us TV experiences that we have never seen. Ideas and concepts that have never been attempted. That is so satisfying when you see it attempted through the series. Shout out to the team and creators of the show. Amazing job all around. 

10) Season 2 Ep 6 – Teddy Perkins:

The Teddy Perkins episode was cinematic. This was an impromptu horror film of an episode. These are one of the episodes when I talk about very unique television experiences. All the elements like the weird sinister eeriness. The adventures of eccentric Darius, it always feels like a weird trip. This was a classic moment that everyone remembers. And the Teddy Perkins character is an unforgettable image. Great episode. 

9) Season 2 Ep 1 – Alligator Man:

This was an iconic episode I believe. The return of Katt Williams in the limelight. The writers amazingly intertwined Katt’s real life with his character in Atlanta. Katt in comedy was the guy, he had the torch. With a chip on his shoulder, an ego that probably got to him, which probably led to his fall from grace, in a very ungraceful way. That amazing line “What I’m scared of is being you. You know, someone everyone knew was smart, but ended up being a know-it-all fuck up J, that let shit happen to him” This was a line. Because it really was the story of Katt Williams. And it mixes perfectly with the character of Earn. Someone everyone knows is smart, but has this condescending arrogance to him. So it was like looking in the mirror of what could happen, going down that path the way he’s going now. Basically the luxury of a real life what would you say to your younger self. Which Earn’s uncle told him “and if you don’t wanna end up like me. Get rid of that chip on your shoulder shit. It’s not worth the time.” What I got from it is, you can try to do it your way if you want to, but you will be humbled. That arrogant entitlement you got, like the world owes you something. get rid of it. And I really resonated with that message.

8) Season3 Ep 1- Three Slaps

Another example of why Donald Glover needs to enter the horror realm. This was a deeply dark depiction of adopted black children from white parents. It just didn’t sit well with me at all, I had a very uneasy stomach. He took that main kid, Loquareeous. Illustrated the very cultured urban environment he came from, then abruptly put him in a very white environment detrimentally uncultured household. Unseasoned and uncooked food, weird hygienic values, that were disgusting. It was dark, a hell for any child, especially a deeply cultured black child. These two evil white women that give these black kids a life they absolutely don’t want, under the guise they are saving them, and giving them a better life than they had. Which was disgustingly dark, playing the hero savior, when you’re sadistically evil. The kids are at a flea market, they are the white women’s little helpers. Dress like little slave children. And as wild as it sounds, Loquareeous runs into the arms of a police officer in hopes he saves him, crying and pleading for help. But the white women say it’s a misunderstanding and they go with him. Loquareeous was trapped in hell. The house and the lives of the white women are starting to fall apart. They realized they are in over their heads. So they take one last ride with the kids. They set the dog free, but then Loquareeous realizes that they are trying to kill themselves and all the kids. He now is trying to free all the kids up. By the time the two evil white women realized, it was too late. The white lady is pleading for the kids to not leave the car, which is so dark. You are about to kill yourself, why do the kids have to be on that journey with you. That evil wickedness. Especially when you set the dog free. But happily they went on their own, and the kids were free. 

But in Tarantino fashion, it was a revisionist history episode. This was a real story based on adopted black kids who had these slave looking pictures of them at the flea market, with other pictures that were published in the newspaper like “black kids love cops”, when the opposite was happening. Which makes it feel so much darker. He was pleading for help. Then they changed it around. And later on those kids were killed by those evil ladies. Which made me feel terrible.   

7) Season 4 Ep 2 – The Homliest Little Horse:

This was an endearing episode, that was the tone for a lot of season 4. Earn goes to therapy. We get to vulnerably understand Earn more. Understand the context of his attitudes, entitlement, and resentful attitude. You get to know the real story of Earn. You know he’s this really intelligent guy that went to Princeton. So what happened? What happened that turned him into a fuck up. Then you find out, he had a friend he got really cool with in college. Notably for the story, she was white. One day Earn wanted to go to a party with this girl, but had a suit on him. His friend Sasha offered to hold it for him in her room. Earn later needed to get the suit back from her room, but she wasn’t responding to his messages at all. So as an RA Earn went into her room and took his suit back. Which messed him up. She went crazy and told the Dean. Which got him suspended, then later expelled from school. He was painted as this sexual abuser for just taking his suit back because of this wicked white women decided to have this weird outrage that she caused. You find out where this deep resentment is routed from, also his bleak attitude. He was hurt by someone he trusted, which made him closed off to most people. Also having a spiteful sarcastic attitude to others as well, it’s like that pain he suffered was projected to most of the people he talked to. But it was nice to see him let it all out. Let it pass through. But there was a second story parallel with that one. Then you realize the meaning of it. Earn packed all that resentment into a cruel prank. Not even to Sasha, but he took his anger out on this lady who messed up his trip. He set up a publisher meeting for her, and made it seem like she was getting a publication deal. She was so happy, because she really wanted this. She thinks happiness is going to come her way, her hopes are sky high, she even quits her job. Then it was all a prank. Destroying and crushing the ounce of what she had left of her dreams. Earn is really happy he got his get back(revenge). Earn happily tells the guys what he did, and they react like he was so cruel. It shows that it’s better to let go. Vengefulness can get detrimentally spiteful, that brings the nasty into you. Extreme unwarranted vengeance makes someone really ugly. 

It was nice to see the intimacy and vulnerability of this episode though. 

6) Season 3 Ep 7 – Trini 2 De Bone

This episode solidified for me that Atlanta has produced episodes with experiences like no other on TV, so unique. A genuinely authentic Caribbean episode that felt amazing to watch. With subtle details that only Caribbeans would grasp, maybe Africans too. Trini 2 De Bone was an amazing feeling episode, especially when they played the song. They didn’t get generic actors, they got actual Trini’s and Caribbeans to represent the episode properly. I heard very subtle dialect moments that I remember hearing when I was kid. This season was big on that esoteric culture that many wouldn’t grasp if they weren’t a part of it. This episode was one of the main reasons I made this list. I remember seeing a list for season 3 best episodes, on a prominent publication, and it was egregiously made. I went to see who made it, and it was someone who was not a part of the culture. Which made it make sense why it was so poorly done. The comment I posted in response to that terrible list: “This list illustrates someone who missed the point of the show. Someone who doesn’t have access to understand a lot of the esoteric cultural aspects that went over your head. Atlanta has a lot to do with Afrosurrealism and like always the black experience. Told and expressed so viscerally. So of course someone not of the culture wouldn’t be able to grasp all the intricate, subliminal, and cultural things Donald and team were saying. The first episode arguably could be the best episode. The rest of the list shows a ridiculous amount of audacity. “Trini 2 De Bone” and “New Jazz” being on the 2nd half of that list. Speaks to the audacity. There’s not many television experiences resemblant to those performances. 

Let cultural people, Make cultural list.”

5) Season 4 Ep 8 – The Goof Who Sat by the Door

This was one of the greatest television experiences I’ve ever watched. “Atlanta did a mid season documentary of the creator of A Goofy Movie and how a black guy was CEO of Disney by accident, during the Rodney King LA riots. Donald Glover and his team put the most amazing stuff on TV. Like he’s been putting the best cultural stuff on TV.”- My tweet the night of the episode. That episode felt so real, to the point, I didn’t know it was a fictional story till after seeing a reply it wasn’t real. I know I wasn’t the only one. But under the impression that it was a real documentary, it messed me  up. Because the story was so compelling and sad. The part of driving himself to insanity to get out the perfect product. To the point he actually thought he was Goofy, destroying his family life. He was detrimentally dedicated to this project. There was a lot of pressure for him to succeed as the first black CEO of Disney. And he wanted to make the blackest movie ever, The Goofy Movie. Trying to inject black culture deeply in every aspect of the movie. But he died due to a lot of conspiracy. Like it was so funny when he was walking around with the Nation of Islam, this revisionist history documentary went insane, but I loved it so much. Then when he died they changed parts of the film. It really messed with me. Like in regular corporate fashion, they white-washed parts of the story. He wanted to give them the real black experience, have goofy die from police violence and other things, but Disney wanted to contain it. Especially with his goodbye tape, you’re like why was this so heavily contained, why have I never heard about this? Then after you find out it was fictional, I was like whhaaatt?? They got me good. But I absolutely loved the experience. Amazing performances. 

4) Season1 Ep 3 – Go For Broke:

I’m really connected to this episode. An episode that I reference heavily in my work. The premise of this episode was amazing. It talks to the deep foundational element of the process of humans trying to find themselves. How it takes time, trial & failure, and experimentation to get the chance to find who you are, the passions you love. Find the elements that make life worth living. It’s just tough to do that when you have to work to keep the lights on for today. You have to work, to survive the day. Which for many takes up all their time. Time that can be used to find a true passion and who you actually are. Earn is just asking for a chance and some time. But Van is reminding him of his daughter and responsibilities, that his kid needs him. Which of course he understands, but hurts because it’s crushing his hopes of finding himself, a tough conundrum. 

Also say he was to just give up and conform. Just do what he has to do to provide, sacrifice searching for himself and passions, sacrifice making life worth living. That would turn him into someone people wouldn’t like. All you would get is a resentful human if he went down that path. He would be no good to anyone if that were to happen, so he might as well go on his search. 

That’s why I love this episode so much. I connect with this aspect deeply, as should many others. I’m someone who would be no good to anybody if I ever conformed and sacrificed making my life worth living. Because I understand I want love, and to knowingly deny myself that like Earn doesn’t want to, I would project that pain from the void and resentments on my surroundings. So I know to go for what I love, and to take time and experimentation to find what that is. What I would want for many others. Hoping they have the time and resources to do so themselves. 

3) Season 4 Ep 7- Snipe Hunt

This was another endearing episode, a very serene one. Earn, Van, and Lottie go on a camping trip for Lottie’s birthday. I just loved how intimate and vulnerable of an experience this was. It was nice, because it was a camping experience with black people. It’s probably a regular thing for many black people. But for inner city kids, it seems like a crazy idea to go sleep in the woods. So it was speaking to the different experiences black people should go try and have. Lottie seems down about something during her birthday, but they still seem to try and have fun. They send her on a snipe hunt, so they can talk. Earn has got a good job in LA. But he doesn’t want to go alone. So he asks Van if she and Lottie can come live with him. And Van’s had enough, she’s tired of all of it. She doesn’t want to shape her life around him anymore. So she declines. But later Earn wakes her up for the greatest Monologue from Atlanta. You see a side of Earn you have never seen before. Him fully professing his love for Van, so emotionally packed. And Van accepts it. It’s full love with no conditions, like Van always wanted. Not the childish situationship that Earn was offering before. Which made it such a beautiful episode. For many of us, we wondered why Earn didn’t choose to be with Van, the mother of his kid. They seemed very compatible, and Van seemed very accepting of him. But then you understood that Earn simply didn’t have his life together. It wouldn’t have worked with the resentful chip on his shoulder Earn. It would’ve been a toxic situation. But now you see he has got his life together, and wants to spend it with his family that he is free to love now. He can accept himself, so that opened the door for allowing others to accept him too. You see that Therapy has done good for him. 

Also a cool moment, Lottie at the end of the episode was in the back seat and looked at both of her pants smiling. Like her wish came true. Then rewatching the episode, you see when she blew out her candles, she looked at both of her parents like she wishes they were together. An amazing episode. An actual dream come true.

2) Season 3 Ep 8 – New Jazz

Omygoodness, this was an episode. Where I was just in awe. An episode that gave you that feeling of amazingness. The entertainingly charming performance from Lorraine’s character was amazing. There was an amazing chemistry between her and Al. And they go on this weird Amsterdam adventure, right after Al took this exotic drug with Darius that’s supposed to give him this transcendental trip. Lorraine and Al are having conversations about who is really there for him. Making Al question his surroundings. Question if his surroundings are trustable, are they really there for him, or to use him. Then they go to this “Canceled Club”. And there was Liam Neeson having a very interesting and funny conversation. That’s why Atlanta is so great, because of funny random moments like that. After they leave, that’s when the episode starts to get really good. That’s when the paranoia starts to seep in. The abrupt time shifts from day to night, then night to day. There’s this fear of being alone. Before the club he was screaming out for Lorraine. Then after they get into an argument, that turns into this full on deep state of this psychedelic trip. It was a mastery sensory performance from the Atlanta team that orchestrated the trip. That’s when I knew Donald Glover went through a life changing bad trip. That paranoia auditory moment when Al was going down. Then the heavy DeJa Vu feeling when in the beginning of the episode they passed by this junkie looking person. With the eerie quote from Darius, “You don’t wanna be that guy” which was basically a foreshadow because that was Al. And there are deeper interpretations of that quote. That trip episode was produced so masterfully. Reason why I love this episode. Then Al wakes up in bed. And asks for Lorraine, and Earn responds, “your mom?” Which alludes to was that all a trip? Was Lorraine real or a subconscious trip of his mom, especially when he was yelling out for Lorraine when he was scared. Also nice to hear Al has his masters, showing the connection between Al and Earn. Earn seems to have Al’s back. 

1) Season 4 Ep 10 – It Was All a Dream

This was an amazing ending that wrapped up the series so nicely, providing some great answers. This whole series was densely packed and calculatedly crafted. So they didn’t have to go overboard with the last episode to wildly tie everything together. They could just put that last piece to fill for the perfect puzzle. We didn’t get much of Darius this season, so it was nice to go on one more Darius adventure, which always feels so weird, but that’s why people like Darius. Questions that people might have always had for Darius got answered. Like what does he do? Does he just live a random life everyday? Where’s his family? Is he ok? And that was all answered. He goes to pick up some medication. He sees some nice lady there that he has a conversation with. You find out that he deals with anxiety and depression. He wasn’t just some chill cool guy who was around. He is also a human just like everyone else that deals with his own issues. He talks about this new treatment that helps him, which is this sensory deprivation tank, where you float in this tank so you could be with yourself. Sometimes you get too deep into it, and can get too intense. Darius’ trick to differentiate between reality and hallucinations is a thick Judge Judy. Basically like a safe word. Something to make you realize that you’re in a dream state. After that was established, weird stuff started happening, where it was too intense to be true, even for Darius. He would then wake up from a dream sequence. Honestly though, when I saw this, and that idea was established. I guessed that this would be like an infinite sequence, an inescapable dream, which is like a hellscape. That’s why I love this episode, it solidified it like the New Jazz episode, that Donald Glover has been through a life altering bad trip. That left him questioning what’s real with life. An experience that will stay with him. One that’s like when this all ends, does it start all over again maybe from when the first time I tripped. Then I read the title of the episode, “It Was All a Dream,” and was like ahhh, this is how he’s choosing to end it. To make the series come full circle. But we continue, and there’s a lot of weirdness going on, with a guy like Darius, it’s going to be tough to differentiate the difference between what’s real and not, because life is so weird for him already. This leads to not him not knowing to treat this like a dream or not. Like Inception, a dream within a dream. When they went too deep in inception, Cobb messed up and destroyed that line that made Mal differentiate the difference between reality and dreamworld. Destroying that small line of sanity. It was all mixed to her. In the dream world, you have a bit more freedom, things don’t really count, you can jump off of a building and be ok, it’s a dream. In the real world, there are consequences for your actions. You jump off a building, you’ll probably die. And that’s what happened to Mal. She couldn’t differentiate, it was all the same to her. And she treated the real world, where there’s real consequences, like the dreamworld. She jumped off of a building and accidentally killed herself. I say all that to say Darius is stuck in between these two parallel worlds too. He lives a conundrum of not knowing if it’s real or if it’s another dream sequence. And He’ll never know because he has already come from that dream sequence multiple times. So what if next time he leaves, he actually gets to leave and doesn’t know it. Or what if it’s inescapable and he never gets to leave, and nothing ever matters again really. So that’s where this feeling of horror starts to set in. This horror was an inescapable hell. That’s why the show was so surreal and odd. Maybe it was all a dream. This could speak to why Darius is so free going, because it’s a dream, like he assumes it is, might as well do whatever. And Darius speaks to this later on. He’s living life with no consequence, like Mal, when she believes that the reality world is a dream world, which is dangerous. And they are all trying to tell him no, this is real, but is it? That’s why that last sequence was funny. Darius saves them and they drive away in a cool pink Maserati. They all are happy, driving crazy, and getting away, with magically appearing Popeyes for everyone. For a dream it seems pretty cool. But when they get home and try to tell Darius it’s all real, then what happened was very dangerous, driving recklessly away in a stolen car. But Darius tells them you all are a part of my dream sequence. Then it ends with Judge Judy, Judgement day, is it all real, or was it all a dream…

Then Atlanta leaves you with an unresolved sequence, but it all felt very familiar. That’s when I remembered, “The Big Bang”. That was the first episode of the series. I replayed it for “It Was All Dream” purpose. And it confirmed it. Atlanta kind’ve started and ended with Darius. In the first episode Darius says it feels like DeJa Vu, and correctly predicts what’s gonna happen. He’s like this is all too familiar, it’s all a trip. The end is wrapped into the beginning. Which declared this a masterful show. The premise was so rootful and beautiful. This was a trip of an experience. He created a near-perfect show or perfect. I absolutely love it. 

SB: I also like how they introduced the weird Nation of Islam guy from the first episode. And they made him shame black people for being bad blacks, that was funny and surreal. 

This was an amazing series. I loved everything about it. The stories they told were unlike an experience I’ve had watching television. For one, a lot of myself is in this show, and especially in Earn’s character. I empathize with his character a lot. Lot of profound elements in this series that I reference in my own life a lot. It’s definitely the show I referenced the most. I hope Donald Glover continues to create television or film experiences. The culture needs it, like the culture needed Atlanta, there would be such a huge void without it. Hopefully it inspires more authentic experiences on television. I’m very thankful for this show. Absolutely love it. One of the greatest ever.