Ranking the Best Episodes of TikTok’s Favorite Show, GIRLS

Many moons ago, one Hannah Horvath cracked open a laptop and tweeted “all adventurous women do.” Little did she know, her ambitions of becoming the voice of a generation would actually come true. GIRLS, which premiered in 2012, remains so culturally relevant, so ahead of its time, that I’m still baffled by how accurate it feels today. I implore any college student, or young twenty-something to watch GIRLS. This is my personal ranking of the five best episodes—and yes—I’m biased. 

Season 2, Episode 5: One Man’s Trash

The need to experience—whether for myself, others, or the sake of story—has always complicated my subconscious. I’ve placed myself in unhealthy situations (and a few healthy ones) in a bid to connect and collect a repertoire of stories.“One Man’s Trash” explores this phenomenon, and when I initially watched this episode during my sophomore year of college, it left an impenetrable mark. 

Hannah, in a fit of tears, recounts: “I made a promise such a long time ago that I was going to take in experiences – all of them – so I could tell other people about them and maybe save them.” Her realization—that she wants to be happy, despite her desperation to feel fulfilled—is a testament to the conscious ways we choose to experience the world, even when it breaks us.

Season 5, Episode 6: The Panic in Central Park

As an avid Marnie disliker—mostly because my history with ‘Marnie’ types has taken years off my life—this episode cracks her character wide open.

Trapped in a crumbling marriage and struggling in her career, Marnie’s obsession with perfection has inhibited her ability to be successful or happy. This brief affair with Charlie, this night of pure escapism, is a reckoning with the past. Charlie is too far gone. Fantasy isn’t sustainable. And Marnie must finally face the reality that even she doesn’t recognize herself anymore.

Season 4, Episode 5: Beach House

Have you ever been on a friend group vacation, and what was supposed to be a fun time is actually pure misery? I have! “Beach House” is comedic, but also confronts a harsh realization: the tensions of a friend group can weigh too heavy, reek of resentment, and often expose chinks in the armor. Marnie’s overbearing need to control this trip not only exposes the differences in each character, but reinforces the comfort we find in flawed relationships. The shot of the four girls—Marnie, Jessa, Hannah, and Shosh—on the bench at the end of this episode is so honest. 

Season 1, Episode 7: Welcome To Bushwick A.K.A. The Crackcident

Shoshanna smokes crack.Hannah realizes she barely knows Adam. 

Marnie’s need to control the room is stunted after seeing Charlie and his new girlfriend. This episode, like the best of GIRLS, captures the dynamic of each character. Marnie screaming “We are never coming to Bushwick ever again” is peak television. 

Season 5, Episode 3: Japan 

Speaking of Shoshanna, her development through the series is captured best in “Japan.” While this is a moment of escapism, Shosh gains self-autonomy—even as she reckons with the baggage of New York. You may run away to new places, but unresolved conflict will never disappear—it simply follows you. Japan, while freeing, is not sustainable… I love Shosh dearly. 

Honorable Mention: Season 4, Episode 2: Triggering 

This episode heals the inner child in me who has had to sit through the most unbearable writing workshops of my life. 

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