16 Best Episodes of ‘SEAL Team’
SEAL Team, for six seasons thus far, has followed the lives of the Navy SEALs’ most elite unit, both on dangerous high-stakes operations and back at home. The military drama returns for its seventh and final season on August 11 on Paramount+.
The team has lost members (RIP Clay and Full Metal, enjoy retirement Cerberus), gone through hell, executed intense, complicated, and high-octane missions, and faced conflict within the unit, but they’ve come out the other side. But there’s always the chance that one of them won’t make it home or something will go wrong overseas. Such has been the case numerous times over the years.
Ahead of the farewell season, we’ve gathered the best episodes below. Take a look, then let us know what makes your list in the comments section, below.
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"Tip of the Spear" (Season 1 Episode 1)
It’s the episode that introduces us to Bravo and its support—led by Jason Hayes (David Boreanaz) and including Ray Perry (Neil Brown Jr.), Sonny Quinn (A.J. Buckley), and Lisa Davis (Toni Trucks)—the kinds of missions they take on, and the high cost of their jobs, with the death of one of their own (Daniel Gillies‘ Nate). Clay Spenser (Max Thieriot) is just starting out, part of Green Team (and extremely arrogant), and when he joins Bravo on a mission, he clashes (the first time of many to come) with Jason. It pretty much perfectly sets the stage for what to expect from the rest of the series.
"The Worst of Conditions" (Season 2 Episode 3)
Tragedy strikes for Jason at home, when his estranged wife Alana (Michaela McManus) dies after a car accident. Bravo bands together around Jason, notably with Ray running to be with him at the hospital, at a time the two were at odds. Episodes that highlight grieving a major loss—the series constantly shows how much of a family Bravo, their loved ones, and their friends are—tend to stand out, and this one is no exception.
"Time to Shine" (Season 2 Episode 13)
Even before this episode, it’s clear that Sonny hates the water, notable for a SEAL. But it becomes much worse with the clock ticking when he becomes stuck in a submarine torpedo tube that’s rapidly filling with water—and he’s running out of air—while the team’s on a clandestine mission off the coast of North Korea. It’s a question of the life of one versus the life of the many … and it’s clear where Bravo stands with one of its own in danger.
"Medicate and Isolate" (Season 2 Episode 19)
Something SEAL Team has done so well is highlight what happens to these soldiers after they get home, most significantly and tragically with Brett Swann (Tony Curran), who struggles to get treatment at the VA because he didn’t document a TBI he suffered while in combat. Clay tries to help, having grown close since he’s home recovering from an injury, and so he’s the one to find Swann after he dies by suicide.
"All Along the Watchtower: Part 2" (Season 3 Episode 6)
The second of a two-parter features the team continuing to try to protect Ambassador Nicole Marsden (Khandi Alexander) and civilians in Yemen while the compound comes under fire and trouble finds them during their escape, leading to the need for some improvisation to keep everyone safe. Sadly, not everyone survives the journey, with Marsden dying of her injuries en route.
"Fog of War" (Season 3 Episode 13)
What exactly happened to cause a total mission failure? That’s what Bravo must unpack while on their flight home, when an explosion kills the person they’re trying to rescue—but the cause of said blast turns out to be one of the team. There are questions about what exactly happened, who remembers and saw what, and who threw a homewrecker into the room to cause the explosion. And while Ray is willing to come forward when he thinks he’s responsible, the same cannot be said for the person who actually was. Bravo must then decide what to do about their newest member, Vic Lopez (Lucca De Oliveira), who’s willing to let one of his “brothers” take the fall.
"God of War" (Season 4 Episode 1)
It’s a tough start to the beginning of Season 4 for Bravo 1 in an episode directed by Boreanaz: Jason chases after Cerberus when the dog, who had been getting spooked lately, runs, and the rest of Bravo tries to find its missing members. Meanwhile, flashbacks offer a look at when Jason started being the “all in all the time” guy on Bravo.
"Shockwave" (Season 4 Episode 4)
It’s only a matter of when not if Jason returns to operating—and brings Clay, benched, along—after Ray is caught in an explosion then taken during one of his assignments as Warrant Officer. But even with the team (mostly) back together, finding their brother is going to take time, while his wife Naima (Parisa Fakhri) waits at home, surrounded by the Bravo extended family.
"Horror Has a Face" (Season 4 Episode 6)
Bravo’s search for the captive Ray has as happy an ending as it can—after we have to watch him being tortured for three episodes in increasingly tense, intense, heart-wrenching, and hard-to-watch sequences. Those make seeing him save himself, then his brothers find him all the more satisfying, with his reunion with his family a perfect way to cap off the episode. But it’s clear this is something that will stick with him—and it does.
"One Life to Live" (Season 4 Episode 16)
Bravo loses one of its own, Full Metal (Scott Foxx), whose injuries after protecting his teammates from an RPG prove to be fatal. The team pays tribute to him, both out at sea and back at the bar. This finale also raises the question of just what Jason’s headaches mean, if Ray will face his PTS following his captivity and torture, and what the future looks like for Clay and Stella (Alona Tal).
"Frog on the Tracks" (Season 5 Episode 5)
After airing on CBS for four full seasons, the military drama moves to Paramount+ with this episode, with the majority of the action taking place on a train, with Bravo trying to stop suicide bombers (and Sonny hanging on on top of it at one point!). Jason’s focus is saving Mandy Ellis (Jessica Paré), formerly a CIA officer working with the team, after finding a photo confirming she’s been taken. It’s pretty much the same show it was on the broadcast network, except now in situations where you’d expect to hear profanity, there is some.
"Conspicuous Gallantry" (Season 5 Episode 8)
Something that becomes apparent—and SEAL Team spends significant time addressing—in Season 5 is the trauma that Jason has gone through and the effects on him, including his memory. For instance, in this episode, as Clay digs into the events that landed the entire team in the hospital, he realizes that the person responsible for bringing a building down on them is none other than Bravo 1 himself.
"Low Impact" (Season 6 Episode 1)
The beginning of this one is hard to watch and as gruesome as it is because it’s streaming. Following the ambush at the end of Season 5, this premiere begins with Clay’s leg a mess and he bandages it himself—meanwhile, Jason puts his own life on the line to protect his team—but the doctors have no choice to amputate once he is brought to a hospital. The episode does a great job of highlighting how everyone is affected while Clay’s in limbo: his wife Stella at home, Jason going back to her at Clay’s request, and Sonny staying by his side in the hospital.
"Watch Your Six" (Season 6 Episode 6)
The show’s 100th episode focuses on its characters, specifically the bond between the brothers, which Clay is very much still one, even though he’s no longer on Bravo. And when he’s hurting in the aftermath of losing his leg and trying to figure out what that means for him, everyone rallies around him at Full Metal’s cabin.
"Damage Assessment" (Season 6 Episode 9)
It is absolutely devastating watching Bravo learn about Clay’s death, Sonny refusing to believe it and lash out, the SEALs trying to do what’s best and not continue operating while they grieve only to be told they have to (due to a time sensitive op), and then toasting their fallen brother.
"Fair Winds and Following Seas" (Season 6 Episode 10)
Bravo misses Clay’s funeral, but the members do take a moment at his grave. And then while receiving a medal for saving Clay’s life in the Season 6 premiere, Jason speaks out publicly about his TBI and his fallen brother’s work to change the military’s view on such injuries. Then, when he’s brought before command for his actions, his Bravo brothers and other SEALs walk in to share their own struggles in one of the most powerful scenes of the show.
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