The BEST episodes of Transparent
Every episode of Transparent ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Transparent!
Mort gathers his three adult kids – Ali, Sarah and Joshua – for a talk about the future, but everyone is shocked to learn that it’s not a financial inheritance at stake, but rather the complex legacy of a secret life as a trans woman. Everyone’s relationship – to the world, themselves, each other, through the lens of boundaries, intimacy, sex and gender – is about to change.
#1 - Exciting and New
Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/23/2016
The Pfeffermans escape their problems on land by taking a cruise together. Though the clan spends most of the cruise apart - venturing on their own journeys of self discovery - they ultimately find themselves coming together at the Seder that almost wasn't.
#2 - To Sardines and Back
Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/23/2016
Relationships are tested as the Pfefferman family gather for Maura's birthday. Sarah confronts Buzzy on temple board politics and Maura makes a big announcement, experiencing pushback from both Vicki and Shelly. The night culminates in a game of Sardines, forcing tense situations into tight spaces.
#3 - Grey Green Brown & Copper
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 12/10/2015
Maura reconciles with her lineage, both past and present; Ali talks to Leslie about her academic future; Josh looks to Buzz as a father figure; Sarah tries to tie up loose ends.
#4 - Why Do We Cover the Mirrors?
Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/26/2014
A funeral brings all the Pfeffermans together and reunites them with their past – Shelley and Maura with old friends, Sarah with her ex, and Josh with his teenage babysitter. Just when they thought there were no more secrets, the family busts out a few more.
#5 - The Open Road
Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 9/23/2016
Josh hits the road with an unlikely copilot, stirring up some undeniable chemistry along the way. Back at home, Shelly becomes wary of Buzzy's outlandish spending while Ali sees God during a nitrous induced trip at the dentist's office.
#6 - Oh Holy Night
Season 3 - Episode 5 - Aired 9/23/2016
The Pfefferman family gathers at Hineni to support Sarah's alternative spiritual endeavor. After the news of a close friend's untimely passing, a distressed Josh leans on Raquel for support. Ali ends the night by witnessing the pitfalls of Leslie's prejudices.
#7 - Just the Facts
Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/23/2016
Maura gets an exciting peek at the future with a visit to the plastic surgeon's office but fails to muster the same enthusiasm from Vicki on a fun night out. Josh visits an unusually upbeat Rita while Ali and Leslie struggle with intimacy. Sarah finds distraction from her personal troubles by spearheading an unorthodox approach to Judaism.
#8 - Off the Grid
Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/23/2016
After reconnecting with Colton, Josh decides to move to Overland Park, until a concerned Ali travels to him, intending to bring him home. Feeling abandoned, Sarah has trouble controlling her rage. Shelly confronts Buzzy about his spending, leading to some unforeseen revelations. Newly single Maura has an exciting, surprising night out.
#9 - Elizah
Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/23/2016
While working at an LGBT suicide hotline, Maura receives a distressing call from a young trans woman, Elizah. Afraid that Elizah will hurt herself, Maura goes on an odyssey through South Central LA to find the troubled teen and lands herself in the hospital.
#10 - Man on the Land
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 12/10/2015
Maura makes a new friend and has a rude awakening at the music festival; Sarah experiences liberation from an unlikely source; Ali makes an unexpected journey to the past.
#11 - Symbolic Exemplar
Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 9/26/2014
Josh goes on a date with Raquel. Ali explores her feminine side with a TA from Gender Studies class. The kids turn out for Maura's performance in a talent show, but her delight quickly turns to dejection.
#12 - The Wilderness
Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 9/26/2014
As they struggle to come to terms with Maura, Josh looks for answers from a rabbi, and Ali looks for answers in a Gender Studies class with Syd. Sarah is left to answer questions from her own kids, who meet Maura for the first time.
#13 - If I Were a Bell
Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 9/23/2016
Boyle Heights, 1958. 12 year old Maura's femininity causes a clash between her mother Rose and her grandparents, Haim and Yetta. Across town, 12 year old Shelly quits the school play and stops eating but won't tell anyone why. Flash forward to 1966, where 21 year olds Mort and Shelly carry on a secret affair.
#14 - House Call
Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/22/2017
Feeling compelled to learn more about herself in Israel, Ali stays back as the rest of the family returns to Los Angeles. Sarah, Len, and Lila reevaluate their complicated relationship. Josh confronts his sex and love issues head on. Maura and Davina reclaim the Pfefferman house from an unwanted guest.
#15 - Kina Hora
Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 11/29/2015
Sarah and Tammy are getting married, while Maura and Ali are visited by ghosts from the past and Josh and Rabbi Raquel can't hide their big news.
#16 - Flicky-Flicky Thump-Thump
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 12/10/2015
Josh has a pool party for his new band, but he and his siblings are caught off-guard when Maura and Shelly arrive together; Ali reconnects with an old friend; Sarah finds her past catching up with her.
#17 - When the Battle Is Over
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/23/2016
After a health scare, Maura confronts death and her relationship to her body. Sarah hopes to join the MidCity Temple board. Shelly plans a onewoman show with Buzzy. Dissatisfied with their lives, Josh and Ali play married couple.
#18 - Best New Girl
Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 9/26/2014
In a flashback, Mort escapes with a friend to a cross-dressing retreat in the woods, and becomes captivated with a very accepting woman. Left alone after cancelling her Bat Mitzvah, 13-year-old Ali finds trouble with an older man at the beach.
#19 - Cool Guy
Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/22/2017
Maura and Ali uncover new truths about their family. Shelly gets bold in her improv class. Sparks fly between Sarah, Lila and Len and they set off to hatch a plan. Josh is haunted by the past.
#20 - Wedge
Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 9/26/2014
When Shelly's husband goes missing, Sarah, Josh and Ali set out to find him but instead find themselves lost in their past. Ali can no longer keep Maura's secret from Josh, which sends him into a tailspin. When Maura runs into a Pfefferman family friend she takes a stand for her new identity.
#21 - Looking Up
Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/26/2014
Maura finds solace with ex-wife, Shelly, and the two hatch a plot to help Ed realize his wishes. Sarah spends time with her ex-husband and begins to question their breakup. Raquel finally breaks through to Josh. When all members of the family are summoned to Shelly's, they are in for a few surprises.
#22 - New World Coming
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 12/10/2015
Josh and Raquel ask Colton to move in; Maura and Ali meet a feminist scholar—and Maura's former nemesis—at UCLA; Sarah launches a sexual fantasy life with a domineering figure from her past.
#23 - The Letting Go
Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/26/2014
Maura embraces her new journey, but nothing about life as a woman is easy – making friends, finding a new community and, above all, coming out to her children. Sarah introduces her husband to her ex-girlfriend. Josh pays a visit to his ex-babysitter. Ali gets closer to her trainer.
#24 - Moppa
Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/26/2014
Maura finally comes out to Ali and they join Sarah on a field trip to the mall, where they all get rude lessons in womanhood. Josh is forced to confront his past thanks to questions from Syd about his long-time relationship with Rita.
#25 - They Is on the Way
Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/22/2017
Davina's stay at the Pfeffermanhouse is rudely interrupted. The Pfeffermans float in the Dead Sea and Ali rushes to meet them but is waylaid at an Israeli checkpoint.