All 8 Episodes of It: Welcome to Derry, Ranked

Come join the circus.

It: Welcome to Derry finished up two days ago, and it is all the rage. It's weird, because in the midst of the excitement for Stranger Things 5, Welcome to Derry has been heating up and getting all kinds of incredible buzz. The prequel to the It movies provided a new, fun, and absolutely horrifying look at everyone's worst clown-related nightmare as well as the town that he haunts. So, that said, here's my ranking of every episode of Welcome to Derry.

8. Now You See It (Ep. 3)

The most CGI-heavy scares prove the least effective in this episode

The beginning of the season really was built around teasing Pennywise and having various encounters with It. Andy Muschietti had said that this season was going to be a slow build to Pennywise, and it feels like episode three teases us a bit too much with that. It very much repeats the beats that we had seen in the first two episodes, although the scares and plot developments just aren't as interesting. The connection between Rose and General Shaw is a cool little reveal, but all of it feels like they are just trying too hard to tease Pennywise. The final sequence in the graveyard is the worst of the CGI-heavy scares as the kids are chased by the ghosts of their dead friends. That's a scary concept, but the way it's portrayed is just goofy. And the last reveal of the clown silhouette doesn't even end up being Pennywise. It's still an entertaining entry, but definitely the weakest one this season.

7. The Thing in the Dark (Ep. 2)

The fallout of episode one starts to unravel in a slower but solid episode

After the shocking conclusion of the first episode, The Thing in the Dark has a lot to live up to, and it doesn't. This very much feels like an aftermath episode, but that's okay. We see the remaining kids dealing with the fallout of the movie theater massacre, and it is very upsetting. Ronnie's encounter with It appearing as a monstrous mix of her bed and her mother was absolutely horrifying. We see actual, sensible conflict arise between Lilly and Ronnie as Lilly wants to avoid being sent back to Juniper Hill and Ronnie wants to prove her father's innocence. It doesn't hit as hard as the first episode, but this is another solid, scary hour of TV that really does start to build out the main plot of the season.

6. The Great Swirling Apparatus of Our Planet's Function (Ep. 4)

The mid-season finale contains one of the most horrifying sequences I've ever seen

When watching this the first time, I fully did expect Pennywise to appear, because they had teased him so heavily in episode three and the mid-season finale seemed like the place to have him. I was a little disappointed when he did not appear, but if you ignore that, this is a pretty good episode. The standout sequence here is, of course, Marge's eyes bugging out. That visual is just so grotesque and memorable and truly makes for one of the scariest, most disgusting scenes not only in Welcome to Derry, but in the entire It franchise. The episode is at its strongest when everyone starts to realize that It exists and begins to try and track it down. It definitely has some weaker moments: we start rehashing the origins of It that we saw in It: Chapter Two, and that's just not that interesting to me. But, really, this episode has some of the most unsettling imagery I've seen in a horror film or show in a while, so for that, I give it props.

5. In the Name of the Father (Ep. 6)

A revelatory entry that raises the stakes for the final few episodes

After episode five was when Welcome to Derry kicked into high gear for me. Episode six continues that wonderful momentum by diving into the origins of Pennywise...but not It. No, this episode has some great, unexpected revelations about the real person that was Pennywise the Dancing Clown before It stole that identity and used it as its primary form. The slow realization that Ingrid is Mrs. Kersh from It: Chapter Two was so dread-inducing and creepy. Madeleine Stowe is great at being so warm yet so creepy at the same time. On top of that, Hank Grogan escapes from the Shawshank bus and hides out in the Black Spot, which sets the stage for the tragic events to come in the following episode. This whole episode builds towards the ultimate climax of the season, and it is fantastic.

4. The Pilot (Ep. 1)

A great reintroduction to Derry with a shocking and terrifying ending

I was excited for Welcome to Derry as soon as it was announced, but my expectations were somewhere in the middle. It is a great story, but it's tough to see how you can expand on the story without it feeling repetitive or too lore-heavy. Well, Welcome to Derry establishes its differences right off the bat. You thought that Georgie's death was a horrifying way to kick off It? Well, Welcome to Derry kicks off with an equally scary child murder...and then ends its first episode by massacring half of the kids that we thought were going to be this show's Losers' Club. As soon as that happened, I was hooked. The It movies have this sense of hope and strength in fighting back against Pennywise, but we know that the characters in Welcome to Derry don't defeat him, so the show uses that to its advantage by immediately telling us that it isn't messing around. This series is going to be darker, scarier, and even more gruesome than the movies. And I am all here for it.

3. Winter Fire (Ep. 8)

The finale is a satisfying resolution that sets the stage for an exciting future

Winter Fire does a great job of wrapping up this prequel story while also giving way to a bright future for both the It franchise and Stephen King's other properties. I loved the icy, fogged-up visuals of this episode. It made everything have this ghastly veil around it that really amplified the creepy feeling, but it also really hit home when it needed to. Moments like Leroy telling Will that he doesn't need his son to be like him and loves him for who he is are so powerful. Rich's ghost showing up to help the kids restore the dagger and flipping off Pennywise in the process is such an awesome moment. And, of course, Skarsgård goes all out with his swan song for the season, delivering another terrifying performance that gives us a litany of iconic new Pennywise moments.

I really thought that this episode excelled in cementing some of its connections to both the It movies and other King properties. Of course, Hallorann's final interactions with Leroy tease his future at the Overlook Hotel. As many speculated, Marge is revealed to be Richie Tozier's mother. The after-credits scene is a great little bow on the entire thing as we now fully understand why Pennywise appears as Mrs. Kersh to Beverly in It: Chapter Two. And, finally, by having Pennywise experience time as a flat circle, that gives way to a ton of potential directions for this franchise to go in the future. This is a great finale for a great first season.

2. 29 Neibolt Street (Ep. 5)

Pennywise's epic return is paired with some of the best dramatic moments in the season

Although episode four is technically the mid-season finale, this episode really feels like the midpoint of the season. All of our main characters are raiding the well house on Neibolt Street. The military is going after the pillars that we learned about in episode four, while the kids discover that Matty is alive and the rest of the kids from episode one may also have survived, so they go down to the sewers to rescue them. This leads to an action-packed, thrilling episode wherein a bunch of soldiers have constant encounters with It. I love how It invades Hallorann's mind and unlocks the boxes that we learned he uses in Doctor Sleep. And, of course, the climactic ending reveals that Matty was never alive. The kids discover the bodies of Matty, Phil, Teddy, and Suzie while the false Matty begins to sing...and slowly transform into Pennywise. The epic reveal of the world's scariest clown was just such an incredible moment that had been properly built up to and paid off. And, after Pennywise appears, we get another shocking moment as Leroy, thinking his son is just another hallucination made to mess with him, prepares to shoot him. Pauly jumps in the way and takes a bullet for Will, stopping Leroy from accidentally murdering his own kid. Just an absolutely explosive, incredible episode that truly raises the stakes and horror of the season.

1. The Black Spot (Ep. 7)

The climactic penultimate episode is an incredible mix of heartbreak and unflinching horror

I have read It twice, and some of the coolest things that are left out of the movies are these interludes that Stephen King writes about the history of Derry. One of those interludes is narrated by Will Hanlon as he tells the story of the Black Spot, a nightclub for black army men. The Black Spot was burnt down by a racist cult as the violent end to Pennywise's cycle. This episode portrays the burning of the Black Spot with absolute perfection. Gorgeously horrifying visuals and truly tragic, upsetting moments highlight this as one of the best sequences in any Stephen King adaptation.

There are so many things to love about this episode. The way that they have built to the Black Spot burning down is so tragic, but it feels earned because they have shown these racist characters wanting to track down and kill Hank Grogan. This episode does such a great job of showing how human-induced horror is what feeds Pennywise. He does not cause the fire at the Black Spot: he just feeds on it. Rich's death is also one of the saddest moments in the entire It franchise, and it made me realize that Marge is likely Richie's mother in the future. This episode just has so many incredible, jaw-dropping moments that elevated Welcome to Derry as a whole.

But really, the best thing about this episode is, of course, Pennywise. Somehow, Bill Skarsgård is better than he's ever been here, which is saying something, because he is amazing at playing this clown. This is the scariest and most evil Pennywise has ever appeared. Muschietti doesn't lean on CGI scares or graphic, horrifying imagery (although there are definitely some viscerally memorable deaths). He just trusts his lead actor to deliver the scariest version of Pennywise we have ever seen. I hope to God that Skarsgård is nominated for an Emmy, because he elevated this already incredible episode to newer, more terrifying heights.