iCarly was one of the most popular Nickelodeon shows during its time. The show ran from 2007-2012, but children and adults today still love watching the nostalgic comedy show. As a revival series is set to air on the new streaming service Paramount Plus the show has once again become popular. Until the release, you can watch the first two seasons on Netflix. Here are the best 10 episodes ranked:
10. “iWant More Viewers”
After starting to gain success from their web show, Carly (Miranda Cosgrove), Sam (Jennette McCurdy), Freddie (Nathan Kress) and Spencer (Jerry Trainor) team up and compete to see who can attract more viewers to the show. While Sam and Carly’s poster idea failed hilariously, so did Freddie and Spencer’s road sign. The sign even malfunctions live on the webcast and spells out “PEE ON CARL” instead of advertising the webshow.
While it’s one of the first episodes of the series, it still shows the strong chemistry among the cast and paves the way for the rest of the season.
9.) “iDate a Bad Boy”
In this special two-part episode, Carly meets her new neighbor, Griffin, after he steals Spencer’s motorcycle. Spencer lets him off the hook, but Carly still holds resent and shares her dislike for him. Eventually, Carly and Griffin get to know each other and even share a kiss that is disrupted by Spencer. He immediately bans Carly from seeing the new boy, and grounds her “for ‘til college.”
Spencer eventually lets the two start dating, but that all comes to an end when Griffin finds Carly making fun of his collection of “Pee Wee Babies.” Not only is guest star Drew Roy amazing eye candy, but it was also great seeing an overprotective Spencer being concerned about his little sister, which is something we don’t get to see a lot of.
8.) “iStage an Intervention”
This season two episode focuses on Spencer’s addiction to the “Pak-Rat” video game. The game eventually consumes his life, as he refuses to work, eat and even bathe because of his addiction. The only solution is to play against the game’s world champion, Sasha Striker, and hopefully beat the world record.
While the show mostly focuses on Carly and her friends, it's nice to see an episode focus on Spencer and his antics. After all, many now credit him for “carrying” the show.
7.) “iTwins”
The Parent Trap-like episode features Jeanette McCurdy playing both Sam and her twin sister, Melanie. The latter is back from boarding school and meets Freddie for the first time. However, Freddie thinks Sam is lying, so he does everything he can in his power to prove her lie, including asking her out on a date.
6.) “iAm Your Biggest Fan”
With another infamous character introduction, the episode features iCarly’s biggest fan, Mandy. The gang first is excited to have a No. 1 fan, but as their fan becomes a stalker, that excitement turns into fear.
Mandy is an awkwardly hilarious girl and also becomes a more notable character later into the series. It would be a shame not to include her on this list.
5.) “iPie”
The head chef of the gang’s favorite pie shop dies and causes the restaurant to close down. The gang then becomes determined to find the recipe for their favorite coconut cream pie. The only person who is believed to have the recipe is the chef’s granddaughter. However, she lies that she has the recipe, but she requests going on a date with Spencer in order to gain the recipe.
Another episode that focuses on Spencer, it’s just another example of Jerry Trainor’s fantastic performance of the character.
4.) “iKiss”
This is not only one of the most iconic episodes, but it also sets the stage for Sam and Freddie’s relationship later in the series. After Freddie pulls a horrible prank on Sam, she takes things to a new level and announces on the web show Freddie has never kissed anyone. Sam’s impulsive actions cause Freddie to be embarrassed and hide away from other people.
In hopes of making him feel better, Sam also reveals she has never been kissed, either. They both agree to secretly kiss each other and not tell anyone about it, even Carly. It’s one of few genuine interactions we see between the two characters, and seeing Sam feel guilty about her mean antics is rare.
3.) “iNevel”
We first meet the infamous character Nevel Papperman (Reed Alexander) in season one. The gang wants to be reviewed by Nevel, who runs a successful review website. However, trouble ensues after Carly refuses to kiss Nevel during his review, and the only way to take him down is to tell his mother about how awful her son is.
It’s a great introduction to the character who we pray to see throughout the series as well as another early episode favorite.
2.) “iPsycho”
Another iCarly special episode, Carly and the gang get invited to a fan's birthday party. Nora, an unpopular 16-year-old, is excited to have the cast at her party. But once they try to leave, she kidnaps them in her basement in hopes of becoming their friends and becoming popular.
This iconic episode features Gibby (Noah Munck) and the first appearance of his little brother, Guppy, coming to the rescue. He fights off Nora and rescues his friends. We don’t get to see a ton of important Gibby scenes prior, so it's great to see him being a focal character for once.
1.) “iGo to Japan”
In this super special episode, the gang travels to Japan for the iWeb awards. The journey both to and while in Japan is anything but simple, including jumping out of a plane and getting sabotaged by the competition. And with guest stars Good Charlotte, this episode is jam-packed with excitement.
This episode is the top pick because of its new location, wild new characters and getting the inside scoop on a recurring character: Mrs. Benson. Before the episode, we never saw too much interaction between her and the rest of the gang. However, we get to see her in a hilarious light as she finally comes to the rescue.
