*SPOILER WARNING FOR ALL OF GRAVITY FALLS, EVEN THOUGH SPOILERS WILL BE KEPT TO A MINIMUM.*

Let's get this out of the way: Gravity Falls is the best TV show Disney has ever produced, counting both animated or live-action. It is the show that takes and uses the best of everything else, from Twin Peaks to Animaniacs to Portal and everything in-between. And looking back, it is already taking its place as one of the great classics of this Goldern Age of TV.

With that said, let us look at the episodes that turned out to have gone above and beyond what was expected of the show. Since there were (again) only 40 episodes over two seasons, there had to be some hard cuts, all of which will be addressed in the Honorable Mention section. Here are the 10 best episodes of Gravity Falls:

10. "Sock Opera"

Bill Cipher, in many respects, is one of the best Saturday morning cartoon villains in recent memory, and better than most villains Hollywood produces these days (*cough*, Gerrard Butler in Gods of Egypt, *cough*). And even though the plot technically revolves around Mabel's puppet show, it is Bill's possession of Dipper that really makes it one of the best episodes, especially in the final showdown. Plus, those who have seen The Night of the Hunter might get a kick out of this one.

9. "Weirdmageddon Part 2: Escape From Reality"

Throughout the show, Mabel has been a great character to analyze on a psychological level. And for a while, she had be criticized for being generally selfish and blind to the concerns of others. "Escape From Reality" in general and the concept of Mabelland in particular seems to have been created with those criticisms in mind. What put this part of Weirdmageddon above the other two is how it addresses why and how someone would create their own fantasy world to shield themselves from an unpleasant and cruel reality.

8. "Dreamscaperers"

This was Bill's introduction episode, and an absolutely killer one at that. The scene where Gideon summons him is one of the creepiest that the show has ever produced, which is saying quite a lot when the second season is taken into account. Even though it is technically part of the first season's finale, "Dreamscaperers" was a key demonstration of what the show could be.

7. "Summerween"

When it is all said and done, Gravity Falls is very much about the Mystery Twins. And while "Dipper and Mabel vs. The Future" may have been much more dramatic, this is the episode that explored the nature of their relationship the best. Not to mention the episode itself is a fine horror short film in its own right.

6. "Tourist Trapped"

This episode, like similar pilot episodes for Breaking Bad and the aforementioned Twin Peaks, should be held as a prime example of everything that a pilot should be. It has great character introductions, a good set up to the main story, as well as making pains to establish its tone. What more is there to be said other than "GRAPPLING HOOK!"

5. "The Hand That Rocks the Mabel"

Love is one of the strongest of human emotions, and sometimes there are few greater fears than being manipulated in loving someone who turns out to be abusive. This episode, with introduces Gideon, essentially shows the type of relationship that was in Fifty Shades of Grey taken to its logical extreme. And while Dipper and Mabel manage to pull one over him, it is clear he is going to remain a villain, with the determination to take them down.

4. "Fight Fighters"

To a certain extent, the subplot about Dipper's crush on Wendy and his rivalry with Robbie was one of the downsides of the first season. However, it helped produce a great episode like "Fight Fighters", which is a old-school video game parody through and through. For those who wanted a version of Pixels that wasn't an Adam Sandler film, this is something you will enjoy.

3. "Northwest Mansion Mystery"

These days, the current political and economic climate has given Slobs vs. Snobs stories a certain measure of... social acuteness. This class divide is the main premise of the episode, which involves Pacifica Northwest hiring Dipper to get rid of a ghost that has been haunting her family's estate before a major party. Ultimately, the main message aside from "close this divide" is "your family does not and should not define who you are" (a moral that could only be preached in a time where the Religious Right no longer has real political power).

2. "A Tale of Two Stans"

Often with a show that focus on discovering mysteries, viewers are often disappointed when the writers insisting on not explaining them or giving weak explanations, even well after the show has been cancelled. Fortunately, while in the middle of its intense second season, Gravity Falls took time to sit down and explain its mysteries quite well. And all the while telling the tragic tale of two twin brothers and how their fraternal bond slowly but surely fell apart.

Honorable Mentions: "The Stanchurian Candidate" (a good episode that was ruined by the current election cycle), "Carpet Diem" (great payoff in spite of a weak setup), "Little Gift Shop of Horrors" (wish there was room for one or more new stories), and the other two Weirdmageddon episodes (both fine television in their own rights, but not as good as "Escape From Reality").

1. "Not What He Seems"

Ok, this was the obvious choice and everybody knows it. Just like Adventure Time's "I Remember You" and Doctor Who's "Blink", "Not What He Seems" is the episode that defined the show. It may seem like hyperbole, but the last five minutes of the episode ranks up there with "Who Shot J.R.?" and the final minutes of the finale of M*A*S*H as one of the best scenes in the history of television.