The top 10 best Ice King Adventure Time episodes, ranked

Though Simon’s story has continued in Fionna and Cake and the Distant Lands series, the Ice King himself, in a way, ended as an entity during the Adventure Time series finale when he was cured of his crown’s curse. In the dead of winter, it’s hard not to think about the Ice Kingdom and all the chaos caused by its ruler across 10 seasons and yearn for a rewatch. With so many episodes to sift through, we decided to compile a list of the best Ice King-centric entries that will be sure to warm your heart amidst the cold weather.

We opted not to include the series finale “Come Along With Me” on the list, because, while the Ice King does get a satisfying ending, so does everyone else. There are many incredible episodes prominently featuring the Ice King, but this list tries to take into account a mixture of laughter, emotion, and lore when determining what deserves a spot.

10 Still — Season 3, episode 7

This early Adventure Time episode showcases one of the things the Ice King does best: be incredibly annoying, yet so hilariously pitiful that it somehow becomes endearing. Finn and Jake awaken one day to find themselves completely frozen, having been incapacitated by Ice King in an attempt to force a friendship between them. This mostly means forcing them to watch penguin photography slideshows followed by late-night gab sessions. This is one of the first episodes in which Ice King gets a good amount of screentime that explores a side of his personality beyond his obsession with capturing princesses.

9 Mystery Dungeon — Season 5, episode 8

This episode features an incredible crossover of characters that rarely interact with one another. Ice King, Tree Trunks, Neptr, Shelby, and Lemongrab awake in a mysterious dungeon with no knowledge of how they got there. Characters with a proclivity for chaos like Lemongrab and Tree Trunks are firing on all cylinders, leaving Ice King to be more of a straight man, a shift in formula that’s very fun. And, when the true reason the gang is in the dungeon is revealed, we’re once again reminded that so much of the Ice King’s absurd actions all come back to a desire for companionship.

8 Princess Potluck — Season 5, episode 18

This episode is one of the funniest instances of Ice King crashing out over nothing, while also, at its core, all being rooted in his wholesome desire to be included. After getting word of Princess Bubblegum’s potluck, IK is deeply offended he wasn’t invited, and sets out to sabotage it. It has some of Ice King’s best bits in the series, including an incredibly hilarious performance by Tom Kenny where he pretends to be several different characters while on the phone with the banana guards.

7 Hitman — Season 3, episode 4

“Hitman” is an episode that illustrates Ice King’s deep care for Finn and Jake in the silliest way possible. After an altercation with the duo, Ice King decides to hire a hitman to give them a good smack, taking the job title literally. But when he realizes the hitman he hired, a fire-controlling figure named Scorcher, is going to kill Finn and Jake, Ice King does everything he can to save their lives. The episode is filled with delightfully farcical nonsense, including the “someone got hit in the boingloings” bit, which is an absolute all-timer.

6 Holly Jolly Secrets Parts I and II — Season 3, episodes 19 and 20

This two-part episode was a huge reveal at the time it aired, finally showing the true origins of the Ice King and his original identity. Seeing Simon’s last days of lucidity forever shifted the perspective of Finn, Jake, and the audience, and watching it still hits no matter how many times you’ve seen it. Technically a Christmas episode (without ever explicitly mentioning the holiday), the two-parter’s heartwarming ending is guaranteed to give you a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.

5 Broke His Crown — Season 8, episode 1

This episode is both an excellent one for lore fans and Bubbline fans, following Marceline and Princess Bubblegum to a dinner party at the Ice King’s home. Prior to this episode, Betty (Simon’s great love from his past who was brought into Ooo, but alienated from him due to the crown’s effect on his personality) stole Ice King’s crown temporarily, attempting to reprogram it and break his curse. Now with an altered crown, Ice King begins acting strangely, and Marceline and Bubblegum must travel into the crown itself using virtual reality technology to save him.

4 Elements miniseries — Season 9, episodes 2–9

Perhaps putting a miniseries as one entry on this list is a bit of a cheat, but it’s such a great showcase of the Ice King throughout that it would be a crime not to include it as a single entity. For a bit more background on what’s happening in this miniseries, it may behoove you to go back and also watch “Elemental” (season 8, episode 8) and “Jelly Beans Have Power” (season 8, episode 19), which introduce the ice elemental Patience St. Pim.

When Finn and Jake return from the adventures of the Islands miniseries, the world of Ooo is very different, now split into four distinct elemental sections: candy, slime, ice, and fire. After Patience overclocked the elemental abilities of Princess Bubblegum, Slime Princess, and Flame Princess (using Betty as a magic battery), they were overcome with their own powers and turned into shadows of their former selves. In their quest to set things right, Finn and Jake find themselves teaming up with Ice King, who wishes to rescue Betty (who he only remembers as “weird lady”). What follows is an incredibly well done adventure that explores Ice King’s budding heroic tendencies and his slowly progressing friendship with Finn and Jake.

3 Betty — Season 5, episode 48

As we approach the final entries in this list, we’re getting to the episodes that are absolutely key to Ice King’s overall canon. “Betty” is exactly that, finally bringing the woman Simon dearly loved into the world of Ooo. The reunion between Simon and Betty is perhaps only topped by his reunion with Marceline, who never thought she’d see that version of him again. It’s a pivotal point in Ice King’s story. Plus, it features Simon immediately punching out Ash, Marceline’s horrible ex-boyfriend, which always makes me cackle.

2 I Remember You — Season 4, episode 25

The episode that makes even the most hardened soul cry, “I Remember You” was the first to ever explore the past relationship between Simon and Marceline when she was a young girl. It features a heartwrenchingly-beautiful song that messes you up in the best way possible, making it an absolute must-watch, even if you’ve never seen an episode of Adventure Time in your life.

1 Simon and Marcy — Season 5, episode 14

It may be controversial to rank this episode above “I Remember You,” but “Simon and Marcy” is the first time fans got an extended, firsthand look at what kind of man Simon was in the aftermath of the Mushroom War. That in and of itself is interesting, but we also get to learn much more about the world’s past, as well as Marceline’s childhood. Featuring some of the most adorable interactions in the entire series, and perhaps the most gutting rendition of the Cheers theme song ever performed, “Simon and Marcy” is the best Ice King episode out there.

Bonus entry: Evergreen — Season 6, episode 24This final entry is a bit of a bonus inclusion for those who are true lore lovers. Technically, the Ice King himself is barely in this episode, which explores the origins of his cursed crown. However, when it comes to better understanding the character’s history and why he named his pet penguin Gunther — as well as the overarching history of Ooo — “Evergreen” is an absolute must watch.