The BEST Episodes of According to Jim
Every episode ever - ranked by fan votes!
Last Updated: Feb 24, 2021
Network: ABC (US)
Jim is an abrasive but lovable suburban father. Much like his real life counterpart, Jim's character is noted as a fan of Blues music, as well as the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Bears, and the Chicago Cubs. He's married to a gorgeous woman, Cheryl, and raises his five children – Ruby, Gracie, Kyle, and twins, Gordan and Jonathan – in a big house. Everything is perfect for Jim, if it wasn't for the messy situations he gets himself into and his laziness, which often makes him search for alternative ways of doing things with less effort. Of course, having his wife's siblings hanging out at his house all the time is no help. While Andy might be one of his best friends, Dana often teams up with Cheryl against Jim.
#1 - The Meaningful Gift
Season 8 - Episode 10 - Aired Apr 21, 2009
Andy, desperate to impress Mandy with the perfect birthday gift, turns to Jim for advice. Jim counsels against givivng fancy jewelry, urging Andy instead to give a sentimental gift to win her over. But Andy's recollection of what has meaning to Mandy is way off base, and instead of being pleased with the gift, she thinks he's cheating on her.
8.35 
#2 - Separate Ways
Season 6 - Episode 10 - Aired Mar 7, 2007
While Ryan is away, Dana and baby Tanner are staying at Jim and Cheryl's, until Jim starts complaining about the presence of the baby, so Cheryl wants him to stay at Andy's for a while. While Jim and Andy enjoy their male bonding, Cheryl and Dana are enjoying their time together too. At least, until Ryan returns.
8.35 
#3 - The Devil Went Down to Oak Park
Season 7 - Episode 18 - Aired May 27, 2008
The Devil himself visits Jim to remind him of the deal they made years ago, when Jim promised to give away his fifth child if the Devil helped him win over Cheryl.
8.31 
#4 - At-Bat
Season 6 - Episode 13 - Aired Apr 4, 2007
Jim's bad softball game advice to Kyle turns to be Jim's worst nightmare when an Ghost of Andy visits him to show him the Adult Kyle's life as a loser.
8.28 
#5 - No Harm, No Fowl
Season 2 - Episode 24 - Aired Apr 29, 2003
A trained bird flies into Andy's head in the backyard and Gracie adopts it as her bird pet, Daphne. The bird is driving everyone insane and they all can't wait to get rid of it, but unfortunately Gracie developed a deep emotional attachment to it. When someone leaves the window opened and the bird flies out in the middle of the night, Jim and Andy team up to go look for it at the park the next morning. When they spot the bird, their first reaction is not to tell Gracie, but Jim doesn't want to lie to his daughter anymore. Later, the real owner show up at the house and Gracie is forced to say goodbye to her feathered friend. Or is the thought of running away to Mexico more appealing than that?
8.27 
#6 - A Hole in One
Season 4 - Episode 1 - Aired Sep 21, 2004
Cheryl wants Jim to give up his vices so he can get her pregnant.
8.27 
#7 - Deliverance
Season 6 - Episode 8 - Aired Jan 31, 2007
When Dana gets into premature labor, and Ryan isn't able to come and deliver the baby because he is delivering a celebrity's baby, Jim has to be the one to deliver Dana's baby.
8.23 
#8 - The Cheater
Season 7 - Episode 16 - Aired May 13, 2008
Cheryl insists on playing a game that she somehow always wins, but Dana is aware of the fact that Cheryl is cheating.
8.21 
#9 - Good Grief
Season 6 - Episode 5 - Aired Jan 17, 2007
When Cheryl's beloved Uncle Donald dies, Jim takes over housekeeping, but soon starts to suspect that Cheryl is using him.
8.19 
#10 - The Daddy Way
Season 8 - Episode 11 - Aired Apr 28, 2009
Cheryl and her friends, eager to get an afternoon away from the kids, arrange a "Daddy and Me" group for Jim and other dads with young kids at their home. Jim makes the best of a potentially boring situation by turning babysitting into a sporting event--staging baby races where the dads bet on their kids and drink beer.
8.19 
#11 - Father-Daughter Dance
Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired Nov 9, 2004
Ruby hurts Jim's feelings when she invites Andy to a father-daughter dance instead of him.
8.19 
#12 - Coach Jim
Season 6 - Episode 12 - Aired Mar 28, 2007
Jim decides to toughen up his daughters basketball team and soon turns them from sweet and peaceful to an angry and aggressive basketball team.
8.18 
#13 - The Flannelsexual
Season 6 - Episode 2 - Aired Jan 3, 2007
Jim ends up on a talk show after claiming that men shouldn't let women feminize them, and then goes to Dana's co-ed baby shower to prove his point.
8.18 
#14 - In Case of Jimergency
Season 6 - Episode 11 - Aired Mar 14, 2007
After an argument with a claims representative about his bill, Jim's health insurance is canceled, and Jim decides to hide the truth from Cheryl, until she ends up sick and he gets her cold.
8.18 
#15 - The Tale of the Tape (2)
Season 5 - Episode 3 - Aired Sep 27, 2005
Jim worries that Cheryl's romantic expectations will increase when his new brother-in-law, Ryan, showers Dana with flowers and gifts. But then Jim learns that a special blues tape Cheryl supposedly made for him when they were dating, and that made him fall in love with her, was actually made for her by an old boyfriend.
8.16 
#16 - The Hunters
Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired Nov 23, 2004
To prove his worth as a man, Jim -- along with Andy -- hunt a turkey for Thanksgiving, but on the hunt Jim is pursued -- and shot -- by a legendary 40- lb. psychotic bird christened "Angry Pete." Thanksgiving-themed episode.
8.15 
#17 - The Gift Certificate
Season 7 - Episode 12 - Aired Apr 15, 2008
Realizing that Andy didn't use the gift certificate that Jim gave him for his birthday, Jim decides to use the certificate to treat himself with a nice meal, but soon Jim finds himself in an uncomfortable situation when Andy remembers the certificate and decides to invite Jim to join him for a meal.
8.15 
#18 - The Bachelor
Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired Nov 12, 2002
Dana gets selected to be on the reality show The Bachelor. At first she's sure her personality alone will be enough to entertain the guy, but Jim gives her advice on how to behave and what to say to the guy. Dana thinks he's full of crap, but after her date goes bad she tries Jim's recipe and scores a second date. She arranges with Cheryl to bring the bachelor over to their house for dinner, and Cheryl couldn't be more thrilled to be on national television with a remodeled house. Jim is also very proud that Dana only got so far thanks to him, but the situation quickly takes an unexpected turn when Jim accidentally overhears the bachelor saying Dana will be easy to bring to bed and then he'll dump her. Now he goes out of his way to save Dana and ends up scaring the guy away with stories about Dana being a psycho. Later he explains to her his behavior and says she'll meet someone who's good enough for her.
8.15 
#19 - No Surprises
Season 1 - Episode 22 - Aired May 15, 2002
Jim plans a surprise party for Cheryl's birthday, but gets angry and cancels it when Dana spills the beans. To make it up to him, Cheryl plans a party for him... but he's too busy bowling to show up.
8.15 
#20 - Goodwill Hunting
Season 7 - Episode 9 - Aired Feb 26, 2008
Without consulting with Cheryl, Jim transforms the garage into a cigar lounge and donates the kids' old clothes and furniture to charity. When Cheryl informs Jim that she is pregnant with twins, he is forced to retrieve all the stuff that he gave away, and has to deal with the fact that he is going to be a father of five.
8.12 
#21 - All Dolled Up
Season 7 - Episode 10 - Aired Mar 4, 2008
Jim is forced organize a doll-themed party for Gracie while Cheryl is on bed rest, but when Gracie admits that the only reason she agreed to the party was because she wanted to please her mother, Jim decides to turn the party into something totally else.
8.10 
#22 - You Gotta Love Somebody (2)
Season 2 - Episode 14 - Aired Jan 21, 2003
Jim's old friend Danny visits him, and brings his partner in crime, Laraine, with him. Cheryl and Dana offer to help Laraine pick out a dress for the police ball, and after realizing she has feelings for Danny, Cheryl convinces Jim to talk to Danny about asking her to the ball. Cheryl reveals to Jim that if it wasn't for Danny, they might never have gotten together, as they remember the time they met at a bar back in the 80's. But when Danny finally has the guts to talk to Laraine, he finds out that Andy already asked her out. Dana asks why can't she be Danny's date, since she made out with Cheryl's boyfriend the night she met Jim just so he would get out of the way. They all try to convince Andy to step aside what could be true love, but Andy reminds them of how he pretended to have a heart attack just so Jim would get rid of his girlfriend the night he met Cheryl. Finally, Andy agrees to help Danny and Laraine, as Jim and Cheryl conclude that despite all the help they got they still would have met.
8.10 
#23 - Cheryl Goes to Florida
Season 7 - Episode 5 - Aired Jan 22, 2008
While Cheryl is out of town to take care of her mother, Jim has to take care of their kids, and he receives sympathy from a neighborhood mom. Soon, other moms start helping Jim, and he tells each one that she's the only help in the house.
8.10 
#24 - Wedding Bell Blues
Season 4 - Episode 27 - Aired May 17, 2005
On Dana's wedding day, Jim accidentally knocks the family's favorite reverend unconscious with the car door, so he has to scramble to find a replacement preacher at the last minute, on the Season Finale.
8.09 
#25 - King of the Nerds
Season 8 - Episode 15 - Aired May 26, 2009
Jim uses his passion for sports to connect with son Kyle. But sports-challenged Kyle identifies more with fellow sci-fi nerd Andy, forcing a reluctant Jim to dress up as a Cyclops at a sci-fi convention in order to win his son back.
8.09