The WORST episodes of Matlock
Every episode of Matlock ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Matlock!
Don't be fooled by his down-home demeanor and country-boy ways; criminal defense lawyer Ben Matlock is worth every penny of his fee. Count on Matlock to visit the crime scene, scope out the clues everyone else missed, and dramatically reveal the real criminal during a climactic trial sequence.
#1 - The Court-Martial (1)
Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 2/17/1987
Ben is hired by a friend to defend his son, who is in the army, who's been charged with killing the sadistic lieutenant, whose mistreatment of his men led to the death of his friend.
#2 - The Photographer
Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 3/31/1987
Amy Adler had a juvenile record before becoming a photographer's assistant. When the photographer she works for is murdered, she begs Matlock to help her out. While pro bono cases aren't usually his style, something about the feisty young woman catches his interest, and he agrees to help her out.
#3 - The Star
Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/31/1989
Catherine McKay is an aging prima donna who only had one hit movie in her career. When she's found dead, stabbed in the chest with the knife that made her famous, suspicion lands on Noel Bishop, the horror film director that wanted her off his picture.
#4 - The Arsonist
Season 5 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/5/1991
Marvin Sheam and Sid Franklin have been in business for 32 years. When their bank loan is denied and they can't pay their bills, Marv tries to talk Sid into hiring an arsonist to torch their business so they can collect the insurance money and rebuild from scratch. Just before Marv has a chance to talk to the arsonist again, he winds up dead outside his daughter's wedding reception, and Sid gets blamed.
#5 - The Con Man
Season 4 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/7/1989
After he's conned by a group of con men, Brian Davis is accused of murdering one of them. Matlock agrees to take on the case, and while Michelle tries to get close to one of the remaining con artists, Matlock tries to prove that a previous scheme is responsible for the current predicament.
#6 - The Good Boy
Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/26/1989
After her husband's death she never thought she'd love again, but it Bonnie soon found her future with Cal Ritter. The only problem is that her son, Tony Morgen, hates Cal. When Tony kills Cal and frames his mother for her murder, Matlock takes the case to prove that Bonnie is innocent, but to prove her innocence, he will have to destroy her son.
#7 - The Lovelorn
Season 2 - Episode 19 - Aired 2/23/1988
Matlock agrees to defend a man who has been accused of murdering the relationship columnist whose response ended his relationship.
#8 - The Cult
Season 3 - Episode 18 - Aired 5/2/1989
When William Austin comes to Atlanta from Chicago and heads to the cult that has ensnared his son Dennis, Dennis tells him to leave him alone, the cult is his home now, and that he is no longer his father. The leader of the cult, Joshua Bradbury, tells Austin that he needs to accept Dennis' decision, and to leave him alone. Austin refuses to leave without his son, and Bradbury has the police escort Austin (who threatens to take off Bradbury's head) out of mansion. Dennis observes someone shooting Joshua, then tells police he sees his father fleeing the scene of the crime. William Austin heads to Ben Matlock for help in defending himself. After learning that Dennis has signed his trust fund and his life's savings over to the cult, Matlock confronts him, and is shocked to hear Dennis deny his father. Matlock goes to a reknowned expert in de-programming cult victims, who tells him that Dennis may believe he saw his father, but he is probably so brain-washed by the cult that he can't real
#9 - The Genius
Season 2 - Episode 20 - Aired 3/15/1988
When Matlock's nephew Irwin is charged with murder, Matlock investigates at a high-tech computer firm to clear his name.
#10 - The Scam (1)
Season 9 - Episode 15 - Aired 5/7/1995
Cliff gets entangled in the case of his old college buddy, a defense attorney being blackmailed to sabotage his current case. But when the blackmailer turns up dead and Cliff stands accused, it's Matlock to the rescue.
#11 - The Vacation (1)
Season 7 - Episode 1 - Aired 11/5/1992
Matlock and Leanne head to the beach where Leanne reunites with three good friends from college, and Matlock reunites with someone from his past who just happens to be the brother of the woman whose heart Matlock 'broke' years earlier.
#12 - The Thoroughbred
Season 3 - Episode 16 - Aired 4/18/1989
When the manager of a thoroughbred farm is murdered, her father begs Matlock to represent the mentally handicapped man accused of the crime.
#13 - The Talk Show
Season 4 - Episode 15 - Aired 1/16/1990
When talk show host Dan Galloway is murdered after publicly humiliating three woman on the air and firing his executive producer, there is no shortage of suspects. Nearly everyone who ever met the man wanted him dead, but it's up to Matlock to prove whether Marla, Leanne or Katherine committed the crime as he tries to prove that his own client, Lisa, did not.
#14 - The Secret (1)
Season 5 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/30/1990
When a gambler is accused of killing his bookie, Matlock agrees to take the case, believing that someone from the bookie's past is the guilty party.
#15 - The Chef
Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/6/1987
Michael and Victoria Edwards may be divorced, but unfortunately, she couldn't keep him from being a guest on her show. When Michael dies after testing out the dish they were cooking, Victoria is immediately charged with his murder. Matlock agrees to defend her, and gets some good home cooking in the bargain.
#16 - The Psychic
Season 3 - Episode 13 - Aired 3/7/1989
Matlock agrees to defend a psychic, Jennifer Holtz, who claims to have seen the murder before it ever took place.
#17 - The Pro
Season 4 - Episode 18 - Aired 2/13/1990
Matlock has to defend an arrogant young tennis professional (Dave Travis) against a charge of murdering his rival on and off the court (Victor Tomassio).
#18 - The Model
Season 3 - Episode 17 - Aired 4/25/1989
Matlock has finally had the breakthrough in the case he was struggling with, but after being hit by a car, he needs to put the case together from scratch. Unfortunately, his nurse isn't too pleased to see him trying to work, and does her best to make sure he gets the rest he needs.
#19 - The Best Friend
Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 12/8/1987
Matlock agrees to defend Vanessa Douglas when she's accused of murdering Stephen Cassidy, and author who destroyed a political families ambitions with a tell-all book. When Matlock realises his client is indeed guilty of the murder she is charged of committing, he sets up a plan to implicate her best friend, Sarah, with the crime, knowing that Vanessa will not let her friend take the blame for something she did.
#20 - The Power Brokers (1)
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/27/1987
Matlock reluctantly takes the case when Melinda Stuart's source is murdered. The biggest problem is that she's more interested in listening to what FBI Agent Paul Davies has to say than she is in listening to him.
#21 - The Victim
Season 4 - Episode 16 - Aired 1/23/1990
Matlock tries to prove that someone other than his client had a motive to murder his lover. His best bet? The victim's paraplegic husband.
#22 - The Ex
Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/17/1989
Julie heads to Baltimore to defend a man accused of killing the newspaper editor who dragged his name through the mud. Matlock comes to town to help her because Conrad is busy on another case, and helps Julie out when the prosecutor, who just happens to be her ex-husband, does whatever he can to trip Julie up.
#23 - The Prisoner (1)
Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/14/1989
When a prison guard is accused of murder, Matlock actually goes into the prison itself to defend the man.
#24 - Santa Claus
Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 12/9/1986
When a down-on-his luck Santa Claus (Tom McCabe) is accused of killing the landlord who was about to evict not only him but everyone else in the apartment complex, the people in his building take up a collection and come to Matlock to ask him to defend him. They may not like Tom, but none of them believe him guilty of murder. Matlock ignores his own misgivings about a man he can't help but dislike and agrees to defend Tom.
#25 - The Reporter
Season 1 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/5/1987
When Laurie Palmer is arrested for killing her husband, the reporter covering the case is convinced of her innocence, and goes to Ben Matlock looking for help.