The BEST episodes of My Name Is Earl

Every episode of My Name Is Earl ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of My Name Is Earl!

Earl Hickey's life has been full of poor choices and mistakes, and upon discovering that he is the holder of a winning lottery ticket, Earl is hit by a car and the ticket blows out of his hand as he lies unconscious in the street. While recovering in the hospital and watching television, Earl has a karmic epiphany, thanks to Carson Daly, who attributes his success to doing good for others. A light bulb goes on in Earl's dim head, and he sets out to right every wrong he has done. He will turn his good fortune into a life changing event, as he sets out to right all the wrongs from his past. Despite his seemingly limited intelligence, he is oddly effective and has a voice and style of his own.

Last Updated: 2/28/2024Network: NBCStatus: Ended
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Love Octagon
star
8.07
940 votes

#1 - Love Octagon

Season 3 - Episode 19 - Aired 5/1/2008

When Earl finally wakes up from his coma, he believes in Karma again and considers Billie his soul mate.

Directors: Michael Fresco
Watch Now:Amazon
The Professor
star
7.97
1185 votes

#2 - The Professor

Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/9/2006

Earl's nervous about returning a laptop computer he stole from a college professor, mostly because he's uncomfortable around smart people. When the professor turns out to be a beautiful woman, he feels even more ill at ease, until she flatters him and asks him to speak about his list in front of her class. Meanwhile, Randy experiences fraternity life---and absolutely loves it.

Directors: Marc Buckland
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Number One
star
7.97
920 votes

#3 - Number One

Season 1 - Episode 24 - Aired 5/11/2006

In the season finale, Earl decides to cross off the first number on his karma list, “Stole ten dollars from a guy at the Camden Market.” Earl to his dismay finds out that he owes much more than ten dollars, in fact he must surrender all his lotto winnings. Earl now ponders when karma is going to help him with his misfortunes.

Directors: Greg Garcia
Writer: Greg Garcia
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Dodge's Dad
star
7.96
1047 votes

#4 - Dodge's Dad

Season 4 - Episode 27 - Aired 5/14/2009

When Dodge tells Joy he doesn't want Darnell to speak at career day, she enlists Earl to pretend to be his father. Things don't go well and Earl realizes Dodge needs to know his real dad. Despite Joy's protests, Earl enlists Randy and Catalina to help him hunt down the deadbeat dad, but what they discover is worse than they could have imagined.

Directors: Chris Koch
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Sweet Johnny
star
7.96
1002 votes

#5 - Sweet Johnny

Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/9/2008

Earl wants to make up for sleeping with local stuntman Sweet Johnny's girlfriend, while Joy feels the need to buy a gun.

Directors: Eyal Gordin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Trial
star
7.90
971 votes

#6 - The Trial

Season 2 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/10/2007

Things are finally looking up for Earl with a GED, a job, a new apartment and love interest however it may all come crashing down during Joy's trial date. Earl's shocking testimony could help Joy but at what cost?

Directors: Michael Fresco
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Faked My Own Death
star
7.89
1283 votes

#7 - Faked My Own Death

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/11/2005

When Earl meets a tough biker chick at a Halloween party, it looks like a match made in heaven--but when the costumes come off, the mismatch becomes apparent and Earl takes drastic measures to get out of the relationship. Now, years later, Earl must find a way to make amends for deceiving the girl.

Directors: Tamra Davis
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
South of the Border (2)
star
7.88
456 votes

#8 - South of the Border (2)

Season 2 - Episode 11 - Aired 12/7/2006

In the second half of this special one hour episode, Earl and Randy face problems in their quest to take Catalina off Earl's list and bring her home after she was deported because of Earl. Joy's friendly attitude causes the neighbors to get closer and Darnell doesn't like it at all.

Directors: Marc Buckland
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Dad's Car
star
7.87
1081 votes

#9 - Dad's Car

Season 1 - Episode 18 - Aired 3/16/2006

It's Mother's Day again when Earl remembers that he has never given his mother a Mother's Day gift Just as he and Randy are about to finish carrying out his long overdue gift his mother decides her repayment should include Earl doing something for his father.

Directors: Chris Koch
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Pinky
star
7.87
1144 votes

#10 - Pinky

Season 4 - Episode 22 - Aired 3/26/2009

Earl helps Randy find his first love, Pinky.

Directors: Greg Garcia
Writer: Greg Garcia
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Our 'Cops' is On
star
7.86
1019 votes

#11 - Our 'Cops' is On

Season 2 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/4/2007

It's a trip down memory lane for Earl, Randy, Joy, Darnell and the Crab Shack regulars when they remember their fifteen minutes of fame watching a 2003 repeat of the TV show "Cops," which was filmed in Camden County.

Directors: Ken Whittingham
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Orphan Earl
star
7.85
962 votes

#12 - Orphan Earl

Season 4 - Episode 13 - Aired 12/11/2008

Earl discovers that Joy has continued a holiday scam they started years before, and has expanded the scam to include her friends.

Directors: Mike Mariano
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Broke Joy's Fancy Figurine
star
7.83
1252 votes

#13 - Broke Joy's Fancy Figurine

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/1/2005

In order to replace a fancy figurine that he broke, Earl lends a hand to help Joy's former adversary and her daughter win a mother/daughter beauty pageant . However, Joy enters the pageant also with her "dead" mother trying to win that same figurine, hoping to trade it for a hot tub. Recap: The episode begins with Randy sitting down at the bar. Earl walks in and hands a cereal box to Randy. He looks very happy. Earl tells Randy no more generic cereal for him. He only gets the best now. When Earl and Randy get back to the apartment, Joy is there digging through all of their stuff. Earl tells Joy she isn't getting any of his money. She tells him that all she really wants his a hot tub. Earl looks on his list and sees that Joy his on it. He tells her that he will fix that so she'll leave him alone. It says that he blew up Joy's Trophy but he can't really remember what it was for. Later that night he dreams about it. Randy and him are using firecrackers to blow stuff up. They run out of things so Earl brings Joy's trophy. It is a little girl sitting on a lawnmower with the companies name on it. The next day Earl goes to the company and asks if he can have one of the trophies. The lady there tells him that the trophies are given out to the winners of the Lawn Mower companies Mother and Daughter beauty pageant. The lady remembers when Joy won. The next year a new mother and daughter entered and that family has won every year since. Their name is the Stokers. Earl goes to the mother and daughter and asks if he can have one of their trophies. They make a deal that if Earl helps them win this year, they will give him the trophy. Earl tells Joy he is going to enter and win her a trophy. She doesn't want him to so she is going to enter, too. The beauty pageant is also has a talent show part. The reason this family has won every year is because they have a "gift" in which they can throw knives with amazing accuracy. Earl is placed on a large circle which spins ar

Directors: Lev L. Spiro
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Randy's Touchdown
star
7.81
1431 votes

#14 - Randy's Touchdown

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/4/2005

Back in their high school days, Earl ruined Randy's chance to score a touchdown during a key football game; now Earl must figure out a way to make things right. Recap: The third episode of My Name Is Earl takes a different approach then the last two. Earl adds a new quest to his list and that is getting Randy a touchdown in High school football. The story behind it is that Earl bet money that Randy's team would lose while he was playing football. Randy helped out by playing horribly, but the last play of the game, down by one touchdown, Randy finds he has the ball and starts running to the end zone. He realizes he could actually score a touchdown but chooses to fumble the ball and lose the game. Earl feels so bad about doing that he gets Randy back in to High school with the worst football team in the area. Meanwhile Earl's ex-wife Joy has Earl's car towed, along with his money hidden under the driver's seat. When Earl and Randy go to question Joy, Randy accidentally reveals where the money is hidden. The chase is on! Earl gets to the car lot first but the people working there wont let him near the car until he pays the $3,000 in parking violations on it. Joy soon shows up and gets the same answer. So now Earl has to come up with $3,000 to get his car and lottery money back. He knows there is no way to get that much money so he has to break in and steal the car. His plan comes to him when Randy is studying up on History. The Trojan Horse, but instead a car with someone hiding in the trunk. Joy is still trying to get the money, too. She pawns a bunch of things and gets closer to the $3,000. Earl gets his recently redeemed friend Kenny to help. Kenny's friend has a car they can use to get towed. After Earl fails to fit in the tiny trunk, Kenny offers to do it for him. This leaves Earl and Catalina free to go to Randy's Football game. He doesn't score a touchdown until the final play of the game, in the huddle of the team, Randy says to give the ball to him. Th

Directors: Marc Buckland
Writer: J.B. Cook
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Pilot
star
7.80
1948 votes

#15 - Pilot

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/20/2005

Today is the first day of the rest of Earl Hickey's life. After coming into a $100,000 scratch-off lottery ticket and losing it just as fast upon being hit by a car, Earl has an epiphany in the hospital--to make up for all the terrible things he's done in the past. With his brother Randy and a motel maid named Catalina, Earl writes up a list of every misdeed he was a part of. Earl sets out to do just that, starting with #64--Kenny James, a boy he picked on in elementary school. Recap When we meet Earl Hickey, he describes himself as "that guy you see going into the convenience store when you stop off in that little town on the way to Grandma's house--sorta shifty looking fellow who buys a pack of smokes, a couple lotto scratchers and a tallboy at 10 in the morning." He's a petty thief who proceeds to steal some CDs and a flag from a van parked outside of the aforementioned convenience store. Earl's narration introduces us to Joy, his unfaithful wife of, presumably, six years. He also introduces his two children (neither of which he fathered), Dodge and Earl Jr, and his brother Randy. The narration montage also introduces Darnell, an employee at Ernie's Crab Shack and also the father of Earl Jr. This all brings us to three weeks ago. Earl gets his due in the form of a $100,000 scratch off ticket... only to promptly lose it when he runs into traffic and gets hit by a car. He wakes up in a hospital with an injured leg and neck, a morphine drip, and divorce papers from Joy. While flipping channels on the television, Earl stops on Carson Daly's late night talk show. Carson recites his philosophy on karma and it inspires an epiphany in Earl. After he's released, he and Randy get set up in a motel room, where Randy quickly makes nice with the maid, Catalina. Earl decides that he will write out a list of all of the bad things he's done and sets out to right his wrongs. He starts with #136, being a litterbug. Right after throwing away garbage in the motel parking

Directors: Marc Buckland
Writer: Greg Garcia
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
My Name is Alias
star
7.79
1030 votes

#16 - My Name is Alias

Season 4 - Episode 19 - Aired 2/19/2009

Danny Glover guest stars as Darnell's father who comes looking for him in Camden only to raise Earl and Randy's suspicions. However, a family reunion leads to father and son partaking in one last undercover mission.

Directors: Eyal Gordin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Birthday Party
star
7.79
851 votes

#17 - The Birthday Party

Season 2 - Episode 17 - Aired 2/15/2007

Earl wants to use his birthday to look back on all the good he's done over the past year, but at his party, everyone seems to want to talk about his past misdeeds instead.

Directors: Eyal Gordin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Got the Babysitter Pregnant
star
7.77
1089 votes

#18 - Got the Babysitter Pregnant

Season 4 - Episode 14 - Aired 1/8/2009

A young Earl gets his heart broken by the babysitter and swears revenge on her and her boyfriend. Now, Earl is older and wiser, so he decides to cross them off his list, but it may have terrible repercussions for Randy. Meanwhile, Joy loses Darnell's pet turtle

Directors: Mike Mariano
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Gospel
star
7.76
1141 votes

#19 - Gospel

Season 4 - Episode 24 - Aired 4/23/2009

Earl tests the faith of a former gangbanger-turned-born-again reverend, whom he's wronged many, many times.

Directors: Ken Whittingham
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
O Karma, Where Art Thou?
star
7.76
1195 votes

#20 - O Karma, Where Art Thou?

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/12/2006

When Earl and Randy try to return a stolen wallet they find out taking the money had cost two newlyweds their honeymoon. In an attempt to make things right Earl takes over for the groom at his fast food restaurant. After time Earl finds out the boss is a jerk and Earl wonders how such a man with a luxurious house and beautiful wife could not be affected by the only thing he believes in, Karma. Recap: Earl and Randy wake up one cold morning at the hotel, Catalina alludes to the fact that they may be being carbon monoxide poisoned and leaves the room. Randy discovers that Earl was right when he said Randy "wasn't ready for a pet" after discovering dead "Mr. Fishy" (the goldfish) in a sealed plastic bag in his pocket. Earl however discovers number 202 on his list, "stole a wallet from a guy at a gas station." We flash back to "a few years ago" when Earl was "hanging out in a gas station bathroom, waiting for some guy to drop his pants and provide me with an opportunity." Earl screams a little too loud and a little too enthusiastically when he discovers just how much money is in the wallet and has to cover by announcing to the bathroom that "they have my favorite brand of toilet paper in here, soft stuff." Earl admits to having stolen a lot of wallets in his day, but also admits that this particular one was the mother load. And, it seems when you find yourself with a lot of money you go to Jasper's. What is Jasper's you may well ask? "Jasper"s is kind of like the mall, only it's in a storage unit and everything there was stolen from the mall." The gang spends the thousand dollars they had on many things that day and according to Earl, they were living like kings. But back to today, when faced with the reality of having to give up his helmet bought that day long ago, Randy asks Earl why he can't just give the guy back his wallet with a thousand dollars of his lottery money stuffed in it. Earl explains to Randy that the items were bought with stolen money a

Writer: Greg Garcia
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Witch Lady
star
7.76
1084 votes

#21 - Witch Lady

Season 4 - Episode 21 - Aired 3/19/2009

Earl works on a list item that deals with a crazy witch lady. Meanwhile, Joy wants to show Darnell her good side.

Directors: Eyal Gordin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Stole P's HD Cart
star
7.76
1166 votes

#22 - Stole P's HD Cart

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/19/2006

Earl crosses another number off the list when he returns Pops’ Weiner Hot Dog cart he and Ralph (Giovanni Ribisi) stole in his youth. The good deed does not last long as Ralph, who works for a competing franchise sets fire to Pops cart. Earl now must set things right with a bizarre plan while recruiting Randy, Joy, Catalina and Darnell to assist him. Recap: After going out to eat, Earl remembers that he and Ralph stole Pop's Wiener Hot Dog cart because the competing fast food restaurant manager pay then to do it. So he decided to take it of his list. Earl when to the place where he hide the cart and went to Pop's house to returned and ask for forgiveness, Pop agree to forgive him. But it was not enough because now people are used to go to the fast food restaurant and nobody goes to Pop's anymore. Earl decided to advertise Pop's to get him back to business and he succeeds. But after Pop's got back to business Ralph burns Pop's cart because once again he got paid by the competing franchise. Earl decided that now he owe Pop a new cart so now he had to get money to buy one. He decided to get the gang together once more to plan for a new hit. While planning Ralph came up with the idea of cutting his finger and put it in the food of a restaurant and sue them, Earl dismiss the idea. He planned to get them all work in a company and steal all they could from it to get the money. Thanks to Kenny, Earl makes all the gang look qualify for the job (Kenny exchange his test with them making him look bad and them good). After all got the job, they hide and wait for the night to act. At night, they started to steal everything but then Ralph came up with stealing a huge copy machine everybody didn't wanted to do it but Earl thought that the machine would make the money quicker and decided to go for it. They went inside the room with the huge machine and try to carry it through the door but it was to big to fit, Ralph insisted in pushing it harder but it got them tra

Directors: Chris Koch
Writer: J.B. Cook
Watch Now:Apple TV
Camdenites (1)
star
7.75
888 votes

#23 - Camdenites (1)

Season 3 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/15/2008

Directors: Michael Fresco
Watch Now:Amazon
Stole an RV
star
7.72
985 votes

#24 - Stole an RV

Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/2/2008

To cross Jerry (guest star Jerry Van Dyke) off of his list, Earl can't just return the RV he stole, mostly because Randy blew it up. Earl and Randy set out to find what might make this grumpy war hero happy, and accidentally turn him into a 75-year-old killing machine. Elsewhere, Joy and Darnell attempt to turn the legend of a giant pig that lives near the trailer park into a one-of-a-kind, money making sideshow.

Directors: Chris Koch
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Darnell Outed (2)
star
7.71
1154 votes

#25 - Darnell Outed (2)

Season 4 - Episode 16 - Aired 1/22/2009

In the aftermath of having his cover blown, Darnell must pack up and leave Camden. Meanwhile, Earl, Randy and Catalina discover a devastating truth within the post office.

Directors: Eyal Gordin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV