The WORST episodes of Once And Again

Every episode of Once And Again ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Once And Again!

A divorced father and a soon-to-be divorced mother meet and begin a romantic courtship which is always complicated by their respective children and their own life problems.

Last Updated: 11/12/2024Network: ABC (US)Status: Ended
star
6.50
4 votes

#1 - The Ex-Files

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/2/1999

Being divorced means Karen and Rick must both go to Eli's weekend basketball tournament, creating some awkward moments for them.

Directors: Robert Black
Watch Now:Amazon
star
6.67
6 votes

#2 - Pictures

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 12/14/2001

Amid complete chaos, a surprise Christmas Eve delivery of Tiffany and Jake's baby unites the Manning and Sammler families like never before. Meanwhile, Judy's first encounter with Sam's eleven-year-old son doesn't go very smoothly.

Directors: Dan Lerner
Writer: Alexa Junge
Watch Now:Amazon
star
6.69
13 votes

#3 - Pilot

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/21/1999

Lily Manning, separated from her husband, and Rick Sammler, divorced for 3 years, meet by chance when her daughter, Grace, injures her ankle in a soccer game. They go out on a date, and are instantly attracted to each other.

Directors: Edward Zwick
Watch Now:Amazon
star
6.75
4 votes

#4 - Ozymandias 2.0

Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 11/28/2000

Changes in the design of Miles' building that Rick's firm are designing means a dinner meeting for Rick - and a reluctant Lily -- with Miles and important clients. When Lily puts her two cents worth in at the dinner, it makes for an awkward evening for Rick.

Directors: Michael Engler
Watch Now:Amazon
star
6.75
4 votes

#5 - Feast or Famine

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 11/21/2000

It's Thanksgiving and that means both the Sammler's and Manning's get together for dinner, whether they want to be there or not. It turns out that the two mothers get along quite well. It's Rick and his mom that have issues. She questions whether Rick knows that his children aren't doing as well as he would like to think. Barbara sees her son Aaron for the first time since Phil's funeral.

Directors: Claudia Weill
Watch Now:Amazon
star
6.75
4 votes

#6 - Cat-In-Hat

Season 1 - Episode 19 - Aired 4/3/2000

Karen pushes herself far beyond her comfort zone when her involvement with Leo becomes more serious. Eli plays his parents against each other in order to get into a bar to see his friends' band play. He gets in trouble when he sees his mother, and she sees him, there. Rick finds out that Karen said no and Eli didn't tell him that, getting Eli in trouble with Rick as well.

Directors: Claudia Weill
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
4 votes

#7 - Life Out Of Balance

Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/10/2001

Lily thinks she might be pregnant, and the reaction she gets from Rick wasn't what she was hoping for. She begins to think that he's not who she thought he was. Grace has an accident in Rick's vehicle after being distracted spotting Carla and Eli together. So Grace starts to rethink her opinion of Carla. The episode ends with Rick and Lily making up, and Eli and Carla in the back seat of a car...

Directors: Arvin Brown
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
5 votes

#8 - My Brilliant Career

Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/10/2000

Lily's new job helps her put her priorities in order. While talking to Grace, Tiffany lets it slip that her relationship with Jake started BEFORE Lily and Jake split up, possibly altering her relationship with her father forever.

Directors: Dan Lerner
Writer: Jan Oxenberg
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
3 votes

#9 - Strangers and Brothers

Season 1 - Episode 18 - Aired 3/13/2000

Aaron proves to be a source of comfort and renewal for the Manning family; Lily gains ground in the divorce proceedings.

Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
5 votes

#10 - Unfinished Business

Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/6/2000

Lily and her family cope with a life-altering accident.

Directors: Edward Zwick
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
5 votes

#11 - Daddy's Girl

Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 2/14/2000

Lily hires a divorce attorney. The last straw is after Jake reneges on his promise not to max out their credit card. She finds this out after it's rejected at a store. Grace meets a boy who seems to think like her.

Directors: Barnet Kellman
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.00
7 votes

#12 - Mediation

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/24/2000

Jake and Lily begin mediating their divorce, and the future of the house hangs in the balance. Meanwhile, Rick struggles with a demanding client, complicating his partnership with David. At Jennifer's insistence, Grace fills in as an English tutor for Eli, and the two discuss Lily and Rick's recent breakup. Rick arrives at a decision regarding his future with Lily.

Directors: Peter Horton
Writer: Pamela Gray
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.14
7 votes

#13 - A Dream Deferred

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/26/1999

Lily faces the reality of being on her own and Judy begins to pull away from her Lily. This happens after Rick offers to remodel the bookstore and Judy feels like the ""odd man out"" because Lily and Rick's relationship, she feels, leaves her little time to spend with Lily.

Directors: Scott Winant
Writer: Jan Oxenberg
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.20
5 votes

#14 - Wake Up, Little Susie

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/24/2000

Lily and Rick try to blend their families together, but it doesn't go smoothly. Jesse has trouble adjusting to high school.

Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.33
6 votes

#15 - The Past is Prologue

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/9/1999

Lily and Rick deal with the ghosts of their failed marriages. Rick's becoming consumed with a project at work triggers Lily's memories of Jake doing the same thing in their marriage, causing its downfall. Meanwhile, Eli's frustration with his schoolwork reaches new depths.

Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.33
6 votes

#16 - Kind of Blue

Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/12/2001

Sam returns to town, further complicating the lives of Judy, Lily, and Rick. Sam wants to hire Rick to be the architect for a project he has. Judy, however, wants to hire Rick to redo her bookstore. Colin is agitated over Sam's inability to produce any sketches. Jake grows increasingly worried with the impending arrival of his and Tiffany's baby. Fearing he's having an anxiety attack, Judy tells him to go see her doctor. Colin gives Rick an ultimatum: Sam better produce some sketches, or else Rick and Sam will be fired. So Rick lets Sam know how serious the situation is. Jake's test results are clean and Sam comes through. Sam and Judy agree that now isn't the right time for them to be together.

Directors: Peter Horton
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.40
5 votes

#17 - Learner's Permit

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 12/19/2000

Grace gets her learner's permit. She has a crush on Pace, a boy from her driver's education class, who seems oblivious to her feelings. So she goes out with Paces' annoying friend, Spencer, in an attempt to maybe make Pace jealous enough and have him ask her out. The date is a disaster. Tiffany breaks up with Jake when it becomes clear to her that their relationship wasn't going to go beyond the physical attraction.

Directors: Dan Lerner
Writer: Jan Oxenberg
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.40
5 votes

#18 - A Door, About to Open

Season 1 - Episode 22 - Aired 4/27/2000

Lily says that the kids in the two families should meet. So they schedule a night for that. Zoe is concerned about the environment. Grace again has conflicting feelings about Eli. Jennifer reveals to Grace that Cassidy is cheating on Eli. Grace is hesitant about telling Eli this information. Two of Cassidy's friends, Rachel and Lisa, warn Grace not to tell Eli what's going on (or else!). Naomi starts a book group and invites Karen, instead of Lily to be in the group because she feels that she and Lily have been drifting apart. Miles lets it be known to Rick that he doesn't want David involved on his project. Work pressures threaten to unravel Lily's plans for the meeting and they leave Rick on edge. Judy and Karen have a heart-to-heart in the bookstore about their two families. Eli finds out for himself that Cassidy's been cheating on him. Pressure from Miles forces Rick to cancel the dinner. A passage from the book the group is reading makes everything clear to Lily and Rick and Karen

Directors: Dan Lerner
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.40
5 votes

#19 - The Gingerbread House

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 12/21/1999

Lily tells Jake she wants a divorce, and tells Rick about her one-night stand with Jake. Rick can't forgive her, putting their future in jeopardy.

Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.40
10 votes

#20 - Let's Spend The Night Together

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/28/1999

Rick and Lily ponder taking their relationship to the next level.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
star
7.43
7 votes

#21 - Thanksgiving

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 11/23/1999

Lily's father decides to invite Jake to Thanksgiving at Lily's house against her wishes. Her father has difficulty in deciding whose side of the divorce to support.

Directors: Claudia Weill
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.43
7 votes

#22 - Liars and Other Strangers

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/12/1999

After meeting Rick, Judy expresses to Lily her misgivings about Lily's blossoming relationship with him.

Directors: Ron Lagomarsino
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.50
6 votes

#23 - Edifice Wrecked

Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/14/2001

Rick and David are served with a notice to get an injunction to stop the Atlantor project - and the hearing is on Valentine's Day. Grace is troubled by the fact that a building that is helping those who need help is being torn down to build Miles' (and therefore Rick's) project. David is frustrated that no one but him thinks that they have a serious problem with the project and the injunction to stop its construction. Rick sees Grace protesting and they have an argument. David quits the firm because of his opposition to the project. The court's decision makes no one happy, with the possible exception on Miles. Rick proposes to Lily, but she feels it's not the right time.

Directors: Dan Lerner
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.50
6 votes

#24 - Letting Go

Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 4/17/2000

When Judy's continuing affair with Sam is discovered, she takes steps to prevent any more pain from entering her life. Lily realizes just how much she's taken Rick for granted when he's sick in the hospital. Grace continues to have difficulty with accepting her father's past infidelity.

Directors: Peter Horton
Writer: Alexa Junge
Watch Now:Amazon
star
7.60
5 votes

#25 - One Step (Parent) Backward

Season 3 - Episode 15 - Aired 3/18/2002

Sam places his dream of committing to Judy and having a family squarely on the shoulders of his ten-year-old son. Meanwhile, Jake finally realizes his feelings for Tiffany and his new baby daughter.

Directors: Elodie Keene
Watch Now:Amazon