The WORST episodes of Sunset Beach

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

Sunset Beach was a short-running American television soap opera, first broadcast in the United States on NBC on January 6, 1997, and last airing on December 31, 1999. The show followed the loves and lives of the people living in a fictional coastal city named Sunset Beach, on the coast of California. The show was co-produced by NBC and Spelling Television. It aired in over 70 countries around the world. Sunset Beach won two Daytime Emmy Awards and was nominated another 11 times. The show also received 22 nominations for various other awards.

Last Updated: 12/28/2023Network: NBCStatus: Ended
Share:
Episode 148
star
0.00
0 votes

#1 - Episode 148

Season 2 - Episode 148 - Aired 8/4/1998

Ricardo tries to rally the passengers to leave the dining room, but the stubborn crew member and several passengers refuse to leave. Ricardo finds a railing that they can use as a ladder to climb out of the ballroom. Casey gets the door open just in the nick of time. Melinda realizes that if Sara dies, she'll be a martyr and no one will buy her book. There is another explosion! When the walls of the dining room start to cave in, the people in the dining room scramble onto the railing, which collapses. Only Melinda and the cameraman make it to the top. When she catches up to the others, Melinda realizes that she left the galley door open on her way through, and that water is coming in through it. When Michael tells Vanessa that he gave himself Martin's Syndrome to test Tyus's cure, Vanessa loses her temper, telling him that she'd rather die herself than see Michael hurt. Michael insists that he did it for her, because he can handle anything life throws at him, as long as he has her. Dana has another memory flash when Meg tells her how close Mark and Ben were. Dana sees a picture of Ben and Meg together.

Episode 137
star
0.00
0 votes

#2 - Episode 137

Season 2 - Episode 137 - Aired 7/20/1998

After the earthquake, Ben and Tim are trapped together, while Meg is trapped in a room with the mystery woman. Ben and Tim rush to make sure that Meg is OK. Meg sees the woman's bracelet which says "Dana," so she stars calling her by that name. Dana won't let her leave so Meg takes her with her as she leaves the room. They are shocked to find a dead body of a nurse when they get out of the room. Dana screams. Tyus tells Michael that he needs to refrigerate the cure immediately, or it will spoil. Tyus reaches through the broken window and opens the door of the lab. Vanessa is about to leave the building when she spots Virginia. After saving Virginia, the pair realizes that Jimmy is still trapped. Meanwhile, Gregory and A.J. are trapped at the construction site. Annie tries to rescue Olivia, who is trapped under the rubble, but Olivia puts Trey's life in front of hers. Annie tries to save Olivia, but by a mistake, the chandelier falls.

Episode 138
star
0.00
0 votes

#3 - Episode 138

Season 2 - Episode 138 - Aired 7/21/1998

Casey tries to put Sara's mind off thinking about the affair, but Sara is worried when Melinda reappears. Emily spots Bette and disappears immediately. Amy tires to seize the moment and takes Sean dancing, but Sean leaves, to find Emily. Gabi tells Antonio that she has just found out that they have agreed to split the proceeds from the auction with St. Teresa's church in Rosario, Mexico, which surprises Antonio, who thought that all of the money was going to St. Joseph's. Gabi asks Ricardo the name of the parish that Antonio worked for in Mexico and found out that it was St. Teresa's in Rosario.

Episode 139
star
0.00
0 votes

#4 - Episode 139

Season 2 - Episode 139 - Aired 7/22/1998

Sara slaps Melinda when she's asking too much, and Casey spots a cameraman filming them. When Melinda realizes that the camera man isn't filming anymore, she refuses to speak to Sara. She confesses that she set Sara up for a story, mostly because she was jealous of the relationship she and Congressman were having. Melinda fell in love with the Congressman years before. Casey is proud of Sara, while she says that there's nothing that Melinda can do that can hurt her anymore. Meanwhile, Melinda tells the cameraman that she came up with a new plan. Phillip finds Caitlin and Cole making out in the storage room, so he intentionally arranges for Francesca to go there so she could catch them in the act.

Episode 140
star
0.00
0 votes

#5 - Episode 140

Season 2 - Episode 140 - Aired 7/23/1998

Phillip tells his employee that Cole's life hangs in balance. He wants to see how will Francesca react when she finds Cole and Caitlin together. Cole sees Francesca looking at them and temporarily loses interest in Caitlin. Francesca leaves crying, and confronts Phillip about why he sent her there. She knows the reason. Later, Phillip tells his thug that they have to kill Cole. Kurt brings Phillip's donation, which is a statue like the one that Gabi found in Antonio's things when he moved into Surf Central. Gabi questions Antonio about the statue. He, in turn, asks her where it came from, but she tells him that she didn't know. He is visibly upset, but won't talk to her about it. Sean finds out that Emily missed her prom, and he promises to make this night her prom.

Episode 141
star
0.00
0 votes

#6 - Episode 141

Season 2 - Episode 141 - Aired 7/24/1998

Dana admits that she is afraid that the feeling that a twin was part of her life was just an attempt to fill in the blanks in her memories. Meg asks when was the last time she had the feeling that they'd found something that fit into her past. Dana says that it was when Meg was talking about Ben. Dana explains that she doesn't really remember Ben, but the way that Meg feels about Ben. Meg tried to prompt Dana to remember details about the man she loves. Dana thought that if she was truly and deeply in love with someone, she should remember something, but she didn't. Meg told Dana that she was sure that Dana loved someone once. She promised that she and Ben would do everything they can to help Dana put the pieces of her life back together.

Episode 142
star
0.00
0 votes

#7 - Episode 142

Season 2 - Episode 142 - Aired 7/27/1998

Tyus and Virginia are rescued, but Michael, Vanessa, and Tyus's medical bag are left in the building. Hank is seriously injured after saving Joan from harm. Ben, Meg and Joan take Hank to South Bay General. Dana, trapped alone in the room, says the Lord's Prayer in Spanish to herself. Tim tries to rescue Dana. When Tim makes it into the room, Dana shies away from him. Annie awakens trapped under Lourdes' dead body. AJ removes Lourdes' body, and Annie is guilt-stricken over having caused Lourdes' death.

Episode 143
star
0.00
0 votes

#8 - Episode 143

Season 2 - Episode 143 - Aired 7/28/1998

Melinda approaches Sara, bursting into false tears and proclaiming how ashamed she is of herself in a loud voice. She apologizes for taping Sara without her knowledge and hands her an envelope, claiming the videotape is in there. She also offers to send an e-mail to her agent that she isn't going to write her book after all. They don't believe her, but she begs them to come to her stateroom. Sara wonders if Melinda is telling the truth, and Casey tries to figure out what Melinda is up to. Meanwhile, in her stateroom, Melinda opens a bottle of wine and puts sleeping pills in it.

Episode 144
star
0.00
0 votes

#9 - Episode 144

Season 2 - Episode 144 - Aired 7/29/1998

Dana tells Tim that her name isn't Dana, but that they call her that because she can't remember her real name. Tim realizes that she is afraid to leave the building because Cedar Oaks was all she knew. He was able to convince her to leave, and brought her to South Bay General for medical attention. The doctor informs Joan and Meg that they don't have the proper equipment to treat Hank's head injury because of the quake. Ben offers to fly the Liberty Corporation's helicopter up to San Francisco to get the equipment that Hank needs. Meg lets Ben go to get the equipment for her father, but not before she makes him promise that he'll return to her safely.

Episode 145
star
0.00
0 votes

#10 - Episode 145

Season 2 - Episode 145 - Aired 7/30/1998

Casey maintains that he doesn't believe Melinda's sudden about face. Just as Sara and Casey are about to kiss, Gabi and Ricardo arrive. Ricardo and Casey go off to talk about the problems with the ship's radio, while Gabi and Sara talk about Sara's blossoming feelings for Casey. Gabi reclaims her date, leaving Sara and Casey alone together. Sara pressures Casey to give Melinda a second chance. Melinda shows Sara and Casey the e-mail she claims she is planning to send to her agent.

Episode 146
star
0.00
0 votes

#11 - Episode 146

Season 2 - Episode 146 - Aired 7/31/1998

Cole disarms Phillip, who picks up a fencing foil and holds it on him. Cole grabs the other foil, and they duel. Francesca tells Caitlin that Phillip plans to kill Cole. Casey passed on having any alcohol, since he was on duty as a lifeguard. When Sara took a sip of her wine and then passed out, Melinda pretended to be upset. Casey looked in Melinda's purse and found the valium.

Episode 147
star
0.00
0 votes

#12 - Episode 147

Season 2 - Episode 147 - Aired 8/3/1998

When Casey and Sara wake up, they are shocked to learn that the room is upside down. They try to leave the room, but the door is stuck. Then they try to open the door, but it only gets worse... the porthole pops open and the room stars filling with water. Emily panics when Bette disappears; Bette is trapped somewhere near the "ceiling." Emily coaxes her into jumping into a makeshift safety net created from a tablecloth. Phillip is knocked unconscious by the ship capsizing, and so Cole ties him up. Francesca doesn't want to leave him like that, but Cole promises that he'll come back for Phillip once they have been rescued.

Episode 136
star
0.00
0 votes

#13 - Episode 136

Season 2 - Episode 136 - Aired 7/17/1998

Tyus is about to test his drug on himself when Michael appears and confronts Tyus about not telling him about Vanessa. Tyus denies having anything to do with it, but finally confesses that he is trying to cure Vanessa. Michael realizes that Vanessa wanted to keep the pain away from him, and that's why she's hiding from him. Tyus tells him that he plans to give the test-medicine to himself, but then Michael grabs the medicine and injects himself with Martin's Syndrome. The Sunset Beachers are going on a cruise. Casey invites Sara to with him on the cruise, to take her mind off thinking about Congressman Blythe. Melinda, who wants a new story about Sara, desperately follows her, and since the boat already left, she rents a Jet Ski to follow them. Cole, Caitlin, Ricardo, Gabi, Sean, Emily and Antonio are also on the ship. Everyone is surprised when Amy, Sean's date from the Terror Island, reappears on the boat, with a new date, Brad. While Amy is recalling what happened on the island with Gabi and Sean, Emily wonders what happened on the island that made everyone so upset. Melinda arrives on the ship. Cole spots a beautiful woman across the room. It's Francesca, his ex-lover. While all of this is happening, Sunset Beach is hit by an earthquake.

Episode 149
star
0.00
0 votes

#14 - Episode 149

Season 2 - Episode 149 - Aired 8/5/1998

When he discovers that steam is blocking their way out, Ricardo tried to shut off the valve. In the process, the steam scalds him, but he is finally able to shut off the steam. Cole insists that they can't just go wandering around the ship, they have to develop a plan. Francesca said that when she and Cole worked together, they used a short wave radio to keep in touch with each other. She continued with that while working with Phillip, and tells Cole there is a radio in Kurt's room. Cole heads to Kurt's room. Soon after, Antonio finds Caitlin and Francesca. Caitlin goes after Cole, leaving Antonio alone with Francesca. Francesca tells Antonio that she regrets her missed opportunities, and asks Antonio to hear her confession. Meanwhile, Caitlin catches up to Cole. While she is trying to convince Cole to go back to Antonio with her, he gets the radio working again. Elsewhere, Phillip regains consciousness and vows to make Cole pay. He finds Cole and shoots at him. Virginia drops the vial, and it breaks.

Episode 150
star
0.00
0 votes

#15 - Episode 150

Season 2 - Episode 150 - Aired 8/6/1998

Ricardo explains to the others what choices they are faced with -- take the chance of being killed by an exploding steam pipe or drown when the ship goes under. Melinda told Bruce, the photographer, that she wants the pictures of Sara and Casey, because she intends to make sure that Sara is remembered as a whore. He gives the pictures to her. Then Bruce falls from the ladder and drowns. Melinda runs away screaming. Ricardo goes back for Antonio. Casey finds one set of scuba gear to share with Sara when they swim away from the sinking ship. When Melinda spots them and tries to horn in on their escape, Sara and Casey agreed -- reluctantly -- to help Melinda. Francesca confesses that she sold herself to the highest bidder -- Phillip. Phillip gave her everything that she thought she wanted, but she was still unhappy.

Episode 151
star
0.00
0 votes

#16 - Episode 151

Season 2 - Episode 151 - Aired 8/7/1998

ust as Gabi and Ricardo reach the top of the ladder, the bottom part drops off. Brad helps them to clear the path ahead. Phillip shoots at Cole, but Francesca jumps in front of him, taking the bullet in her upper arm. Phillip dies telling Francesca that Cole will never love her. After realizing that Phillip really is dead, Francesca declares that she is finally free. The next part of the path is flooded, so Ricardo swims it underwater, leading a rope between the two points and leaving Gabi to time how long it takes to make the swim. However, a pipe lands on him while he is swimming. When Brad refuses to save Ricardo, Gabi goes after him. Gregory makes plans to go to the capsized ship, and AJ and Leo talk him into taking them, as well. Olivia and AJ and Olivia and Gregory say their farewells. While Melinda is in the process of vowing that she'll never speak to her agent again, the film floats out of her cleavage. She begs Casey to get the film back for her. Casey guesses correctly that the film is pictures of him and Sara naked in her bed. He throws the film back to her. When a shark attacks Melinda, Casey has to restrain Sara from trying to rescue her. Casey and Sara cling to a floating piece of debris and swim for shore.

Episode 152
star
0.00
0 votes

#17 - Episode 152

Season 2 - Episode 152 - Aired 8/10/1998

Joan gets the good news that the equipment that Ben brought allowed the doctors to see that they don't need to operate after all. When Gabi rescues Ricardo, he's unconscious, so she gives him CPR. Amy confesses she doesn't know how to swim, so Bette helps Amy swim across the passage. Ricardo finds a blowtorch. While he's opening a hole in the hull of the ship, Gabi notices that the boiler is about to explode. Cole and Antonio decide to climb up the remnants of the ladder through the ship's steam shaft. Antonio makes it up safely, but Cole is burned, and falls into the water. Dana recognizes Ben's keys on the counter. When Tim confesses his continuing love for Meg, Dana says that she remembers the feeling of loving someone who didn't love her, even though she has no specific memories of the person she loved.

Episode 153
star
0.00
0 votes

#18 - Episode 153

Season 2 - Episode 153 - Aired 8/11/1998

Dana continues having nightmares in her sleep, saying "I love you, I'll love you forever." The doctor interrupts yet another Annie/Olivia fight with the news that he knows why they can't stop Trey's bleeding. Trey's internal organs weren't fully formed, and so his blood isn't clotting. He says that only blood from his mother can save him. Joan, Ben and Meg find out about the tidal wave and about what happened to the Neptune II, and they decide to keep it a secret, so Hank's health would get better, so he wouldn't have to worry about his younger daughter. Gregory and AJ agree not to mention Trey's condition to Caitlin and Cole. Bette and Emily discuss their difficult past together. They confess their love for one another and make amends.

Episode 154
star
0.00
0 votes

#19 - Episode 154

Season 2 - Episode 154 - Aired 8/12/1998

Just as the ship explodes, Ricardo and Antonio jump into the water, grabbing a piece of debris to help them stay afloat. Just as the search party was about to give up on Antonio and Ricardo, Gabi spots them. Francesca, blaming herself for Cole's death, asks Antonio if he can forgive her for helping Phillip steal from the residents of Rosario. Antonio assures her that he sees a changed woman. AJ refuses to go back without Cole -- dead or alive! He spots Cole's body in the water, and he jumps in after him. They bring Cole up to the helicopter, but he doesn't have a pulse. Finally, after extensive CPR, Cole regains consciousness. Gabi wonders how to break the news to Meg about Sara and Casey. Everyone is shocked to hear about the earthquakes that rocked Sunset Beach. Gregory breaks the news to Caitlin and Cole about Trey's condition. The survivors arrive at the hospital. When Francesca flirts with Ricardo, Antonio informs her that he is (a) his brother and (b) a police officer. Olivia tells Annie that in order to save Trey's life, Caitlin will have to hear the truth.While mulling over her options when Olivia tells the truth to save Trey, Annie has a fantasy that she is in the old west with Olivia, Caitlin, Cole, Sean, AJ, Leo, Bette and Gregory out to get her. Later, Annie tells Olivia that they needed to work together to save Trey. Gregory, Cole, Caitlin and AJ share a happy reunion with Olivia and Annie. The doctor is confused when Caitlin declares that she is Trey's mother.

Episode 155
star
0.00
0 votes

#20 - Episode 155

Season 2 - Episode 155 - Aired 8/13/1998

Caitlin is upset when the doctor tells her that the only thing that can save Trey was blood from his biological mother, and that blood from anyone else would kill him. Annie comes up with a plan. First, she tells Caitlin that Trey's biological mother will be willing to give blood for Trey's sake. Then she tells Olivia that if she donates the blood anonymously, everyone wins -- Gregory will never find out that Trey could be Cole's son, Caitlin will never find out that Trey's really her brother, and Cole will never find out that Trey isn't Caitlin's biological son. Olivia refuses to go along with this plan. Caitlin confesses to Olivia that Trey isn't her biological son, then breaks down into tears. Gabi tells Meg about Sara's disappearance.

Episode 156
star
0.00
0 votes

#21 - Episode 156

Season 2 - Episode 156 - Aired 8/14/1998

Sara and Casey find a radio in a deserted shack, and they finally contact the coast guard, but they have no idea where they are. Dana wants Tim to help her escape from the hospital, so she'd be able to help Meg. Ben is informed about Sara and Casey, and he informs Meg that they are safe, but they don't know where they are. Cole and Leo decide to find out why AJ doesn't want them to meet up. Caitlin tells the entire truth to Olivia, who comforts her daughter, and decides to let her keep Trey. Annie suggests that Olivia gives blood to Trey, and she tells Caitlin that the biological mother will give the blood.

Episode 157
star
0.00
0 votes

#22 - Episode 157

Season 2 - Episode 157 - Aired 8/17/1998

When he enters the room he was told Caitlin was in, Cole discovers Olivia instead. Olivia claims that she isn't giving blood for Trey; she is just donating blood for the blood bank. The nurse leaves to take the blood to the blood bank. Annie reassures Olivia that they'll get the blood to Trey somehow. When the nurse leaves the bag on the counter, Olivia pretends to faint, which gives Annie the chance to change the label to one that says "Caitlin Richards." Gregory asks Tim to stop by his house to give a check to the foreman in charge of the repairs. Dana catches Meg when she first comes home. When they walk into the house, the living room gives Dana deja-vu. Dana tells Meg that she feels that the ocean is calling to her. Meg urges her to go ahead down to the water. As soon as Dana gets to the water, she becomes terrified. Tim finds a picture of Annie and Dana in the rubble. While he is looking at it, he says, "Oh, my God. It's her." When Emily arrives for a visit, Bette overdoes the mother/daughter stuff, and Emily has to tell her to back off a little.

Episode 158
star
0.00
0 votes

#23 - Episode 158

Season 2 - Episode 158 - Aired 8/18/1998

When Tim sees that the picture was labeled "Annie & Maria," he realizes that Dana is Maria! Suddenly everything makes sense -- the way that she recognized Ben's name, his key chain, etc. He decides that he has to tell Meg. As Tim is leaving the house, he runs into Ricardo, who spots the picture of Maria. Just as Tim is about to tell Ricardo that Maria is alive, Gabi interrupts them. Tim decides not to tell Ricardo about Maria, in hopes that when he tells Meg, she'll turn to him for comfort. Maria decides that she never belonged in Cedar Oaks because someone loved her once -- and she wonders if he still does. Maria dreams that she is walking through Ben's house when Meg walks up to her and says, "Welcome home."

Episode 159
star
0.00
0 votes

#24 - Episode 159

Season 2 - Episode 159 - Aired 8/19/1998

Francesca and Cole reminisce about their days as jewel thieves, but Cole stops himself when they remember how aroused they got by their first successful job. A nurse brings Francesca's bracelet to Caitlin and asks if it is hers. Caitlin recognizes it as Francesca's. Soon after, Caitlin walks in on Francesca and Cole sharing a tender moment. When Annie visits Bette her aunt tells her that Emily is back, but that she doesn't want to move in with her. Emily returns and Annie greets her with hostility, blasting her cousin for how she treated Bette. When Emily says her mother was never exactly "parent material," Annie insists that Bette was a better mother to her than her own was. Bette overhears Annie telling Emily that love is a two-way street, and that if she wants to screw up a relationship, she can do it with a guy, not with Bette.

Episode 124
star
0.00
0 votes

#25 - Episode 124

Season 2 - Episode 124 - Aired 6/29/1998

When Olivia remembers a cabin in Silverado Canyone (where Annie took her) A.J. suggests they drive up to the cabin, so Olivia could recall what actually happened there. Annie does her best to convince Gregory to marry her as soon as possible, and claims that the only reason she wants to marry him this night is because of her father's unreliability. Gregory calls his private jet to fly to Las Vegas, and the couple fly to Vegas. On their way, the pilot says he's ill and he can't make it to Las Vegas, so Annie knocks him out and gets in the pilot seat. She says she has been taking flying lessons. Casey and Ricardo finally realize who Derek is, and they head to the cabin. Accidentally, some robbers order Ricardo and Casey to drive them, and when they realize Ricardo is a cop, they shoot out his radio. Sara informs Hank and Joan about who Derek is. Gabi claims that she is fault for what happened with Ben, and she wants them to let Antonio go. Some police officers realize that there is something wrong with Ricardo's radio, and he decides to go after him. Hank says he'll go with him. Derek and Ben struggle, and meg interferes, only to get pushed against a wall and kocked out. Ben manages to stab Derek. Thinking it's all over, Ben goes to get Meg, and they kiss. He tells her it's finally over, but the devil never rests. Derek gets up, jumps and stabs Ben in the stomach.