The WORST episodes of The Greatest American Hero

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

A special-ed teacher, an FBI agent, and a UFO? That's right, you've guessed it -- The Greatest American Hero. This show was first aired in 1981, and was both a comedy and a drama. A special "power suit" that only works on him is given to the teacher by the aliens, and he is paired up with the gumshoe FBI agent who keeps them both busy with his scenarios. The suit of "unearthly powers" gives the power of strength, flight, invisibilty, flames, telekenesis, vision of events without being there, protection from bullets and fire (if he remembers to cover his head!), and some others that he must figure out as well because; HE LOST THE INSTRUCTIONS THAT CAME WITH THE SUIT!

Last Updated: 11/29/2024Network: ABC (US)Status: Ended
Reseda Rose
star
6.77
64 votes

#1 - Reseda Rose

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/15/1981

Ralph uses his suit to help Rhonda, one of his students, after her mother is kidnapped by the Russians.

Watch Now:Amazon
Saturday on Sunset Boulevard
star
6.90
73 votes

#2 - Saturday on Sunset Boulevard

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/8/1981

Russians are trying to find an heiress and her Russian husband in order to force them to establish a missile cache hold on their private island. Bill needs Ralph's help when he is suspected of failing a lie-detector test at FBI headquarters.

Directors: Rod Holcomb
Watch Now:Amazon
The Two-Hundred-Mile-an-Hour Fast Ball
star
6.91
23 votes

#3 - The Two-Hundred-Mile-an-Hour Fast Ball

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 11/4/1981

Ralph dons a baseball suit to trap Latino revolutionaries who plan to finance a coup by fixing ball games.

Watch Now:Amazon
The Greatest American Hero
star
7.04
177 votes

#4 - The Greatest American Hero

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 3/18/1981

Ralph Hinkley, an average school teacher, is given a suit with amazing powers by aliens. Now, Ralph must decide if he'll use his new powers to fight crime, even though he already lost the suit's instruction manual.

Directors: Rod Holcomb
Watch Now:Amazon
The Lost Diablo
star
7.07
14 votes

#5 - The Lost Diablo

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 12/16/1981

Bill has a treasure map, and takes Ralph and his class out to the desert to find the lost Diablo Gold Mine that vanished a long time ago, and are met with resistance from the local thieves.

Directors: Lawrence Doheny
Watch Now:Amazon
Hog Wild
star
7.10
51 votes

#6 - Hog Wild

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 11/25/1981

A motorcycle gang steals the super-suit, and tries to use it to take over a town. It only works on Ralph, so they must force HIM to do their dirty work while holding Bill captive.

Directors: Ivan Dixon
Watch Now:Amazon
Thirty Seconds Over Little Tokyo
star
7.13
8 votes

#7 - Thirty Seconds Over Little Tokyo

Season 3 - Episode 9 - Aired 2/3/1983

A young Chinese scientist has invented a deadly particle "ray gun" weapon. A local gang kidnaps his uncle, hoping to obtain the gun. Bill's plan to save the Uncle backfires, and Ralph must test his suit against the deadly ray.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Watch Now:Amazon
Classical Gas
star
7.15
48 votes

#8 - Classical Gas

Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 12/2/1981

Ralph's students start a band, and a promoter lands them a spot on a big ticket concert while trying to get Pam to go out with him.

Directors: Bruce Kessler
Writer: Frank Lupo
Watch Now:Amazon
The Best Desk Scenario
star
7.23
47 votes

#9 - The Best Desk Scenario

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/13/1981

At FBI headquarters, promotions are being handed out. However, Bill considers retiring from his job. Meanwhile, Ralph must use his suit to save Pam when she discovers her boss is the head of an underground operation.

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Don't Mess Around with Jim
star
7.27
55 votes

#10 - Don't Mess Around with Jim

Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 11/18/1981

Ralph and Bill are kidnapped by a tycoon that actually had his own suit given to him years ago by the aliens. The suit corrupted this man to use it for personal fortune, and he did not lose the instruction book. The aliens did not like the way he was using the suit, and they took it away from him.

Watch Now:Amazon
The Hit Car
star
7.30
82 votes

#11 - The Hit Car

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 3/25/1981

Bill, who has been trying to bust open a drug ring for over 20 years, must drive a witness to Los Angeles for the trial of the gang leader and asks Ralph for help.

Directors: Rod Holcomb
Watch Now:Amazon
The Price is Right
star
7.31
13 votes

#12 - The Price is Right

Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/5/1982

It's football season again, and time for Ralph's high school reunion. Ralph's old friend and star pro quarterback named Price Cobb is the focus of the party, but is being forced to throw a game for the return of his wife who was kidnapped. Our heros find her, but Price is injured during the game. Ralph must go out and win the game with the suit on to prevent the villans from winning the bets placed against Price's team.

Watch Now:Amazon
Operation: Spoilsport
star
7.32
25 votes

#13 - Operation: Spoilsport

Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 11/11/1981

Ralph and Bill must stop World War III by defusing a corrupt military leader's plans to launch a suprise missile attack against Russia.

Directors: Rod Holcomb
Writer: Frank Lupo
Watch Now:Amazon
The Resurrection of Carlini
star
7.43
7 votes

#14 - The Resurrection of Carlini

Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 11/19/1982

A magician killed performing his greatest trick seemingly returns from the grave to murder his three rivals. Ralph must use his suit to out trick the would-be killer.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Writer: Frank Lupo
Watch Now:Amazon
Here's Looking at You, Kid
star
7.44
54 votes

#15 - Here's Looking at You, Kid

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 4/1/1981

When a secret gunsight is stolen, Bill asks Ralph for help in solving the case. However, Ralph runs into problems when he keeps turning invisible unexpectedly, and must deal with the pressure of meeting Pam's parents.

Watch Now:Amazon
My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
star
7.45
33 votes

#16 - My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 4/29/1981

Ralph reconsiders his suit of powers after a flying mistake almost takes out a bus full of tourists. Bill also reconsiders his job path when one of his heroes is suspected of plotting out the theft of a precious diamond.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Watch Now:Amazon
The Beast in Black
star
7.47
19 votes

#17 - The Beast in Black

Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 12/9/1981

Ralph finds a window into the 4th dimension while scouting an old house. Bill gets possesed by a woman's spirit, and Ralph must return her through that window.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Watch Now:Amazon
Captain Bellybuster and the Speed Factory
star
7.50
8 votes

#18 - Captain Bellybuster and the Speed Factory

Season 2 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/7/1982

Bill recieves hot tips on a speed factory working out of a fast food chain, and a newspaper reporter publishes pictures of Ralph flying.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Watch Now:Amazon
Fire Man
star
7.59
34 votes

#19 - Fire Man

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/6/1981

Ralph lends Tony a hand by finding him a job as a car repossesser. When Tony is arrested for arson, Ralph and Bill team up to find the real criminal.

Writer: Lee Sheldon
Watch Now:Amazon
Wizards and Warlocks
star
7.60
10 votes

#20 - Wizards and Warlocks

Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 2/10/1983

King Abu Al-Fahad asks Ralph and Bill to help find his son, Prince Aha, who was kidnapped by Middle Eastern terrorists while playing a Dungeons and Dragonsesque game, Wizards and Warlocks. Their search leads them from Aha's college campus -- where they meet Aha's Keeper of the Clock, Joey Margolis -- to the game's author himself, Norman Fackler.

Directors: Bruce Kessler
Writer: Shel Willens
Watch Now:Amazon
Who's Woo in America
star
7.67
9 votes

#21 - Who's Woo in America

Season 2 - Episode 21 - Aired 4/14/1982

Ralph's mother is re-marrying to a man who planted a much wanted micro-chip in her engagement ring.

Directors: Bob Bender
Watch Now:Amazon
Space Ranger
star
7.78
9 votes

#22 - Space Ranger

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/27/1983

One of Ralph's students invents a radio telescope capable of decoding Russian satellite messages. The KGB tries to steal his system. When that maneuver fails, they decide to kill him before he can share his discovery with the CIA.

Directors: Ivan Dixon
Watch Now:Amazon
Plague
star
7.86
14 votes

#23 - Plague

Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/6/1982

A psycho military cult leader tries to spread the small-pox virus.

Directors: Arnold Laven
Watch Now:Amazon
The Good Samaritan
star
7.88
8 votes

#24 - The Good Samaritan

Season 2 - Episode 19 - Aired 3/31/1982

Tired of using the suit to fight crime, Ralph decides to branch out. He tries to intervene in a battle between an old man fighting for his home and the city taking it away, but Bill has him on the hunt for bank robbers.

Directors: Bruce Kessler
Watch Now:Amazon
Lilacs, Mr. Maxwell
star
7.89
9 votes

#25 - Lilacs, Mr. Maxwell

Season 2 - Episode 22 - Aired 4/28/1982

Bill falls in love with a female FBI agent, and wants to tell her about the suit. She turns out to be a spy, and is ordered to kill him.

Writer: Robert Culp
Watch Now:Amazon