The WORST episodes of The Strain
Every episode of The Strain ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of The Strain!
A mysterious viral outbreak with hallmarks of an ancient and evil strain of vampirism ravages the city of New York.
#1 - Bad White
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/4/2016
The Master’s offer to return Zack plagues Eph as he considers taking it. Dutch reunites with an old group of friends but begins to question if her safety is better with them or with Fet, Eph and Setrakian. Palmer strives for answers to Setrakian’s secret strigoi blood treatments and discovers he may have a way to acquire it.
#2 - New York Strong
Season 3 - Episode 1 - Aired 8/28/2016
The strigoi are evolving, becoming faster. Smarter. Eph's bioweapon is failing. He struggles to improve it while trying to work through the emotional fallout of the abduction of his son, Zack. As Setrakian and Quinlan attempt to crack the Lumen’s deepest-held secrets, Fet helps a Navy SEAL team in a deadly mission: search for the Master through the underground tunnels of New York.
#3 - The Worm Turns
Season 4 - Episode 1 - Aired 7/16/2017
Out of the ashes of humanity’s nuclear war, Night Eternal has begun. Haunted by the atrocities committed by his son, Eph abandons NYC for Philadelphia. His solitude is cut short when he encounters new fighters who rekindle his drive to fight back. Tasked by Setrakian, Fet and Quinlan search for a new means of stopping the Master.
#4 - Night Train
Season 2 - Episode 13 - Aired 10/4/2015
Setrakian and Fet battle for possession of the Occido Lumen, and gain a surprising new ally. A massive attack imperils Eph, Nora, and Zack's escape from New York.
#5 - Belly of the Beast
Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired 8/13/2017
Fet and Quinlan are hot on the trail of a convoy carrying their prized nuclear weapon. Eph and Alex search for clues to uncover the Master’s plan for the ultimate fate of the human race. Dutch is trapped by a familiar enemy, yet encounters an old friend as well.
#6 - Collaborators
Season 3 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/9/2016
Setrakian offers hope in a new plan to trap the Master while Eph and Dutch seek out the Master’s “voice.” Palmer, frail and close to death, needs Setrakian’s access to the white to hold up his end of their bargain. Fet suffers a devastating personal loss revealing a long-hidden family secret.
#7 - Identity
Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 8/16/2015
Eph concocts a plan to make and distribute a bioweapon. Gus realizes Angel can be an unlikely ally, and Kelly comes after Nora and Zack.
#8 - The Battle of Central Park
Season 3 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/2/2016
Fet strikes hard at the heart of the strigoi army while Justine embarks upon a risky mission to drive the strigoi out of Manhattan once and for all. Gus and Angel fight for their lives and their freedom but are faced with a moral dilemma.
#9 - Quick and Painless
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 8/9/2015
Eph changes his appearance to leave the city while Nora is left as the reluctant parent for Zack. Dutch and Nora make a deal with Justine to secure Fet’s release from jail.
#10 - Fallen Light
Season 2 - Episode 12 - Aired 9/27/2015
Eph must choose between Zack's safety and the safety of the citizens of NYC. Meanwhile, his relationship with Nora reaches a critical impasse, and Gus and Angel assemble an unlikely gang of Sun-hunters.
#11 - The Last Stand
Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/17/2017
In the series finale, Quinlan devises a desperate plan, but the costs are enormous. Eph wrestles with his conscience, Fet undertakes a suicide mission, and Dutch and Gus dig in for battle as humankind makes its final stand against the Master and his Strain.
#12 - Loved Ones
Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/14/2014
Eph investigates Kelly’s disappearance and struggles with what he finds. Dutch pursues a plan to retaliate against Palmer, and Fitzwilliam makes a surprising choice.
#13 - The Battle for Red Hook
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/6/2015
Justine takes drastic measures to counter a surprise invasion. Nora and Fet perform a useful mission while Eph and Setrakian face off against an old foe.
#14 - Dead End
Season 2 - Episode 11 - Aired 9/20/2015
Dutch fights for her life against Eichhorst as Fet, Nora, and Eph frantically search the city for her. Setrakian confronts an old acquaintance on his search for the Occido Lumen, while Gus helps the Guptas escape across the border to safety.
#15 - Tainted Love
Season 4 - Episode 6 - Aired 8/20/2017
Fet and Quinlan have to figure out how to get the nuclear bomb back to New York, while a desperate Eichhorst draws near. Love‐struck Zack tries to learn more about his new crush, but makes a devastating discovery.
#16 - The Traitor
Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 9/10/2017
An unexpected guest brings old conflicts to the surface, dividing our heroes, threatening the group’s trust. With questionable new intel in hand, they launch a make‐or‐break final assault on the Master.
#17 - Intruders
Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 8/30/2015
Eph must protect Zack against a surprise intruder into Red Hook. Gus convinces the Guptas to make a difficult choice. Fet and Setrakian set out to acquire the Lumen but discover they are not the only potential buyer.
#18 - Extraction
Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 9/3/2017
Reeling from loss, our heroes regroup. To defeat the Master, they must locate him first. Our heroes devise a new plan to track him through human collaborators, beginning at the blood farm with someone Dutch knows all too well.
#19 - The Blood Tax
Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 7/23/2017
Imprisoned as a subject in a strigoi breeding program, Dutch is desperate to escape and find Setrakian. Gus recruits his cousin for the inside job that will put his gang at the top of the new world’s underground economy, but Creem is suspicious of his business partner’s ambitions.
#20 - The Fall
Season 3 - Episode 10 - Aired 10/30/2016
Humanity teeters on the edge of destruction. The Master finally reveals himself, initiating the end game of a battle in which there can be only one winner. Eph, Fet, Setrakian, and Dutch must overcome their personal differences in a last-ditch effort to vanquish the strain.
#21 - Gone but Not Forgotten
Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/18/2016
Things have changed. The infection enters a new phase. Fet wants to celebrate, but Setrakian and Eph are worried there's more work to be done. Justine conscripts a new, unwilling army in the fight while Eichhorst angrily lashes out with a plan to strike back.
#22 - First Born
Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/11/2016
The Occido Lumen is gone. Stolen. Setrakian and Fet race to recover it. Gus and Angel try to hide a secret houseguest while avoiding a police sweep, and Quinlan’s thirst for vengeance is revealed.
#23 - The Assassin
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 9/13/2015
Eph and Dutch work together to thwart the Master’s greatest ally. Justine runs into trouble with the Mayor while Setrakian tracks down the real owner of the Lumen.
#24 - The Silver Angel
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 8/2/2015
Eph and Nora finally see their lethal virus in action. Fet takes the security of Red Hook into his own hands while Dutch and Setrakian set off for Staten Island to question Fitzwilliam, Palmer's former body guard.
#25 - It's Not for Everyone
Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 8/3/2014
A secret autopsy demonstrates the bizarre progression of the mystery virus, prompting Jim to make a startling confession. Eph and Nora race to find the father of the youngest victim of the plane tragedy, but someone unexpected beats them to it. Ansel, in the grip of disease, takes desperate measures to protect his family.