The WORST episodes of The Wonder Years (2021)
Every episode of The Wonder Years (2021) ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of The Wonder Years (2021)!
A coming of age story set in the late 1960s that takes a nostalgic look at a black middle-class family in Montgomery, Alabama through the point-of-view of imaginative 12 year-old Dean. With the wisdom of his adult years, Dean’s hopeful and humorous recollections show how his family found their “wonder years” in a turbulent time.
#1 - Green Eyed Monster
Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/29/2021
While Dean reckons with his first taste of heartbreak and betrayal, the adults in his life are overly empathetic and assume his grief is from mourning current events. Dean milks the special treatment and uses it to his advantage – and his family shows their support for him in their own unique ways; Kim invites him to join her at a local activist rally, while Bill and Dean bond during a fishing trip.
#2 - Takeover Spirit
Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 7/5/2023
When Lillian joins the church choir, she discovers a new side to her mother-in-law. Later, Kim encourages a guilt-ridden Dean to have an encounter with the supernatural.
#3 - Pilot
Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/22/2021
As the youngest in the Williams family, Dean is struggling to figure out where he fits in. Between his brother’s athleticism, sister’s popularity, mother’s intelligence and dad’s overall coolness, everyone else seems to have their lane figured out. He decides to pursue his calling as “The Great Uniter” and attempts to organize the first integrated baseball game between his team and his friend Brad’s team.
#4 - The Club
Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/6/2021
Dean stumbles upon some “racy literature” and shares it with friends at school. When he is caught by the school principal, Bill and Lillian navigate uncharted territory as parents and Dean learns that manhood isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
#5 - The Valentine's Day Dance
Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/2/2022
Dean’s plans to ask Keisa to the Valentine’s Day Dance are foiled when another boy asks her out first after a new makeover makes her the talk of the school. Meanwhile, Bill and Lillian make Kim sign up for a Big Sister program to have extracurricular activities for her college applications.
#6 - Happy Birthday, Clisby
Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 8/16/2023
The Williams gather to celebrate Clisby’s 75th birthday – including Bill’s brother Melvin and his daughter Cassie. While Bill and Melvin try to one-up each other for Clisby’s approval, Cassie shares big news with Lillian and Kim.
#7 - Like a Boss
Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 8/9/2023
After Lillian's boss announces budget cuts, she is forced to make a decision and enforce boundaries between her personal and professional life; Dean and Cory's friendship hits a few speed bumps as they work together for the boxcar derby.
#8 - A Star is Born
Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 8/2/2023
In search of a new hobby, Dean joins the drama club – only to find himself mixed up in drama of his own. Bill and Kim grapple with Bruce’s choice to campaign for a local politician.
#9 - Science Fair
Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/17/2021
After seeing Dean bullied by Michael after school Lillian goes to confront his parents and learns he needs more compassion than discipline. Much to Dean’s dismay, she takes Michael under her wing and helps him with his project for the science fair – an event where Dean typically excels.
#10 - I'm with the Band
Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/19/2022
When Dean loses his position as first chair saxophone in the school band, Bill lays the pressure on him to earn it back. But after a talk with Lillian, Bill realizes he’s being a bit too harsh and forcing his own dreams upon Dean.
#11 - Football Team
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 6/21/2023
As Kim decides to take classes at Bill’s college and date one of his star students, Bill must walk the line between teacher and dad. Dean and his friends join the football team where Dean finds himself in a tricky situation.
#12 - Brad Mitzvah
Season 1 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/12/2022
Brad works through his nerves preparing for his bar mitzvah speech while Dean ends his friendship with Keisa when Charlene tells him he can’t be friends with other girls. Things come to a head when the whole group comes together to celebrate Brad’s bar mitzvah.
#13 - The Lock In
Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/20/2021
Dean is reluctant to attend the annual church lock-in until Kim tells him it’s where she got her first kiss. He enlists his friends to help him pair up with Keisa, but his plans are thwarted when he instead gets paired up with the pastor’s daughter, Charlene.
#14 - The Happiest Place On Earth
Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 8/16/2023
When the Williams family decides to go on a family vacation, Kim suggests a road trip to Austin College and Dean proposes a stop at Disneyland. After meeting up with his old bandmates, Bill reflects on his life choices.
#15 - Lads and Ladies and Us
Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/5/2022
Bill and Lillian decide to join high society club Lads & Ladies as a way to introduce Kim and Dean to positive influences in the community. Bill, Kim and Dean fit right in, but things take a turn when Lillian is treated differently for being a working mom.
#16 - Bill’s New Gig
Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 4/20/2022
Bill is excited to have made tenure at the university, only to find that his focus on career and family has cost him his spot in his band. Lillian encourages Bill to write and perform solo, especially as an attractive young jazz singer approaches Bill to collaborate. Meanwhile, Bruce adjusts to living at home.
#17 - Forbidden Fruit
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 6/14/2023
Torn between his secret relationship with Keisa and his friendship with Broderick, Dean turns to Jackie for advice. Meanwhile, after her latest run-in with the law, Jackie decides to turn over a new leaf.
#18 - Be Prepared
Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/27/2021
When Coach Long and Bill take the boys on a camping trip as part of their newly formed scout troop, their starkly different approaches to the outdoors show Dean that his father isn’t good at everything. As a thunderstorm threatens an eerie quest through the woods, Bill leans into his expertise to save the day.
#19 - One Small Step
Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 6/14/2023
It’s the summer of 1969, and Dean and Bill are experiencing new walks of life in New York City where Dean has tagged along for Bill’s career-making songwriting gig. Back in Montgomery, Lilian’s infamous sister, Jackie, pays a memorable visit.
#20 - Where No Dean Has Been Before
Season 1 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/11/2022
Dean tries to impress Keisa’s cool new boyfriend, Broderick, by inviting him and his friends over for a party Kim is throwing while Bill and Lillian are away for the night. Things get out of hand just as Bill and Lillian arrive home, and Dean is forced to admit he isn’t being true to himself.
#21 - Bill's New Friend
Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 7/26/2023
After Bill befriends Dean’s music teacher, Bill and Lillian attend a party at his house and the evening takes an unexpected turn. Meanwhile, with their parents away, Dean, Bruce and Kim make their own plans for the night.
#22 - The Workplace
Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 10/13/2021
It’s “Take Your Son to Work Day” and Dean heads to band practice with Bill. But the “grown folks’ business” at the music studio prompts Lillian to have to pick up Dean. While at her office, Dean finally learns what his mom does while he’s at school all day, gaining a newfound respect for her career and ambition.
#23 - Goose Grease
Season 1 - Episode 18 - Aired 4/6/2022
When Dean comes down with the chicken pox on his way to a hunting trip with Bill and Grandaddy Clisby, Lillian forces the three of them to quarantine together. Clisby pushes homemade remedies on them out of his mistrust of doctors, but he’s forced to reckon with this when Dean’s condition worsens.
#24 - Blockbusting
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 6/28/2023
Bill and Lillian consider moving into the first integrated neighborhood in Montgomery. Meanwhile, Dean develops a crush on Brad’s mom during a sleepover at their house.
#25 - Jobs and Hangouts
Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 3/23/2022
Kim is excited to start her new job as a waitress at the local diner, which Dean adopts as his local hangout; when Kim experiences drama with her friends, she finds unlikely allies in a tough co-worker and her younger brother.