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The Best Episodes of 8 Simple Rules

Every episode of 8 Simple Rules ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of 8 Simple Rules!

Binge this in 1d 3h•Peaking at 9.5/10

Paul and Cate are raising their three children -- Bridget, Kerry and Rory -- which is no easy task. Oldest daughter Bridget is traversing the dating scene. Kerry is cute and smart, but she has

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  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 8 - Secrets
    9.5/10(2 votes)

    #1 - Secrets

    S3:E8

    Everyone fears the ringing of the phone when they all keep secrets from each other. Rory refuses to divulge the identity of the student responsible for beating him up at school. Bridget and Kerry use fake IDs to get into a club, where Bridget gives her phone number to guy, unaware that he's a police officer. Cate doesn't want the family to know that Coach Scott tries to get her to go out with him. C.J. is distracted and forgets to pick up Rory's pain medication.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Bonnie Kallman

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  2. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 4 - Goodbye
    8.5/10(2 votes)

    #2 - Goodbye

    S2:E4

    Cate receives a phone call that Paul had collapsed and died in the grocery store. Later that evening, Cate's parents arrive to help them through their grief.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:David Flebotte, Martin Weiss

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  3. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 10 - Give It Up
    8.0/10(2 votes)

    #3 - Give It Up

    S1:E10

    When no one can agree on where the family vacation should take place, Paul challenges the Hennessey clan to give up their bad habits for a week and the winner gets to choose the vacation spot. But the family's vices soon get the better of them, and secret collaborations and clandestine alliances threaten to foil the contest.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Martin Weiss

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  4. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 3 - Donny Goes AWOL
    8.0/10(2 votes)

    #4 - Donny Goes AWOL

    S2:E3

    Donny's parents ask Bridget to be a part of a video message they are sending Donny. They are shocked to discover that Bridget has broken up with their son on the tape. Donny goes AWOL to try and patch things up. Meanwhile, Paul is asked to help give a nickname to a neighborhood prankster who has been terrorizing the block, not realizing that the culprit may be living under his own roof.

    Director:Robby Benson
    Writer:Seth Kurland

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  5. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 12 - Opposites Attract (1)
    8.0/10(2 votes)

    #5 - Opposites Attract (1)

    S2:E12

    In need of a tutor to boost her grades, Bridget hires Jeremy, hoping to make her chance of getting into a good college better. Meanwhile, Kyle treats Kerry to an very un-corporate Valentine's Day celebration. Rory gets pointers about the perfect gift for his new girlfriend Missy. Jim sends C.J. on an errand to get a special drug in Canada.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Gayle Abrams

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  6. 8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 1 - First Day of School
    8.0/10(2 votes)

    #6 - First Day of School

    S3:E1

    Knowing that Kerry is dragging her feet over breaking up with Kyle, Bridget takes it upon herself to do it for her sister. Meanwhile, Cate is offered the position of school nurse and Rory's first day of high school proves embarrassing when he has to hit the showers after gym class.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Kathy Ann Stumpe

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of 8 Simple Rules

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  7. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 1 - Pilot
    7.5/10(4 votes)

    #7 - Pilot

    S1:E1

    As Cate decides to go back to work as a nurse, Paul undertakes the responsibility of watching the kids.

    Director:Gil Junger
    Writer:Tracy Gamble

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  8. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 11 - Paul Meets His Match
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #8 - Paul Meets His Match

    S1:E11

    Paul becomes quick friends with his new editor Nick when he discovers they both are married fathers of teenage girls. But Paul soon learns that they both have the reputation of being an overprotective psycho dad. Meanwhile, Paul wants to make Thanksgiving a family affair, and forbids Bridget and Kerry from inviting their boyfriends.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 14 - Career Choices
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #9 - Career Choices

    S1:E14

    Paul and Cate are shocked when they are called into the principal's office and informed that Bridget wants to skip her college prep classes in order to become an esthetician. Meanwhile, Paul is so impressed with Kerry's sketches of The Incredible Boring Woman that he gets the principal to print them in the school newspaper.

    Director:Terry Hughes
    Writers:Amy Engelberg, Wendy Engelberg

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  10. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 16 - Come and Knock on Our Door
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #10 - Come and Knock on Our Door

    S1:E16

    After discovering that boyfriend Kyle kissed Kerry at a party, Bridget gives her sister the silent treatment which is anything but quiet for Paul. But real life merges with fantasy when Paul has a dream that lands him in familiar territory, showing Kyle as a swinging bachelor living with Paul's two beautiful daughters in an apartment straight out of the 70s.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Bill Callahan, Philip Wen

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  11. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 21 - Kerry's Video
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #11 - Kerry's Video

    S1:E21

    Kerry devotes her school video project to sister Bridget to illustrate the hypocrisy that life is much easier for the beautiful people. But when Bridget discovers that the video makes her look shallow, she takes Paul's advice to enrich her life by taking up tennis again.

    Director:Terry Hughes
    Writer:Bonnie Kallman

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  12. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 26 - The Doyle Wedding
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #12 - The Doyle Wedding

    S1:E26

    After reluctantly inviting socially inept neighbors Fred and Mary Ellen Doyle and their kids over for dinner, Paul and Cate are shocked when the entire Hennessy clan is asked to take part in the Doyles' daughter's wedding. Meanwhile Kerry neglects to inform Bridget that geeky Donny Doyle has grown up to be a hunk, and Rory takes a part in a play as a cross-dresser in order to meet girls.

    Director:Lynn M. McCracken
    Writer:Rosalind Moore

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  13. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 11 - Consequences
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #13 - Consequences

    S2:E11

    Rory steals a police dog when he hears about CJ's glory days of stealing his old school mascot, but Cate is shocked when the dog finds marijuana in Kerry's backpack. Meanwhile, Bridget gets brought home by the police for not wearing a helmet on her boyfriend's motorcycle after Cate telling her she has to.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Bill Callahan

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  14. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 13 - Opposites Attract (2)
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #14 - Opposites Attract (2)

    S2:E13

    Bridget decides to make a move on her tutor but discovers that he may have his sights set on her debate team opponent. Meanwhile, after accidentally setting fire to C.J.'s van, Jim is not-so-thrilled when Cate forces him to share his basement room with him.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Paul F. Ciancarelli, David DiPietro

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  15. 8 Simple Rules Season 2 Episode 14 - Opposites Attract: Night of the Locust (3)
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #15 - Opposites Attract: Night of the Locust (3)

    S2:E14

    After being told that she's fickle when it comes to relationships, Bridget is afraid that she may end up hurting Jeremy's feelings when her ex-boyfriend returns to town. Meanwhile, Kerry is outraged and plans revenge when provocative dancing has been banned from the high school formal, which is being chaperoned by Cate and Jim. C.J. partners with Rory to broadcast school scandals over the internet.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Bill Callahan, Bill Daly

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  16. 8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 9 - Thanksgiving
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #16 - Thanksgiving

    S3:E9

    While the family prepares Thanksgiving dinner for Cate to give her some much needed time off, she's left with nothing to do until she brings home an unexpected guest while on an errand. While C.J. deep-fries the turkey, Bridget and Kerry spar over pie recipes. Jim disassembles the TV in an attempt to repair it.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Seth Kurland, Rob Hanning

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  17. 8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 21 - The After Party
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #17 - The After Party

    S3:E21

    After turning down Bridget's request to throw an after-prom party in a hotel room, Cate decides to throw a school- sanctioned party at the house which totally embarrasses her kids. Meanwhile, Kerry tries to make a political statement by inviting a girl to the prom, and Rory is overjoyed when a hot senior asks him to the dance.

    Director:Pat Fischer-Doak
    Writers:Grant Nieporte, Robert Spina

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  18. 8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 23 - The Sleepover
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #18 - The Sleepover

    S3:E23

    After Principal Gibb and Cate fall asleep at the house while watching a movie, the family catches them and falsely assumes that the two are having a relationship. Bridget, Kerry, Rory and C.J. are forced to go ice-fishing with Jim in order to spend quality time with their grandfather. But Jim would much rather be left alone and is forced to keep up a happy façade.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Judd Pillot, John Peaslee

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  19. 8 Simple Rules Season 3 Episode 24 - Ditch Day
    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #19 - Ditch Day

    S3:E24

    After C.J. discovers that Cate may be starting a relationship with Principal Gibb, he blabs it to Bridget. An angry Cate has Gibb put C.J. in charge of the student detention on Ditch Day, and C.J. gets even by detaining Bridget. Because she is stuck in detention and can't complete the Ditch Day prank herself, Bridget convinces Kerry and Rory to steal the rival school's mascot.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Jeremiah Leibowitz

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  20. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 25 - Bake Sale
    7.3/10(3 votes)

    #20 - Bake Sale

    S1:E25

    For a health class assignment, Bridget and Kyle have to take care of a sack of flour as if it were a baby. Kerry and Rory bake cookies for the Great American Bake Sale to help put an end to childhood hunger in America.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Kim Friese

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  21. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 2 - Wall of Shame
    7.0/10(3 votes)

    #21 - Wall of Shame

    S1:E2

    Paul is left home alone with the kids while Cate is at a seminar on the day of the big Michigan/Ohio State football game. But much to Paul's dismay, the game soon takes a backseat when Bridget is accused of shoplifting and Kerry gets upset over her latest cause.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Michael Langworthy

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  22. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 3 - Bridget's First Job
    7.0/10(2 votes)

    #22 - Bridget's First Job

    S1:E3

    After seeing how much money Bridget spends on keeping up with the latest fashions, Paul tells her to go out and get a job to learn how to be fiscally responsible. But when she lands a job at a trendy mall clothing store that offers its workers a 40% discount, Paul and Cate begin to worry that she may not be learning the true value of a dollar.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Bill Daly

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  23. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 4 - Wings
    7.0/10(2 votes)

    #23 - Wings

    S1:E4

    Bridget takes drastic measures when an overprotective Paul keeps coming up with excuses to delay her from taking her driver's test. Meanwhile, after convincing a less-than-confident Kerry that she has the talent to enter an art competition, Paul is shocked and Kerry is devastated when her submission is rejected.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Bill Daly, Bonnie Kallman

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  24. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 5 - Son-In-Law
    7.0/10(2 votes)

    #24 - Son-In-Law

    S1:E5

    A sports-struck Paul lets Bridget do whatever she wants when she starts dating Travis, star basketball player and son of baseball legend Steve Smith. Meanwhile Kerry resents the fact that Paul still thinks of her as a little girl.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writers:Tracy Gamble, Martin Weiss

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  25. 8 Simple Rules Season 1 Episode 7 - Trick or Treehouse
    7.0/10(2 votes)

    #25 - Trick or Treehouse

    S1:E7

    Paul seems to be the only one looking forward to a family Halloween, as Bridget, Kerry and Rory make plans to spend the spooky evening away from home and with their friends. But Paul's wish to relive the past by having the family get together for one last Halloween campout in the old treehouse may turn out to be the biggest nightmare of the evening.

    Director:James Widdoes
    Writer:Bonnie Kallman

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Best Episodes Summary

"Secrets" is the best rated episode of "8 Simple Rules". It scored 9.5/10 based on 2 votes. Directed by James Widdoes and written by Bonnie Kallman, it aired on 11/12/2004. This episode scored 1.0 points higher than the second highest rated, "Goodbye".