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The Worst Episodes of Cold Case

Every episode of Cold Case ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Cold Case!

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The Philadelphia homicide squad's lone female detective finds her calling when she is assigned cases that have never been solved. Detective Lilly Rush combines her natural instincts with the updated technology available today to bring

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
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    Cold Case Season 1 Episode 10 - The Hitchhiker
    7.2/10(626 votes)

    #1 - The Hitchhiker

    S1:E10

    Rush and Valens investigate the case of a cold-blooded killer who shot a young man trying to hitchhike his way home to Philly from Atlanta.

    Director:Marita Grabiak
    Writer:Sean Whitesell

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  2. Cold Case Season 2 Episode 12 - Yo, Adrian
    7.2/10(528 votes)

    #2 - Yo, Adrian

    S2:E12

    When a dying boxing referee makes a confession about a 1976 fight, the team re-opens the case in which an underdog fighter, arranged to fight against a much more qualified boxer, took a heavy beating in the match and died only moments afterwards.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writer:Sean Whitesell

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  3. Cold Case Season 2 Episode 20 - Kensington
    7.2/10(481 votes)

    #3 - Kensington

    S2:E20

    The murder case of a young mill worker is re-opened when Rush learns that a recent parolee admitted to stealing money off the victim's body.

    Director:Bill Eagles
    Writer:Sean Whitesell

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  4. Cold Case Season 3 Episode 11 - 8 Years
    7.2/10(544 votes)

    #4 - 8 Years

    S3:E11

    Four close high school friends each went their separate ways in 1980. Eight years later, in 1988, one of them was murdered. The homicide team receives a tip about the murder, prompting a re-investigation of the case and an examination of the friends' lives, hopes and dreams after high school.

    Director:Mark Pellington
    Writer:Meredith Stiehm

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  5. Cold Case Season 4 Episode 4 - Baby Blues
    7.2/10(448 votes)

    #5 - Baby Blues

    S4:E4

    A 6-month-old girl's 1982 death, originally ruled to be a result of sudden-infant-death syndrome, is investigated when new evidence reveals the baby may have drowned. Also, Lilly learns that Ray is in the hospital after apparently being beaten.

    Director:David Barrett
    Writer:Liz W. Garcia

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  6. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 20 - Stealing Home
    7.2/10(323 votes)

    #6 - Stealing Home

    S6:E20

    The team re-opens the 1999 murder of a Cuban baseball star who fled to the U.S. after being fired from his team.

    Director:Kevin Bray
    Writers:Elwood Reid, Danny Pino

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  7. Cold Case Season 7 Episode 6 - Dead Heat
    7.2/10(295 votes)

    #7 - Dead Heat

    S7:E6

    The 1986 murder of a jockey is investigated after his body is discovered in a mass grave for horses. The victim disappeared shortly after losing a race that he had planned to be his finale before retiring.

    Director:Nathan Hope
    Writer:Adam Glass

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  8. Cold Case Season 1 Episode 19 - Late Returns
    7.3/10(562 votes)

    #8 - Late Returns

    S1:E19

    The shooting death of a man in his driveway is connected to the unsolved 1992 murder of a Democratic campaign worker whose lifeless body was thrown into a nearby river on election night. The investigation centers on the relationship the dead woman had with a present-day congressman. Apparently, the victim in the current homicide probed into the earlier slaying and discovered damning new evidence. Elsewhere, Lilly spies Kite flirting with a new ADA and gets jealous.

    Director:David Straiton
    Writers:Jay Beattie, Dan Dworkin

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  9. Cold Case Season 1 Episode 20 - Greed
    7.3/10(567 votes)

    #9 - Greed

    S1:E20

    The team reopens the 1985 case of a wealthy stock broker. At the time it was deemed that Charles Danville was killed when someone attempted to steal his car, but new evidence suggests that he may, in fact, have been murdered.

    Director:Karen Gaviola
    Writer:Stacy Kravetz

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  10. Cold Case Season 3 Episode 18 - Willkommen
    7.3/10(480 votes)

    #10 - Willkommen

    S3:E18

    The team re-opens the 2002 case of a murdered amateur actor when the owner of a local community theater finds a gun hidden inside prop furniture.

    Director:Paris Barclay
    Writer:Andrea Newman

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  11. Cold Case Season 4 Episode 3 - Sandhogs
    7.3/10(464 votes)

    #11 - Sandhogs

    S4:E3

    When the remains of a sandhog miner who disappeared in 1947 are found in a subway service tunnel, the team is prompted to re-open the case when they suspect the victim might have been murdered for being a union activist.

    Director:David Von Ancken
    Writer:Greg Plageman

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  12. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 1 - Glory Days
    7.3/10(360 votes)

    #12 - Glory Days

    S6:E1

    The 1973 murder of a college-football star's on the eve of a championship game. The unsolved case is reopened when new evidence suggests he was killed earlier than previously assumed and the victim may have been involved with steroids.

    Director:Roxann Dawson
    Writer:Gavin Harris

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  13. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 13 - Breaking News
    7.3/10(336 votes)

    #13 - Breaking News

    S6:E13

    The team re-investigates the 1988 murder of a young TV reporter. Previously unseen news footage suggests she was on the verge of breaking a huge story about the unethical practices of a plastics company.

    Director:Holly Dale
    Writer:Erica Shelton Kodish

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  14. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 15 - Witness Protection
    7.3/10(335 votes)

    #14 - Witness Protection

    S6:E15

    When the mother of a missing team storms into station. The case of a witness protection member is reopened when his body is identified by the missing teen.

    Director:Alex Zakrzewski
    Writer:Elle Triedman

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  15. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 18 - Mind Games
    7.3/10(321 votes)

    #15 - Mind Games

    S6:E18

    The team suspect a 2004 arson that killed a psychiatrist may have been caused by her former patient.

    Director:Donald E. Thorin Jr.
    Writer:Gavin Harris

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  16. Cold Case Season 1 Episode 5 - The Runner
    7.4/10(721 votes)

    #16 - The Runner

    S1:E5

    After a drug addict brings in an audio tape she found on which a fatal shooting is heard, Lilly reopens a 1973 murder case involving the death of a twenty-one-year-old rookie cop. The young officer was shot three times in the chest while responding to a call at a drug-infested housing project.

    Director:David Straiton
    Writer:Veena Sud

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  17. Cold Case Season 1 Episode 17 - The Lost Soul of Herman Lester
    7.4/10(568 votes)

    #17 - The Lost Soul of Herman Lester

    S1:E17

    When the son of a murdered high-school basketball star receives a death threat, Rush and Valens reopen the 1987 case of Herman Lester who was stabbed to death only hours after leading his team to win the state championship.

    Director:Tim Matheson
    Writer:Sean Whitesell

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  18. Cold Case Season 2 Episode 8 - Red Glare
    7.4/10(543 votes)

    #18 - Red Glare

    S2:E8

    The 1953 murder of a white school teacher, a communist sympathizer who was involved in civil-rights issues, is reopened after the victim's youngest son asks for it to be reinvestigated. The probe reveals that the slain man was killed on the same day that the Rosenbergs were executed and was set to testify the next day before the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

    Director:Tim Matheson
    Writers:Jay Beattie, Dan Dworkin

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  19. Cold Case Season 2 Episode 17 - Schadenfreude
    7.4/10(495 votes)

    #19 - Schadenfreude

    S2:E17

    A man claims that he was wrongfully convicted of the 1982 murder of his rich wife. The case is reopened when the victim's rare ring is discovered worn by a recently deceased junkie.

    Director:Tim Matheson
    Writer:Gina Gionfriddo

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  20. Cold Case Season 3 Episode 7 - Start-Up
    7.4/10(475 votes)

    #20 - Start-Up

    S3:E7

    Lilly re-opens the 1999 case of a young, healthy woman who nevertheless died of a heart attack. In the late 1990's, she was briefly an Internet millionaire, but due to bad business decisions, her dot.com company eventually went bust.

    Director:James Whitmore Jr.
    Writer:Karin Lewicki

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  21. Cold Case Season 3 Episode 13 - Debut
    7.4/10(497 votes)

    #21 - Debut

    S3:E13

    Lilly re-opens the 1968 case of an 18-year-old girl who died -- apparently accidentally -- at the night of her debutante ball. Now her mother comes forth with new evidence when a local art dealer is accused of murdering his wife in the same manner the girl died.

    Director:Tim Hunter
    Writer:Karin Lewicki

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  22. Cold Case Season 3 Episode 17 - Superstar
    7.4/10(456 votes)

    #22 - Superstar

    S3:E17

    When a poison-soaked towel turns up at the station, Lilly re-opens the 1973 case of a murdered female college tennis star.

    Director:Bill Eagles
    Writers:Jason Tracey, Craig S. O'Neill

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  23. Cold Case Season 4 Episode 11 - The Red and the Blue
    7.4/10(483 votes)

    #23 - The Red and the Blue

    S4:E11

    Lilly and Valens travel to Nashville and Knoxville to investigate the 2000 murder of a country-music singer who was gunned down outside of a Philadelphia bar where he and his band had recently played. The unsolved case is reopened when the gun used in the homicide turns up.

    Director:Steve Boyum
    Writer:Meredith Stiehm

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  24. Cold Case Season 5 Episode 5 - Thick as Thieves
    7.4/10(401 votes)

    #24 - Thick as Thieves

    S5:E5

    The team re-opens the 1989 case of an unidentified Jane Doe when she dies in the hospital, after being comatose since the day she was shot 18 year ago.

    Director:Holly Dale
    Writer:Christopher Silber

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  25. Cold Case Season 6 Episode 16 - Jackals
    7.4/10(360 votes)

    #25 - Jackals

    S6:E16

    The 1976 murder of a teen-aged girl is reopened when her father produces a photo of her and a vicious biker gang.

    Director:Marcos Siega
    Writer:Taylor Elmore

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Worst Episodes Summary

"The Hitchhiker" is the worst rated episode of "Cold Case". It scored 7.2/10 based on 626 votes. Directed by Marita Grabiak and written by Sean Whitesell, it aired on 12/21/2003. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Yo, Adrian".