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The Best Episodes of ER

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

Binge this in 10d 5h•Peaking at 9.2/10

ER explores the inner workings of an urban teaching hospital and the critical issues faced by the dedicated physicians and staff of its overburdened emergency room.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    ER Season 2 Episode 7 - Hell and High Water
    9.2/10(1497 votes)

    #1 - Hell and High Water

    S2:E7

    In the middle of a torrential rainstorm, Dr. Ross stumbles across a child trapped in a drainage pipe rapidly filling with water. Doug does everything possible to save the boy, Ben Larkin. Harper develops a bond with a young girl with separated parents.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writer:Neal Baer

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  2. ER Season 8 Episode 21 - On the Beach
    9.1/10(2495 votes)

    #2 - On the Beach

    S8:E21

    Dr. Greene's final days are spent in Hawaii with Rachel, teaching her to drive and surf. When he suffers a seizure, Elizabeth is called. Mark refuses to go home. He manages to make amends with his daughter before his eventual death.

    Director:John Wells
    Writer:John Wells

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  3. ER Season 10 Episode 8 - Freefall
    9.1/10(678 votes)

    #3 - Freefall

    S10:E8

    On Thanksgiving Day, a helicopter crash outside the ER leaves several injured, and kills one of the doctors. Alex tries to bring Sam and Luka together.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writer:Joe Sachs

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  4. ER Season 2 Episode 16 - The Healers
    9.0/10(908 votes)

    #4 - The Healers

    S2:E16

    Shep and Raul respond to a massive fire without proper equipment, risking their lives to save addicts and their children. Shep will be okay, but Raul has third-degree burns covering his body; it's only a matter of time. The ER is flooded with burn victims. Chloe returns to Chicago. Doug is stood up by his father for a basketball game.

    Director:Mimi Leder
    Writer:John Wells

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  5. ER Season 4 Episode 15 - Exodus
    9.0/10(1109 votes)

    #5 - Exodus

    S4:E15

    Because of benzene that's been spread, the ER has to close. Weaver gets felled and Carter has to take the lead.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writers:Walon Green, Joe Sachs

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  6. ER Season 8 Episode 16 - Secrets and Lies
    9.0/10(844 votes)

    #6 - Secrets and Lies

    S8:E16

    After some staff members are caught going through a dominatrix's bag, Weaver makes them attend a sexual harassment seminar, where they learn about each other.

    Director:Richard Thorpe
    Writer:John Wells

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of ER

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  7. ER Season 8 Episode 18 - Orion in the Sky
    9.0/10(901 votes)

    #7 - Orion in the Sky

    S8:E18

    As Dr. Greene's brain tumor begins affecting his coordination, he becomes concerned that his fate will be similar to the terminally ill patients he treats.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:David Zabel

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  8. ER Season 15 Episode 7 - Heal Thyself
    9.0/10(759 votes)

    #8 - Heal Thyself

    S15:E7

    While out for a mind-clearing run, Banfield encounters a desperate situation and finds herself trying to rescue a young girl from drowning in a nearby lake. Painful memories of her son in mortal danger and Dr. Greene's heroic attempts to save him are triggered during the experience. Meanwhile, Gates attempts to pull some strings to help out a homeless war veteran, and the interns continue to struggle in the ER.

    Director:David Zabel
    Writer:David Zabel

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  9. ER Season 2 Episode 18 - A Shift in the Night
    8.9/10(852 votes)

    #9 - A Shift in the Night

    S2:E18

    Mark finds himself manning a very crowded ER on his scheduled night off, filling in while Doug is out with whiplash and Susan meets with her lawyer. He tries to juggle hunger pangs, 40+ patients in the waiting room and a never-ending stream of traumas.

    Director:Lance Gentile
    Writer:Joe Sachs

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  10. ER Season 4 Episode 7 - Fathers and Sons
    8.9/10(891 votes)

    #10 - Fathers and Sons

    S4:E7

    Ross and Greene travel to a near-deserted stretch of California to investigate circumstances surrounding a death in Doug's family.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writer:John Wells

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  11. ER Season 12 Episode 8 - Two Ships
    8.9/10(481 votes)

    #11 - Two Ships

    S12:E8

    The ER prepares to take in victims from a plane collision, while Neela and Pratt head out to the crash site where Neela makes heroic efforts. At the end of the day, Neela gets a surprising visit.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writers:Joe Sachs, Virgil Williams

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  12. ER Season 1 Episode 10 - Blizzard
    8.8/10(1159 votes)

    #12 - Blizzard

    S1:E10

    A severe blizzard leaves the ER utterly devoid of patients, leaving the staff free to goof off. In the middle of their fun, a call comes from dispatch, informing the ER of a 40-car pile-up with dozens of casualties. The ER goes from being deserted to capacity. All surgeons are called in. Bob surprises everyone with a quick and life-saving decision. A new doctor, Angela Hicks, arrives just at the right time. Ross and Linda return from the Caribbean just as Carol makes a surprise announcement.

    Director:Mimi Leder
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. ER Season 1 Episode 19 - Love's Labor Lost
    8.8/10(1881 votes)

    #13 - Love's Labor Lost

    S1:E19

    A busy Dr. Greene goes all day in solving his patients' problems until he encounters the case of a pregnant woman suffering from complications that threaten both her life and her unborn baby's.

    Director:Mimi Leder
    Writer:Lance Gentile

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  14. ER Season 2 Episode 15 - Baby Shower
    8.8/10(630 votes)

    #14 - Baby Shower

    S2:E15

    The ER hosts roughly a dozen pregnant women when a sprinkler bursts in the maternity ward. Carter plays tour guide for the visiting surgical intern hopefuls before going through the interview himself. Benton tries to bring a hopeless patient back from the brink of death in a marathon surgery. Jerry tries to convince the others that basketball player Scottie Pippen visisted. Doug visits his father.

    Director:Barnet Kellman
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. ER Season 3 Episode 11 - Night Shift
    8.8/10(756 votes)

    #15 - Night Shift

    S3:E11

    Carol has to fire two of the nurses. Meanwhile, Gant feels Benton is too hard on him.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:Paul Manning

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  16. ER Season 5 Episode 22 - Getting to Know You
    8.8/10(503 votes)

    #16 - Getting to Know You

    S5:E22

    Carol's pregnancy becomes public knowledge as she learns that she's having twins. Lucy has problems trying to go off Ritalin. Peter learns Carla plans to move to Germany. Kerry finds an abandoned youngster and brings him to the ER. Mark and Elizabeth discuss their relationship. Jeanie and Reggie draw closer again.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:Lydia Woodward

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  17. ER Season 7 Episode 15 - The Crossing
    8.8/10(596 votes)

    #17 - The Crossing

    S7:E15

    In the series' 150th episode, a massive train wreck mobilizes the emergency room doctors. Corday, Carter and Kovac rush to the scene. Corday falls and injures her back, bringing on contractions in only her 25th week of pregnancy. While amputating the legs of a fallen firefighter, Corday stops because of her pain.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:Jack Orman

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  18. ER Season 11 Episode 12 - The Providers
    8.8/10(428 votes)

    #18 - The Providers

    S11:E12

    When a 16-year-old girl who had received a kidney transplant from her father arrives at the emergency room feeling dizzy, Carter traces the problem to a new drug that the girl was taking to control seizures related to her kidney dysfunction.

    Director:Christopher Chulack
    Writer:David Zabel

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  19. ER Season 11 Episode 15 - Alone in a Crowd
    8.8/10(677 votes)

    #19 - Alone in a Crowd

    S11:E15

    A soccer mom finds herself completely aware of everything going on around her, but is unable to move or speak after suffering a stroke.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:Dee Johnson

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  20. ER Season 12 Episode 13 - Body and Soul
    8.8/10(629 votes)

    #20 - Body and Soul

    S12:E13

    Dr. Nate Lennox, a former professor with ALS, is brought in as the progression of his disease is chronicled through his own flashbacks as he is treated by each of the doctors at one point. As Lennox wants to give up, Abby fights to convince him to keep on fighting.

    Director:Paul McCrane
    Writer:Joe Sachs

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  21. ER Season 12 Episode 21 - The Gallant Hero and the Tragic Victor
    8.8/10(501 votes)

    #21 - The Gallant Hero and the Tragic Victor

    S12:E21

    Pratt struggles to get a straight story when two abused boys come into the ER with their father. Two U.S. Army officers enter the ER.

    Director:Steve Shill
    Writer:R. Scott Gemmill

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  22. ER Season 1 Episode 20 - Full Moon, Saturday Night
    8.7/10(833 votes)

    #22 - Full Moon, Saturday Night

    S1:E20

    Mark, still upset over the loss of Jodi O'Brien, takes the night off but ends up in the ER anyway, albeit an hour late, when the new chief runs a drill at 2:00 a.m. Benton begins to realize his mother's future is not bright. Carter and Deb compete against each other. A small moon coinciding with the naturally heavy Saturday night traffic causes an exciting night.

    Director:Donna Deitch
    Writer:Neal Baer

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  23. ER Season 4 Episode 5 - Good Touch, Bad Touch
    8.7/10(533 votes)

    #23 - Good Touch, Bad Touch

    S4:E5

    Carol would like to have a women's and children's health care clinic within the ER. Benton has trouble combining work and fatherhood.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:David Mills

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  24. ER Season 4 Episode 10 - Do You See What I See?
    8.7/10(670 votes)

    #24 - Do You See What I See?

    S4:E10

    Mark treats an old lady who has been brutally raped. Carter's grandmother visits Carol's clinic. After he's touched by Benton, a blind man can see again!

    Director:Sarah Pia Anderson
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. ER Season 4 Episode 19 - Shades of Gray
    8.7/10(599 votes)

    #25 - Shades of Gray

    S4:E19

    Del Amico, Ross and Corday confront disturbing situations after the bombing of a women's clinic. Benton comes under review for controversial actions in the OR. Jeanie endures one of the most difficult days of her life as she says goodbye to a friend.

    Director:Lance Gentile
    Writer:Samantha Corbin-Miller

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Best Episodes Summary

"Hell and High Water" is the best rated episode of "ER". It scored 9.2/10 based on 1497 votes. Directed by Christopher Chulack and written by Neal Baer, it aired on 11/9/1995. This episode scored 0.1 points higher than the second highest rated, "On the Beach".