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The Worst Episodes of ER

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

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...
Genre:Drama
Network:NBC

Worst Episodes Summary

"Cañon City" is the worst rated episode of "ER". It scored 7/10 based on 372 votes. Directed by Christopher Chulack and written by John Wells, Lisa Zwerling, Joe Sachs, it aired on 9/22/2005. This episode scored 0.1 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Owner of a Broken Heart".

  • Cañon City
    7.0/10372 votes
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    #1 - Cañon City

    Season 12 Episode 1 - Aired 9/22/2005

    Sam and Luka go on the search for her runaway son, Alex. Meanwhile, Pratt and Lewis guide Abby, Neela and Ray, who have become R2's, on how to teach the new interns.

    Director: Christopher Chulack

    Writer: John Wells, Lisa Zwerling, Joe Sachs

  • Owner of a Broken Heart
    7.1/10307 votes
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    #2 - Owner of a Broken Heart

    Season 14 Episode 14 - Aired 4/10/2008

    Pratt and a new doctor on the scene disagree on how to teach the interns. Gates treats a young woman with serious heart problems. Abby heads to Croatia, and ponders whether and how to tell Luka about her unfortunate choices. Sam discovers that Julia has moved on in more ways than one.

    Director: Christopher Chulack

    Writer: David Zabel, Joe Sachs

  • Reason to Believe
    7.2/10346 votes
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    #3 - Reason to Believe

    Season 13 Episode 8 - Aired 11/16/2006

    A mysterious illness leaves little hope when a group of homeless kids enter the ER and one of them believes that Neela is a guardian angel in blue; Abby and Kovac clash over a possible case of domestic abuse; Pratt makes a shocking discovery about his brother, and Weaver is unexpectedly called into action when her television appearance becomes a real emergency.

    Director: Ernest R. Dickerson

    Writer: R. Scott Gemmill, David Zabel

  • Atonement
    7.2/10320 votes
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    #4 - Atonement

    Season 14 Episode 13 - Aired 1/17/2008

    Neela's short visit in Ortho turns into a game of hockey. Bettina wants to take her relationship with Pratt to the next level, but Pratt is not keen on the idea. Gates and Sam disagree over a patient. Julia provides some spiritual guidance in order to ease a prison doctor's bad conscience.

    Director: Stephen Cragg

    Writer: Lisa Zwerling

  • ...As the Day She Was Born
    7.2/10286 votes
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    #5 - ...As the Day She Was Born

    Season 14 Episode 15 - Aired 4/17/2008

    Neela, worn out after being on shift for over 24 hours, has to make a quick decision regarding an accident victim's torn aorta. Sarah's grandparents are in town, and Hank is rushed to the ER after collapsing during an outing. Gates tries to convey to Sam that his feelings for her are serious.

    Director: Tawnia McKiernan

    Writer: N/A

  • Separation Anxiety
    7.2/10294 votes
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    #6 - Separation Anxiety

    Season 15 Episode 11 - Aired 1/8/2009

    Alex is set to be released from the hospital. Doctors treat African-American brothers Curtis Bennet, 17, who has abdominal pain and 10-year-old Quincy Bennet who has a knee injury. Both were injured during a drug deal that went terribly wrong. There's still some residual tension between Gates and Sam. A female patient in police custody doesn't want to be examed by Morris. A 13-year-old patient named Anastasia messes with Neela's love life.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Darfur
    7.3/10341 votes
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    #7 - Darfur

    Season 12 Episode 15 - Aired 3/2/2006

    In the Sudan, Carter and a colleague struggle to save a woman who was raped by a band of militants. Back in the ER, Clemente asks to return to work after the shooting incident, but Kovac refuses. Meanwhile, Neela and Pratt have a work dispute, and, in a related incident, K.J.'s father shows up again in the ER.

    Director: Richard Thorpe

    Writer: Janine Sherman Barrois

  • Crisis of Conscience
    7.3/10317 votes
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    #8 - Crisis of Conscience

    Season 13 Episode 16 - Aired 2/15/2007

    Kovac and Gates find themselves with a moral dilemma when a woman comes into the ER with acute liver failure; Neela finds herself questioning what is right when Manish decides to give up a kidney to a complete stranger. Meanwhile, Ray fights to get to the bottom of a cheerleaders accidental fall; Abby gets a prediction for her future; and Alex's troubles continue to intrude on Sam's work life.

    Director: Steve Shill

    Writer: Lisa Zwerling

  • The Test
    7.3/10315 votes
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    #9 - The Test

    Season 14 Episode 6 - Aired 11/1/2007

    Morris and Pratt cram for their medical boards when Morretti brings in a new attending physician to help with the load. Sam and Abby work on an attention-hungry patient who comes into the ER with elusive symptoms.

    Director: Félix Enríquez Alcalá

    Writer: Lisa Zwerling

  • Coming Home
    7.3/10298 votes
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    #10 - Coming Home

    Season 14 Episode 8 - Aired 11/15/2007

    Everyone at the ER is happily surprised to see Luka back from Croatia. Great news awaits Neela. Sarah once again needs rescuing by Tony, and patients are causing problems for Morris.

    Director: Laura Innes

    Writer: David Zabel

  • Skye's the Limit
    7.3/10305 votes
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    #11 - Skye's the Limit

    Season 14 Episode 9 - Aired 11/29/2007

    It's time for changes at the ER when Anspaugh makes an unpopular decision. Abby has old demons to fight with, which distance her from friends and family. Even Luka seems to be at a loss to help Abby. Love is in the air when a secret romance blooms between two doctors.

    Director: Paul McCrane

    Writer: Karen Maser

  • Truth Will Out
    7.3/10289 votes
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    #12 - Truth Will Out

    Season 14 Episode 16 - Aired 4/24/2008

    Kovac is in Chicago looking for hospice-care work. Neela's aorta surgery has caused an infection in her patient. Abby treats a teen who has been beaten up. Brenner continues to cause problems for the ER staff.

    Director: Andrew Bernstein

    Writer: N/A

  • Love is a Battlefield
    7.3/10306 votes
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    #13 - Love is a Battlefield

    Season 15 Episode 13 - Aired 1/22/2009

    Morris tries to help a girl who was hit while riding her bike; Gates can't get over his feelings for Sam; Neela is flustered when Dr. Brenner returns from Australia.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • A Saint in the City
    7.4/10352 votes
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    #14 - A Saint in the City

    Season 9 Episode 12 - Aired 1/16/2003

    Dr. Weaver is in a difficult situation when an alderman tests positive for syphilis. Dr. Carter is impressed when he meets a man who runs an inner city clinic.

    Director: Peggy Rajski

    Writer: Bruce Miller

  • No Strings Attached
    7.4/10341 votes
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    #15 - No Strings Attached

    Season 9 Episode 14 - Aired 2/6/2003

    Abby's troubled brother is missing. A car runs into a crowd of teen girls. The alderman with syphilis gives Dr. Weaver a promotion. Dr. Lewis looks forward to a blind date.

    Director: Jonathan Kaplan, Peggy Rajski

    Writer: Bruce Miller

  • An Intern's Guide to the Galaxy
    7.4/10344 votes
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    #16 - An Intern's Guide to the Galaxy

    Season 11 Episode 5 - Aired 11/4/2004

    Neela starts a new job in the emergency room after working at the convenience store near the hospital. On Neela's first day, Pratt expects the interns, Abby, Ray and Neela, to take on a large patient load during their shifts. Pratt turns processing the patients into a competition, in which Ray is clearly going to be the winner.

    Director: Arthur Albert

    Writer: Lisa Zwerling

  • Dream House
    7.4/10355 votes
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    #17 - Dream House

    Season 12 Episode 6 - Aired 11/3/2005

    Pratt's half-brother tries to get him to make ends meet with his estranged father. Clemente treats an infant chimpanzee and involves Abby and Neela on the secret case. Eve promotes Sam and her first tasks is to fire a beloved nurse.

    Director: Stephen Cragg

    Writer: David Zabel

  • If Not Now
    7.4/10345 votes
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    #18 - If Not Now

    Season 12 Episode 11 - Aired 1/5/2006

    Neela treats a religious teenage girl who turns out to be pregnant. Abby and Kovac struggle to figure out what to do with her unexpected pregnancy.

    Director: John Gallagher

    Writer: David Zabel

  • Out on a Limb
    7.4/10316 votes
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    #19 - Out on a Limb

    Season 12 Episode 16 - Aired 3/16/2006

    When is it time to go out on a limb? Armand Assante guest stars as a patient who makes Sam an offer she might not be able to refuse. Luka must calm Abby’s baby-related fears after an incident at the hospital places everyone at risk. Kerry makes a difficult choice, and Neela joins a support group.

    Director: Lesli Linka Glatter

    Writer: Karen Maser

  • Somebody To Love
    7.4/10345 votes
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    #20 - Somebody To Love

    Season 13 Episode 3 - Aired 10/5/2006

    Gates is assigned to the case of a closeted gay man whose partner clashes with his family; Neela meets her new surgical chief, Dr. Crenshaw; and Pratt must cope with the flood of new interns.

    Director: Stephen Cragg

    Writer: David Zabel

  • Parenthood
    7.4/10322 votes
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    #21 - Parenthood

    Season 13 Episode 4 - Aired 10/12/2006

    Abby and Kovac discover both the joys and difficulties of raising a newborn; Morris is wrongfully accused of being a child molester; Pratt has his trial-by-fire when he has to handle the ER alone, juggling multiple traumas, teaching duties and a troublesome intern. Neela continues to be the target of her difficult supervisor, and Sam discovers her sons latest extra-curricular activity.

    Director: Tawnia McKiernan

    Writer: R. Scott Gemmill

  • From Here to Paternity
    7.4/10308 votes
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    #22 - From Here to Paternity

    Season 13 Episode 17 - Aired 2/22/2007

    A blizzard strands a family in the snow and Abby and Pratt quickly try to save the family. A gang shooting challenges Morris and Pratt. Meanwhile, Kovac and Abby begin making wedding plans, but their engagement might not be very secret; Gates struggles with the reappearance of his father and the possibility of losing Sarah; and Neela becomes jealous when Dubenko brings in a new surgical intern.

    Director: Lesli Linka Glatter

    Writer: Virgil Williams

  • In a Different Light
    7.4/10322 votes
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    #23 - In a Different Light

    Season 14 Episode 2 - Aired 10/4/2007

    Moretti begins to make his presence felt, as he implements changes in the way patients are seen. The ER staff differ on how procedure when a patient comes in with a bullet in him needed as evidence. Neela finds herself the object of more attention that she wants, or needs. Abby had passport woes, and struggles with the changes being made. Pratt and Morris find themselves forced to defend their actions, Hope prepares for a new mission, and Gates finds himself labeled the reject in his new assignment.

    Director: Richard Thorpe

    Writer: Lisa Zwerling, Karen Maser

  • Under the Influence
    7.4/10301 votes
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    #24 - Under the Influence

    Season 14 Episode 5 - Aired 10/25/2007

    Moretti reassigns Gates back to the ER and treats a couple involved in a car accident. Morris prepares to take his written board exams. Neela is assigned a young genius intern. Kovac plans to extend his stay in Croatia while Abby struggles with single parenthood.

    Director: Anthony Hemingway

    Writer: Joe Sachs

  • Believe the Unseen
    7.4/10290 votes
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    #25 - Believe the Unseen

    Season 14 Episode 12 - Aired 1/10/2008

    Abby is back from rehab and finds herself the object of scrutiny. She confesses to Pratt that Luka might stay in Croatia longer than planned. Harold seems to have won over Neela's cousin. Multiple victims from a fire fill the ER.

    Director: Rob Hardy

    Writer: Virgil Williams