9.0/1087 votesLoading...#1 - Redeeming Jimmy
Season 4 Episode 8 - Aired 11/13/1996
Jimmy's back in town to stay, and, on Grace's recommendation, he gets a job at the refinery, but his first day is a disaster, and Nadine and Wade say she shouldn't jeopardize her job for someone who used to treat her so badly; Grace, however, says that Jimmy's a different person than he was when they were married and he deserves to make a fresh start. Quentin goes to Jimmy for advice on dating, and he suggests that Quentin go on a practice date with a friend before asking out the girl he really likes. Grace goes to the motel where Jimmy's staying and finds Jean there with her son. Jimmy's depressed and thinks he'll lose his job (in reality, Grace's co-workers have been sabotaging him as revenge for the way he used to treat Grace) but he says he'll never leave his kids again. Jean reproaches Grace for all the ""lies"" she told about Jimmy abusing her, but Jimmy makes Jean face the fact that the things Grace said were true. And Grace is livid when she hears about Jimmy's advice to Quentin,
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
9.0/1085 votesLoading...#2 - A Holly, Jolly Christmas
Season 4 Episode 12 - Aired 12/18/1996
Holiday festivities are underway in the Kelly household with Jean making her famous punch loaf to Grace's dismay and Jimmy's delight. Floyd is so much in the holiday spirit that he's giving away the entire inventory at the pharmacy, and an exasperated Russell decides to get rid of him by sending him on a cruise. Grace gets suspicious of Quentin's mellow mood and at first thinks that he's been drinking beer with his friends. When it dawns on her that he's been smoking pot, she fears that she's about to see him repeating all her teenage mistakes and decides that ""tough love"" is the only way to handle the situation.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
9.0/1090 votesLoading...#3 - Quentin Gets His Gun
Season 4 Episode 21 - Aired 3/26/1997
No description available
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.9/1088 votesLoading...#4 - Grace and Sailor Bob
Season 4 Episode 4 - Aired 10/9/1996
Dougie moves into Grace's garage apartment, and it soon becomes apparent that he's a forty-two year old man who still needs his mother. Grace comes up against a brick wall in her attempts to communicate with Quentin. Libby gets a present from the sailor she's writing to as part of a class project and confesses to Grace that she's never told him her age; Grace says Libby will have to stop the deception, but it's too late as sailor Bob arrives in the Kelly's driveway. Grace is determined to straighten everything out until she gets a look at Bob; she then says she's Libby and goes on a date with Bob to a Star Trek convention, but Libby resents that she's lost her new friend to Grace, and Grace finally tells Bob what's really going on.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.9/1086 votesLoading...#5 - Grace Tests Out
Season 4 Episode 11 - Aired 12/4/1996
With Grace at work all day and taking college classes at night, the kids are a little resentful that she's away so much and let Grace know it, and when she learns that the refinery will no longer pay for her classes it's the last straw. She knows she has no way to pay for her education, so when she learns that she can take a proficiency test to get many of the credits she needs, she's faced with a dilemma. She's scheduled to work the day of the test, and no one can switch with her, so it's her education or her dead-end job. Her co-workers remind her that she really needs her job--her children are depending on her, but the kids say they'll support whatever decision she makes. Grace actually shows up for work the day of the test, but a conversation with her boss, John Shirley, convinces her that she has do what she knows is the right thing and quit her job.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.9/1088 votesLoading...#6 - Grace of Wrath
Season 4 Episode 14 - Aired 1/15/1997
Grace is going crazy trying to finish her paper on ""The Grapes of Wrath,"" and she keeps reminding Quentin that he also has a book report that's due. When Martha, one of Grace's classmates, says she's apartment hunting, Grace jumps at the chance to have her as a tenant. Martha moves in with her parrot, Ignatius, and Libby and Quentin are both charmed by her. Even Jean thinks she's great, but Wade says he thinks he's met her before but just can't place her until he sees the parrot and realizes that Martha is a stripper that he knows from patrolling the strip club where she works. Grace has no problem with Martha's profession and admires her efforts to continue her education. Grace encounters Mrs. Sheffield who tells her she's given Quentin a C+ on his ""Grapes of Wrath"" book report, and Grace confronts Quentin about stealing her work. And when Martha drops out of school and moves back to St. Louis without even saying goodbye to the kids, Grace feels Martha has let both them and her down a
Director: David Trainer
Writer: Mike Larsen
8.9/1083 votesLoading...#7 - Wade's Partner
Season 4 Episode 15 - Aired 1/29/1997
Libby reminds Grace of their deal that if she could keep her goldfish alive for six months, Grace would buy her a dog. Tomorrow, Libby tells Grace, Fishy Fishman will be six months old, and a deal's a deal. Grace is willing to do anything in her powder to convince Libby that a dog isn't a good idea. Wade drops by to introduce Ted, his new partner. Grace tells Russell about Fishy Fishman's upcoming birthday, and Russell says a lot can happen overnight, but Grace warns him not to try anything.Wade and Ted return to Grace's and want to see Quentin; some kids climbed the fence of the Victory Country Club the previous night, went skinny-dipping in the pool, put lipstick on a statue of Ben Hogan and made off with some very expensive golf clubs. Against Wade's wishes, Ted insists on taking Quentin in and booking him unless he's willing to rat on his friends. At first Grace gives Wade a hard time until she finds out this isn't his idea. Jimmy shows up at the police station saying there's no wa
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.9/1088 votesLoading...#8 - Grace's New Job
Season 4 Episode 25 - Aired 5/7/1997
Grace gets a new job at an advertising company and shockingly, her misery brings something new and improved.
Director: David Trainer
Writer: N/A
8.9/1082 votesLoading...#9 - Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 12/9/1997
Wade's back from Colorado and tells Grace that he and Nadine are splitting up. He also tells her he's heard that some kids were partying down by the quarry, and it's possible Quentin may have been there. Libby tells Grace that Quentin has a new girlfriend. When Grace questions Quentin, he volunteers nothing and accuses her of not trusting him. Grace tells Quentin she'll try to back off a bit, but he'll have to meet her halfway. He admits that he and his girlfriend Laurie stopped by the party, but they didn't drink and they're not having sex. Grace is greatly relieved until Russell accidentally reveals that Quentin's been in the pharmacy buying condoms. When Grace confronts Quentin, he's on the defensive and demands his privacy. She tells him she just wants to be there for him and give him the benefit of some life lessons she's learned.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.9/1078 votesLoading...#10 - Finders Keepers
Season 5 Episode 6 - Aired 12/23/1997
Libby wants to go to Washington on a class trip, but Grace can't afford to send her. A tornado has hit Victory and there has been much destruction: the church steeple blew off, and an armored car from the casino took a direct hit and money flew all over town. After the storm, Quentin finds a cloth bag by the house with two-hundred-thousand-dollars in it. Everyone has an idea about how they could use the money, but Grace makes it clear that they'll be returning it. The casino management calls a press conference to thank the Kellys for returning the money, but when Grace hands over the bag, twenty-thousand -dollars is missing. Grace is interrogated for hours. She's afraid Jimmy took the money, and Wade makes her furious by hinting that maybe she took it herself. But when Grace finds the missing money in the cookie jar, Jean confesses she took the money to help the church rebuild. As Grace returns the rest of the money, she cleverly tells a TV reporter that the casino has offered to pay f
Director: David Trainer
Writer: N/A
8.9/1076 votesLoading...#11 - Fall from Grace
Season 5 Episode 12 - Aired 2/3/1998
At the construction site, Grace feels the resentment of her co-worker, Derrick, who wanted the job Grace has. Grace, who has asked D.C. for more responsibilities, is surprised when her old pal Vic from the oil refinery shows up and says he's desperate for a job. D.C. leaves the decision to Grace, who's on the spot because she knows that Vic is lazy. Feeling sorry for him, she tells him he can have the job, but warns him he can't let her down. Vic immediately begins to slack off and Derrick is smug that Grace has made a poor decision on hiring Vic. D.C. warns her that Vic better shape up or they'll both be out on the street, and points out that Vic is now up on a scaffold without a safety harness eating his lunch, even though lunch hour is long over. He tells Grace to go up and have Vic come down. Grace has vertigo but reluctantly goes after Vic. She orders him to put on a harness and come down and as he does, he falls to the ground and is rushed to the emergency room. Also, D.C. somewh
Director: N/A
Writer: Sonya Gay Bourn
8.8/1097 votesLoading...#12 - The Ghost and Mrs. Kelly
Season 4 Episode 6 - Aired 10/30/1996
Grace finds some of Mrs. Walker's old dresses and tells Libby she can use one of them for a Halloween costume. Jean's chairlift suddenly stops working, and Wade agrees to have a look at the wiring in the house, but Libby says that Mrs. Walker's ghost, who she claims to have seen around the house, probably has something to do with the problem. Grace meets Tom at a Halloween party and then learns that he's Reverend Maxwell from Jean's church--the minister that Jean's always raving about. Tom Maxwell stops buy and asks Grace out on a date; she accepts and they have a terrific evening and a great conversation in which Grace encourages Tom to have the courage to pursue his dreams. Patrick tells Grace that there's a ghost outside, and an unbelieving Grace gives him a water pistol and tells him to squirt the ghost, but when she and Libby find a warm pie in the backyard and no one else is around, even Grace begins to wonder. When Reverend Maxwell turns in his resignation at the church, Jean ho
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.8/1083 votesLoading...#13 - Jimmy Moves On
Season 4 Episode 20 - Aired 3/12/1997
No description available
Director: David Trainer
Writer: N/A
8.8/1081 votesLoading...#14 - Grace Under Construction
Season 5 Episode 2 - Aired 12/2/1997
Grace is in search of a job and Libby is worried that they're going to be poor again. Russell knows D.C. is looking for an assistant and suggests that he hire Grace, but D.C. says Grace talks too much and would give him attitude. He relents and offers Grace the job. She arrives at work and immediately begins making suggestions. D.C. says he'd like her to do what she was hired for and do it quietly. He's afraid she'll never be able to keep her mouth shut and thinks he'll probably have to fire her before the end of the day. But when D. C. realizes that Grace has saved the company several hundred dollars by effectively dealing with a stubborn delivery man, he says she can hang around for a while. Wade tells Grace that he and Nadine have been fighting over the phone since she's been at her mother's. Grace suggests that he put his feelings in writing, but he misunderstands and sends an angry letter to Nadine. And Grace introduces Wade to Dot, who tells him he needs a haircut.
Director: James Hampton
Writer: Matt Ember
8.8/1081 votesLoading...#15 - A River Runs Through Him
Season 5 Episode 5 - Aired 12/23/1997
Jean is upset, complaining that the new bridge will cut off Emmet's (grave) view of the river, so Grace suggests that she move the grave site. Jimmy and Quentin attempt to do that and Russell takes Dot to the gambling boat, but won't gamble.
Director: David Trainer
Writer: N/A
8.8/1081 votesLoading...#16 - Riverboat Queen
Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 12/30/1997
D.C. has a chance to bid on a hotel job for one of the biggest developers in the Midwest. Grace tells him he's going to have to make an extra effort to schmooze the guy and make him feel at ease, even though it isn't D.C.'s style. D.C. tells Grace she should join them for dinner. At dinner with Davis Walsh, the developer, things are a bit awkward, but Davis seems attracted to Grace. Davis is paged and excuses himself, and D.C. tells Grace she should play up to Davis for the sake of their getting the job. Grace immediately learns that it's actually D.C. that Davis is attracted to. When Davis again leave the table, Grace tells D.C. that he's the one who's going to have to do a little flirting. Russell has good feelings about his new relationship with Dot, who has agreed to a second date with him. At dinner with Russell, Dot tells him she likes being with him but wants things to move slowly. Russell agrees, but he's busted when a strolling hypnotist puts him under and he tells the whole r
Director: James Hampton
Writer: N/A
8.8/1082 votesLoading...#17 - Grace Under Class
Season 5 Episode 13 - Aired 2/10/1998
Grace stops by the pharmacy while Quentin's working at the soda fountain. Quentin's girlfriend Laurie is there, and Grace meets her for the first time. She also sees the expensive backpack Laurie has bought Quentin. Laurie has also bought Quentin expensive pants and a new camera. At home, Grace announces she's finally paid off her credit card and they're going to celebrate with a shrimp dinner. Quentin says to count him out since he's having dinner at the country club with Laurie and her parents. Grace voices her disapproval, and Quentin says she's just jealous that Laurie's family can buy him things that she can't. Grace meets Bev, Laurie's mother, and discovers that they agree about the presents to Quentin, and also find they have a lot in common. Maxine, a newly divorced woman, makes a pass at Russell at the pharmacy, and he's tempted, but instead he confesses to Dot that he's been thinking about someone else and feels guilty. Libby interviews D.C. for her school newspaper and voice
Director: James Hampton
Writer: N/A
8.8/1082 votesLoading...#18 - Down in the Boondocks
Season 5 Episode 14 - Aired 2/17/1998
At the pharmacy, Russell and D.C. get into a disagreement about a watch D.C. tries on that breaks before he has a chance to buy it. Grace runs into Bev, Quentin's girlfriend's mother, at the pharmacy. Bev tells her she's feeling suffocated in her marriage; being rich isn't that great. Grace has a hard time relating to Bev's problems. Grace is at home being driven crazy by Libby's trumpet practicing when Bev comes by and announces she'd like to stay with Grace for a while to get back to her middle class roots. Grace agrees to let her, though Quentin's upset to have to live under the same roof with his girlfriend's mother. It soon becomes clear that Bev is having as much trouble adapting to life at the Kellys as they are having her there. She takes two showers in the morning and depletes all the hot water and uses four towels a day. Grace thinks Bev could solve all her problems with an honest talk with her husband, but Bev disagrees. Grace takes Bev out to a bar to show her how dismal si
Director: Gary Halvorson
Writer: Janet Leahy
8.7/1088 votesLoading...#19 - This Sold House
Season 4 Episode 1 - Aired 9/18/1996
After years of doing improvements on her rental house, Grace learns that her landlord is putting it on the market. Grace and Nadine attempt to discourage potential buyers, but the house is sold. When Libby's ""pet"" squirrel bites her, Wade, Russell and Floyd round up all the neighborhood squirrels so the culprit can be identified and tested for rabies. Libby is devastated to learn that the rabies test required killing the squirrel, and she tearfully ""runs away"" to the deserted, ramshackle house across the street. Grace follows her there to console her, and after seeing the inside of the house, decides to buy it and fix it up.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.7/1086 votesLoading...#20 - Neither a Borrower or a Roofer Be
Season 4 Episode 2 - Aired 9/25/1996
When Russell's ex-wife Barbara shows up with her current boy-toy in tow and says she's dragging Russell back to court to have her alimony payments raised, Russell thinks he's doomed, but Grace says they should investigate Barbara's finances and Russell should take a stand in the name of working women everywhere. At the hearing, Grace reveals that Barbara owns a condominium complex that she hadn't reported, and the judge orders her to return much of her alimony to Russell. Jean offers Grace a loan to fix up the house and, although she claims to have an extremely busy social life with her many friends, even suggests she could move in to help with expenses. Grace bluntly turns her down on both offers, but when Floyd pressures Russell to offer Grace a $5,000 loan for a new roof, Russell hesitantly complies and Grace takes him up on it. And Grace is touched when she learns that the friends Jean claims to be spending time with are really the names of characters in a book that Jean has been r
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.7/1088 votesLoading...#21 - Quentin Returns
Season 4 Episode 3 - Aired 10/2/1996
Russell asks Grace to be his date at the dance at the Victory Country Club where he's applying for membership; though Grace can't imagine why he'd want to associate with such a bunch of snobs, she agrees to attend the dance. Jimmy brings Quentin home after spending the summer with him in Ohio, and Quentin couldn't be angrier with Jimmy. When Grace learns that the reason for Quentin's anger is that he wanted to keep living with Jimmy, she talks to Jimmy who says he wants to be more of a father to the kids, so he's moving back to Victory. Wade goes to take the test to become a garbage collector and comes home with a job as a police officer. At the dance, Russell proves he's willing to go to any lengths to be come a country club member.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.7/1087 votesLoading...#22 - Pills
Season 4 Episode 16 - Aired 2/5/1997
Russell thinks all his friends are being disloyal because they're shopping at the new chain store pharmacy that's opened in the neighborhood. Libby is so involved in planning her birthday party that it's become an obsession, while Quentin is so eager to get a driver's license that he's letting Wade, Russell and even Jean give him driving lessons. Grace's back problems have gotten so bad that even Stevie Ray at the bar notices that she's in pain. She's taking more and more pills and is falling asleep so much that at one point Libby has trouble getting her to wake up. Nadine, Wade, Russell and Jean do a sort of intervention, and Grace reacts angrily and defensively. But when she realizes that Jake, the guy at the bar who's supported her in her pill consumption, is not a shoe salesman as she thought but really a drug dealer, she's so disgusted that she calls Jimmy and tells him she has a problem. Jimmy is completely supportive and promises to be there for her as she works through her prob
Director: Alan Myerson
Writer: N/A
8.7/1082 votesLoading...#23 - Sam's Dad
Season 4 Episode 22 - Aired 4/9/1997
No description available
Director: David Trainer
Writer: Joan Binder Weiss
8.7/1084 votesLoading...#24 - Rob vs. Jimmy
Season 4 Episode 24 - Aired 5/6/1997
No description available
Director: N/A
Writer: Bryan Moore
8.7/1080 votesLoading...#25 - The Victory Tree
Season 5 Episode 8 - Aired 12/30/1997
Libby visits the bridge construction site on a field trip and discovers that the Victory Tree that holds a significant place in the town's history is to be cut down. She's very upset, so Grace suggests she start a letter writing campaign to save the tree. Libby even stages a demonstration at the site, which makes D.C. irate that construction has been halted. He thinks the whole thing is Grace's fault because she's the one who suggested the field trip. Libby's amazed that Grace doesn't share her concern for the tree; but Grace tells her the bridge is important too, both for the town and for their family. A town meeting is called to discuss the fate of the tree. When D.C. tells everyone that the bridge represents thirty- million-dollars in revenue for the town, it's certain that the Victory Tree is doomed, but Grace demands that Libby also be allowed to have her say. Also, Russell has expanded his store and has built a fancy soda fountain. Russell used the town meeting as a chance to plu
Director: David Trainer
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of Grace Under Fire
Every episode of Grace Under Fire ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Grace Under Fire!
Grace Kelly is a tough woman with kids to raise. A recently divorced recovering alcoholic, Grace struggles with the pressures of being a single mother...
Genre:Comedy
Network:ABC
Best Episodes Summary
"Redeeming Jimmy" is the best rated episode of "Grace Under Fire". It scored 9/10 based on 87 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 11/13/1996. This episode scored 0.0 points higher than the second highest rated, "A Holly, Jolly Christmas".