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The Best Episodes of Oz Season 1

Every episode of Oz Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Oz Season 1!

Binge this in 7h 34mPeaking at 9.2/10

The daily lives of prisoners in Emerald City, an experimental unit of the Oswald Maximum Security Prison where ingroups - Muslims, Latinos, Italians, Aryans - stick close to their mutual friends and terrorize their mutual

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Oz Season 1 Episode 1 - The Routine
    8.5/10(3583 votes)

    #1 - The Routine

    S1:E1

    In the "Emerald City" experimental unit of Oswald State Penitentiary, we meet some of the diverse inmates who live within a pecking order of Homeboys, Latinos, Muslims, Irish, Aryans, and Wiseguys. No clear-cut leader emerges—with the possible exception of Kareem Saïd, a Muslim author who preaches non-violence and abstinence. Saïd's arrival doesn't prevent a short-fused Mafia inmate named Dino Ortolani from ticking off just about everybody—a habit that ends up burning him.

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  2. Oz Season 1 Episode 2 - Visits, Conjugal and Otherwise
    8.1/10(2961 votes)

    #2 - Visits, Conjugal and Otherwise

    S1:E2

    With Schibetta and the prison brass in a race to uncover Ortolani's killer (for very different reasons), we see how inmates react to visits from both their wives and, in one case, family members who are also in prison.

    Director:Nick Gomez

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  3. Oz Season 1 Episode 3 - God's Chillin'
    8.0/10(2786 votes)

    #3 - God's Chillin'

    S1:E3

    As friction grows in the wake of increasing deaths, Schibetta, Saïd, and Keane are brought together by Glynn, who tells them to keep their respective groups quiet or else he'll lock the prison down. The tension increases following a visit from Governor Devlin, who was responsible for the ban on smoking and conjugal visits.

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  4. Oz Season 1 Episode 4 - Capital P
    8.3/10(2720 votes)

    #4 - Capital P

    S1:E4

    Governor Devlin has reinstated capital punishment in the state, and the first Oz prisoner scheduled to die is Keane.

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  5. Oz Season 1 Episode 5 - Straight Life
    8.2/10(2587 votes)

    #5 - Straight Life

    S1:E5

    The infiltration of drugs into Oz has reached unprecedented levels, and the undercover efforts of McManus and Glynn to find out who's smuggling them in backfires in a deadly way. Despite a lockdown in Emerald City, the drugs continue to trickle in—and the blame shifts from prisoners to corrupt officials.

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  6. Oz Season 1 Episode 6 - To Your Health
    8.4/10(2554 votes)

    #6 - To Your Health

    S1:E6

    Three generations of Alvarezes—all prisoners at Oz—are united when the partiarch, Ricardo, is found face down in his cell, suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Meanwhile, Beecher, who as Schillinger's "prag" has been forced to wear women's clothes, flips out after taking PCP.

    Director:Alan Taylor

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  8. Oz Season 1 Episode 7 - Plan B
    8.8/10(2687 votes)

    #7 - Plan B

    S1:E7

    A recovered Saïd ostracizes Mershah for turning his back on him when he was dying—and orders the rest of the Muslims to do the same. Impressed by Saïd's power, Groves makes a deadly decision in his honor. Meanwhile, Beecher, transformed by prison life, finally gets revenge on Schillinger.

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  9. Oz Season 1 Episode 8 - A Game of Checkers
    9.2/10(3275 votes)

    #8 - A Game of Checkers

    S1:E8

    Beecher is released from the hole and Schillinger is left eyeless and weak. A riot breaks out after two white punks get into a fight over checkers. Frustration, sexuality, hate, revenge, racism all rear their ugly heads, causing the violence to escalate.

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Season 1 Ratings Summary

"The Routine" is the best rated episode of "Oz" season 1. It scored 8.5/10 based on 3583 votes. Directed by Darnell Martin and written by Tom Fontana, it aired on 7/12/1997. This episode is rated 0.4 points higher than the second-best, "Visits, Conjugal and Otherwise".