The Worst Episodes of Oz
Every episode of Oz ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Oz!
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 enemies.
Lowest Rated Episodes Summary
The worst episode of "Oz" is "God's Chillin'", rated 8/10 from 2535 user votes. It was directed by Jean de Segonzac and written by Tom Fontana. "God's Chillin'" aired on 7/21/1997 and is rated 0.0 point(s) lower than the second lowest rated, "Great Men".
8.0/10 2,535 votes#1 - God's Chillin'
Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 7/21/1997
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.
Director: Jean de Segonzac
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.0/10 2,161 votes#2 - Great Men
Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 7/27/1998
Alvarez knows who raped Glynn's daughter, but refuses to tell the warden. Wangler is making progress at school, but his cellmate, Adebisi, isn't a fan of higher education. When Augustus Hill's judge is convicted of accepting bribes, Said takes up Hill's case to get him a second trial. Diagnosed with cancer, O'Reily goes to a hospital to get a prison-paid lumpectomy, which is cheaper than a mastectomy. The Aryans are losing credibility in Oz, so Schillinger arranges to have a tough named Vogel killed with Beecher being the next on the hit list. Finally, the prison is filled with excitement as a woman, Shirley Bellinger, arrives on death row to be executed.
Director: Bob Balaban
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.0/10 2,171 votes#3 - Losing Your Appeal
Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 8/3/1998
Augustus Hill's court appeal is denied, despite the efforts of Said, who has better luck getting Poet's poems published. Meanwhile, O'Reily survives his lumpectomy, and now focuses his attention on Dr. Nathan. Trying to cut a deal after killing an Aryan inmate, Richie Hanlon is forced instead to admit to a murder he didn't commit. Schibetta offers Alvarez a piece of his drug biz in exchange for killing Adebisi. Beecher is forced to meet with the judge who sentenced him; it appears she has a guilty conscience. Beecher's new roommate, Chris Keller, seems to hate Aryans as much as Beecher but appearances can be misleading.
Director: Keith Samples
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.0/10 1,902 votes#4 - Laws of Gravity
Season 5 Episode 2 - Aired 1/13/2002
Alvarez and Guerra come up with a new way to settle their beef -- Guerra will stab Alvarez in the shoulder without killing him. Morales questions Guerra's decision to do this while he attempts to grieve for his sister. Rebadow gets more bad news about his grandson which prompts him to search for alternatives. Montgomery asks for more hush money from Ryan so Ryan devises a plan to have Montgomery eliminated. Officer Brass returns to Oz to get facts on who attacked him. Ellie O'Connor arrives as the Governor's liaison to Oz only past memories of her failed marriage to McManus return. Schibetta returns and Schillinger shanks Pancamo after learning that he had Hank killed. McManus makes an offer to Said and White to hopefully curb White's erratic and sometimes bizarre behavior. Ryan's mom, Suzanne Fitzgerald comes to Oz to instruct inmates in performance arts.
Director: Rob Morrow
Writer: Sean Whitesell, Tom Fontana
8.0/10 1,933 votes#5 - Dead Man Talking
Season 6 Episode 1 - Aired 1/5/2003
At the bi-annual review of solitary prisoners, the board decides to release Alvarez and Schillinger back into gen pop. Rebadow, still mourning the loss of his grandson, gets transferred to work in the library, where he is thrilled to meet the new librarian, Stella Coffo. Meanwhile, Timmy Kirk, now sentenced to Death Row, pleads to Father Mukada to help exorcize him; Ryan O'Reily seeks to prove his brother Cyril had no premeditated plans of murder; and Winthrop makes Schillinger an offer he can't refuse.
Director: Adam Bernstein
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.0/10 1,903 votes#6 - A Failure to Communicate
Season 6 Episode 4 - Aired 1/26/2003
Glynn receives some good and bad news on the toxic-poisoning case. Meanwhile, Rebadow's relationship with Stella hits a snag; Keller and Beecher work out a mutually beneficial arrangement; Poet and Redding nearly come to blows; Hoyt is transferred from Death Row; and Robson finally gets some redemption.
Director: David Von Ancken
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,683 votes#7 - Visits, Conjugal and Otherwise
Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 7/14/1997
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
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,254 votes#8 - The Tip
Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 7/11/1998
In the aftermath of the riot that killed six inmates and two officers, Oz is locked down, and Emerald City prisoners are sent either to solitary or "gen pop." A special committee is appointed to investigate the riot and Governor Devlin's handling of it. The committee's leader is law-school Dean Alvah Case, who roams Oz questioning inmates and officers alike. Inside a gen-pop prisoner named James Robson demands that Beecher perform oral sex on him, and gets a painful tip in return. Case determines that the death of inmate Scott Ross during the riot was no accident-but is the truth better left untold?
Director: Nick Gomez
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,194 votes#9 - Ancient Tribes
Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 7/20/1998
Ten months after the riot, Em City re-opens. A recovered McManus creates a council of group representatives to keep order, and initiates GED classes to help inmates get high-school equivalency diplomas. Having been told by O'Reily that Adebisi was responsible for his father's death, Peter Schibetta takes over the kitchen by cashing in a favor Glynn owes the family. As Schillinger's parole hearing nears, Beecher taunts his nemesis mercilessly in an attempt to ruin Schillinger's quest for freedom. Glynn's duaghter is raped by a group of Latinos, and the warden takes out his frustations on Alvarez. O'Reily learns he may have breast cancer.
Director: Uli Edel
Writer: Sean Jablonski, Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,155 votes#10 - Family Bizness
Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 8/10/1998
With their enmity at a boiling point, Adebisi poisons Schibetta -- but not fatally. Now that his brother has turned himself in for murder, Glynn no longer owes Schibetta any favors. Sister Peter Marie figures out that Giles witnessed who killed her husband. Poet, now a published author, gets his parole, but Governor Devlin still takes away funds from McManus's high-school equivalency program. When Beecher learns his wife committed suicide, Keller offers comfort, but his advances are rebuked. Meanwhile O'Reily is in love with Dr. Nathan, and gets his brother Cyril to have her husband killed.
Director: Kathy Bates
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,154 votes#11 - Strange Bedfellows
Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 8/17/1998
Schilinger enlists Said to get him out of jail, but Said backs out. McManus decides not to incriminate Wittlesey in Ross's death. A recovered Schibetta edures more pain after being raped by Adebisi. Meanwhile, Alvarez is bumped out of the Latino power seat by Raoul Hernandez, a.k.a. El Cid. New inmate Jiggy Walker claims he was Gov. Devlin's personal crack dealer. The two go head-to-head in the media before Walker is discredited and sent to genpop. Reimondo finds out that Giles murdered the man who killed her husband and Dr. Nathan confronts O'Reily about her husband's death. Schillinger's plan to destroy Beecher approaches fruition when Beecher falls in love with Keller.
Director: Alan Taylor
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 2,135 votes#12 - Animal Farm
Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 8/24/1998
Cyril O'Reily, Ryan's brother comes to Oz and is immediately violated by Schillinger. Ryan tries to get him away from OZ, but Cyril instead lands in the hole. El Cid tells Alvarez the only way he can "stay in the game" is to "pluck out" the eyes of a prison guard, Rivera. Bellinger and Adebisi exchanging love letters without meeting. Nappa, the new Wiseguys leader, wants Adebisi to be punished for raping his godson Peter Schibetta. Robert Sippel, a Catholic priest who spent ten years in OZ for molesting a 14-year-old boy is released and but Poet returns.
Director: Mary Harron
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.1/10 1,950 votes#13 - Even the Score
Season 4 Episode 15 - Aired 2/18/2001
McManus finds he is unable to turn his back on White. Beecher tells the parents of the young girl he killed that he's up for parole. Howell tries to blackmail O'Reily so she can get to Cyril, but he throws her for a loop--and then O'Reily is thrown himself by a family secret.
Director: J. Miller Tobin
Writer: Sunil Nayar, Sean Whitesell, Tom Fontana
8.1/10 1,900 votes#14 - Dream a Little Dream of Me
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 1/20/2002
After recovering from his shank wound, Alvarez gains a follower. Busmalis starts a letter writing campaign to get "Miss Sally's Schoolhouse" back on the air. Rebadow finds a way to raise the money for his grandson's treatment. Jia Kenmin returns to Oz after recovering from the coma induced by a blow from Cyril. After Schillinger's released, Redding and Morales form a pact to eliminate the Italians from the drug trade. Schibetta makes a move on the Aryans only it backfires with terrifying results. Kirk continues planning ways to kill Cloutier. After carrying out messages he "received" from Cloutier, Hoyt confesses to all his past murders. Cloutier makes a move that mystifies everyone.
Director: Adam Bernstein
Writer: Sean Whitesell, Tom Fontana
8.1/10 1,919 votes#15 - 4 Giveness
Season 6 Episode 5 - Aired 2/2/2003
Everyone has a different opinion of new inmate Idzik; Alvarez receives shocking news; Redding's attempts at reform continue; Murphy makes a confession to Glynn; Morales'(David Zayas) medical suspicions are confirmed; and Beecher's devotion to Keller leads him into a perilous position.
Director: N/A
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 2,371 votes#16 - Straight Life
Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 8/4/1997
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.
Director: Leslie Libman, Larry Williams
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 2,075 votes#17 - Napoleon's Boney Parts
Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 7/21/1999
The hack ain't comin' back, and everyone's trying to figure out who did the deed; especially Schillinger and Said. McManus hires a new officer Sean Murphy who's also a friend of Tim's. Despite Glynn's reservations, an inmate boxing program is is created and inmates get psyched for the competition. While closely shaving Hill, Coyle gives the gruesome details of his crime, which include the death of an infant and the discovery of indisputable evidence to his claim. Disgusted, Hill decides Coyle should pay and gives the info to Warden Glynn. Adebisi gets approved to work in the AIDS ward. While Howell and Wittelsey converse about McManus, he appears with bad news for Wittelsey. Meanwhile, Schillinger's son Andy has been arrested and is due to arrive to Oz any day. Keller, stir-crazy from being in protective custody, goes back to Em City with painful results. Alvarez begins deteriorating now that his medication has been eliminated.
Director: Matt Dillon
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 2,038 votes#18 - Cruel and Unusual Punishments
Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 8/18/1999
When Cudney threatens to spill the truth about Cyril's "wins", Ryan solicits Kosygin for help. He then schemes to have Kosygin and Stanislofsky eliminated and finally, tips off the hacks to get Hernandez and Ricardo busted. Busmalis gets a welcome visitor. Sister Pete's questions keep rising after sessions with Keller. Nappa continues working on his new project. Beecher asks Said for lessons in the Islamic faith.
Director: Terry Kinney
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 2,020 votes#19 - Obituaries
Season 4 Episode 2 - Aired 7/19/2000
Mobay has his first meeting with Adebisi. Glynn fires McManus after Tim makes a foolish outburst during the slain CO's memorial service. Sister Pete still wrestles with ending her service as a nun. Beecher's dad pays a visit and gives an update. Schillinger is visited by his other son, Hank. Said's decision to help Cramer secure a new trial is met with strong opposition by the Muslims. Poet grieves and ponders his next move now that Wangler and Pierce are dead. O'Reily's plan to get the cell phone backfires and results in another inmate's death. Bellinger returns to Oz to await her impending execution.
Director: Kenneth Fink
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 2,034 votes#20 - Conversions
Season 4 Episode 10 - Aired 1/14/2001
New inmate Burr Redding arrives and stands ready to assume control of the drug business. Dr. Nathan returns. Tidd approaches Schillinger with a plan to kill Said. Several Asian refugees are housed in Em City while the government decides their fate and they unwillingly get caught in a power struggle between Morales and Redding. Glynn hires an energetic new assistant who piques everyone's interest.
Director: Adam Bernstein
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 1,950 votes#21 - Blizzard of '01
Season 4 Episode 13 - Aired 2/4/2001
O'Reily is in for a surprise when a visitor reveals the truth about his past, while Cyril faces trouble for his difficult behavior. Meanwhile, Morales and Redding lay out plans that could lead to all-out war in Em City.
Director: Leslie Libman
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 1,958 votes#22 - Orpheus Descending
Season 4 Episode 14 - Aired 2/11/2001
McManus calls a superficial truce between Redding and Morales. Basil finally sees his wife, but Hughes ends up spoiling their happiness. Meanwhile, Cyril's latest outburst proves to be the last straw.
Director: Gloria Muzio
Writer: Sunil Nayar, Sean Whitesell, Tom Fontana
8.2/10 1,901 votes#23 - Good Intentions
Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 2/17/2002
Redding discovers that Busmalis lied about DeSantos. Furious, he confronts Morales and the confrontation gets the two of them thrown in the hole. Cyril gets convicted of the murder and Ryan tells the attorney not to appeal. Meanwhile Sister Pete, Father Meehan and Suzanne Fitzgerald meet to devise another plan in Cyril's defense. Rebadow fumes over not getting the lottery money. Mc Manus' offer to search Oz's databases reveals an inmate with the same blood history as Rebadow's grandson. Rebadow meets the man only to be rejected by him. The rumor of Robson's replacement gums coming from a black patient prompts Schillinger to consult with Aryan Nation leader. The result? Robson gets banned from the Aryans.
Director: Adam Bernstein
Writer: Tom Fontana
8.2/10 1,921 votes#24 - See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Smell No Evil
Season 6 Episode 2 - Aired 1/12/2003
The unexpected arrival of Mayor Wilson Loewen at Oz spurs an ironic turn involving Schillinger and Beecher. Meanwhile, Dr. Nathan discovers why solitary inmates are getting sick; a new business plan within Oz inspires Redding; Schibetta looks to puts a curse on the O'Reily family; and some Death Row prisoners get a bang out of a magazine photo shoot.
Director: Marc Klasfeld
Writer: Sunil Nayar, Tom Fontana
8.3/10 2,482 votes#25 - Capital P
Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 7/28/1997
Governor Devlin has reinstated capital punishment in the state, and the first Oz prisoner scheduled to die is Keane.
Director: Darnell Martin
Writer: Tom Fontana