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The Best Episodes of The Andy Griffith Show Season 3

Every episode of The Andy Griffith Show Season 3 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Andy Griffith Show Season 3!

The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised on CBS between October 3, 1960 and April 1, 1968. Andy Griffith portrays the widowed sheriff of the fictional small community of Mayberry, North Carolina. His life is complicated by an inept, but well-meaning deputy, Barney Fife, a spinster aunt and housekeeper, Aunt Bee, and a precocious young son, Opie. Local ne'er-do-wells, bumbling pals, and temperamental girlfriends further complicate his life. Andy Griffith stated in a Today Show interview, with respect to the time period of the show: "Well, though we never said it, and though it was shot in the '60s, it had a feeling of the '30s. It was when we were doing it, of a time gone by." The series never placed lower than seventh in the Nielsen ratings and ended its final season at number one. It has been ranked by TV Guide as the 9th-best show in American television history. Though neither Griffith nor the show won awards during its eight-season run, series co-stars Knotts and Bavier accumulated a combined total of six Emmy Awards. The show, a semi-spin-off from an episode of The Danny Thomas Show titled "Danny Meets Andy Griffith", spawned its own spin-off series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., a sequel series, Mayberry R.F.D., and a reunion telemovie, Return to Mayberry. The show's enduring popularity has generated a good deal of show-related merchandise. Reruns currently air on TV Land, and the complete series is available on DVD. All eight seasons are also now available by streaming video services such as Netflix.

Genres:ComedyFamily
Network:CBS

Season 3 Ratings Summary

The best episode of "The Andy Griffith Show" season 3 is "Mr. McBeevee", rated 8.7/10 from 543 user votes. It was directed by Bob Sweeney and written by Harvey Bullock, R. Allen Saffian. "Mr. McBeevee" aired on 10/1/1962 and is rated 1.0 point(s) higher than the second highest rated, "Andy's Rich Girlfriend".

  • Mr. McBeevee
    8.7/10 543 votes

    #1 - Mr. McBeevee

    Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 10/1/1962

    Opie tells Andy about his new friend Mr. McBeevee, who Andy believes to be a figment of Opie's imagination. But when Andy begins to suspect Opie is using his new-found friend as an excuse to lie, he decides to set the record straight and prove Mr. McBeevee doesn't really exist. Or does he?

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock, R. Allen Saffian

  • Andy's Rich Girlfriend
    7.7/10 372 votes

    #2 - Andy's Rich Girlfriend

    Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 10/8/1962

    Andy discovers Peggy comes from a wealthy family and starts to feel like he is unable to provide the kind of sophisticated company she is used to. He decides to stop seeing her and abruptly breaks it off, but without getting Peggy's Side of the story.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • Andy and the New Mayor
    7.6/10 340 votes

    #3 - Andy and the New Mayor

    Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 10/15/1962

    There is a new mayor in town who is immediately put off by Andy's laid back management style. When Andy lets a prisoner out of jail for a few days so he can harvest crops, he finds his job is suddenly on the line, especially when the prisoner doesn't return.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock, R. Allen Saffian

  • Andy and Opie, Bachelors
    7.8/10 400 votes

    #4 - Andy and Opie, Bachelors

    Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 10/22/1962

    Given Andy's habit of burning meals, Aunt Bee asks Peggy to look in on Andy and Opie while she's away visiting her aunt. When word gets around town, however, Andy is told Peggy's cooking may be her way of buttering him up to the idea of marriage.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • The Cow Thief
    8.5/10 405 votes

    #5 - The Cow Thief

    Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 10/29/1962

    Two cows suddenly go missing in Mayberry and Mayor Stoner has decided to bring in a professional investigator to solve the crime. The investigator's conclusion goes along with what the rest of the town already suspects, but Andy has his own idea of what happened, an idea just crazy enough to be true.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock, R. Allen Saffian

  • Barney Mends a Broken Heart
    8.3/10 387 votes

    #6 - Barney Mends a Broken Heart

    Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 11/5/1962

    When Andy and Peggy must break a date, Barney mistakenly sees this as the end of their relationship. He decides to play matchmaker to help Andy mend his broken heart, with disastrous results.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Aaron Ruben

  • Lawman Barney
    8.5/10 372 votes

    #7 - Lawman Barney

    Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 11/12/1962

    Barney loses his self-confidence when two unlawful bullies laugh off his attempt to run them out of town. Andy tells them Barney is actually a trigger-happy lawman out for vengeance, but the bullies quickly see through the ruse and Barney now must find the courage within himself to stand up to them.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Aaron Ruben

  • The Mayberry Band
    8.1/10 393 votes

    #8 - The Mayberry Band

    Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 11/19/1962

    When Mayor Stoner decides not to cover the expense of sending the Mayberry Marching Band to their annual competition in Raleigh because he thinks they're terrible, Andy helps out by having a few of his friends from "Freddy Fleet And His Band With A Beat" step in.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • Floyd the Gay Deceiver
    7.6/10 386 votes

    #9 - Floyd the Gay Deceiver

    Season 3 Episode 9 - Aired 11/26/1962

    Floyd comes to Andy for help after telling his pen pal Ms. Grayson that he is wealthy and finding out she is coming for a visit. Andy helps Floyd keep up the appearance of wealth while she's in town and in the process learns just how deceiving appearances can be.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Aaron Ruben

  • Opie's Rival
    7.5/10 345 votes

    #10 - Opie's Rival

    Season 3 Episode 10 - Aired 12/3/1962

    When Andy starts seeing Peggy MacMillan, Opie feels like she's become more important to Andy than he is. He decides to sabotage Andy's dates and break them up and nearly succeeds, until Andy finds out.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Sid Morse

  • Convicts-at-Large
    9.3/10 709 votes

    #11 - Convicts-at-Large

    Season 3 Episode 11 - Aired 12/10/1962

    Barney and Floyd stumble upon a cabin in the woods where three dangerous female convicts are hiding out. They are taken prisoner and it's Andy to the rescue when he manages to capture two of them. But it's up to Barney to get the third using all the charm he can muster, along with his best Rudolph Valentino impression.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • The Bed Jacket
    7.8/10 376 votes

    #12 - The Bed Jacket

    Season 3 Episode 12 - Aired 12/17/1962

    With Aunt Bee's birthday fast approaching, she begins dropping hints about the pale blue bed jacket she's been eyeing in the store window. When Andy doesn't catch on and buys the jacket for Mayor Stoner's wife instead, she is crushed. Now the only way Andy can get the jacket back is to trade it for his most prized possession: Ol' Eagle-Eyed Annie, his beloved fishing rod.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock, R. Allen Saffian

  • The Bank Job
    8.9/10 447 votes

    #13 - The Bank Job

    Season 3 Episode 13 - Aired 12/24/1962

    Barney becomes convinced the Mayberry bank is ripe for a robbery and tries to prove his point by staging a fake one. When he discovers a weak spot in the security system, he unknowing relays this information to a couple of actual robbers.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • One-Punch Opie
    7.9/10 365 votes

    #14 - One-Punch Opie

    Season 3 Episode 14 - Aired 12/31/1962

    A new boy named Quincy moves into town and starts getting Opie and his friends into trouble. When Opie is dared to break a streetlight, he refuses and is teased mercilessly. Andy tries to help by telling the boy's parents, but Opie sees that it's up to him to stand up to Quincy once and for all.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock

  • Barney and the Governor
    8.5/10 389 votes

    #15 - Barney and the Governor

    Season 3 Episode 15 - Aired 1/7/1963

    Barney believes his job is on the line when he accidentally gives the governor's car a parking ticket. When he learns the governor is coming to town to see him about it, his nervousness causes him to drink cup after cup of water from the water cooler, the very same cooler Otis has spiked with alcohol.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Bill Freedman, Henry Sharp

  • Man in a Hurry
    9.0/10 610 votes

    #16 - Man in a Hurry

    Season 3 Episode 16 - Aired 1/14/1963

    Malcolm Tucker, a business tycoon from Charlotte, has the unfortunate luck of having his car break down in Mayberry on a Sunday. Now he's willing to do just about anything to be on his way, including stealing Gomer's truck. Andy invites the man over for Sunday dinner to try and teach him the importance of relaxation before he does something he'll really regret.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • High Noon in Mayberry
    8.2/10 387 votes

    #17 - High Noon in Mayberry

    Season 3 Episode 17 - Aired 1/21/1963

    Andy gets a letter from a criminal he had wounded years before and learns the man is coming to Mayberry to see him. Barney becomes convinced the man wants revenge and enlists Gomer and Otis to secretly protect Andy, which ends up wreaking more havoc than any criminal ever could.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • The Loaded Goat
    8.2/10 448 votes

    #18 - The Loaded Goat

    Season 3 Episode 18 - Aired 1/28/1963

    Cy Hudgins has a pet goat with a taste for dynamite and Andy and Barney are forced to put it in a padded cell until the danger "passes." But when Otis unknowingly lets their new prisoner out, it's up to Barney and his harmonica to safely lead the goat out of town.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock

  • Class Reunion
    7.6/10 425 votes

    #19 - Class Reunion

    Season 3 Episode 19 - Aired 2/4/1963

    Andy and Barney reminisce about old flames and decide to throw a class reunion. When the big night finally comes, they both find they have a lot to learn about how much things have -- and have not -- changed.

    Director: Charles Irving

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • Rafe Hollister Sings
    8.4/10 492 votes

    #20 - Rafe Hollister Sings

    Season 3 Episode 20 - Aired 2/11/1963

    Rafe Hollister stops by the auditions for the Ladies League Musicale and shocks everyone with his beautiful voice. But Mayor Stoner and Mrs. Jeffries are aghast at his shabby appearance so Andy and Barney decide to give him a makeover, despite Rafe's objections.

    Director: Charles Irving

    Writer: Harvey Bullock

  • Opie and the Spoiled Kid
    8.2/10 439 votes

    #21 - Opie and the Spoiled Kid

    Season 3 Episode 21 - Aired 2/18/1963

    Opie's new friend Arnold is a spoiled brat used to getting his own way. He convinces Opie to try and get a raise in his allowance by throwing a temper tantrum, showing Andy that he must teach Arnold's father the importance of discipline before Opie picks up any more of Arnold's spoiled habits.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

  • The Great Filling Station Robbery
    8.0/10 357 votes

    #22 - The Great Filling Station Robbery

    Season 3 Episode 22 - Aired 2/25/1963

    Andy suggests to Gomer that he hire a troubled young man named Jimmy to help out at Wally's gas station. But everyone soon suspects Jimmy of being a thief after valuable items start disappearing from the station. Andy believes Jimmy is innocent but must prove it, even when all the evidence is against him.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: Harvey Bullock

  • Andy Discovers America
    8.4/10 394 votes

    #23 - Andy Discovers America

    Season 3 Episode 23 - Aired 3/4/1963

    Opie complains to Andy about how his new history teacher Ms. Crump is a mean old woman who likes to assign extra homework. Andy tells Opie it's not important if he doesn't know every answer, which leaves Opie believing history isn't important. Now Andy has to show Opie, and his class, how much history matters before Ms. Crump decides to quit.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: John Whedon

  • Aunt Bee's Medicine Man
    8.1/10 403 votes

    #24 - Aunt Bee's Medicine Man

    Season 3 Episode 24 - Aired 3/11/1963

    Aunt Bee becomes depressed about her age and falls for the charms of Colonel Harvey, a traveling medicine man selling a magic elixir to restore her youth. By the time Andy and Barney discover the secret behind the elixir, they find he has gotten the entire Ladies Aid Church Committee under his spell!

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: John Whedon

  • The Darlings Are Coming
    8.2/10 462 votes

    #25 - The Darlings Are Coming

    Season 3 Episode 25 - Aired 3/18/1963

    A family of musicians who live in the mountains descend on Mayberry to await the arrival of their daughter Charlene's fiancee. When Andy tries to help by putting them up in the courthouse, he gets more than he bargained for when Charlene suddenly sets her sights on him.

    Director: Bob Sweeney

    Writer: James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum