7.9/101,354 votes#1 - Pilot
Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 9/22/2009
Alicia returns to work as a defense attorney after her husband's corruption scandal and incarceration. She is assigned her first case - a retrial of a woman accused of murdering her ex-husband. Her firm successfully deadlocked the first jury, and they hope that sticking to that strategy will work again, but Alicia realizes that this trial will be more of a fight than anyone expected.
Director: Charles McDougall
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King
7.7/101,051 votes#2 - Stripped
Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 9/29/2009
After the State's Attorney refuses to pursue criminal charges, Alicia becomes second chair on a civil suit involving the rape of a prostitute at a bachelor party who may have been hired and abused by her own husband.
Director: Charles McDougall
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King
7.6/10957 votes#3 - Home
Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 10/6/2009
The son of Alicia's former friends is charged with felony murder, and Alicia decides to defend him, despite the fact that they ostracized her ever since the scandal.
Director: Scott Ellis
Writer: Dee Johnson
7.6/10910 votes#4 - Fixed
Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 10/13/2009
Alicia uncovers evidence that possibly proves that the jury is tampering with her firm's class action law suit that she has against a pharmaceutical company, while the legal team of her husband continues to mount the case for his appeal.
Director: Daniel Minahan
Writer: Todd Ellis Kessler
7.6/10872 votes#5 - Crash
Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 10/20/2009
Alicia and Will have only 72 hours to find the smoking gun that proves the train company, and not the three engineers, is responsible for the crash, thus securing the widows their pensions the company is holding back. Meanwhile, Jackie and Alicia clash over taking the children to visit their father in prison.
Director: Gloria Muzio
Writer: Ted Humphrey
8.0/10883 votes#6 - Conjugal
Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 11/3/2009
As Alicia works with Will on the appeal of a death row inmate, she agrees to a conjugal visit with Peter in order to get information from him since her client was convicted under Peter's regime as state's attorney.
Director: Rod Holcomb
Writer: Angela Amato Velez
7.7/10851 votes#7 - Unorthodox
Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 11/10/2009
Alicia, representing a daughter of one of the partner in the firm, finds herself very attracted to her co-counsel, mostly because of his unorthodox approach of defending their client.
Director: John Polson
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King
7.8/10813 votes#8 - Unprepared
Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 11/17/2009
While Alicia is preparing in a case defending a scientist accused of arson, she is suddenly asked to testify on Peter's behalf. Damages Peter Riegert guest stars as the judge in Peter's case and CBS' The Early Show star Russ Mitchell guests as himself and interviews Peter.
Director: Jim McKay
Writer: Corinne Brinkerhoff
7.9/10852 votes#9 - Threesome
Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 11/24/2009
Alicia is asked to represent a partner in the firm on a DUI charge. Her attention is split when she is suddenly forced to face the Other Woman.
Director: James Whitmore Jr.
Writer: Ted Humphrey
8.0/10811 votes#10 - Lifeguard
Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 12/15/2009
When a judge overturns a simple plea deal that Alicia arranged, she looks into his motivation, and Diane is made an offer she can not refuse.
Director: Paris Barclay
Writer: Tom Smuts
8.0/10852 votes#11 - Infamy
Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 1/5/2010
Alicia learns more about Peter's fall from office when she represents Glenn Child's wife, Carla Browning, in her divorce appeal. Meanwhile, Will and Emily, an opposing counsel, get cozy during a death suit against Duke Roscoe, a caustic TV commentator.
Director: Nelson McCormick
Writer: Todd Ellis Kessler
7.6/10798 votes#12 - Painkiller
Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 1/12/2010
Alicia and the kids have to deal with some really bad news; Peter learns some new information that makes him furious. Meanwhile, Alicia has to represent the doctor who prescribed medication to a high school quarterback, who appeared to die from a painkiller overdose.
Director: Steve Shill
Writer: Corinne Brinkerhoff
7.7/10790 votes#13 - Bad
Season 1 Episode 13 - Aired 2/2/2010
Tensions are high as Peter's appeal begins while Alicia has to defend a wealthy client who doesn't seem that innocent, even after he's found not guilty of murdering his wife. Meanwhile, Diane takes precautions when a prisoner she put in jail is to be released from prison.
Director: Alex Zakrzewski
Writer: Ted Humphrey
8.1/10823 votes#14 - Hi
Season 1 Episode 14 - Aired 2/9/2010
Alicia defends a man accused of killing his child's babysitter. Meanwhile, Peter's appeal seems to be going well, and Alicia prepares for the idea of him returning to her life.
Director: John Gallagher
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King, Barry M. Schkolnick
7.8/10794 votes#15 - Bang
Season 1 Episode 15 - Aired 3/2/2010
While Peter gets acclimated to life at home and works on a comeback strategy with his political team, including Eli Gold, Alicia and Diane wrestle with spousal privilege laws in a murder case that hinges on their ability to get a wife to testify against her husband.
Director: Rod Holcomb
Writer: Courtney Kemp Agboh
8.0/10795 votes#16 - Fleas
Season 1 Episode 16 - Aired 3/9/2010
As Peter strategizes on how to handle his retrial and the next steps in his public rehabilitation, Alicia and Will defend an attorney arrested for murder.
Director: Rosemary Rodriguez
Writer: Amanda Segel
7.9/10817 votes#17 - Heart
Season 1 Episode 17 - Aired 3/16/2010
In an emergency courtroom set up in a hospital, Alicia and Will battle Patti Nyholm and an insurance company that refuses to pay for life-saving in-utero surgery. Meanwhile, Alicia gives Peter a proper welcome home.
Director: Félix Enríquez Alcalá
Writer: Corinne Brinkerhoff
8.4/10925 votes#18 - Doubt
Season 1 Episode 18 - Aired 4/6/2010
Alicia and Will defend a college student accused of killing her sorority sister while under the influence of a sleep aid. At the same time, they also deal with their growing sexual tension and Diane and Kurt McVeigh continue their flirtation.
Director: Félix Enríquez Alcalá
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King, Barry M. Schkolnick
7.7/10727 votes#19 - Boom
Season 1 Episode 19 - Aired 4/27/2010
When Alicia goes head-to-head in the courtroom with former boss Jonas Stern, she debates whether or not use personal information to her advantage. Meanwhile, Peter uses religion to work on his appeal.
Director: Lesli Linka Glatter
Writer: Ted Humphrey
7.6/10735 votes#20 - Mock
Season 1 Episode 20 - Aired 5/4/2010
The police are quickly at the door when Peter's electronic monitor sounds after he chases Alicia out of the apartment. As a result, Grace and Zach scramble to figure out a way to keep him from being arrested.
Director: Rod Holcomb
Writer: Todd Ellis Kessler
8.0/10754 votes#21 - Unplugged
Season 1 Episode 21 - Aired 5/11/2010
While the firm takes on a case involving a divorce settlement for the wife of a musician who is in a coma, Alicia reluctantly considers a bold move to make sure that Lockhart and Gardner choose her over Cary.
Director: Christopher Misiano
Writer: Karen Hall
8.0/10752 votes#22 - Hybristophilia
Season 1 Episode 22 - Aired 5/18/2010
Eli Gold works on getting Peter's charges dropped, and Alicia defends Colin Sweeney, a client and accused wife killer, who claims self defense after she finds him handcuffed to a dead woman.
Director: Fred Toye
Writer: Frank Pierson
8.1/10780 votes#23 - Running
Season 1 Episode 23 - Aired 5/25/2010
At Eli Gold's urging, Alicia must decide if she'll stand by her man during Peter's new political campaign, or if she'll pursue a relationship with Will instead.
Director: James Whitmore Jr.
Writer: Michelle King, Robert King, Corinne Brinkerhoff
The Best Episodes of The Good Wife Season 1
Every episode of The Good Wife Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Good Wife Season 1!
Alicia Florrick boldly assumes full responsibility for her family and re-enters the workforce after her husband's very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him...
Genre:Drama
Network:CBS
Season 1 Ratings Summary
"Pilot" is the best rated episode of "The Good Wife" season 1. It scored 7.9/10 based on 1354 votes. Directed by Charles McDougall and written by Michelle King, Robert King, it aired on 9/22/2009. This episode is rated 0.2 points higher than the second-best, "Stripped".