The Greatest American Hero backdrop
Action & Adventure•Comedy•Crime

The Worst Episodes of The Greatest American Hero

Every episode of The Greatest American Hero ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of The Greatest American Hero!

Binge this in 1d 20h•Peaking at 8.7/10

The chronicles of  teacher Ralph Hinkley's adventures after a group of aliens gives him a red suit that gives him superhuman abilities. Unfortunately, Ralph, who hates wearing the suit, immediately loses its instruction booklet, and

Airs on
ABC
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons3

All123

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
    Click to reveal
    The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 11 - The Handpainted Thai
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #1 - The Handpainted Thai

    S2:E11

    Years ago, prisoners of war were brainwashed to respond to a code phrase. Now, someone is using them to commit acts of sabotage. Bill and Ralph investigate, but Bill inadvertently falls under a hypnotic trance, leaving the heroics up to Ralph.

    Director:Bruce Kessler
    Writers:Frank Lupo, Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  2. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 13 - The Shock Will Kill You
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #2 - The Shock Will Kill You

    S2:E13

    A space shuttle is about to crash, and only Ralph can save it. He does so, but ends up supermagnetized, perhaps permanently. Worst of all, a strange creature aboard the shuttle heads towards Los Angeles, electricuting all who get in its way.

    Director:Rod Holcomb
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  3. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 14 - A Chicken in Every Plot
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #3 - A Chicken in Every Plot

    S2:E14

    Ron O'Neill, John Hancock, Thalmus Rasulala, Lincoln Kilpatrick Scenario: When an old FBI buddy invites Bill to his Caribbean retreat, Maxwell takes Ralph, Pam and the students along. Unfortunately, they find themselves involved in a voodoo plot to take over the island's government.

    Director:Rod Holcomb
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  4. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 15 - The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #4 - The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

    S2:E15

    Ralph and Bill hunt for the sea creature ""Carrie"" in the Bermuda Triangle thinking that the monster may be responsible for all of the boats that disappear there. They undercover a stolen boat ring, and never find the creature.

    Director:Sidney Hayers
    Writer:Frank Lupo

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  5. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 16 - It's All Downhill from Here
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #5 - It's All Downhill from Here

    S2:E16

    Ralph skis like a pro with the suit on, and stands in at the Olympics for a Russian skiier so the man can defect to America, and hand over top secret information that he stole.

    Director:Sidney Hayers
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  6. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 17 - Dreams
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #6 - Dreams

    S2:E17

    An act of kindness backfires when Ralph uses the suit to help a coworker with a personal project. This leads his other co-workers to take daring chances for their own shots at success. Soon, he must don the super suit not only to prevent them from ruining their lives, but also to save Bill from a vengeful, recently paroled killer.

    Director:Bruce Kessler
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

    7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 BEST Episodes of The Greatest American Hero

    READ
  7. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 18 - There's Just No Accounting...
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #7 - There's Just No Accounting...

    S2:E18

    Bill convinces the parents of a kidnap victim to pay the ransom, certain that Ralph can recover it when he saves their little girl. Ralph finds himself being audited by an overzealous IRS agent who's convinced he took the ransom money. Meanwhile, Ralph and Bill keep getting shot at in drive-by shootings, but by who?

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Frank Lupo

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  8. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 19 - The Good Samaritan
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #8 - The Good Samaritan

    S2:E19

    Tired of using the suit to fight crime, Ralph decides to branch out. He tries to intervene in a battle between an old man fighting for his home and the city taking it away, but Bill has him on the hunt for bank robbers.

    Director:Bruce Kessler
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  9. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 20 - Captain Bellybuster and the Speed Factory
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #9 - Captain Bellybuster and the Speed Factory

    S2:E20

    Bill recieves hot tips on a speed factory working out of a fast food chain, and a newspaper reporter publishes pictures of Ralph flying.

    Director:Unknown
    Writers:Frank Lupo, Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  10. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 21 - Who's Woo in America
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #10 - Who's Woo in America

    S2:E21

    Ralph's mother is re-marrying to a man who planted a much wanted micro-chip in her engagement ring.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  11. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 22 - Lilacs, Mr. Maxwell
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #11 - Lilacs, Mr. Maxwell

    S2:E22

    Bill falls in love with a female FBI agent, and wants to tell her about the suit. She turns out to be a spy, and is ordered to kill him.

    Director:Robert Culp
    Writer:Robert Culp

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  12. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 1 - Divorce Venusian Style
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #12 - Divorce Venusian Style

    S3:E1

    After a loud argument with Bill, Ralph quits the hero business and turns in his super-suit. Unknown to both men, a gang of neo-Nazis plans to murder them.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  13. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 2 - The Price is Right
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #13 - The Price is Right

    S3:E2

    While attending a high-school reunion, Ralph discovers that the wife of a famous pro football player is held hostage to ensure her husband will throw the big game.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  14. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 3 - This is the One the Suit Was Meant For
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #14 - This is the One the Suit Was Meant For

    S3:E3

    With their relationship in trouble, Ralph convinces Pam to go on a vacation without Bill or his suit. Unfortunately Bill shows up unannounced with his suit and trouble ensues.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Babs Greyhosky

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  15. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 4 - The Resurrection of Carlini
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #15 - The Resurrection of Carlini

    S3:E4

    A magician killed performing his greatest trick seemingly returns from the grave to murder his three rivals. Ralph must use his suit to out trick the would-be killer.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Frank Lupo

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  16. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 5 - The Newlywed Game
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #16 - The Newlywed Game

    S3:E5

    Ralph and Pam's wedding is almost ruined when Ralph receives special orders from the President to fly a mission over the North Pole. Bill discovers the orders were faked, and that Ralph has accidentally given the Russians valuable military secrets.

    Director:Chuck Bowman
    Writer:Babs Greyhosky

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  17. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 6 - Heaven is in Your Genes
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #17 - Heaven is in Your Genes

    S3:E6

    A former Nazi genetic engineer fakes Bill's death to use him in an experiment, but Ralph realizes his friend is still alive. He flies off to rescue Bill and the evil doctor's other victims, but a genetic horror created in an earlier experiment waits to battle him.

    Director:Christian I. Nyby II
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  18. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 7 - Live at Eleven
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #18 - Live at Eleven

    S3:E7

    An Aging TV anchorman plans to retire in grand style. He hires a band of mercenaries to sabotage a nuclear plant, hoping that his coverage of the event can launch a Presidential campaign. Ralph must stop the plant from exploding, but the saboteurs, now dying of radiation poisoning, are determined to succeed.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Babs Greyhosky

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  19. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 8 - Space Ranger
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #19 - Space Ranger

    S3:E8

    One of Ralph's students invents a radio telescope capable of decoding Russian satellite messages. The KGB tries to steal his system. When that maneuver fails, they decide to kill him before he can share his discovery with the CIA.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  20. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 9 - Thirty Seconds Over Little Tokyo
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #20 - Thirty Seconds Over Little Tokyo

    S3:E9

    A young Chinese scientist has invented a deadly particle "ray gun" weapon. A local gang kidnaps his uncle, hoping to obtain the gun. Bill's plan to save the Uncle backfires, and Ralph must test his suit against the deadly ray.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  21. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 10 - Wizards And Warlocks
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #21 - Wizards And Warlocks

    S3:E10

    King Abu Al-Fahad asks Ralph and Bill to help find his son, Prince Aha, who was kidnapped by Middle Eastern terrorists while playing a Dungeons and Dragonsesque game, Wizards and Warlocks. Their search leads them from Aha's college campus -- where they meet Aha's Keeper of the Clock, Joey Margolis -- to the game's author himself, Norman Fackler.

    Director:Bruce Kessler
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  22. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 11 - It's Only Rock and Roll
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #22 - It's Only Rock and Roll

    S3:E11

    Bill is called by the manager of a rock group that is aboard a plane threatened by a bomber, who has hidden a device set to explode if the plane descends below 1000 feet. Ralph flies into action, but matters escalate when Pam is kidnapped and a band of bikers threaten Bill's life.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Babs Greyhosky

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  23. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 12 - Desperado
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #23 - Desperado

    S3:E12

    A weekend in the country leads Ralph, Pam and Bill into a race to save a wild stallion from a cruel rancher. The man blames the horse for a crippling injury. His men are also selling horses for use as dog food.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  24. The Greatest American Hero Season 3 Episode 13 - Vanity, Says the Preacher
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #24 - Vanity, Says the Preacher

    S3:E13

    It seems that 30 years ago Bill helped some revolutionaries overthrow a corrupt regime in an unnamed Central American country, where he is now regarded as a hero. But now Bill's old revolutionary compadres have turned up, and they soon kidnap him and try to get him to help lead another revolution.

    Director:Robert Culp
    Writer:Robert Culp

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  25. The Greatest American Hero Season 2 Episode 7 - The Lost Diablo
    5.0/10(2 votes)

    #25 - The Lost Diablo

    S2:E7

    Bill has a treasure map, and takes Ralph and his class out to the desert to find the lost Diablo Gold Mine that vanished a long time ago, and are met with resistance from the local thieves.

    Director:Lawrence Doheny
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

Worst Episodes Summary

"The Handpainted Thai" is the worst rated episode of "The Greatest American Hero". It scored /10 based on 0 votes. Directed by Bruce Kessler and written by Frank Lupo, Stephen J. Cannell, it aired on 1/27/1982. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "The Shock Will Kill You".