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The Worst Episodes of The Rifleman

Every episode of The Rifleman ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of The Rifleman!

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The Rifleman is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son, Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the town of North Fork,

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
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    The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 25 - Which Way'd They Go?
    6.3/10(188 votes)

    #1 - Which Way'd They Go?

    S5:E25

    The notoriously lazy Jackman brothers discover their mortgage has been foreclosed.

    Director:Arthur H. Nadel
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 12 - The Baby Sitter
    7.3/10(194 votes)

    #2 - The Baby Sitter

    S2:E12

    A dance hall singer asks Lucas to care for her daughter in an effort to hide the baby from her self-righteous, bigoted father.

    Director:Sam Peckinpah
    Writer:Sam Peckinpah

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  3. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 26 - Assault
    7.3/10(146 votes)

    #3 - Assault

    S3:E26

    A salesman can't talk his way out of an assault charge.

    Director:Ida Lupino
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 13 - Conflict
    7.3/10(136 votes)

    #4 - Conflict

    S5:E13

    Lucas's self-confidence begins to slip away when he misses an easy shot.

    Director:Arthur H. Nadel
    Writer:Ed Adamson

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  5. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 15 - Day of the Hunter
    7.4/10(187 votes)

    #5 - Day of the Hunter

    S2:E15

    A famous buffalo hunter tries to goad Lucas into a shooting match.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. The Rifleman Season 4 Episode 18 - Sporting Chance
    7.4/10(131 votes)

    #6 - Sporting Chance

    S4:E18

    An Englishman arrives with a custom-made rifle—and a plan to kill Lucas.

    Director:Gene Nelson
    Writer:Unknown

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  7. The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 17 - The Sixteenth Cousin
    7.4/10(161 votes)

    #7 - The Sixteenth Cousin

    S5:E17

    A Japanese nobleman seeks revenge when his servant is insulted.

    Director:Arthur H. Nadel
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 12 - The Illustrator
    7.5/10(143 votes)

    #8 - The Illustrator

    S3:E12

    Lucas encourages a drunken artist charged with murder to use his talents to identify the true killer.

    Director:Don Medford
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. The Rifleman Season 4 Episode 30 - Milly's Brother
    7.5/10(126 votes)

    #9 - Milly's Brother

    S4:E30

    A veteran returns with tales of heroism and the fate of Milly's brother in the Civil War.

    Director:Richard Donner
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. The Rifleman Season 4 Episode 32 - The Executioner
    7.5/10(136 votes)

    #10 - The Executioner

    S4:E32

    No description available

    Director:Lawrence Dobkin
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 6 - I Take This Woman
    7.5/10(144 votes)

    #11 - I Take This Woman

    S5:E6

    Lou looks for a way out when the man her dying father promised her to arrives.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 7 - The Martinet
    7.6/10(149 votes)

    #12 - The Martinet

    S3:E7

    A former army captain comes to North Fork to kill the man who shot down his son in a gunfight - Lucas McCain.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 15 - Suspicion
    7.6/10(133 votes)

    #13 - Suspicion

    S5:E15

    A peddler is implicated in a series of murders.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. The Rifleman Season 5 Episode 23 - The Guest
    7.6/10(143 votes)

    #14 - The Guest

    S5:E23

    New arrival Mario Arsatti becomes very friendly with Lucas, but this turns out to be merely pleasure before business: he's been hired to kill Lucas.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Ed Adamson

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  15. The Rifleman Season 1 Episode 19 - Shivaree
    7.7/10(214 votes)

    #15 - Shivaree

    S1:E19

    Aaron Pelser's wagon train came across a pair of young boys on a buck board heading west and invited them to join the train. When he found out that one of the boys was actually a girl and the two claimed to be headed to Yuma to get married, Pelser and his crowd force them to be married in North Fork. The wagon train folks want to throw a shivaree, which may have been innocent enough except for two reasons. The first reason being that the couple does not count it as their wedding because they want to be wed by the groom's father in Yuma. The second reason is that Chet Packard keeps pushing things too far, beyond the spirit of a friendly shivaree.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. The Rifleman Season 1 Episode 38 - Outlaw's Inheritance
    7.7/10(181 votes)

    #16 - Outlaw's Inheritance

    S1:E38

    Lucas is the town's representative to the railroad commission until an infamous train robber dies and leaves his ill-gotten wealth to Lucas. Lucas must clear his name and stop the reckless ambition of his replacement.

    Director:Don Taylor
    Writer:George W. George

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  17. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 6 - Eddie's Daughter
    7.7/10(166 votes)

    #17 - Eddie's Daughter

    S2:E6

    After the daughter of Lucas's friend the hotel clerk arrives in North Fork, two strangers threaten her life.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 11 - The Legacy
    7.7/10(155 votes)

    #18 - The Legacy

    S2:E11

    Lucas tries to do a good deed for the old town drunk but it backfires when the drunk's son believes he inherited Lucas' ranch.

    Director:Bernard L. Kowalski
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 20 - The Horse Traders
    7.7/10(145 votes)

    #19 - The Horse Traders

    S2:E20

    When a horse dealer transporting a prize stallion stops in North Fork, two saddle tramps try to use trickery to obtain it.

    Director:William F. Claxton
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. The Rifleman Season 2 Episode 24 - A Time for Singing
    7.7/10(153 votes)

    #20 - A Time for Singing

    S2:E24

    Mark discovers that the new preacher and his wife are impostors planning a robbery.

    Director:John Rich
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 4 - The Pitchman
    7.7/10(158 votes)

    #21 - The Pitchman

    S3:E4

    When Mark finds gold on their property, a fast-talking salesman who tried to sell Lucas a new lightning rod offers instead to buy the ranch's mineral rights.

    Director:John Rich
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 10 - The Schoolmaster
    7.7/10(158 votes)

    #22 - The Schoolmaster

    S3:E10

    Mark and his friend become trapped in an old mine.

    Director:Arthur Hiller
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. The Rifleman Season 3 Episode 23 - The Lost Treasure of Canyon Town
    7.7/10(148 votes)

    #23 - The Lost Treasure of Canyon Town

    S3:E23

    In a ghost town, Lucas, Mark and Micah tangle with the Newman family and learn the secret of the town's 20-year-old mystery of a lost gold mine.

    Director:Don Taylor
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. The Rifleman Season 4 Episode 7 - Knight Errant
    7.7/10(148 votes)

    #24 - Knight Errant

    S4:E7

    Lucas tries to dissuade a latter-day knight from rushing into battle.

    Director:Gene Nelson
    Writer:Ed Adamson

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  25. The Rifleman Season 4 Episode 10 - The Shattered Idol
    7.7/10(169 votes)

    #25 - The Shattered Idol

    S4:E10

    Mark Twain visits Southfork, and quickly alienates the townspeople.

    Director:Joseph H. Lewis
    Writer:Unknown

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Worst Episodes Summary

"Which Way'd They Go?" is the worst rated episode of "The Rifleman". It scored 6.3/10 based on 188 votes. Directed by Arthur H. Nadel and written by Unknown, it aired on 4/1/1963. This episode scored 1.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "The Baby Sitter".