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The Best Episodes of The Rockford Files Season 5

Every episode of The Rockford Files Season 5 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Rockford Files Season 5!

Binge this in 16h 12m•Peaking at 8.9/10

Cranky but likable L.A. PI Jim Rockford pulls no punches (but takes plenty of them). An ex-con sent to the slammer for a crime he didn't commit, Rockford takes on cases others don't want, aided

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 1 - Heartaches of a Fool
    8.2/10(377 votes)

    #1 - Heartaches of a Fool

    S5:E1

    Jim finds that a country music star, corrupt union boss and Chinese triad all have one thing in common with why Rocky ended in hospital after his rig was forced off the road: sausages.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

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  2. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 2 - Rosendahl and Gilda Stern Are Dead
    7.7/10(295 votes)

    #2 - Rosendahl and Gilda Stern Are Dead

    S5:E2

    A doctor's murder has direct connections to the Mob, and Jim comes to the assistance of hooker friend Rita Capcovik (Rita Moreno) when she finds herself entangled in it.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

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  3. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 3 - The Jersey Bounce
    8.1/10(337 votes)

    #3 - The Jersey Bounce

    S5:E3

    Wrongly accused of beating a man to death, Jim discovers the best legal advice he can find is from disbarred lawyer John Cooper.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:David Chase

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  4. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 4 - White on White and Nearly Perfect
    8.9/10(480 votes)

    #4 - White on White and Nearly Perfect

    S5:E4

    Handsome, charmed PI Lance White (Tom Selleck) may speak lines that sound like they're from a 1940s B movie, but everyone is so attracted to him they hang on his every word. That is, everyone except Jim.

    Director:Stephen J. Cannell
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

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  5. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 5 - Kill the Messenger
    8.6/10(325 votes)

    #5 - Kill the Messenger

    S5:E5

    When an already overly stressed Dennis Becker is lumped with the unwelcome task of finding out who murdered Deputy Chief Towne's unfaithful wife, Jim decides to lend a hand in the investigation.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

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  6. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 6 - The Empty Frame
    7.5/10(288 votes)

    #6 - The Empty Frame

    S5:E6

    At a swank party, attended by some of LA's high society and police dept. VIPs, in honor of Angel's brother-in-law, Aaron, being made Chief of Police, a robbery takes place, while Lt. Doug Chapman is in charge of security. Desperate to get back into good graces with his superiors, Chapman swallows his pride and asks Rockford to help him.

    Director:Corey Allen
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

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  7. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 7 - Three Day Affair with a Thirty Day Escrow
    7.4/10(277 votes)

    #7 - Three Day Affair with a Thirty Day Escrow

    S5:E7

    After being strong-armed by an Arab sheik and his goons, and getting no help from the police, Jim decides to track down the two people who caused his trouble: a soft-voiced gigolo and the sheik's naive daughter.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:David Chase

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  8. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 8 - A Good Clean Bust with Sequel Rights
    8.4/10(300 votes)

    #8 - A Good Clean Bust with Sequel Rights

    S5:E8

    Jim is forced to babysit Chicago ex-cop, now celebrity, "Frank Falcone," who has a television show and toy line. Falcone isn't easy to babysit, and things get dicey when some old Chicago "friends" of Falcone show up to complicate things.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Rudolph Borchert

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  9. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 9 - Black Mirror: Part 1
    8.1/10(359 votes)

    #9 - Black Mirror: Part 1

    S5:E9

    A blind psychologist, who is being terrorized by an unknown stalker, turns to Jim for help.

    Director:Arnold Laven
    Writer:David Chase

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  10. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 10 - Black Mirror: Part 2
    7.7/10(284 votes)

    #10 - Black Mirror: Part 2

    S5:E10

    Rockford's investigation of psychologist Megan Dougherty's stalker leads him to one of her patients who may have a split personality - one of which is a paid killer.

    Director:Arnold Laven
    Writer:David Chase

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  11. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 11 - A Fast Count
    7.2/10(277 votes)

    #11 - A Fast Count

    S5:E11

    Jim puts up his dukes and steps forward to help a boxing coach who has been framed with bribery and murder.

    Director:Reza Badiyi
    Writer:Gordon T. Dawson

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  12. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 12 - Local Man Eaten by Newspaper
    7.3/10(272 votes)

    #12 - Local Man Eaten by Newspaper

    S5:E12

    Jim could use some saintly guidance when he goes undercover on a scandal rag that is getting confidential medical information on a doctor's famous, and infamous, patients.

    Director:Meta Rosenberg
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

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  13. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 14 - The Battle-Ax and the Exploding Cigar
    7.2/10(267 votes)

    #13 - The Battle-Ax and the Exploding Cigar

    S5:E14

    Ignorant that he's been driving a hot Cadillac with an illegal stash of guns in the trunk, leads Jim into rubbing shoulders with the FBI and the Company.

    Director:Ivan Dixon
    Writer:Rogers Turrentine

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  14. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 15 - Guilt
    7.8/10(262 votes)

    #14 - Guilt

    S5:E15

    Jim finds his guilty conscience being manipulated by a former fiancee, who asks him to find out who is threatening her life.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

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  15. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 16 - The Deuce
    7.7/10(285 votes)

    #15 - The Deuce

    S5:E16

    Having Jim doing jury duty leads to a mistrial and his being hired to investigate the case of pedestrian hit by a drunk-driver that brought the accused to court.

    Director:Bernard McEveety
    Writer:Gordon T. Dawson

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  16. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 17 - The Man Who Saw the Alligators
    7.5/10(304 votes)

    #16 - The Man Who Saw the Alligators

    S5:E17

    If having the IRS wanting to do an audit isn't bad enough, a gangster Jim helped put in prison is out on parole and wants a pound of his flesh in revenge.

    Director:Corey Allen
    Writer:David Chase

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  17. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 18 - The Return of the Black Shadow
    8.3/10(290 votes)

    #17 - The Return of the Black Shadow

    S5:E18

    A gang of bikers beat up Jim and assault John Cooper's sister, leading Coop to seek vengeance by returning to a darker period in his past when he was in a biker gang.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Stephen J. Cannell

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  18. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 19 - A Material Difference
    8.7/10(390 votes)

    #18 - A Material Difference

    S5:E19

    Jim finds himself being dragged into a complicated situation when Angel's con job as a hit man for hire goes awry.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Rogers Turrentine

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  19. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 20 - Never Send a Boy King to Do a Man's Job: Part 1
    7.7/10(263 votes)

    #19 - Never Send a Boy King to Do a Man's Job: Part 1

    S5:E20

    Richie's father has been swindled by a man named Coombs. Jim assembles together a disparate group of con-artists in a complicated scheme using Coombs' anxieties, and even the "Curse" of King Tut, to save Mr. Brockelman from ruin.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Juanita Bartlett

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  20. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 21 - Never Send a Boy King to Do a Man's Job: Part 2
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #20 - Never Send a Boy King to Do a Man's Job: Part 2

    S5:E21

    The con continues and proves successful when one of the fellow con-artists appears to make of with the check.

    Director:William Wiard
    Writer:Rudolph Borchert

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  21. The Rockford Files Season 5 Episode 22 - A Different Drummer
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #21 - A Different Drummer

    S5:E22

    While in hospital after a car accident, Jim stumbles across a black market for vital organs.

    Director:Reza Badiyi
    Writer:Rudolph Borchert

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Season 5 Ratings Summary

"Heartaches of a Fool" is the best rated episode of "The Rockford Files" season 5. It scored 8.2/10 based on 377 votes. Directed by William Wiard and written by Stephen J. Cannell, it aired on 9/22/1978. This episode is rated 0.5 points higher than the second-best, "Rosendahl and Gilda Stern Are Dead".