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The Worst Episodes of The Rookies

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

The Rookies is an American crime drama series that aired on ABC from 1972 until 1976. It follows the exploits of three rookie police officers...
Genres:DramaCrime
Network:ABC

Worst Episodes Summary

"Concrete Valley, Neon Sky" is the worst rated episode of "The Rookies". It scored N/A/10 based on 0 votes. Directed by Leonard Horn and written by Larry Brody, it aired on 9/11/1972. This episode scored NaN points lower than the second lowest rated, "Dead, Like a Lost Dream".

  • Concrete Valley, Neon Sky
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    #1 - Concrete Valley, Neon Sky

    Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 9/11/1972

    In the introductory episode of the series, the presence of several street gangs contributes to a tension-filled atmosphere. The Rookies are assigned with the challenge of maintaining order amongst the rivaling street gangs, with Willie Gillis arising as the mediator between the gangs.

    Director: Leonard Horn

    Writer: Larry Brody

  • Dead, Like a Lost Dream
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    #2 - Dead, Like a Lost Dream

    Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 9/18/1972

    Terry and Willie, while doing routine spot checks, uncover a petty thief involved in a larger fur scandal. He agrees to give information against the two criminals who orchestrated the plan. However, due to a technicality, their trial is dismissed and they set their eyes on revenge. After several attempts to drag him back into their world of crime, Webster puts an end to the two felons criminal actions.

    Director: Leonard Horn

    Writer: Larry Brody

  • The Informant
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    #3 - The Informant

    Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 9/25/1972

    Willie, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, is struck by a bullet in the leg by a criminal wearing a monster mask. He is left paralyzed temporarily. Further investigation reveals a criminal's passion for horror films. As the case becomes more complex, Terry and Danko track the small-time crooks down to an auction, where they foolishly try to escape the law.

    Director: Leonard Horn

    Writer: Rance Howard

  • The Commitment
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    #4 - The Commitment

    Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 10/2/1972

    Terry and Willie become involved with Brother Toby, a former drug addict now turned evangelist. They admire his mission to help other junkies become sober. He is framed by the father of one of his followers, because of the father's disagreement with Toby's religious beliefs. He is put in the situation where it appears that he violates his parole by selling drugs. Willie and Terry have the harrowing task of proving Toby innocent.

    Director: Leonard Horn

    Writer: N/A

  • Covenant with Death
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    #5 - Covenant with Death

    Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 10/9/1972

    A man disguised as a police officer kidnaps the daughter of a wealthy family, the Sloans. The Police Squad are quick to react to the kidnapping. The kidnapper writes a ransom note demanding two hundred thousand dollars, Meanwhile, Danko, Webster and Gillis notice that Ryker appears to be distracted. A fainting spell places him in the hospital, where he confides in Jill that the kidnapped girl may in fact be his biological daughter.

    Director: Leonard Horn, Earl Bellamy

    Writer: William Blinn

  • Time is the Fire
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    #6 - Time is the Fire

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 10/16/1972

    Responding to a robbery complaint, Webster and Gillis arrive at the building and enter into a criminal-chase. Thinking he is being fired at, Gillis returns gunshots. He strikes one of the criminals, David Palmer, only to find out that the teen is unarmed and now gravely injured. Gillis is overcome with guilt. An inquest is scheduled until the teen dies on the operating table. Later that evening, Gillis receives the first of several anonymous phone calls informing him that he did not kill David Palmer; the Squad, consequently, begins further investigation.

    Director: Earl Bellamy, Jud Taylor

    Writer: William Blinn

  • The Bear That Didn't Get Up
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    #7 - The Bear That Didn't Get Up

    Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 10/23/1972

    Assigned with the task of protecting a valuable witness, Danko and the Officers must exercise caution regarding visitors to the prison. When a professional killer disguises himself as a professor seeking to interview Sol (the witness), Danko denies him the opportunity. Nevertheless, Danko does agree to help the 'professor' by accompanying him to an aircraft hanger where he claims he is meeting a friend.

    Director: Jud Taylor

    Writer: N/A

  • Dirge for Sunday
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    #8 - Dirge for Sunday

    Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 10/30/1972

    After three woman are murdered, the Police Squad takes action. In order to solve the mysterious murders and prevent future ones, the Squad welcomes two women officers to the force, Dawson and Conway. A plan is created which places Dawson and Conway in an apartment complex together, with Webster and Gillis across the hall.

    Director: Leonard Horn, Earl Bellamy

    Writer: N/A

  • The Good Die Young
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    #9 - The Good Die Young

    Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 11/13/1972

    In an effort to prove he's no 'old man', Officer Danko chases down a fleeing criminal. While he succeeds in apprehending the thief, his partners Webster and Gillis fail to catch the criminal's brother, who is also running from the law. Danko testifies in court against the criminal he caught, thereby infuriating the brother who is unassumingly observing in the courtroom. Consequently, he begins to terrorize Danko's wife, Jill, with mysterious phone calls. Not wanting to upset her husband, Jill confides in his co-officers. When Danko finds out, he is confronted with the issue of whether or not to change his testimony in court, to appease the terrorizing felon and save he and his wife.

    Director: Ralph Senensky, Earl Bellamy

    Writer: N/A

  • To Taste of Terror
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    #10 - To Taste of Terror

    Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 11/20/1972

    The rookies are given the task of protecting a controversial Army General who has recently returned to the country after serving in Vietnam. The rookies must deal with mob control, as well as actively track down a sniper who hits the General. The rookies most valuable clue is an old army rifle, used in the General's shooting, whose owner the rookies must uncover.

    Director: Ralph Senensky, Jerry Jameson

    Writer: N/A

  • A Deadly Velocity
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    #11 - A Deadly Velocity

    Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 11/27/1972

    The police squadron has a new terror on their hands: two snipers who are shooting indiscriminately at anyone who is dressed in a uniform. Terry Webster, who unfortunately loses his eyesight, is their most recent target.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: William Blinn

  • A Bloody Shade of Blue
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    #12 - A Bloody Shade of Blue

    Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 12/11/1972

    Easy Wyatt is a cop with many years behind him on the force. His ranch has recently been the target of destruction in a new plan to build a freeway. Wyatt is becoming mentally unstable, and his instability is slowly spiraling deeper and deeper. Once the best officer in the squad, Wyatt's shaky state is evident when he attempts to prevent the bulldozers from digging by holding them at gunpoint.

    Director: William Claxton

    Writer: N/A

  • A Very Special Piece of Ground
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    #13 - A Very Special Piece of Ground

    Season 1 Episode 13 - Aired 12/18/1972

    The rookies are on the hunt for a runaway girl. Their strongest clue to solving the case is a tattooed foot. However, the rookies are missing a vital piece of information: the man that claims to be the girl's father is actually the one who is out to murder her, and is the cause for her self-imposed disappearance.

    Director: Jerry Jameson

    Writer: William Blinn

  • Rabbits on the Runway
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    #14 - Rabbits on the Runway

    Season 1 Episode 14 - Aired 12/25/1972

    Gillis enters a tough situation when he is presented with a boy who is trapped in a police car which is on fire. He chooses to shoot the boy, promptly catching the internal affairs division's attention. They launch an investigation into the event and Gillis to see if he has committed a mercy killing, and to try to get closure in the case.

    Director: Gene Nelson

    Writer: N/A

  • Tarnished Idol
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    #15 - Tarnished Idol

    Season 1 Episode 15 - Aired 1/8/1973

    In their off duty time, the rookies become involved in a camp for deviant, delinquent children and adolescents. Because of their involvement, the community's view regarding them, and the police force as a whole, is at risk.

    Director: Gene Nelson, Leonard Horn

    Writer: N/A

  • Crossfire
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    #16 - Crossfire

    Season 1 Episode 16 - Aired 1/15/1973

    A junkie addicted to dope sets his eye on swiping 82 million dollars worth of cocaine which has been confiscated. He will soon find that his plan is confronted with complications: the police have tagged the drugs for disposal in the ocean.

    Director: Leonard Horn

    Writer: N/A

  • Snow Job
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    #17 - Snow Job

    Season 1 Episode 17 - Aired 1/29/1973

    An old friend of Terry Webster's unleashes an attack on a patrol car officer. Webster investigates further to try and discover the logic behind the seemingly nonsensical incident.

    Director: Gene Nelson, Ralph Senensky

    Writer: William Douglas Lansford

  • Point of Impact
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    #18 - Point of Impact

    Season 1 Episode 18 - Aired 2/5/1973

    A daring plan is crafted by a convict's wife to release a prisoner from incarceration: an innocent and helpless police officer, who is undergoing surgery, is taken hostage. The rest of the medical staff in the operating room is also put at risk, including Jill Danko, Mike Danko's wife.

    Director: Gene Nelson

    Writer: N/A

  • Three Hours to Kill
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    #19 - Three Hours to Kill

    Season 1 Episode 19 - Aired 2/12/1973

    An extremely ill young boy is desperately waiting for a suitable bone marrow donor; without a bone marrow transplant, he will die shortly. However, the biggest obstacle is that the boy's father, who has compatible marrow and is the only possible donor, is currently on the run. He is trying to evade the police as well as the syndicate.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Wheel of Fortune (a.k.a.) The Wheel of Death
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    #20 - The Wheel of Fortune (a.k.a.) The Wheel of Death

    Season 1 Episode 20 - Aired 2/19/1973

    The rookies try to disengage a robbery network by leaving the undesirable city slums and working in the suburbs. They discover that the main suspect is a dear, old friend of Lieutenant Ryker's. The man is also a special security guard of the community.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Life Robbery (a.k.a.) Tribute to a Veteran
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    #21 - Life Robbery (a.k.a.) Tribute to a Veteran

    Season 1 Episode 21 - Aired 2/26/1973

    The rookies are presented with a ""difficult"" court case. While the case is essentially an open and shut, obvious manslaughter conviction, trouble arises: the most important element in the conviction, the only witness, is discovered to suffer from mental retardation.

    Director: Harry Falk

    Writer: William Blinn

  • A Farewell Tree from Marly
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    #22 - A Farewell Tree from Marly

    Season 1 Episode 22 - Aired 3/5/1973

    The rookies may be confronted with a problem worse than the nurse who holds a grudge against all police officers: they discover that her younger brother is associating with thugs who are the organizers of a current neighborhood protection scandal.

    Director: Harry Falk, Lou Antonio

    Writer: N/A

  • Easy Money
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    #23 - Easy Money

    Season 1 Episode 23 - Aired 3/19/1973

    No description available

    Director: Lou Antonio

    Writer: N/A

  • Cauldron
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    #24 - Cauldron

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 9/10/1973

    Willie and Terry are kidnapped by a disturbed criminal who is dying. The criminal leaves the two rookies in the desert, abandoned, with no food source and little hope of being rescued. Willie, in this situation, struggles to saves Terry's life.

    Director: Harry Falk

    Writer: William Blinn

  • Margin for Error
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    #25 - Margin for Error

    Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 9/17/1973

    While performing their routine patrol, Gillis and Danko unexpectedly stumble upon a robbery that is taking place. They radio for additional support and a veteran police team arrive at the crime scene. One of the veteran policeman is killed in the midst of the robbery, and his partner places fault on Danko. The veteran policeman makes the suggestion that Danko be appointed to ride with him, a suggestion that turns out to have almost catastrophic results.

    Director: Harry Falk

    Writer: N/A