Moonlighting backdrop
Comedy•Drama•Mystery

The Worst Episodes of Moonlighting

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

Binge this in 2d 3h•Peaking at 8.4/10

After being duped and going bankrupt, model Maddie is convinced by David to become a partner in a detective agency. Together they solve various cases, while getting comfortable with each other.

Airs on
ABC
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons5

All12345

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
    Click to reveal
    Moonlighting Season 3 Episode 9 - The Straight Poop
    6.3/10(250 votes)

    #1 - The Straight Poop

    S3:E9

    Rona Barrett investigates the rumors about discord among the principals at the Blue Moon Detective agency.

    Director:Jay Daniel
    Writer:Glenn Gordon Caron

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  2. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 1 - A Womb With a View
    6.3/10(228 votes)

    #2 - A Womb With a View

    S5:E1

    An angel from above visits Baby Hayes as he waits to be born and gives him the low down on his parents and their relationship.

    Director:Jay Daniel
    Writers:Glenn Gordon Caron, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  3. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 10 - Tracks of My Tears
    6.5/10(196 votes)

    #3 - Tracks of My Tears

    S4:E10

    Maddie returns home by train. She is still unsure about David and has dreams and nightmares about being married to him on the trip back. On the journey, she meets a systems analyst returning to Los Angeles and they become friends.

    Director:Paul Krasny
    Writer:Judith Kahan

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  4. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 13 - Here's Living With You, Kid
    6.5/10(185 votes)

    #4 - Here's Living With You, Kid

    S4:E13

    Bert, bored on an all-night stakeout, dreams about how nice it would be to live with Agnes, but her hesitation when he actually asks her hurts his tender ego.

    Director:Artie Mandelberg
    Writers:Ron Osborn, Jeff Reno

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  5. Moonlighting Season 3 Episode 10 - Poltergeist III—Dipesto Nothing
    6.6/10(250 votes)

    #5 - Poltergeist III—Dipesto Nothing

    S3:E10

    Ms. Dipesto tries to solve a haunted house case refused by Dave and Maddie to show Bert Viola that she's just as good a detective as he is.

    Director:Christopher Hibler
    Writers:Karen Hall, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  6. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 4 - Tale in Two Cities
    6.6/10(202 votes)

    #6 - Tale in Two Cities

    S4:E4

    Maddie's parents throw a party for her in Chicago while Dave and Bert party it up in LA.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writers:Roger Director, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

    7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 BEST Episodes of Moonlighting

    READ
  7. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 8 - Los Dos DiPestos
    6.6/10(198 votes)

    #7 - Los Dos DiPestos

    S4:E8

    Ms. Dipesto's mother returns from a visit to Mexico carrying more than she realizes and becomes the target for several different parties.

    Director:Gerald Perry Finnerman
    Writer:Doug Steinberg

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  8. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 7 - I See England, I See France, I See Maddie's Netherworld
    6.6/10(181 votes)

    #8 - I See England, I See France, I See Maddie's Netherworld

    S5:E7

    Dave and Maddie keep company with a popular corpse and visit a graveyard when a man seeking a bodyguard drops dead in their office.

    Director:Paul Krasny
    Writer:Chris Ruppenthal

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  9. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 1 - A Trip to the Moon
    6.7/10(218 votes)

    #9 - A Trip to the Moon

    S4:E1

    After a month of intimacy, Maddie begins to question just where this relationship with David is headed.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writer:Glenn Gordon Caron

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  10. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 2 - Come Back Little Shiksa
    6.7/10(217 votes)

    #10 - Come Back Little Shiksa

    S4:E2

    With Maddie in Chicago, Dave feels very sympatico with a client who offers $10,000 if they can locate the woman he spent one memorable night with.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writers:Ron Osborn, Jeff Reno

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  11. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 2 - Between a Yuk and a Hard Place
    6.7/10(196 votes)

    #11 - Between a Yuk and a Hard Place

    S5:E2

    Maddie takes on several new cases in an effort to bury her sorrow, including one where a woman is convinced that her husband is still in love with someone from his past.

    Director:Dennis Dugan
    Writer:Kerry Ehrin

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  12. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 11 - In 'N Outlaws
    6.7/10(175 votes)

    #12 - In 'N Outlaws

    S5:E11

    Burt pouts and frantically tries to solve the crime when Agnes is forced to miss his family reunion because she won't vote to convict a man of murdering his partner / lover.

    Director:Christopher T. Welch
    Writer:Marc Abraham

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  13. Moonlighting Season 2 Episode 18 - Camille
    6.8/10(350 votes)

    #13 - Camille

    S2:E18

    Dave hires an unlucky con woman who accidentally became a heroine when she stopped an assassination attempt against a United States senator, but who is still pursued by a determined crooked cop.

    Director:Peter Werner
    Writer:Roger Director

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  14. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 5 - Cool Hand Dave (Part I)
    6.8/10(209 votes)

    #14 - Cool Hand Dave (Part I)

    S4:E5

    Ms. Dipesto lets Maddie's secret slip, so Dave frantically tries to fly to Chicago, but he gets waylaid and makes an unexpected side trip to prison under another man's name.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writers:Roger Director, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  15. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 6 - Cool Hand Dave (Part II)
    6.8/10(206 votes)

    #15 - Cool Hand Dave (Part II)

    S4:E6

    Ms. Dipesto lets Maddie's secret slip, so Dave frantically tries to fly to Chicago, but he gets waylaid and makes an unexpected side trip to prison under another man's name.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writer:Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  16. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 9 - Perfetc
    6.8/10(175 votes)

    #16 - Perfetc

    S5:E9

    Maddie resists, but David plunges ahead when a dying burglar asks for their help in proving he committed the perfect crime 25 years earlier.

    Director:Gerald Perry Finnerman
    Writers:Chris Ruppenthal, Jerry Stahl, James Kramer

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  17. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 3 - Take a Left at the Altar
    6.9/10(205 votes)

    #17 - Take a Left at the Altar

    S4:E3

    David recruits Bert Viola as his detecting companion in a case concerning a man who failed to show up for his wedding while Maddie continues to brood in Chicago.

    Director:Sam Weisman
    Writer:Karen Hall

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  18. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 9 - Fetal Attraction
    6.9/10(194 votes)

    #18 - Fetal Attraction

    S4:E9

    Dave searches for a suitable Lamaze partner so he can be prepared for Maddie's delivery.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writers:Roger Director, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  19. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 11 - Eek! A Spouse!
    6.9/10(194 votes)

    #19 - Eek! A Spouse!

    S4:E11

    Dave is skeptical about the existence of Walter Bishop and bugs Maddie about it as they work on case for a woman who wants to buy off her husband's mistress.

    Director:Artie Mandelberg
    Writers:Ron Osborn, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  20. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 12 - Maddie Hayes Got Married
    6.9/10(209 votes)

    #20 - Maddie Hayes Got Married

    S4:E12

    Maddie's confused and worried: Dave has insisted on throwing a bachelor party for Walter and a huge formal wedding for her.

    Director:Unknown
    Writers:Roger Director, Charles H. Eglee

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  21. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 3 - The Color of Maddie
    6.9/10(187 votes)

    #21 - The Color of Maddie

    S5:E3

    Maddie and David struggle to find a new footing for their relationship while working on a case for a woman whose husband of one week returns after a ten year absence.

    Director:Artie Mandelberg
    Writer:Barbara Hall

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  22. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 6 - Take My Wife, For Example
    6.9/10(181 votes)

    #22 - Take My Wife, For Example

    S5:E6

    A ruthless divorce lawyer comes to Blue Moon for help in reconciling a couple she helped split up, and Maddie tries to buy David a present.

    Director:Dennis Dugan
    Writer:James Kramer

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  23. Moonlighting Season 5 Episode 12 - Eine Kleine Nacht Murder
    6.9/10(179 votes)

    #23 - Eine Kleine Nacht Murder

    S5:E12

    As the sole eyewitness to a murder, Maddie is given police protection. But David suspects that her handsome young bodyguard is setting her up for death.

    Director:Jay Daniel
    Writer:Barbara Hall

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  24. Moonlighting Season 1 Episode 3 - Read the Mind... See the Movie
    7.0/10(478 votes)

    #24 - Read the Mind... See the Movie

    S1:E3

    Maddie believes that a client's design secrets are being pilfered from the astral plane by a psychic.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  25. Moonlighting Season 4 Episode 7 - Father Knows Last
    7.0/10(197 votes)

    #25 - Father Knows Last

    S4:E7

    Mr. Hayes visits Dave after his return to the agency to subtly hint that he should take some responsibility for Maddie's unborn child.

    Director:Allan Arkush
    Writer:Kerry Ehrin

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

Worst Episodes Summary

"The Straight Poop" is the worst rated episode of "Moonlighting". It scored 6.3/10 based on 250 votes. Directed by Jay Daniel and written by Glenn Gordon Caron, it aired on 1/6/1987. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "A Womb With a View".