The Best Episodes of The Critic Season 1

Episode Rankings

1. #1 Fan Favorite
   

   8.1/10(303 votes)

   #1 - Pilot

   S1:E11/26/1994

   Film critic Jay Sherman falls in love with actress Valerie Fox. Jay's family and friends worry that Valerie is using him to get a good movie review. Does she truly care for him?

   Director:Rich Moore

   Writers:Al Jean, Mike Reiss

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   Director:Rich Moore

   Writers:Al Jean, Mike Reiss
2. 

   7.6/10(204 votes)

   #2 - Marty's First Date

   S1:E22/2/1994

   Marty invites his Jay to career day at his school where Marty develops a crush on a Cuban girl named Carmen. They go on a date but when Carmen decides to fly back to Cuba, Marty follows her and Jay must get his son back.

   Director:Alan Smart

   Writers:Max Pross, Tom Gammill

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   Director:Alan Smart

   Writers:Max Pross, Tom Gammill
3. 

   7.8/10(176 votes)

   #3 - Dial 'M' For Mother

   S1:E32/9/1994

   Jay is considered to be one of the most unpopular men on Earth (ranking even worse than Adolph Hitler) so Duke attempts to spruce up the show to get more people interested. When this doesn't work, Jay decides to soften his image by going on the "Geraldo Show" with his mother but Jay gets an even worse reputation when his mother embarrasses him to the point where he tells her to "shut up".

   Director:Bret Haaland

   Writers:Al Jean, Mike Reiss

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   Director:Bret Haaland

   Writers:Al Jean, Mike Reiss
4. 

   8.0/10(206 votes)

   #4 - Miserable

   S1:E42/16/1994

   Jay, noticing everyone in New York has a fiancee except him, begins to feel unloved. Things change when he goes to review the movie, Indecent Proposal II, and falls in love with the projectionist screening the movie. They arrange a date at her house where she is revealed to have an obsession with Jay to the point where she kidnaps him and ties him to a bed holding him hostage.

   Director:Dan Jeup

   Writer:Steven Levitan

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   Director:Dan Jeup

   Writer:Steven Levitan
5. 

   7.6/10(170 votes)

   #5 - A Little Deb Will Do You

   S1:E52/23/1994

   Eleanor is determined to have her daughter, Margo, attend the annual debutantes ball as it is a tradition in her family. When Margo is reluctantly forced into it, Jay decides to accompany her. Meanwhile, Jay competes in his time slot against children's idol Humphrey the Hippo.

   Director:Lauren MacMullan

   Writer:Nell Scovell

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   Director:Lauren MacMullan

   Writer:Nell Scovell
6. 

   7.7/10(160 votes)

   #6 - Eyes on the Prize

   S1:E63/2/1994

   Jay celebrates his 1000th episode but the episode is less than successful. Ratings get worse so Jay seeks image consultant, Adolph Hitmaker, for advice. The advice is unsuccessful and Jay is fired. Jay gets a new job on a show which teaches English for cab drivers but Jay is unhappy so he decides to win himself another Pulitzer Prize.

   Directors:Brian Sheesley, Dan Jeup

   Writer:Tom Brady

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   Directors:Brian Sheesley, Dan Jeup

   Writer:Tom Brady
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7. 

   7.5/10(156 votes)

   #7 - Every Doris Has Her Day

   S1:E76/1/1994

   Jay befriends his make-up lady Doris after they attend a musical adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and thinks that she may be the mother who gave him up for adoption years ago.

   Director:Alan Smart

   Writer:Steve Tompkins

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   Director:Alan Smart

   Writer:Steve Tompkins
8. 

   7.6/10(153 votes)

   #8 - Marathon Mensch

   S1:E86/8/1994

   When the studio catches fire during Jay's show, he collapses and must be rescued from the fire by Doris. When the news reports Jay's being rescued, he gets a reputation as being a wimp so he tries to prove his manliness by running in the New York marathon which tends to be more tiresome than it seems.

   Director:Susie Dietter

   Writer:Judd Apatow

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   Director:Susie Dietter

   Writer:Judd Apatow
9. 

   7.8/10(141 votes)

   #9 - L.A. Jay

   S1:E96/22/1994

   Jay is offered to write the screenplay for a new movie, Ghostchasers III, so he takes a break from his show to go to L.A. to write the new movie and experience Hollywood life but the movie producer isn't satisfied with Jay's script.

   Director:Bret Haaland

   Writer:Steven Levitan

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   Director:Bret Haaland

   Writer:Steven Levitan
10. 

    7.7/10(147 votes)

    #10 - Dr. Jay

    S1:E106/29/1994

    Jay's boss, Duke, has just made a new invention, "Phillips-o-Vision" which alters movies to make them more "like-able". Jay is disgusted with Duke's invention but when Duke is discovered to have a fatal disease, Jay must find a cure for Duke's ailment.

    Director:Dan Jeup

    Writer:Jon Vitti

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    Director:Dan Jeup

    Writer:Jon Vitti
11. 

    7.6/10(139 votes)

    #11 - A Day at the Races and a Night at the Opera

    S1:E117/6/1994

    After Marty fails to win an event at his school field day, he is feeling very low so Jay tries to improve his self-confidence by getting him interested in playing guitar and putting him in the school talent show. Meanwhile, Them Magazine names Jay "the wittiest man alive" so Duke offers to pay everyone who doesn't laugh at Jay's show $100 which doesn't go over very well.

    Director:Lauren MacMullan

    Writer:Ken Keeler

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    Director:Lauren MacMullan

    Writer:Ken Keeler
12. 

    7.3/10(137 votes)

    #12 - Uneasy Rider

    S1:E127/13/1994

    After refusing to plug chewing tobacco on his show, Jay quits his job and becomes a truck driver.

    Director:Alan Smart

    Writer:Steve Tompkins

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    Director:Alan Smart

    Writer:Steve Tompkins
13. 

    7.6/10(137 votes)

    #13 - A Pig Boy and His Dog

    S1:E137/20/1994

    "A Pig-Boy and His Dog" is the 13th episode of The Critic. This was the final episode to air on ABC.

    Director:Bret Haaland

    Writer:Patric M. Verrone

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    Director:Bret Haaland

    Writer:Patric M. Verrone