Matlock — 1986-1995 · 9 seasons · 181 eps

★ 7.1

Matlock

1986-1995 9 seasons 181 episodes

★ 7.1 (10,615 votes) Bottom 33%

Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of criminal defense attorney Ben Matlock. The show, produced by The Fred Silverman Company, Dean Hargrove Productions, Viacom Productions and Paramount Television originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC; and from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC. The show's format is similar to that of CBS's Perry Mason, with Matlock identifying the perpetrators and then confronting them in dramatic courtroom scenes. One difference, however, was that whereas Mason usually exculpated his clients at a pretrial hearing, Matlock usually secured an acquittal at trial, from the jury.

Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of criminal defense attorney Ben Matlock. The show, produced by The Fred Silverman Company, Dean Hargrove Productions, Viacom Productions and Paramount Television originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC; and from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC. The show's format is similar to that of CBS's Perry Mason, with Matlock identifying the perpetrators and then confronting them in dramatic courtroom scenes. One difference, however, was that whereas Mason usually exculpated his clients at a pretrial hearing, Matlock usually secured an acquittal at trial, from the jury.

Episode Ratings Grid

Every episode at a glance, color-coded by rating. Rows are episode numbers within each season, columns are seasons.

Size: M

S1

S2

S3

S4

S5

S6

S7

S8

S9

E1

7.4

7.5

7.7

7.8

7.4

7.6

8.0

7.4

7.9

E2

8.1

7.8

7.4

7.8

7.7

8.0

7.8

7.6

7.6

E3

7.1

7.0

7.6

7.4

7.2

8.0

7.7

7.5

8.3

E4

7.3

7.5

7.1

7.5

7.6

7.6

6.9

7.9

7.6

E5

7.5

7.5

7.0

7.5

7.5

7.6

7.3

8.1

7.5

E6

7.5

7.8

7.8

7.1

7.5

8.0

7.8

7.8

7.8

E7

7.3

7.3

6.6

7.1

7.4

—

7.9

8.1

8.3

E8

8.0

7.1

7.2

7.5

7.6

7.9

7.7

7.9

7.4

E9

7.3

7.6

7.3

7.5

7.1

7.3

7.6

7.8

8.1

E10

7.0

6.8

7.7

7.4

7.4

7.9

7.2

6.1

7.5

E11

7.5

7.6

7.7

7.0

7.7

7.9

6.7

7.6

7.9

E12

7.2

7.5

7.4

7.9

7.7

7.5

7.0

7.5

7.4

E13

7.4

7.5

7.2

7.3

7.5

7.7

8.0

8.2

8.3

E14

7.6

7.3

7.4

7.6

7.3

7.9

7.4

7.4

8.2

E15

7.3

7.3

7.5

7.4

6.6

7.9

7.6

8.2

E16

7.3

7.6

7.7

7.8

7.5

7.6

6.3

E17

7.8

7.7

7.4

7.6

7.6

7.6

7.8

E18

7.5

7.1

7.4

6.4

7.8

7.7

7.4

E19

7.7

7.4

7.8

7.2

7.9

7.8

6.9

E20

7.0

7.7

7.5

7.4

7.7

7.7

7.7

E21

7.7

7.4

7.3

—

7.8

E22

7.4

7.7

7.6

7.8

E23

7.9

7.3

7.7

E24

7.5

7.5

Avg

7.5

7.4

7.4

7.4

7.5

7.8

7.5

7.5

7.9

Great

Good

Mid

Episode Power Rankings

The best and worst episodes at a glance. Use this to find must-watch episodes or ones you might want to skip.

🏆 Top Episodes

#1 8.3

S9E3 The Dare

#2

S9E7 8.3

The Confession

#3

S9E13 8.3

The Assault

4. S8E13 "The Kidnapping: Part 2" 8.2
5. S9E14 "The Heist" 8.2
6. S9E15 "The Scam" 8.2
7. S1E2 "The Judge" 8.1
8. S8E5 "The View" 8.1
9. S8E7 "The Capital Offense" 8.1
10. S9E9 "The Getaway" 8.1

📉 Bottom Episodes

#181

S8E10 6.1

Matlock's Bad, Bad, Bad Dream

180. S8E16 "The Murder Game" 6.3
179. S4E18 "The Kidnapper" 6.4
178. S5E15 "The Man of the Year" 6.6
177. S3E7 "The Vendetta" 6.6

The Quality Arc

Each point is an episode, plotted chronologically. The colored bands mark season boundaries. Look for upward or downward trends to see if quality improved or declined over time.

Trend

Episode Engagement

Vote count shows how many people cared enough to rate. High votes + high rating = beloved classic. High votes + low rating = notorious stinker. Low votes + high rating = hidden gem.

Rating threshold:

59 Standouts

33 Infamous

56 Hidden Gems

33 Forgettable

Top Standout: S1E2 The Judge

Most Infamous: S1E1 Diary of a Perfect Murder

Best Hidden Gem: S9E7 The Confession

Episodes plotted by rating vs. vote count. The vertical line marks the rating threshold (7.5). More votes = more engagement. Toggle above to compare against global or show-specific median.

Series Trajectory

A simplified view: one point per season. This smooths out episode-to-episode noise to show the overall arc of the series.

Trend

Season Momentum

Did each season build momentum or fizzle out? Green arrows mean the finale rated higher than the premiere. Red means the opposite. Longer arrows = bigger swings.

Season Consistency

Some seasons are reliable bangers. Others are hit-or-miss. Each dot is an episode. Tightly clustered dots mean consistent quality. Scattered dots mean a mixed bag.

Each dot is an episode. Clustered dots = consistent quality. Scattered dots = variable season. Hover for episode details.