Wanted: Dead or Alive — 1958-1961 · 3 seasons · 94 eps

★ 8.0

Wanted: Dead or Alive

1958-1961 3 seasons 94 episodes

★ 8.0 (3,113 votes) Top 28%

Wanted: Dead or Alive is an American Western television series starring Steve McQueen as the bounty hunter Josh Randall. It aired on CBS for three seasons from 1958–61. The black-and-white program was a spin-off of a March 1958 episode of Trackdown, a 1957–59 western series starring Robert Culp. Both series were produced by Four Star Television in association with CBS Television. The series launched McQueen into becoming the first television star to cross over into comparable status on the big screen.

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 1-30

S1 31-36

S2 1-30

S2 31-32

S3

E1

7.4

6.5

7.8

8.1

7.7

E2

7.4

7.6

7.5

7.4

7.0

E3

7.9

7.3

7.5

7.9

E4

7.2

7.4

7.8

7.7

E5

7.5

7.2

7.7

8.0

E6

7.8

7.4

8.0

7.4

E7

7.3

8.1

7.5

E8

7.7

8.0

6.7

E9

8.1

8.0

7.6

E10

7.4

7.2

7.4

E11

7.9

7.8

7.4

E12

7.5

7.6

7.8

E13

7.9

7.4

7.9

E14

8.0

7.9

7.2

E15

7.6

7.8

7.2

E16

7.8

7.8

7.6

E17

7.7

7.7

8.0

E18

7.9

7.6

7.7

E19

7.9

7.3

7.8

E20

7.7

7.6

8.3

E21

7.5

7.9

7.9

E22

7.5

7.6

7.4

E23

7.9

7.6

7.8

E24

7.2

7.4

6.9

E25

7.4

7.2

7.9

E26

7.3

7.4

7.8

E27

7.8

7.3

E28

8.0

7.8

E29

7.1

7.5

E30

7.9

7.7

Avg

7.6

7.7

7.6

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

S3E20 The Voice of Silence

#2

S1E9 8.1

The Fourth Headstone

#3

S2E7 8.1

The Empty Cell

4. S2E31 "Prison Trail" 8.1
5. S1E14 "Die by the Gun" 8.0
6. S1E28 "Railroaded" 8.0
7. S2E6 "The Hostage" 8.0
8. S2E8 "Bad Gun" 8.0
9. S2E9 "The Tyrant" 8.0
10. S3E5 "The Twain Shall Meet" 8.0

📉 Bottom Episodes

#94

S1E31 6.5

Bounty for a Bride

93. S3E8 "To the Victor" 6.7
92. S3E24 "The Long Search" 6.9
91. S3E2 "The Cure" 7.0
90. S1E29 "Double Fee" 7.1

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:

36 Standouts

12 Infamous

27 Hidden Gems

19 Forgettable

Top Standout: S1E9 The Fourth Headstone

Most Infamous: S1E31 Bounty for a Bride

Best Hidden Gem: S2E31 Prison Trail

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.