The 25 best episodes of 'The Rockford Files'

This is one of several “Rockford Files” episodes written by David Chase. You may know him better as the creator of “The Sopranos.” Rockford and other private eyes don’t always have the best relationships, but in this episode, Jim has to step up after several of his compatriots have their licenses revoked. Could he be next?

It’s an unfortunate aspect of Rockford’s job that unscrupulous sorts sometimes show up at his door, but Rockford can’t know what’s up right off the bat. In this episode, a man seems to be looking for his missing wife, and he’s willing to pony up more and more money to keep Jim on the case. However, the man doesn’t seem particularly worried about his wife’s wellbeing, just her location.

This could have merely been an episode about Rockford serving on a jury and it could be a “12 Angry Men” style story. However, “Rockford Files” then one-ups that courtroom classic. Not only does Jim avoid the pressure from his fellow jurors to convict, he then takes on the case as a private eye to try and figure out what might have happened.

If Jim is after some sort of McGuffin, you can probably figure that a few other parties are after it as well. In this case, it’s a painting that has been missing for decades. However, several people really want to find this painting, including two former Nazis. Not exactly an easy case, but how often does Rockford get an easy case?

Basically, every episode ranking we do on this site features the series finale. Those are big episodes and tend to have a lot happening in them. This may be the lowest we have put a series finale on a list so far. In truth, the end of “Rockford Files” was kind of rushed. A few episodes that were supposed to be shot were nixed because James Garner was having health issues. As such, as far as series finales go, this one is not particularly special. Eventually, they would make several made-for-TV “Rockford” movies, but none of them are terribly memorable either.

If you were wondering, yes this is a riff on “North by Northwest.” Have you seen that movie? Then you get the gist of the plot of this episode. Garner does make a pretty solid stand-in for Cary Grant, to be fair, so we can understand why they decided to give this a shot.

This is the first true episode of “The Rockford Files” after a pilot that aired several months earlier (and featured a different actor as Rocky, Jim’s father). “The Kirkoff Case” establishes a lot of the recurring tropes of the show, including the fact the mob is heavily involved in the story. Hey, we also get Abe Vigoda as a mobster only a couple of years after “The Godfather.”

First, this is just a fun title for an episode of television. Second, Rockford investigated an unusual number of cases involving the fashion industry. Well, he does work in LA, to be fair. Here, he gets a panicked phone call from an ex who is a model, only for her to be found dead soon thereafter. The police rule it a suıcide, but Rockford will not take that for an answer.

It’s a little surprising it wasn’t until the fifth season that they did an episode called “Kill the Messenger,” because it would have been a fitting title for many episodes of the show. Rockford is often used as an unsuspecting middle man by people who fear violent reprisal. This time, though, it’s Becker that is in the line of fire. Right before he’s about to take the lieutenant’s exam, he gets a case that involves having to look into the life of the deputy police chief, which could ruin his career.

This episode brings in two infrequently recurring characters from Jim’s life. One is the private eye/conman Marcus Aurelius Hayes, played with aplomb by Lou Gossett Jr. The other is ex-con Gandolph Fitch, played by Isaac Hayes. They all end up on the same case, but none of them know they are getting more than they bargained for.

Usually, when Rockford is asked to find somebody, it’s because they are missing. Not this time. A woman comes into Jim’s office (which is his mobile home) asking him to try and find her. We find out that she’s on the run from her mobster ex-boyfriend, and she figures if Jim can’t find her, she’s safe. Unfortunately, Jim does find her, and that’s just the beginning of their troubles.

In a way, this feels like a more fitting farewell to “The Rockford Files,” even if it was the third-to-last episode to air. That’s because it’s the last time we see several key characters from the show. Rocky, Angel, Chapman, and Becker all have their last appearances in “The Big Cheese,” which gives way more of a series finale vibe than the actual series finale.

Joan Van Ark, who played the woman trying to disappear in “Find Me if You Can,” returns as a different character in this season-three episode. That’s more old-time television than anything else. Back in the day sometimes they would just recast actors as different characters because they figured viewers would not notice, or at least not care. Anyway, this one involves a lot of action on the water, which is unusual for a show best remembered for its car chases.

When “Magnum P.I.” began, Thomas Magnum was living a life of privilege and ease. Reportedly, star Tom Selleck didn’t love that. He wanted Magnum to be more like Rockford, a guy who gets rung through the wringer and oftentimes doesn’t end up with an unequivocal win. That’s funny in hindsight because in this episode Selleck plays a private eye named Lance White. Rockford doesn’t like White, and it’s mostly because White is the kind of guy who always solves the case, always gets his money, and always gets the woman at the end. Basically, Selleck was getting a chance to play the original version of Magnum alongside his personal inspiration for what he wanted Magnum to be.

While this seems like the title of an episode of “Futurama,” it’s very much a “Rockford Files” episode. Dennis gets taken by some con artists, and though he is a cop he can’t really go to the police with it for his personal pride and for other reasons. Fortunately, one of his best friends is a guy who doesn’t mind working a con for the right reasons, and this is one of Jim’s most elaborate stings ever.

This is the introduction of Gossett as Marcus. We find out that Marcus had been Jim’s parole officer, and he pulls a fast one on Jim by pretending to still have that job. Jim then finds out that Marcus is now a private eye, which gives him a chance to get a measure of revenge on a guy who has mistreated him one too many times. It also helps that Gossett is really fun in a loathsome way as Marcus.

In terms of the mystery that Jim unravels, this early episode is one of the best. Anytime you are watching a case-a-week show, and “Rockford Files” was entirely that kind of procedural, the plot is vital to keeping your attention. Maybe there aren’t as many memorable characters here, but the story is gripping, and Garner is always good in the role.

EGOT winner Rita Moreno had a recurring role in “The Rockford Files” as Rita Capkovic, a “professional escort” that crosses paths with Jim a few times. She actually won an Emmy for the role, but not for this episode. Her Emmy-winning performance didn’t make our list, because we personally prefer this episode, and not merely because of the William Shakespeare/Tom Stoppard reference in the episode’s title.

As often was the case, Jim’s friend Angel, an unrepentant conman, gets him in trouble. Angel commits a crime, and poor Jim gets some of the blowback. However, while in mandated group therapy, Jim comes across a woman who has a history of paranoia, but he doesn’t think she’s actually being paranoid this time. It’s a classic trope in this kind of show, but usually a fun one.

In terms of Jim’s compatriots, the one who gives him the least strife and stress has to be Beth Davenport. She starts as Jim’s lawyer, but also eventually becomes his girlfriend. Beth is more trusting than Dennis, less frustrating than Rocky, and has a moral compass that Angels lacks. In the second episode of the series, Beth makes her debut, and a fine partnership is born.

Why would Rockford be hired to bid on a bird statue in an auction? Are things ever so simple for Jim? Of course not. That seemingly simple ask is a jumping-off point for a story of intrigue and peril, with Jim joining forces with an art expert to try and figure out what is happening.

The first season ends with a splash, as Jim leaves Los Angeles for Las Vegas. He’s supposed to deliver a check to a young woman who seems to have fallen on hard times, but if that’s the case why does she have an account with $300,000 to her name? Las Vegas is a good fit for Jim, as it has just the right mix of glitz and grime.

The third-season finale is directed by Stuart Margolin, who also played Angel. Angel features in this episode as well, and he’s up to his usual tricks. While Jim’s dad Rocky is on vacation, Rocky is inexplicably sent $44,000 in cash through the mail. Needless to say, this opens Pandora’s Box for Jim, who has to deal with a lot of forces coming down on him in the aftermath.

We go from the final episode of the third season to the first episode of the same season. Once again, a female friend of Jim comes to him for help. You know, the kind of case you do as a solid even though you know you won’t get paid. Besides, how could you take money from a friend? Lori, an airport booking agent, believes a man she does not know, a dealer of rare coins, is trying to kill her. Could this possibly be true? And if so, why? Luckily for Lori, Jim (and Dennis and Angel) are on the case.

The best episode of “The Rockford Files” is one of the episodes where Jim runs across another private eye. Although, at first he doesn’t know that. A woman approaches him to look into the alleged suıcide of a family member, only it turns out they aren’t related at all. She’s a private eye using Jim to try and solve the case for herself. Eventually, the two start working together, and no guest star ever had a better rapport with Rockford. That’s how this one ends up on top.