Hill Street Blues (1981)

Crime · Drama · Mystery

A realistic glimpse into the daily lives of the officers and detectives at an urban police station.

IMDb rating: 8.2 (12,032 votes)
Episode average: 7.9 -0.3 vs IMDb
Seasons: 7
Language: EN
Type: TV series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

Browse shows by rating shape → Open in Rising Shows app → View on IMDb

Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 7 seasons indexed

Cast

Seasons

Season 1 (1981)

7.91 avg 15 episodes 8.3 → 8.3 57 min avg

U-shaped

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Hill Street Station	8.3	419
2	Presidential Fever	7.7	268
3	Politics as Usual	7.8	234
4	Can World War III Be an Attitude?	7.9	218
5	Double Jeopardy	8.1	210
6	Film at Eleven	7.8	205
7	Choice Cut	7.7	203
8	Up in Arms	7.8	206
9	Your Kind, My Kind, Humankind	7.7	194
10	Gatorbait	7.8	182
11	Life, Death, Eternity	8.0	175
12	I Never Promised You a Rose, Marvin	7.8	171
13	Fecund Hand Rose	7.8	181
14	Rites of Spring	8.1	165
15	Jungle Madness	8.3	185

Season 2 (1981)

8.06 avg 18 episodes 7.8 → 8.1 48 min avg

Season 2 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Hearts and Minds	7.8	145
2	Blood Money	7.8	138
3	The Last White Man on East Ferry Avenue	8.1	139
4	The Second Oldest Profession	8.3	149
5	Fruits of the Poisonous Tree	8.0	140
6	Cranky Streets	8.1	142
7	Chipped Beef	8.0	136
8	The World According to Freedom	8.6	161
9	Pestolozzi's Revenge	7.8	127
10	The Spy Who Came in from Delgado	8.0	132
11	Freedom's Last Stand	8.7	164
12	Of Mouse and Man	7.9	128
13	Zen and the Art of Law Enforcement	7.9	130
14	The Young, the Beautiful and the Degraded	7.8	121
15	Some Like It Hot-Wired	8.0	127
16	Personal Foul	8.0	139
17	The Shooter	8.2	123
18	Invasion of the Third World Body Snatchers	8.1	116

Season 3 (1982)

8.02 avg 22 episodes 8.5 → 8.2 49 min avg

Season 3 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Trial by Fury	8.5	144
2	Domestic Beef	8.0	119
3	Heat Rash	7.8	120
4	Rain of Terror	8.1	122
5	Officer of the Year	8.0	118
6	Stan the Man	7.9	111
7	Little Boil Blue	8.0	115
8	Requiem for a Hairbag	8.2	143
9	A Hair of the Dog	7.8	125
10	Phantom of the Hill	7.8	116
11	No Body's Perfect	7.9	117
12	Santaclaustrophobia	8.1	122
13	Gung Ho	7.8	105
14	Moon Over Uranus	7.8	121
15	Moon Over Uranus: The Sequel	7.9	118
16	Moon Over Uranus: The Final Legacy	8.2	121
17	The Belles of St. Mary's	8.1	119
18	Life in the Minors	7.9	117
19	Eugene's Comedy Empire Strikes Back	8.3	122
20	Spotlight on Rico	8.1	117
21	Buddy, Can You Spare a Heart?	8.0	109
22	A Hill of Beans	8.2	115

Season 4 (1983)

8.02 avg 22 episodes 8.1 → 7.9 47 min avg

Season 4 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Here's Adventure, Here's Romance	8.1	121
2	Ba-Bing, Ba-Bing	7.8	117
3	The Long Law of the Arm	7.9	108
4	Death by Kiki	7.8	108
5	Doris in Wonderland	8.3	123
6	Praise Dilaudid	7.9	115
7	Goodbye, Mr. Scripps	8.1	110
8	Midway to What?	8.2	116
9	Honk If You're a Goose	8.0	118
10	The Russians Are Coming	7.9	115
11	Ratman and Bobbin	8.0	113
12	Nichols from Heaven	8.2	102
13	Fuchs Me? Fuchs You!	8.0	114
14	Grace Under Pressure	8.7	151
15	The Other Side of Oneness	8.0	119
16	Parting Is Such Sweep Sorrow	7.9	114
17	The End of Logan's Run	8.2	110
18	The Count of Monty Tasco	8.0	100
19	Nutcracker Suite	8.0	112
20	Hair Apparent	7.7	109
21	Lucky Ducks	7.8	96
22	Eva's Brawn	7.9	105

Season 5 (1984)

7.74 avg 23 episodes 7.8 → 7.3 47 min avg

Season 5 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Mayo, Hold the Pickle	7.8	106
2	Watt a Way to Go	7.9	109
3	Rookie Nookie	7.5	124
4	Fowl Play	7.8	106
5	Bangladesh Slowly	7.5	111
6	Ewe and Me, Babe	7.9	109
7	Blues for Mr. Green	8.0	104
8	Fuched Again	7.7	96
9	Low Blow	7.7	104
10	The Rise and Fall of Paul the Wall	7.9	118
11	Last Chance Salon	7.9	98
12	Intestinal Fortitude	7.9	93
13	Of Human Garbage	7.6	92
14	Dr. Hoof and Mouth	7.7	107
15	Davenport in a Storm	7.5	96
16	Washington Deceased	8.1	101
17	Passage to Libya	7.8	109
18	El Capitan	7.7	108
19	The Life and Time of Dominic Florio Jr.	7.5	108
20	G.Q.	7.7	106
21	Queen for a Day	7.8	105
22	You're in Alice's	7.9	97
23	Grin and Bear It	7.3	99

Season 6 (1985)

7.86 avg 22 episodes 8.0 → 8.1 47 min avg

Season 6 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Blues in the Night	8.0	108
2	Hacked to Pieces	7.7	102
3	Seoul on Ice	8.0	94
4	In the Belly of the Bus	7.9	98
5	Somewhere Over the Rambo	7.8	93
6	Oh, You Kid	7.9	95
7	An Oy for an Oy	7.6	93
8	Fathers and Huns	7.3	92
9	What Are Friends For?	8.2	109
10	The Virgin and the Turkey	7.8	91
11	Two Easy Pieces	7.8	93
12	Say It as It Plays	7.9	89
13	Das Blues	7.8	91
14	Scales of Justice	7.9	86
15	I Want My Hill Street Blues	7.9	90
16	Remembrance of Hits Past	8.0	102
17	Larry of Arabia	8.0	95
18	Iced Coffey	7.6	94
19	Jagga the Hunk	7.9	87
20	Look Homeward, Ninja	7.9	91
21	Slum Enchanted Evening	8.0	91
22	Come and Get It	8.1	88

Season 7 (1986)

7.80 avg 22 episodes 7.5 → 8.6 47 min avg

Big finale

Season 7 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	Suitcase	7.5	101
2	A Case of Klapp	7.9	97
3	The Best Defense	7.5	89
4	Bald Ambition	7.7	88
5	I Come on My Knees	7.8	86
6	Say Uncle	7.9	88
7	Amazing Grace	8.0	92
8	Falling from Grace	7.9	87
9	Fathers and Guns	7.4	95
10	More Skinned Against Than Skinning	7.7	88
11	She's So Fein	7.8	90
12	A Wasted Weekend	7.6	101
13	City of Refuse	7.8	81
14	Der Roachenkavalier	7.6	82
15	Norman Conquest	8.0	91
16	Sorry Wrong Number	7.7	89
17	The Cookie Crumbles	7.9	85
18	Dogsbreath Afternoon	8.0	91
19	Days of Swine and Roses	7.8	87
20	The Runner Falls on His Kisser	7.7	88
21	A Pound of Flesh	7.8	88
22	It Ain't Over Till It's Over	8.6	130