The essential episodes of Cagney & Lacey
Watch these 15 in order and you've got Cagney & Lacey — each pick states its reason.
- 01
You Call This Plain Clothes? (aka Bang, Bang, You're Dead)
The detectives again go undercover as prostitutes
- 02
The first appearance of Dick O'Neill as Charlie Cagney. The case occurs in Chinatown, where Charlie just happened to work, so he helps out. This is the episode where Lacey shoots and kills a fleeing perp.
- 03
A uniform cop is shot in a restaurant. The assumption is that the cop was shot because he knew too much, but it was actually mistaken identity. The B story is that the precinct is going to field a softball team. Of course, Cagney wants to play and drags Lacey along. Isbecki is the captain and tries to keep them out but eventually has to allow them in when he learns that the team must include both men and women
- 04
A group of baddies is preying on wealthy patrons of beauty shops. They get into these shops by pretending to be policemen. C&L get to head up the task force, and Cagney befriends one of the victims
- 05
A construction worker falls to his death, and everyone thinks it's an accident, including Isbecki, who lets the ladies take over the case. You see, Harvey knew the fellow, and he thinks there's something funny. It turns out that the victim was on the take, and Harvey and Mary Beth go out to the construction site to inspect first hand.
- 06
A group of unrelated stranglings has the NYPD very worried. Turns out all the women work for telephone erotic hotlines. There's a very funny scene where C&L go to investigate and the hotline manager thinks they're looking for work.
- 07
The 14th precinct has an informer in its midst. The undercover agents working on a truck hijacking are getting exposed. IAD ""asks"" C&L to investigate, since they're ""outsiders."" When Cagney refuses, the IAD lieutenant smirkily tells her that Charlie was on the take when he was a cop. All they turn up is that LaGuardia has a girlfriend and Samuels is seeing aa psychiatrist because of the effect of his divorce.
- 08
A farmer from Vermont comes in looking for his wife, who has disappeared in New York City. Seems that she has ""married"" several men, and is collecting money from all of them.
- 09
C&L and another detective are working on a case involving some illegal weapons. The catch is that the third detective has just had his picture turn up in a gay magazine. Is he gay? Will he be suspended before he helps C&L catch the bad guy?
- 10
A gang of thieves have an intriguing modus operandi. They wait until a family is at a funeral and then break in and steal everything. One of the victims is a crippled girl.
- 11
The Grandest Jewel Thief of Them All
Albert Grand is the most famous jewel thief in the world. He has even written a book about his career. Can the elegant dog lover who stops a petty crime really be the great thief?
- 12
A wealthy Westchester housewife is found dead in the city. Since Cagney comes from a well- off family in Westchester, we get to learn a little bit about her background. The ""B"" story is that Samuels' son David gets arrested for car theft, and relations between the two are very strained
- 13
A teenager is thrown into a very tough jail by mistake for am minor offense and gets raped. The angry parents file a lawsuit for $7 million dollars against the NYPD
- 14
In a sequel to #62,Cagney and a back-on-duty-again Lacey go after Mansfield again. Cagney's informant is a street-smart Hispanic youth - is he tough enough to handle Mansfield?
- 15
A bank is missing some money - not much, only $100,000. The baddy offers a plea bargain - she knows who stole $100 million. Now that's worth sending Cagney and Lacey to upstate New York to hunt down the bank president. But when they find him, they discover that the real bank president is gone, and that this is an FBI agent. Our heroines narrowly escape a shootout and get offered a promotion to Major Case Squad as the series ends
Shows like Cagney & Lacey
The closest matches on shared genres, ranked by match strength and popularity.
- 01Drama·Crime·ThrillerThe essential episodes of True Detective2014–present
Touch darkness and darkness touches you back. - 02Drama·Crime·ComedyThe essential episodes of Fargo2014·FX
Fargo is a seasonal anthology crime drama with some dark comical elements, inspired by the film Fargo written by the Coen brothers. - 03Drama·CrimeThe essential episodes of Chicago P.D.2014–present·NBC
District 21 of the Chicago Police Department is made up of two distinctly different groups. - 04Drama·Crime·ActionThe essential episodes of NCIS2003–presentSame network — CBS·
- 05Drama·Crime·ThrillerThe essential episodes of The Blacklist2013–2023·NBCThe Blacklist is a crime drama involving a former government agent who turned into a high-profile criminal turning himself in to the FBI offering to help catch criminals.
- 06Drama·Crime·ThrillerThe essential episodes of Criminal Minds2005–present·Paramount+Criminal Minds revolves around an elite team of FBI profilers who analyze the country's most twisted criminal minds, anticipating their next moves before they strike again.
