The Equalizer

The Equalizer

If the rules are against you he'll change them. If the odds are against you he'll even them.

Robert McCall is a former agent of a secret government agency who is now running his own private crime fighting operation where he fashions himself as "The Equalizer." It is a service for victims of the system who have exhausted all possible means of seeking justice and have nowhere to go. McCall promises to even out the odds for them.

Action & AdventureCrimeDrama

Seasons

Pilot: The Equalizer

1. Pilot: The Equalizer

Air Date: 1985-09-18

A former government agent offers his services to people facing problems too big for them to handle, such as a woman being stalked by a psychopath and a man who learns of a blackmail scheme involving government officials.

China Rain

2. China Rain

Air Date: 1985-09-25

McCall comes to the aid of a housekeeper when kidnappers grab her son by mistake.

The Defector

3. The Defector

Air Date: 1985-10-02

McCall helps a double agent defect and a young boy stand up to bullies.

The Lock Box

4. The Lock Box

Air Date: 1985-10-09

McCall helps a man whose daughter has been abducted by a pimp who services covert government operations.

Lady Cop

5. Lady Cop

Air Date: 1985-10-16

A crooked cop is willing to murder to ensure that his new partner won't blow the whistle on his operations.

The Confirmation Day

6. The Confirmation Day

Air Date: 1985-10-23

McCall helps a former showgirl convinced someone is stalking her and a boy whose father helped steal antiques now wanted by two separate parties.

The Children's Song

7. The Children's Song

Air Date: 1985-10-30

Father and son protect a girl from would-be rapists intent on killing the only witness to a murder.

The Distant Fire

8. The Distant Fire

Air Date: 1985-11-06

A hit man wants help to prevent another killer from murdering a woman both McCall and the hitman once loved.

Mama's Boy

9. Mama's Boy

Air Date: 1985-11-13

A career woman wants McCall's aid in ending her son's fascination with a charismatic drug dealer.

Bump and Run

10. Bump and Run

Air Date: 1985-11-20

Muggers seek revenge on a student who injured one of them while escaping, and a vigilante killer pins McCall's ad to his victims.

Desperately

11. Desperately

Air Date: 1985-12-04

A lonely, neglected wife gets more than she wanted when she considers a fling and ends up witnessing a murder.

Reign of Terror

12. Reign of Terror

Air Date: 1985-12-11

The new doctor at a local clinic refuses to give gang members drugs as `rent' for using their turf.

Back Home

13. Back Home

Air Date: 1985-12-18

A banker is harassing tenants of a potentially valuable property and planning to murder his wife.

Out of the Past

14. Out of the Past

Air Date: 1986-01-15

An ex-con is harassing the man whose testimony put him away-the man now married to McCall's former wife.

Dead Drop

15. Dead Drop

Air Date: 1986-01-22

McCall assembles some old friends to protect a man marked for murder for no apparent reason.

Wash Up

16. Wash Up

Air Date: 1986-01-29

A window washer witnesses the murder of his pro-union partner by their anti-union boss, who has his own witnesses to back his self-defense claim.

Torn

17. Torn

Air Date: 1986-02-05

McCall tries to divide his time between defending a woman from her abusive husband and settling with an old enemy.

Unnatural Causes

18. Unnatural Causes

Air Date: 1986-02-12

McCall's on the trail of a serial killer, leaving him little time for an actress fallen into the wrong crowd.

Breakpoint

19. Breakpoint

Air Date: 1986-02-19

McCall is among those taken hostage by terrorists seeking a Middle Eastern philanthropist.

No Conscience

20. No Conscience

Air Date: 1986-03-05

A womanizer is abducted and threatened with death if he doesn't give his captors what they want-but he can't figure out what.

Unpunished Crimes

21. Unpunished Crimes

Air Date: 1986-04-01

McCall is hired by an inventor whose designs were stolen by a huge corporation headed by a ruthless executive.

Pretenders

22. Pretenders

Air Date: 1986-04-08

An aspiring reporter, desperate for a scoop that will get her notice and a promotion, becomes convinced that something big is happening right in the next apartment.

Prelude

1. Prelude

Air Date: 1986-10-08

Men working for a dictator McCall helped put into power kidnap an American journalist.

Nocturne

2. Nocturne

Air Date: 1986-10-15

A blind music critic asks for help when she hears the voice of the man who raped her years before.

A Community of Civilized Men

3. A Community of Civilized Men

Air Date: 1986-10-22

McCall comes to the aid of a woman who's being squeezed to pay off her late husband's debts.

Joyride

4. Joyride

Air Date: 1986-10-29

Two boys drive off in a hearse; not knowing it contains a coffin full of crack.

Shades of Darkness

5. Shades of Darkness

Air Date: 1986-11-05

McCall helps a National Guardsman who faces a murder charge and threats from the real killer.

Nightscape

6. Nightscape

Air Date: 1986-11-12

A rape victim asks McCall to stop her husband from tracking down her attackers.

Counterfire

7. Counterfire

Air Date: 1986-11-19

The odds are against McCall when he's framed for the murder of a blind man.

The Line

8. The Line

Air Date: 1986-11-26

The mother of a youth killed while being harassed by an overzealous citizen's patrol appeals to McCall for help.

Tip On a Sure Thing

9. Tip On a Sure Thing

Air Date: 1986-12-03

A bookie that doesn't like the odds on a race kidnaps the son of the jockey and demands the father throw the race.

The Cup

10. The Cup

Air Date: 1986-12-10

Father Kostmayer hears the confession of a Polish agitator moments before he's gunned down.

Heartstrings

11. Heartstrings

Air Date: 1986-12-17

A woman asks McCall for help recovering her kidnapped newborn son.

High Performance

12. High Performance

Air Date: 1987-01-07

A construction worker becomes both witness and target when she sees a murder and is spotted by the killer.

Beyond Control

13. Beyond Control

Air Date: 1987-01-14

Control becomes McCall's client when a KGB agent who infiltrated a think tank is murdered.

Carnal Persuasion

14. Carnal Persuasion

Air Date: 1987-01-21

A wife appeals to the judge sentencing her husband and is offered her husband's freedom for sexual favors.

Memories of Manon (1)

15. Memories of Manon (1)

Air Date: 1987-02-04

Control's goddaughter is threatened with the death of her father, a Canadian agent, unless she can reveal his informant. Then with little time left, McCall tells Kostmayer of his personal reasons for wanting to save Yvette and her father.

Memories of Manon (2)

16. Memories of Manon (2)

Air Date: 1987-02-11

Control's goddaughter is threatened with the death of her father, a Canadian agent, unless she can reveal his informant. Then with little time left, McCall tells Kostmayer of his personal reasons for wanting to save Yvette and her father.

Solo

17. Solo

Air Date: 1987-02-18

McCall gets involved romantically and professionally with a woman wanted in Pennsylvania for killing a cop.

A Place To Stay

18. A Place To Stay

Air Date: 1987-02-25

A young girl runs away from her quarreling parents and into the hands of a child pornographer.

Coal Black Soul

19. Coal Black Soul

Air Date: 1987-05-06

McCall is torn between a lovely psychiatrist and a man who calls and says he can't stop himself from murdering women.

First Light

20. First Light

Air Date: 1987-05-13

While McCall is testifying in Washington, Scott tries his hand and looks for thugs harassing a local merchant.

Hand and Glove

21. Hand and Glove

Air Date: 1987-05-20

Nightmares become a reality for an invalid woman when a threatening figures from her dreams appears in her room.

Re-Entry

22. Re-Entry

Air Date: 1987-05-27

McCall helps a young boy whose father was tricked into committing a crime.

Blood & Wine (1)

1. Blood & Wine (1)

Air Date: 1987-09-23

McCall and a former terrorist, now a monk, are both searching for the monk's former partner, a terrorist who uses plastic surgery after each assignment to keep ahead of his enemies.

Blood & Wine (2)

2. Blood & Wine (2)

Air Date: 1987-09-23

McCall and a former terrorist, now a monk, are both searching for the monk's former partner, a terrorist who uses plastic surgery after each assignment to keep ahead of his enemies.

Suspicion of Innocence

3. Suspicion of Innocence

Air Date: 1987-09-30

McCall regrets persuading a young retarded friend of his into going to the police after he witnesses a murder; he's arrested for the crime.

In the Money

4. In the Money

Air Date: 1987-10-07

The trading on Wall Street gets a little rough; McCall and Mickey pull a half-drowned woman from the river after she gets in the way of some ruthless manipulators.

Encounter in a Closed Room

5. Encounter in a Closed Room

Air Date: 1987-10-14

McCall tries to help a European defector free her parents from the KGB, who have kidnaped them to exert pressure on her to persuade another defector to return to their homeland.

Mission: McCall (1)

6. Mission: McCall (1)

Air Date: 1987-10-28

Scott discovers that his father has been kidnapped by someone, and following his father's instructions, contacts an old Company colleague, Richard Dyson, who sets things in motion to find out who has McCall and to get him back.

Mission: McCall (2)

7. Mission: McCall (2)

Air Date: 1987-11-04

Scott discovers that his father has been kidnapped by someone, and following his father's instructions, contacts an old Company colleague, Richard Dyson, who sets things in motion to find out who has McCall and to get him back.

Shadow Play

8. Shadow Play

Air Date: 1987-11-11

McCall helps a fellow Intelligence officer stay alive despite someone's efforts to keep him from talking to a Congressional committee.

Inner View

9. Inner View

Air Date: 1987-11-18

A psychic can't convince the police that she has `seen' the next attack of a serial killer, so she turns to McCall for help in preventing it.

The Rehearsal

10. The Rehearsal

Air Date: 1987-12-02

McCall and Kostmayer are caught with an acting company rehearsing a new work when a psychopath boobytraps the theater exits with bombs.

Christmas Presence

11. Christmas Presence

Air Date: 1987-12-16

McCall asks Harley to help him handle a request for help from a six-year-old AIDS victim who is living with his grandmother and facing increasingly violent harassment from the frightened and angry neighbors.

A Dance on the Dark Side

12. A Dance on the Dark Side

Air Date: 1988-01-13

A police station switchboard operator overhears a detective discussing the murder of his former partner and goes to McCall for help when she receives threats to keep her quiet.

The Child Broker

13. The Child Broker

Air Date: 1988-01-20

A young woman asks McCall to help her boyfriend break away from the control of a junior Fagin.

Video Games

14. Video Games

Air Date: 1988-01-27

A reporter's wife asks McCall to find her husband, who has disappeared while working undercover on a call-girl operation involving blackmail and the death of his daughter.

Something Green

15. Something Green

Air Date: 1988-02-10

The ex-wife of a European diplomat asks McCall to help her retrieve her son from his father before he can leave the country with the boy and $10 million in mob money.

The Mystery of Manon (1)

16. The Mystery of Manon (1)

Air Date: 1988-02-17

Yvette Marcel asks her godfather Control and McCall for help dealing with her irrational father, who is intent on locating Manon, the mother she believed had been killed years before.

The Mystery of Manon (2)

17. The Mystery of Manon (2)

Air Date: 1988-02-24

Yvette Marcel asks her godfather Control and McCall for help dealing with her irrational father, who is intent on locating Manon, the mother she believed had been killed years before.

No Place Like Home

18. No Place Like Home

Air Date: 1988-03-16

McCall comes to the aid of a recently dispossessed man and his family who has been moved in a welfare hotel and is facing pressure from the landlord to take part in his welfare scams.

Last Call

19. Last Call

Air Date: 1988-03-23

A rapist being hunted by a mob assassin takes hostage Kostmayer, Pete and several customers.

Regrets Only

20. Regrets Only

Air Date: 1988-03-30

A young woman trying to start her life over faces continuing harassment from her upscale, professional husband who won't let her go but who is smart enough to conceal his activities.

Target of Choice

21. Target of Choice

Air Date: 1988-04-06

A man fears for his life and that of his family when the murderer he helped put away is paroled and turns up living in his neighborhood.

Always a Lady

22. Always a Lady

Air Date: 1988-05-04

McCall's former protege at the Agency calls in a panic when she is apparently framed for the theft of a large amount of money from her gangster employer, but he arrives too late to save her life.

The Last Campaign

1. The Last Campaign

Air Date: 1988-10-26

The aide to an ambitious candidate for state senator discovers that her boss is blackmailing the incumbent into endorsing his candidacy.

Sea of Fire

2. Sea of Fire

Air Date: 1988-11-02

A desperate high school principal calls on McCall for help in combating the gang responsible for the rape of a girl in the school gymnasium.

Riding the Elephant

3. Riding the Elephant

Air Date: 1988-11-09

McCall helps a Thai boxer and his girl friend extricate themselves from the clutches of a racketeer with old connections to McCall's former employers.

Eighteen With a Bullet

4. Eighteen With a Bullet

Air Date: 1988-11-16

McCall and Mickey try to help a young rock singer escape from her greedy, immoral manager.

The Day of the Covenant

5. The Day of the Covenant

Air Date: 1988-12-07

Scott learns first hand about the anti-apartheid movement when his girl friend becomes the target of a zealous Afrikaner who believes she's a terrorist.

Splinters

6. Splinters

Air Date: 1988-12-14

Mickey Kostmayer is captured when a Company operation fails, and he's turned against McCall using drugs and torture.

The Making of a Martyr

7. The Making of a Martyr

Air Date: 1989-01-11

A gun control advocate whose husband was crippled by a stray bullet seeks McCall's help when she receives threatening phone calls.

The Sins of the Father

8. The Sins of the Father

Air Date: 1989-01-18

McCall reluctantly agrees to help the wife of a mobster find her kidnapped son, who's a pawn in a game of revenge against his father.

The Visitation

9. The Visitation

Air Date: 1989-02-01

McCall's reunion with a former lover is interrupted when her medical skills are needed to deal with a deadly virus being carried by a pair of thugs responsible for killing an international arms dealer.

Past Imperfect

10. Past Imperfect

Air Date: 1989-02-15

An international crime cartel tries to use a man's estranged son against him when the man refuses to honor their wishes.

Trial By Ordeal

11. Trial By Ordeal

Air Date: 1989-03-01

McCall becomes the defense counsel when a Company tribunal on charges of treason tries Control.

Silent Fury

12. Silent Fury

Air Date: 1989-03-08

McCall tries to help a young woman who is one of the victims of a series of robberies directed against the deaf community.

Lullaby of Darkness

13. Lullaby of Darkness

Air Date: 1989-03-30

McCall tries to help a woman and her daughter escape from her abusive husband.

17 Zebra

14. 17 Zebra

Air Date: 1989-04-06

McCall investigates when a mission worker tells him about several winos who have died from heart attacks enroute to the hospital in paramedic ambulances.

Starfire

15. Starfire

Air Date: 1989-04-13

McCall tries to help a girl and her friend, a confused man who claims to an extraterrestrial being hunted by killers.

Time Present, Time Past

16. Time Present, Time Past

Air Date: 1989-04-20

Scott is kidnapped along with a former Bulgarian agent McCall helped to defect ten years earlier, and later undergoes his baptism into his father's world when he accompanies a team trying to rescue the man.

Prisoners of Conscience

17. Prisoners of Conscience

Air Date: 1989-04-27

McCall's search for a kidnapped Chilean poet gets very intense when he learns the kidnapper killed his father many years ago.

The Caper

18. The Caper

Air Date: 1989-05-04

A cleaning woman works at cross-purposes to McCall as she tries to solve a murder she witnessed.

Heart of Justice

19. Heart of Justice

Air Date: 1989-05-11

A bitter man tries to get revenge on the men who brutalized his wife but he calls McCall when someone else gets them first.

Race Traitors

20. Race Traitors

Air Date: 1989-06-11

McCall answers a call for help from Kostmayer's old neighborhood, where a racist group is harassing a black family.

Endgame

21. Endgame

Air Date: 1989-08-10

McCall helps two sisters whom are the victims of a revenge that has been plotted by a master strategy game player.

Suicide Squad

22. Suicide Squad

Air Date: 1989-08-24

McCall comes to the aid of a college student who's lost his athletic scholarship and fears disappointing his parents, and turns to drug dealing as a way to make the big money they expect.

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Rating

7.1/10

Release Date

1985-09-18

Episodes

88 (4 seasons)

Status

Ended

Cast

Videos

Production Companies

Universal Television

Universal Television