Matlock: Season 5
Season 5 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Matlock Season 4.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 5 Progress Shield
The Mother
Sep 18, 1990
Phyllis Todd confesses to the murder of her boss to protect her daughter. Matlock soon sees through his client's ruse.
Nowhere to Turn (1)
Sep 25, 1990
Matlock has to defend himself against a charge of murder when a judge who issued a contempt citation against him is found dead.
Nowhere to Turn (2)
Sep 25, 1990
Matlock has to defend himself against a charge of murder when a judge who issued a contempt citation against him is found dead.
The Madam
Oct 2, 1990
A call girl blackmails her employer to stay on the payroll, and when one of them winds up dead, it's Matlock to the rescue.
The Personal Trainer
Oct 9, 1990
When personal trainer Harry Slade is murdered, Matlock agrees to defend his roofer, George Wilton, on the condition that George finish Matlock's roof like he promised. The case is
The Narc
Oct 23, 1990
When Ed Tobias is found murdered after exposing his dirty co-workers to the top brass (they sold the drugs they didn't turn in), Lt. Brooks asks Matlock to defend his accused kille
The Secret (1)
Oct 30, 1990
When a gambler is accused of killing his bookie, Matlock agrees to take the case, believing that someone from the bookie's past is the guilty party.
The Secret (2)
Nov 6, 1990
Matlock sends Conrad to Chicago to collect the evidence that will prove his client is innocent.
The Brothers
Nov 13, 1990
Lowell Carr is a brilliant plastic surgeon. When his partner is found murdered after the two had a loud argument about dissolving their business, he is the immediate suspect...unti
The Cover Girl
Nov 20, 1990
Conrad is thrilled to introduce Matlock to his new girlfriend Carla Royce. When Carla's boss is murdered, Matlock defends the accused at her bequest.
The Biker
Nov 27, 1990
After Nicky, a well-known actor with a bad reputation, is murdered on his way into a premiere, a judge friend of Matlock's asks Matlock to defend his son Cliff, a biker who had bee
The Broker
Dec 4, 1990
When stockbroker Richard Wagner is murdered, his former partner Avery Campbell needs Julie's help to prove his innocence.
The Fighter
Dec 11, 1990
When fighter Billy Leon is accused of murdering reporter Nick Underwood, a man he thought was his friend who announced in the paper that he was using steroids, Matlock agrees to ta
The Critic
Jan 8, 1991
Matlock has known Sam Spelvin since he was six years old, so he agrees to consult on Sam's play, Lovers and Lawyers. Unfortunately, the play is truly awful. When noted critic John
The Parents
Jan 15, 1991
Howard and Amy have all their dreams answered when Jill plans to give them the child she was carrying. After Jill changes her mind and is found dead, Howard and Amy are the prime s
The Man of The Year
Jan 29, 1991
Matlock is all set to be honored as the man of the year, but when his car breaks down and he's forced to ask his housekeeper for a ride, a simple twenty minute trip turns into a fl
The Arsonist
Feb 5, 1991
Marvin Sheam and Sid Franklin have been in business for 32 years. When their bank loan is denied and they can't pay their bills, Marv tries to talk Sid into hiring an arsonist to t
The Formula
Feb 12, 1991
Matlock receives a call in the middle of the night from a young man who once painted his house who claims he's been arrested for stealing the formula to cure baldness from a compan
The Trial (1)
Feb 19, 1991
When assistant D.A. Howard Wright is murdered in his workshop, the attorney general approaches Matlock and asks him to take on the assignment of special prosecutor. With Michelle a
The Trial (2)
Feb 26, 1991
Matlock manages to figure out what's going on, but his competition ices him out of the final round...or so it seems.
The Accident
Mar 26, 1991
Eugene Dobbs and Nolan Wheeler are the perfect combination -- Dobbs presents the cases, and Wheeler does all the legwork. After Dobbs is unable to keep the promises he makes to foo
The Celebrity
Apr 30, 1991
Ben defends a one time movie queen who is now a cosmetics mogul who is accused of murdering her ex-lover to prevent the publication of some revealing photos of her.