List of Clarissa Explains It All episodes
# List of Clarissa Explains It All episodes

This is a list of episodes for the Nickelodeon children's sitcom Clarissa Explains It All, which aired from 1991 to 1994. The series lasted five seasons, each producing thirteen episodes. Many of the episodes were shown in a different order than the order in which they were produced. Both the production numbers and the airing numbers are listed. A total of 65 episodes were produced. As of July 2018, only the first season is available on DVD.

## Series overview

| Season | Episodes | Episodes | Originally aired | Originally aired |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Season | Episodes | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
| 1 | 13 | 13 | March 23, 1991 (1991-03-23) | June 15, 1991 (1991-06-15) |
| 2 | 13 | 13 | February 14, 1992 (1992-02-14) | September 12, 1992 (1992-09-12) |
| 3 | 13 | 13 | September 19, 1992 (1992-09-19) | February 13, 1993 (1993-02-13) |
| 4 | 13 | 13 | February 27, 1993 (1993-02-27) | October 16, 1993 (1993-10-16) |
| 5 | 13 | 13 | October 23, 1993 (1993-10-23) | October 1, 1994 (1994-10-01) |

## Episodes

### Season 1 (1991)

The original Pilot was taped in September 1990; episodes 1-13 were taped from February to June 1991.

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 1 | "Clarissa’s Revenge" | Kenneth Frankel | Mitchell Kriegman | March 23, 1991 (1991-03-23) | 101 |
| After Clarissa gets her first training bra, she tries to exact revenge on her brother for showing her bra at school, using a plan involving putting him into a straitjacket and having her friend Sam attach large helium balloons to him to carry him into the sky. Meanwhile, Sam wants to get out of the school football team. Her plan fails when Sam is lifted in the sky while holding the balloons, and crashes into a nearby tree. They burst and he falls to the ground, injuring his arm - meaning that he cannot play football. Note: An early, unaired version of this Pilot was taped in September 1990. It was directed by Henry Irving, and was identical to the broadcast version, but with everyone, except for Clarissa and Ferguson, played by different actors. Janet was played by Nancy Youngblut, Marshall was played by Terry Layman, and Sam was played by Daren E. Higgins. |||||||
| 2 | 2 | "No TV" | Maureen Thorp | Mitchell Kriegman | March 30, 1991 (1991-03-30) | 103 |
| Janet decides the household watches too much TV and begins an anti-TV rule. Family members try to gain access to TV through various schemes. |||||||
| 3 | 3 | "CNN (Clarissa News Network)" | Maureen Thorp | Ellis Weiner & Alexa Junge | April 6, 1991 (1991-04-06) | 105 |
| Clarissa wants to become a TV journalist. Meanwhile, Janet faces a dance friend who steals one of her best moves, and Ferguson cons Marshall into buying a music cassette that he thinks will teach him Swahili. |||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Haunted House" | Maureen Thorp | Tim Burns | April 13, 1991 (1991-04-13) | 106 |
| When Aunt Mafalda visits from Canada, Clarissa tries to scare her away by saying the house is haunted. It does not work, and Clarissa sets up a seance to contact Mafalda's dead husband. |||||||
| 5 | 5 | "New Addition" | John Ferraro | Becky Hartman | April 20, 1991 (1991-04-20) | 108 |
| Clarissa suspects that her parents are having another child when they plan to add a room to the house. |||||||
| 6 | 6 | "School Picture" | Kenneth Frankel | Alexa Junge | April 27, 1991 (1991-04-27) | 102 |
| Clarissa hates having to wear uncool clothes on picture day and starts campaigning to wear what she wants. Meanwhile, Janet and Marshall argue over Janet's high school boyfriend. |||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Urge to Drive" | Maureen Thorp | Patty Marx | May 4, 1991 (1991-05-04) | 104 |
| Clarissa tries to buy a car with money from Christmas cards. However, she hasn't earned enough to pay for the cards and she finds it difficult to sell them in July. |||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Bully" | Chuck Vinson | Alexa Junge & Mitchell Kriegman | May 11, 1991 (1991-05-11) | 107 |
| Many of Clarissa and Ferguson's things have disappeared, and Clarissa finds out the school bully, Clifford, is to blame. |||||||
| 9 | 9 | "Brain Drain" | Maureen Thorp | Neena Beber | May 18, 1991 (1991-05-18) | 109 |
| Ferguson convinces himself he is a genius after an IQ test. Clarissa tries to prove him wrong by joining him on the game show Brain Drain. |||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Bake a Cake" | Maureen Thorp | Alexa Junge & Mitchell Kriegman | May 25, 1991 (1991-05-25) | 110 |
| Clarissa tries to help celebrate her parents' wedding anniversary by making a cake, but Janet and Marshall stop talking to each other over what to do on the night. |||||||
| 11 | 11 | "Sick Days" | Chuck Vinson | Patty Marx & Alexa Junge & Neena Beber | June 1, 1991 (1991-06-01) | 113 |
| Clarissa fakes sickness in trying to get out of her part in the school pageant. But, when the play turns out to be a success, Clarissa truly becomes ill. |||||||
| 12 | 12 | "Cool Dad" | Chuck Vinson | Glenn Eichler & Peter Gaffney | June 8, 1991 (1991-06-08) | 112 |
| Clarissa's father tries to get hip for her school's career night. |||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Parents Who Say No" | Chuck Vinson | Mitchell Kriegman | June 15, 1991 (1991-06-15) | 111 |
| Clarissa applies for a job at the Baxter Beach Carnival, even though her parents said no. |||||||

### Season 2 (1992)

Episodes 14-30 were taped from January to June 1992.

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 14 | 1 | "Crush" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber & Mitchell Kriegman | February 14, 1992 (1992-02-14) | 114 |
| Clarissa has a crush on a TV weatherman and begins predicting weather into all aspects of her family's life. Note: Originally aired not only to kick off the second season, but to also celebrate Valentine's Day, along with Valentine's Day-themed episodes of Welcome Freshmen, Hey Dude, and The Adventures of Pete and Pete. Also, in this episode, the Darling Household has a new look. |||||||
| 15 | 2 | "She Drives Me Crazy" | Chuck Vinson | Mollie Fermaglich | February 23, 1992 (1992-02-23) | 115 |
| To win a new car, Clarissa enters her and Ferguson in a contest for siblings with great relationships. |||||||
| 16 | 3 | "Sam.....Darling" | Chuck Vinson | Douglas Petrie | March 1, 1992 (1992-03-01) | 116 |
| Clarissa is jealous of Sam spending all his time with her parents. |||||||
| 17 | 4 | "President Ferguson" | Chuck Vinson | Michael Borkow & Paul Lieberstein | March 8, 1992 (1992-03-08) | 117 |
| Clarissa wants to stop her brother's campaign for class president from taking all her family's time. |||||||
| 18 | 5 | "ME 101" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber | June 7, 1992 (1992-06-07) | 120 |
| Janet fails a quiz on how well she knows her daughter, and tries to get to know her daughter better. |||||||
| 19 | 6 | "Misguidance Counselor" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber | June 14, 1992 (1992-06-14) | 123 |
| Clarissa's guidance counselor Mrs. Cheesebrow tries to enlist her in "normal" activities. |||||||
| 20 | 7 | "Sam in Love" | Carl Lauten | Sybil Adelman & Martin Sage | June 28, 1992 (1992-06-28) | 124 |
| Clarissa feels left out when Sam cancels plans with her to spend time with a new girlfriend, Elise Quackenbush. |||||||
| 21 | 8 | "A New Look" | Carl Lauten | Story by : Mitchell Kriegman & Julia Poll Teleplay by : Julia Poll | July 12, 1992 (1992-07-12) | 125 |
| Marshall is approached by a talent scout to appear in an advertising campaign. Meanwhile, Clarissa wants to spend time with Clifford Spleenhurfer. |||||||
| 22 | 9 | "Total TV" | Chuck Vinson | Alison Taylor | August 15, 1992 (1992-08-15) | 126 |
| Clarissa finds it difficult to watch TV continuously for 24 hours for a science project. Note: This episode aired at 8:00 p.m. on the same night the network launched their SNICK block, after previously airing on Sundays in the daytime and evening. The show would remain as a part of SNICK for the rest of the run, until the finale. Also, new intro and ending sequences debut. They, too, would be used until the end of the run, and the older sequences would be replaced with the new sequences in all of the episodes aired before August 1992. |||||||
| 23 | 10 | "The Understudy" | Richard Steir | Mollie Fermaglich | August 22, 1992 (1992-08-22) | 121 |
| Clarissa is chosen as an understudy in the school play, but when the lead comes down with strep throat, Clarissa must learn her lines quickly. |||||||
| 24 | 11 | "Can't Buy Love" | Chuck Vinson | Douglas Petrie | August 29, 1992 (1992-08-29) | 122 |
| Clarissa has a secret admirer. Meanwhile, Ferguson has become friends with an incredibly rich student. Clarissa discovers that Ferguson's new friend is using him for his own reasons. |||||||
| 25 | 12 | "The Great Debate" | Chuck Vinson | Sherri Ziff | September 5, 1992 (1992-09-05) | 119 |
| Clarissa is worried about her parents marriage during a debate between them. |||||||
| 26 | 13 | "The Return of Mafalda" | Chuck Vinson | Sybil Adelman & Martin Sage | September 12, 1992 (1992-09-12) | 118 |
| Aunt Mafalda comes to babysit, but Clarissa is having a sleepover and has to get rid of her. |||||||

### Season 3 (1992–93)

Episodes 31-54 were taped from September 1992 to June 1993.

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 27 | 1 | "Sam's Swan Song" | Liz Plonka | Story by : Jennifer Morris Teleplay by : Alison Taylor | September 19, 1992 (1992-09-19) | 130 |
| Sam's mother comes home from the Roller Derby with plans to change Sam's life. |||||||
| 28 | 2 | "Janet's Boyfriend" | Carl Lauten | Mollie Fermaglich | September 26, 1992 (1992-09-26) | 127 |
| Janet's old high school boyfriend Joey comes to town and visits the Darlings for dinner. |||||||
| 29 | 3 | "Poetic Justice" | Liz Plonka | Neena Beber | October 10, 1992 (1992-10-10) | 129 |
| Clarissa represents her school at a poetry banquet after her computer writes a strange but well-loved poem. |||||||
| 30 | 4 | "The Darling Wars" | Carl Lauten | Douglas Petrie | October 24, 1992 (1992-10-24) | 128 |
| Clarissa and Ferguson try to scare each other when left home alone, fight a lot, & hear a person (they think it's a burglar) come in the kitchen which is actually their dad. |||||||
| 31 | 5 | "Punch the Clocks" | Liz Plonka | Douglas Petrie | November 21, 1992 (1992-11-21) | 131 |
| Clarissa seeks employment and ends up overworked with four jobs. Meanwhile, Marshall and Clifford go head-to-head in a battle of the refrigerator. Note: As of this taping, the living room now has its more familiar setup. However, the walls were painted in purple, which were changed to beige in the next taping. Also introduced in this episode were new commercial bumpers, which would be used until the finale. |||||||
| 32 | 6 | "The Silent Treatment" | Liz Plonka | Alan Goodman | November 28, 1992 (1992-11-28) | 132 |
| Ferguson tries to get back at Clarissa after an argument by giving her the silent treatment. Meanwhile, Janet serves on a jury and fears the house is bugged. |||||||
| 33 | 7 | "Involunteering" | Liz Plonka | Alan Goodman | December 12, 1992 (1992-12-12) | 133 |
| There’s a Family Volunteer Day at Janet's children’s museum, and she encourages the family to take part in the festivities. But, when misfortune strikes the museum, the day’s events are moved to the Darling household. The kids get out of control until Clarissa manages to save the day, but not before Ferguson is left bound and gagged in his room. |||||||
| 34 | 8 | "Take My Advice...Please" | Liz Plonka | Neena Beber | December 19, 1992 (1992-12-19) | 134 |
| Clarissa gives Ferguson bad advice to ruin his new romance with Fiona. But, when her advice is proven effective, Ferguson gains many girlfriends. |||||||
| 35 | 9 | "Marshall's Mid-Life Crisis" | Liz Plonka | Mollie Fermaglich | December 26, 1992 (1992-12-26) | 135 |
| Marshall's birthday arrives, and he wants to take the entire family to Mango Island. A couple interested in buying their house stops his plan. |||||||
| 36 | 10 | "Football Fever" | Liz Plonka | Mark Cerulli | January 23, 1993 (1993-01-23) | 136 |
| Ferguson tries to make the varsity football team after his father makes a bet with a neighbor. Meanwhile, Clarissa takes up photography. |||||||
| 37 | 11 | "Life of Crime" | Chuck Vinson | Suzanne Collins | January 30, 1993 (1993-01-30) | 137 |
| Clarissa accidentally acquires a piece of adult underwear when hassled to leave the store at closing time. |||||||
| 38 | 12 | "Marshall's Parents Visit" | Chuck Vinson | Mollie Fermaglich | February 13, 1993 (1993-02-13) | 138 |
| Marshall's parents pay a surprise visit, and it upsets Clarissa that their carefree existence has morphed into an energetic lifestyle. Meanwhile, Sam acquires Pearl Jam tickets, prompting Clarissa to seek away out of her previous engagement, DJing her grandparents' anniversary party. |||||||
| 39 | 13 | "Blind Date" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber | February 27, 1993 (1993-02-27) | 139 |
| Sam sets himself and Clarissa on a double blind date, and Clarissa obsesses over what could happen on the date. |||||||

### Season 4 (1993)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 40 | 1 | "The Flu" | Chuck Vinson | Douglas Petrie | March 13, 1993 (1993-03-13) | 140 |
| When Janet and Marshall become sick with the flu, Clarissa and Ferguson must take care of household chores. |||||||
| 41 | 2 | "ESP R Us" | Chuck Vinson | Karen Salmansohn | March 27, 1993 (1993-03-27) | 141 |
| Clarissa doesn't believe that Olivia has psychic powers, so Olivia takes a test offered through the mail, and the two become wrapped up in a money-making scam. Meanwhile, Ferguson sells cosmetics to a gullible Marshall and a down-in-the-dumps Janet. |||||||
| 42 | 3 | "Commitment" | Liz Plonka | Suzanne Collins | April 17, 1993 (1993-04-17) | 142 |
| Clarissa begins to have commitment fears with her boyfriend Clifford. |||||||
| 43 | 4 | "Road Trip" | Liz Plonka | Alan Goodman | May 8, 1993 (1993-05-08) | 143 |
| The family decides to take a road trip to the Grand Canyon other than their usual Lake Winnemucca. But, when tension arises from the overwhelming number of decisions, the Darlings learn a lesson about tradition. |||||||
| 44 | 5 | "The Bicycle Thief" | Liz Plonka | Julia Poll | May 22, 1993 (1993-05-22) | 144 |
| Clarissa's bike, her only method of transportation, is stolen after leaving it in the front yard. |||||||
| 45 | 6 | "Boy Thoughts" | Carl Lauten | Douglas Petrie | June 19, 1993 (1993-06-19) | 145 |
| Clifford doesn't have time for Clarissa after he stars in Ferguson's hit Public-access television show. |||||||
| 46 | 7 | "Hero Worship" | Carl Lauten | Mollie Fermaglich | June 26, 1993 (1993-06-26) | 146 |
| Eve, the new girl at school, annoys Clarissa when she begins copying her style, but then is flattered. |||||||
| 47 | 8 | "The Zone" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber | July 10, 1993 (1993-07-10) | 148 |
| Clarissa is chosen for a flute solo at the school music recital. |||||||
| 48 | 9 | "A Little Romance" | Carl Lauten | Suzanne Collins | August 14, 1993 (1993-08-14) | 147 |
| Sam realizes that Clarissa is the perfect girl for him after too many bad dates. Meanwhile, in a spoof of Rear Window, Marshall and Ferguson suspect their neighbor Ned Soaperstein has murdered his wife Edna. |||||||
| 49 | 10 | "Tale of Two Moms" | Chuck Vinson | Alan Goodman | August 28, 1993 (1993-08-28) | 149 |
| Sam's mom comes back to town, and Clarissa invites her to stay at the Darling household. |||||||
| 50 | 11 | "Don't I Know You?" | Chuck Vinson | Alexa Junge | September 11, 1993 (1993-09-11) | 150 |
| Clarissa turns to an old journal for some helpful hints for the all school talent show, where she must complete with Cindy Sparkle. |||||||
| 51 | 12 | "Babysitting" | Liz Plonka | Douglas Petrie | September 25, 1993 (1993-09-25) | 151 |
| Clarissa is guilted into babysitting troublemaker Elsie Soaperstein on her parents' anniversary. |||||||
| 52 | 13 | "Educating Janet" | Liz Plonka | Mollie Fermaglich | October 16, 1993 (1993-10-16) | 152 |
| Clarissa and Ferguson have issues with their mother when she begins teaching at their high school. |||||||

### Season 5 (1993–94)

Episodes 55-65 were taped from September to December 1993.

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 53 | 1 | "The Cycle" | Chuck Vinson | Alan Goodman | October 23, 1993 (1993-10-23) | 153 |
| Clarissa stores Olivia's brother's motorcycle in the garage with plans to buy it. |||||||
| 54 | 2 | "A New Mom" | Chuck Vinson | Neena Beber | November 13, 1993 (1993-11-13) | 154 |
| Clarissa's history assignment is to take something old, tired, and worn out, and reinvent it. Clarissa's something: her mother. |||||||
| 55 | 3 | "Editor-in-Chief" | Liz Plonka | Neena Beber | November 20, 1993 (1993-11-20) | 155 |
| Clarissa must learn responsibility when she becomes editor in chief of her school newspaper. |||||||
| 56 | 4 | "Piper Comes to Visit" | Liz Plonka | Mollie Fermaglich | December 4, 1993 (1993-12-04) | 156 |
| Piper, the unfriendly daughter of Janet's school friend, comes to stay. This means Clarissa has work ahead of her. |||||||
| 57 | 5 | "Alter Ego" | Liz Plonka | Suzanne Collins | December 18, 1993 (1993-12-18) | 157 |
| Clarissa goes to a party dressed up as a wild character and falls for a guy. But is he interested in Clarissa or her cool alter ego, Jade? Note: This episode originally aired at the very end of a marathon of older ones. |||||||
| 58 | 6 | "Sam's Dad" | Liz Plonka | Douglas Petrie | January 8, 1994 (1994-01-08) | 158 |
| Clarissa and Sam sign up for their school's intern program to become acquainted with their world. |||||||
| 59 | 7 | "The Firm" | Liz Plonka | Alan Goodman | January 15, 1994 (1994-01-15) | 159 |
| Marshall joins an architectural firm with some great offers from the firm. But the family doesn't all feel the same. |||||||
| 60 | 8 | "Janet and Clarissa, Inc." | Liz Plonka | Suzanne Collins | January 29, 1994 (1994-01-29) | 160 |
| Clarissa and Janet team up to sell Bouncy Balls health treats, but their attempts don't succeed. |||||||
| 61 | 9 | "Ferguson Explains It All" | Liz Plonka | Mitchell Kriegman | February 12, 1994 (1994-02-12) | 161 |
| Ferguson decides to test out his new mind control glasses on his family, but Clarissa fights back. |||||||
| 62 | 10 | "Dear Clarissa" | Liz Plonka | Peter Mattei | February 26, 1994 (1994-02-26) | 162 |
| After she is given her own advice column in the school newspaper, Clarissa discovers giving advice isn't as easy as she thought. |||||||
| 63 | 11 | "UFO" | Liz Plonka | Neena Beber | July 16, 1994 (1994-07-16) | 163 |
| Clarissa interviews a woman who spotted a UFO, and discovers that science can be really weird. |||||||
| 64 | 12 | "Clarissa Gets Arrested" | Liz Plonka | Doug Petrie | July 23, 1994 (1994-07-23) | 164 |
| Clarissa and Sam protest against animals testing at Woolcott Industries, but they get arrested. |||||||
| 65 | 13 | "The Last Episode" | Liz Plonka | Mitchell Kriegman | October 1, 1994 (1994-10-01) | 165 |
| Clarissa finishes her last article for the newspaper, dedicated to the future. This raises the question: Where will everyone be in 20 years? |||||||
