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The Best Episodes of Arrow Season 5

Every episode of Arrow Season 5 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Arrow Season 5!

Binge this in 16h 4m•Peaking at 9.6/10

Spoiled billionaire playboy Oliver Queen is missing and presumed dead when his yacht is lost at sea. He returns five years later a changed man, determined to clean up the city as a hooded vigilante

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Arrow Season 5 Episode 1 - Legacy
    8.2/10(4290 votes)

    #1 - Legacy

    S5:E1

    A deadly new criminal, Tobias Church, threatens Star City, which forces Oliver to consider forming a new team of superheroes to help him do battle. In flashbacks, Oliver faces off against the Bratva in Russia.

    Director:James Bamford
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. Arrow Season 5 Episode 2 - The Recruits
    8.0/10(3578 votes)

    #2 - The Recruits

    S5:E2

    Oliver recruits Curtis, Wild Dog and Evelyn Sharp for his team, but his training methods prove to be too much for some to handle. In flashbacks, Oliver continues his initiation into the Bratva.

    Director:James Bamford
    Writers:Beth Schwartz, Speed Weed

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  3. Arrow Season 5 Episode 3 - A Matter of Trust
    8.0/10(3338 votes)

    #3 - A Matter of Trust

    S5:E3

    The Green Arrow is forced to face a powerful new drug dealer when Wild Dog goes off on his own.

    Director:Gregory Smith
    Writers:Ben Sokolowski, Emilio Ortega Aldrich

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  4. Arrow Season 5 Episode 4 - Penance
    7.9/10(3197 votes)

    #4 - Penance

    S5:E4

    Oliver and Lyla team up on a secret mission for Diggle. Felicity finds out and disapproves of the plan and opts to stay behind. When Tobias Church launches a deadly assault against the city, Felicity must decide if she wants to send the recruits out sans the Green Arrow.

    Director:Dermott Downs
    Writers:Brian Ford Sullivan, Oscar Balderrama

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  5. Arrow Season 5 Episode 5 - Human Target
    8.4/10(3446 votes)

    #5 - Human Target

    S5:E5

    When Tobias Church captures and tortures one of Oliver's new recruits, Oliver must turn to an old friend, Christopher Chance AKA the Human Target, for help. Meanwhile, Felicity's worlds collide when Detective Malone joins the ACU.

    Director:Laura Belsey
    Writers:Oscar Balderrama, Sarah Tarkoff

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  6. Arrow Season 5 Episode 6 - So It Begins
    8.1/10(3194 votes)

    #6 - So It Begins

    S5:E6

    Prometheus claims two more victims, and Oliver realizes that the killings are related to the people on his father's list. His recruits aren't happy to hear that Oliver used to be a serial killer. In the past, Oliver finally meets Kovar and may not live to regret it.

    Director:John Behring
    Writers:Wendy Mericle, Brian Ford Sullivan

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  7. Arrow Season 5 Episode 7 - Vigilante
    8.1/10(3120 votes)

    #7 - Vigilante

    S5:E7

    When the bodies of two criminals are dropped at SCPD, Oliver realizes there is a new Vigilante in Star City. The team is split about whether they should stop someone who is helping keep the city safe. Diggle is frustrated with his new situation and Thea fights for Lance who confesses a shocking secret. Meanwhile, in the flashbacks, Oliver finally sits down with Konstantin Kovar.

    Director:Gordon Verheul
    Writers:Ben Sokolowski, Emilio Ortega Aldrich

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  8. Arrow Season 5 Episode 8 - Invasion! (III)
    8.9/10(5125 votes)

    #8 - Invasion! (III)

    S5:E8

    Oliver wakes up to a life where he never got on The Queen’s Gambit. Robert and Moira Queen are alive and well. Laurel is his loving fiancée and their wedding is imminent. Everything seems perfect, but Oliver starts to notice small imperfections that make him question this new reality. Meanwhile, Felicity and the recruits take on a new threat with help from The Flash and Supergirl. The crossover starts on Supergirl S02E08 Medusa (I) and The Flash S03E08 Invasion! (II). It continues on DC's Legends of Tomorrow S02E07 Invasion! (IV).

    Director:James Bamford
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. Arrow Season 5 Episode 9 - What We Leave Behind
    9.1/10(4343 votes)

    #9 - What We Leave Behind

    S5:E9

    After Prometheus attacks Curtis, Oliver realizes Prometheus knows all of Team Arrow’s secret identities and is planning to come for them one by one. Felicity and Detective Malone discover a clue that links Prometheus to Oliver’s past.

    Director:Antonio Negret
    Writers:Wendy Mericle, Beth Schwartz

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  10. Arrow Season 5 Episode 10 - Who Are You?
    7.7/10(3255 votes)

    #10 - Who Are You?

    S5:E10

    Worried that Prometheus is right and he is truly a killer at heart, Oliver looks for any ray of hope and finds it in what seems to be the miraculous return of Laurel Lance. However Felicity, still reeling from Detective Malone's murder, is bent on revenge - she wants to stop Prometheus at any cost. While in prison, Diggle fights for his life.

    Director:Gregory Smith
    Writers:Ben Sokolowski, Brian Ford Sullivan

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  11. Arrow Season 5 Episode 11 - Second Chances
    8.0/10(2981 votes)

    #11 - Second Chances

    S5:E11

    In his quest to take down Kovar, Oliver gets help from a surprising source - Talia al Ghul. However, when she reveals what she wants from him in exchange, Oliver isn't sure he can accept her help. Felicity attempts to hack the NSA to help free Diggle but when her online efforts are flagged, she faces off against an unknown adversary. Meanwhile, Curtis tells the team about a female vigilante, Tina Boland, he uncovered online who has been wreaking havoc all over the country.

    Director:Mark Bunting
    Writers:Speed Weed, Sarah Tarkoff

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  12. Arrow Season 5 Episode 12 - Bratva
    7.9/10(2890 votes)

    #12 - Bratva

    S5:E12

    A mission takes Oliver, Felicity and team to Russia where they meet up with Oliver's old friend, Anatoly. Meanwhile, fresh out of rehab, Lance returns to the mayor's office ready to get back to work. However, when Susan asks for an interview with Lance to discuss his addiction, he balks and it's up to Rene to help keep things on track.

    Director:Ben Hernandez Bray
    Writers:Emilio Ortega Aldrich, Oscar Balderrama

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  13. Arrow Season 5 Episode 13 - Spectre of the Gun
    7.3/10(3308 votes)

    #13 - Spectre of the Gun

    S5:E13

    A traumatic attack on City Hall triggers painful memories for Rene about his family. Flashbacks reveal how Rene went from simple family man to a hero named Wild Dog. Meanwhile, Oliver must deal with the perpetrator behind the attack and realizes the best way to do so is as Mayor Queen instead of the Green Arrow. Tensions run high in the Arrow bunker.

    Director:Kristin Windell
    Writer:Marc Guggenheim

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  14. Arrow Season 5 Episode 14 - The Sin-Eater
    7.6/10(2826 votes)

    #14 - The Sin-Eater

    S5:E14

    China White, Cupid and Liza Warner break out of Iron Heights and head to Star City for revenge. Oliver tries to bring in the newly formed girl gang but the ACU intervenes mid-fight. To his surprise, they are there to arrest the Green Arrow for the murder of Det. Malone. Meanwhile, Lance feels responsible for the prison break after Warner tells him she heard about him working with Damien Darhk.

    Director:Mary Lambert
    Writers:Jenny Lynn, Barbara Bloom

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  15. Arrow Season 5 Episode 15 - Fighting Fire with Fire
    8.3/10(3042 votes)

    #15 - Fighting Fire with Fire

    S5:E15

    Oliver faces his biggest challenge yet as mayor. Felicity continues down her dark path with Helix. After Vigilante attacks Oliver while he's acting as the mayor, Diggle leads the team in a mission to stop Vigilante once and for all.

    Director:Michael Schultz
    Writers:Ben Sokolowski, Speed Weed

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  16. Arrow Season 5 Episode 16 - Checkmate
    8.8/10(3535 votes)

    #16 - Checkmate

    S5:E16

    Oliver gets closer to the truth about Prometheus. Meanwhile, Helix refuses to continue helping Felicity until she does a favor for them.

    Director:Ken Shane
    Writers:Beth Schwartz, Sarah Tarkoff

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  17. Arrow Season 5 Episode 17 - Kapiushon
    9.1/10(4693 votes)

    #17 - Kapiushon

    S5:E17

    Prometheus goes to extreme lengths to destroy Oliver. In flashbacks, Oliver's violent tendencies come to a head in a confrontation with Anatoly.

    Director:Kevin Tancharoen
    Writers:Emilio Ortega Aldrich, Brian Ford Sullivan

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  18. Arrow Season 5 Episode 18 - Disbanded
    8.3/10(3085 votes)

    #18 - Disbanded

    S5:E18

    Diggle and Felicity are shocked by Oliver's decision to ask the Bratva for help in taking down Prometheus.

    Director:J.J. Makaro
    Writer:Rebecca Bellotto

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  19. Arrow Season 5 Episode 19 - Dangerous Liaisons
    7.7/10(2876 votes)

    #19 - Dangerous Liaisons

    S5:E19

    Oliver, Team Arrow, ARGUS and the SCPD kick off a citywide manhunt for Adrian Chase. Helix tells Felicity they have a way to find Chase but they will need something big, and illegal, from her in return.

    Director:Joel Novoa
    Writer:Speed Weed

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  20. Arrow Season 5 Episode 20 - Underneath
    7.6/10(3552 votes)

    #20 - Underneath

    S5:E20

    Oliver and Felicity get trapped in the bunker together, while Diggle and Lyla deal with marital issues.

    Director:Wendey Stanzler
    Writers:Wendy Mericle, Beth Schwartz

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  21. Arrow Season 5 Episode 21 - Honor Thy Fathers
    8.0/10(2806 votes)

    #21 - Honor Thy Fathers

    S5:E21

    Oliver faces the forced release of criminals prosecuted by Adrian Chase, while a crate is delivered to Oliver's office containing a corpse in concrete.

    Director:Laura Belsey
    Writers:Marc Guggenheim, Sarah Tarkoff

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  22. Arrow Season 5 Episode 22 - Missing
    8.9/10(3620 votes)

    #22 - Missing

    S5:E22

    Black Siren returns to give Chase help; Felicity plans a birthday party for Oliver; Lance is angry with Rene for missing the custody hearing about his daughter.

    Director:Mairzee Almas
    Writers:Oscar Balderrama, Speed Weed

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  23. Arrow Season 5 Episode 23 - Lian Yu
    9.6/10(8769 votes)

    #23 - Lian Yu

    S5:E23

    Oliver assembles a group of unlikely allies - Slade, Nyssa, Merlyn and Digger Harkness - to engage in an epic battle against Chase and his army.

    Director:Jesse Warn
    Writers:Marc Guggenheim, Wendy Mericle

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Season 5 Ratings Summary

"Legacy" is the best rated episode of "Arrow" season 5. It scored 8.2/10 based on 4290 votes. Directed by James Bamford and written by Unknown, it aired on 10/5/2016. This episode is rated 0.2 points higher than the second-best, "The Recruits".