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The Best Episodes of Orphan Black

Every episode of Orphan Black ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Orphan Black!

A streetwise hustler is pulled into a compelling conspiracy after witnessing the suicide of a girl who looks just like her.
Genres:DramaSci-Fi & Fantasy

Best Episodes Summary

"The Scandal of Altruism" is the best rated episode of "Orphan Black". It scored 9.2/10 based on 1877 votes. Directed by Grant Harvey and written by Chris Roberts, it aired on 5/19/2016. This episode scored 0.1 points higher than the second highest rated, "Certain Agony of the Battlefield".

  • The Scandal of Altruism
    9.2/101,877 votes
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    #1 - The Scandal of Altruism

    Season 4 Episode 6 - Aired 5/19/2016

    When Cosima admits doubts about finding a cure in time to save her life, Sarah makes a lone decision that exposes Kendall to those she’s spent years hiding from. Meanwhile, Art and Felix team up to protect naïve clone, Krystal Godderitch, from herself.

    Director: Grant Harvey

    Writer: Chris Roberts

  • Certain Agony of the Battlefield
    9.1/102,072 votes
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    #2 - Certain Agony of the Battlefield

    Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 5/23/2015

    Paul digs and finds the ugly truth behind the Castor Boys’ logbooks of names, pushing him into action. Meanwhile, Felix is desperate for info on Sarah’s whereabouts, and presses the still-ailing Rachel for any shred of a lead. In order for Donnie and Alison to take their money-making endeavor to the “next level” she must introduce Jason Kellerman to her unique business plan.

    Director: Helen Shaver

    Writer: Aubrey Nealon

  • To Right the Wrongs of Many
    9.1/101,514 votes
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    #3 - To Right the Wrongs of Many

    Season 5 Episode 10 - Aired 8/12/2017

    With Helena forced to take shelter behind enemy lines, it’s a bloody last stand for survival as Sarah and Art struggle to protect her, and end the siege on the sestras once and for all.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson, Renée St. Cyr

  • History Yet to Be Written
    9.0/101,542 votes
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    #4 - History Yet to Be Written

    Season 3 Episode 10 - Aired 6/20/2015

    Castor and Topside force Sarah to make uneasy alliances. But there is some rest for the wicked, when Donnie gives Helena an unexpected ‘gift’, and the results of Alison’s candidacy finally come in. Even as team Leda takes a moment to breathe, change is afoot and a life hangs in the balance.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • Guillotines Decide
    9.0/101,220 votes
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    #5 - Guillotines Decide

    Season 5 Episode 8 - Aired 7/29/2017

    Mrs. S orders the sisters to take a night off from sleuthing to celebrate Felix's art opening. But while Felix attempts to impress a famous gallerist with the help of his sestras, Sarah remains on edge with a nagging suspicion that S is hiding something. Meanwhile, wounded and desperate, Rachel reunites with an old ally, but their plans for revenge on Neolution put Clone Club in the line of fire.

    Director: Aaron Morton

    Writer: Graeme Manson, Aisha Porter-Christie

  • Endless Forms Most Beautiful
    8.9/102,195 votes
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    #6 - Endless Forms Most Beautiful

    Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 6/1/2013

    Sarah’s last chance to bring her nemesis back to sanity slips away as Art intervenes to get answers of his own. Meanwhile, the Orphans must decide whether to make peace with their creators, as Sarah is forced into a deadly confrontation with their enemy.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • By Means Which Have Never Yet Been Tried
    8.9/101,869 votes
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    #7 - By Means Which Have Never Yet Been Tried

    Season 2 Episode 10 - Aired 6/21/2014

    The war with Dyad is all but lost when Rachel’s latest ploy forces a broken Sarah to concede. The Clone Club springs into action, uniting in a reckless gambit to save Sarah. As they fight to gain their freedom, Sarah encounters a new ally and uncovers a terrifying new dimension to the conspiracy.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • Gag or Throttle
    8.8/101,173 votes
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    #8 - Gag or Throttle

    Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 7/22/2017

    As P. T. Westmorland demands a more aggressive action on Kira, and Sarah fights to save her daughter, Rachel discovers a dark secret that makes her question her place within Neolution. Meanwhile, Cosima has returned with a vital clue to Westmorland's true identity.

    Director: David Frazee

    Writer: Renée St. Cyr

  • One Fettered Slave
    8.7/101,062 votes
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    #9 - One Fettered Slave

    Season 5 Episode 9 - Aired 8/5/2017

    A devastating loss is eclipsed when word reaches Sarah that Helena has been kidnapped. Clone Club bands together in a race against time, determined to find her before she has her babies. And with time running out, Sarah is forced into action in a last-ditch effort to save her sestra.

    Director: David Frazee

    Writer: Alex Levine

  • Unconscious Selection
    8.6/101,946 votes
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    #10 - Unconscious Selection

    Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 5/25/2013

    After Kira’s life is threatened, Sarah is on the warpath, but Dr. Leekie makes her think twice about her plans for revenge. Meanwhile, Cosima faces the truth about Delphine, forcing her to choose sides. Now, it’s up to Sarah to decide the killer’s fate, but the truth about where Sarah came from changes everything.

    Director: T.J. Scott

    Writer: Alex Levine

  • Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things
    8.6/101,606 votes
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    #11 - Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things

    Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 5/31/2014

    When a rehab confidante betrays Alison and threatens to expose the truth about Aynsley’s death, she goes into free fall on the eve of Family Day. With Donnie and the kids set to visit, it’s all clones on deck to contain the fallout.

    Director: Ken Girotti

    Writer: Aubrey Nealon

  • The Collapse of Nature
    8.6/101,510 votes
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    #12 - The Collapse of Nature

    Season 4 Episode 1 - Aired 4/14/2016

    After two months of respite, Sarah’s hard-won refuge in Iceland is shattered by a Neolution attack. Once again forced to flee, she realizes no matter how far her family runs it will never be far enough.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • From Dancing Mice to Psychopaths
    8.6/101,320 votes
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    #13 - From Dancing Mice to Psychopaths

    Season 4 Episode 10 - Aired 6/16/2016

    When communication with Cosima is cut off and Neolution appears to be within striking distance, Sarah's alliance with Rachel goes out the window. Sarah lures a high-level Neolutionist into a trap, and sets out to bring down Neolution once and for all.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • Things Which Have Never Yet Been Done
    8.5/101,511 votes
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    #14 - Things Which Have Never Yet Been Done

    Season 2 Episode 9 - Aired 6/14/2014

    Cosima takes a turn for the worse, forcing Sarah to take desperate action which results in tragic consequences for those she loves. The Proletheans set their ultimate plan in motion, while Alison and Donnie tangle with the law.

    Director: T.J. Scott

    Writer: Alex Levine

  • Ruthless in Purpose, and Insidious in Method
    8.5/101,316 votes
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    #15 - Ruthless in Purpose, and Insidious in Method

    Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 6/6/2015

    When Rachel makes a promise to Sarah, it comes with a hefty price. Meanwhile, Helena and Gracie work with the Hendrixes, and Donnie takes Kellerman to task. Over at Castor, Coady and Benchman scheme to track down the Castor Original, and Rudy descends on DYAD for a much needed asset.

    Director: Aaron Morton

    Writer: Chris Roberts, Graeme Manson

  • Insolvent Phantom of Tomorrow
    8.5/101,289 votes
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    #16 - Insolvent Phantom of Tomorrow

    Season 3 Episode 9 - Aired 6/13/2015

    Sarah, Felix, and Mrs. S are in London to track down the Castor Original, but their enemies are not far behind.

    Director: Vincenzo Natali

    Writer: Russ Cochrane

  • The Mitigation of Competition
    8.5/101,154 votes
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    #17 - The Mitigation of Competition

    Season 4 Episode 9 - Aired 6/9/2016

    With Susan Duncan deposed, Sarah finds herself in the same position as Rachel — under the heel of a new HBIC — causing the archenemies to come together for the greater good. Cosima and Susan butt heads on the ethical implications of human experiments. Meanwhile, when the Hendrixes' legal counsel, Adele, further investigates Donnie’s case, she begins to suspect Felix is keeping deep secrets. Helena’s arrival forces Felix to make a difficult decision.

    Director: David Frazee

    Writer: Alex Levine

  • Variations Under Domestication
    8.4/102,071 votes
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    #18 - Variations Under Domestication

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 5/4/2013

    Sarah’s hunt for answers is interrupted by a trip to the suburbs. Alison’s paranoia has boiled over, putting all the Orphans at risk. But when Sarah, Alison and Beth’s worlds dangerously collide, Sarah must decide who to trust with her secret.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Will Pascoe

  • Entangled Bank
    8.4/101,961 votes
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    #19 - Entangled Bank

    Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 5/18/2013

    Sarah's actions pit the Orphans against each other as she tries to plan her next move. As Paul tries desperately to cover up Sarah’s existence, Alison takes vengeance on her suspected monitor, which could cost her everything she holds dear.

    Director: Ken Girotti

    Writer: Karen Walton

  • Nature Under Constraint and Vexed
    8.4/101,907 votes
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    #20 - Nature Under Constraint and Vexed

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 4/19/2014

    Sarah is out of options, on the run, and pursued by deadly adversaries. Desperate to find her daughter Kira, Sarah suspects ruthless pro-clone Rachel is behind her daughter’s disappearance and sparks an all out war against her. Alison and Donnie attend the funeral of her fallen friend, Aynsley, causing Alison to sink into guilt and despair. Cosima is faced with a perplexing decision that may have dire consequences.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Graeme Manson

  • Governed As It Were by Chance
    8.4/101,653 votes
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    #21 - Governed As It Were by Chance

    Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 5/10/2014

    Sarah comes home looking for answers, and with the help of Cosima, they begin digging into the origins of the clone experiment. The hunt for answers takes her right into the belly of the beast, but getting out could cost her more than she knows.

    Director: David Frazee

    Writer: Russ Cochrane

  • Community of Dreadful Fear and Hate
    8.3/101,340 votes
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    #22 - Community of Dreadful Fear and Hate

    Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 5/30/2015

    Alison must secure a store front in order to take her and Donnie’s business to the “next level”. But things don’t go according to plan when her mother, Connie, proves to be a major hindrance. Cosima is facing familiar health issues and calls upon beleaguered Alison for a favor. But with Alison working to save an imperiled Donnie from the merciless hands of a drug lord, it’s Cosima who ends up doing a favor. An unassuming Scott gets closer to the greatest discovery of all, when he sits down with beleaguered clone Rachel.

    Director: Ken Girotti

    Writer: Sherry White

  • Transgressive Border Crossing
    8.3/101,229 votes
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    #23 - Transgressive Border Crossing

    Season 4 Episode 2 - Aired 4/21/2016

    After evading a Neolution attack in Iceland, Sarah returns home to track down an elusive new ally. As Cosima struggles with Delphine’s disappearance, Alison and Donnie host a pregnant and ever-hungry Helena. Meanwhile Felix, feeling like an outsider, embarks on his own journey of self-discovery.

    Director: John Fawcett

    Writer: Russ Cochrane

  • Human Raw Material
    8.3/101,168 votes
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    #24 - Human Raw Material

    Season 4 Episode 5 - Aired 5/12/2016

    Sarah’s day off to reconnect with Kira quickly turns into a sleuthing mission aimed squarely at discrediting Felix’s new ties. Cosima steps up with Donnie to further investigate the Neolutionist fertility research center. While Donnie bumps into an all too familiar face, Cosima makes a shocking discovery that leads her into a dangerous encounter.

    Director: David Wellington

    Writer: Kate Miles Melville

  • The Redesign of Natural Objects
    8.3/101,113 votes
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    #25 - The Redesign of Natural Objects

    Season 4 Episode 8 - Aired 6/2/2016

    As Alison is terrified by Neolution threats made against Donnie, Sarah and Mrs. S question her loyalty to her sisters. While Sarah is distracted, Siobhan sneaks out to seek vengeance. Meanwhile, Cosima and Susan Duncan work together in a final attempt to discover a cure.

    Director: Aaron Morton

    Writer: Peter Mohan