The BEST Investigation Discovery shows of all time
Every Investigation Discovery show, ranked
We've compiled the average episode rating for every Investigation Discovery show to compile this list of best shows!
#1 - Vanity Fair Confidential
Whether we love them or love to hate them, there is something about the rich and powerful that keeps us fascinated. From their rise and fall to their outrageous lies, and even murder, Vanity Fair captures it all and we just can’t turn away. Now, the true stories we have all devoured in Vanity Fair come to television. In each hour-long episode, viewers are treated to a sinful dose of power, wealth, deception and crime.
View Episode Rankings#2 - Jodi Arias: An American Murder Mystery
Sex, lies and murder – what happened to Travis Alexander? This three-part special examines the most salacious murder case in American history. We explore the investigation and trial that captivated the nation with interviews from central figures.
View Episode Rankings#3 - Murder Among Friends
Most killers act alone. But there’s another type of murder that happens less frequently yet with no less horror. That’s when people decide to kill as a group. Finding the truth becomes its own sort of puzzle when you have a Murder Among Friends.
View Episode Rankings#4 - The Coroner: I Speak for the Dead
The Coroner: I Speak for the Dead is a gripping new series bringing audiences inside the work of one man who has truly seen it all in his 25 years on the job – Graham Hetrick. A seasoned coroner in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, this eight part series features an inside look at shocking murder cases and complex forensic investigations: while detectives search for clues among the living, Hetrick uncovers the secrets of the dead.
View Episode Rankings#5 - True Nightmares
True stories of murder and mayhem morph into urban legends like the boogeyman or the monster under the bed – haunting our childhoods and scaring us throughout our lives. Investigation Discovery’s (ID) upcoming series TRUE NIGHTMARES brings to life the true stories that spawned these hair-raising tales, proving once again that truth will always be scarier than fiction. Performer Todd Robbins, best known for his fascination with eccentric and arcane forms of entertainment, brings his shadowy and sardonic self to deliver six spine-tingling episodes, revealing that sometimes, our fears aren’t mere figments of our imagination after all. Acting as an on-screen narrator, Robbins appears in and out of scenes, using his ominous tone and eerie charisma to masterfully weave together three stories each hour, playfully hinting that there is always more to the story to reveal.
View Episode Rankings#6 - Evil Lives Here
Each hour-long episode of this chilling psychological drama tells the harrowing, firsthand stories of living with a person who became a killer. Viewers will be put in the shoes of the loved one, who lived through this incredible experience —from first noticing that something is amiss, to interpreting all of the puzzling signs and clues, to eventually coming face-to-face with the horrible truth: that the person they loved, the person they trusted, has a very dark side.
View Episode Rankings#7 - Murder Calls
Investigation Discovery's true-crime storytelling is often rooted in its award-winning visuals, but it's audio from actual 911 calls that sets the tone in Murder Calls. Each hour-long episode tracks a criminal investigation in which detectives must decipher the contents and subtext of an emergency call. As the case moves forward, the 911 audio ultimately leads investigators to the truth.
View Episode Rankings#8 - Dr. G: Medical Examiner
Dr. G: Medical Examiner documents cases handled by deputy chief medical examiner Dr. Jan C. Garavaglia (aka Dr. G) of Florida's District Nine Medical Examiner's Office. Each episode features two or three cases Dr. G has handled in the Orlando area, and also in Bexar County, Texas and Jacksonville, Florida where she was previously employed. Some portions of the show have been dramatized and some names have been changed to protect the dignity of individuals and their families
View Episode Rankings#9 - Murder Chose Me
Rod Demery's destiny was sealed at the age of 3. That's when his mother was murdered, and Demery would come to realize that he wanted to protect people who couldn't protect themselves. He did so by serving for 14 years as a Shreveport, La., homicide detective, working on more than 250 cases and solving each of the 60-plus investigations on which he was lead detective. In ``Murder Chose Me,'' Demery reflects on his stellar career, guiding viewers through first-person storytelling that weaves his uniquely tragic personal connection to the story of each homicide he solved.
View Episode Rankings#10 - Your Worst Nightmare
Nothing is what it seems. For these victims, something or someone evil is lurking in the shadows. YOUR WORST NIGHTMARE presents spine-tingling stories and delivers true-crime thrillers in a cinematic style.
View Episode Rankings#11 - Most Evil
Most Evil is an American forensics television program on the Discovery Channel starring forensic psychiatrist Dr. Michael Stone from Columbia University. On the show, Dr. Michael Stone rates murderers on a scale of evil that he developed.
View Episode Rankings#12 - A Crime to Remember
Styles may change, but murder lasts forever. Step into the past and unravel the intricacies of real-life murder cases of the ‘50s and ‘60s. Set against the backdrop of Studebakers, fedoras, and three-martini lunches, these stories of truly mad men and women reveal complicated relationships where thwarted dreams and repressed passions led to terrible crimes. This series inaugurates a new high-end cinematic style, using the visual grammar of movies to bring the era to life. To properly illustrate each time period, the series stays true to the fashion and styles while highlighting the cultural taboos and social norms that informed each case.
View Episode Rankings#13 - Shattered (2017)
Like a pane of glass cracking in all directions before shattering, the impact of a single crime can create ripple effects that forever alter multiple lives. This Investigation Discovery series unravels actual homicide cases to explore how the past continues to haunt the present for those involved -- loved ones, witnesses, and law enforcement.
View Episode Rankings#14 - Fear Thy Neighbor
Fear Thy Neighbor takes you into the lives of horrific neighborly disputes. Watch what happens when a simple issue turns into the worst night of a family's life.
View Episode Rankings#15 - Real Detective
With narrative driven exclusively by the detectives themselves, each episode ventures deep into the mind of a homicide detective as they describe in vivid detail the one case forever ingrained in their memory.
View Episode Rankings#16 - See No Evil
Every second of every day, millions of Americans are caught on CCTV. Living in a surveillance society means everyday actions are caught on camera, mostly of honest citizens going about their daily lives. But a few are guilty of unspeakable crimes. Video doesn't discriminate; criminals also end up on film. See no Evil is a groundbreaking series that presents dramatic stories about how real crimes are solved with the aid of surveillance cameras. Police reveal how CCTV footage has unlocked the answer to cases that otherwise might have remained unsolved- leaving dangerous killers at large. The series features real footage and dramatic reconstruction, combined with first-hand testimony from police, witnesses, and families.
View Episode Rankings#17 - Grave Secrets
A secret is never safe, even when it is buried six feet under. This series reveals the skeletons we hide in the closet and the fear of falling under suspicion. To unravel a murder mystery, investigators dig up secrets long-thought buried and come face-to-face with people who will do anything to keep those secrets in the ground.
View Episode Rankings#18 - Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV
Discover the untold story of the toxic and abusive environment inside '90s kids' TV. Hear harrowing accounts from former child stars and crew who probe the balance of power in the industry and reveal an era that inflicted lasting wounds still felt today.
View Episode Rankings#19 - Undercover Underage
Every day, countless adults utilize the internet with insidious intentions to groom, sexually exploit, and abuse children online. Committed to helping law enforcement stop these perpetrators, child advocate Roo Powell and the team at her nonprofit organization SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse) work in collaboration with law enforcement to detect and identify the menacing adults who use the internet to harm children. Undercover Underage follows Roo as the 38-year-old mother of three transforms her appearance into a teen online. Once adults engage with Roo's underage decoys, it's a race against the clock to gather enough information to positively identify the offenders and get them on law enforcement's radar.
View Episode Rankings#20 - Murder by Numbers
Suspenseful. Creepy. Terrifying. Murder by Numbers begins with the grisly discovery of a body and the onset of an investigation. When police think they've solved the case, shocking twists sends each investigation into the depths of evil.
View Episode Rankings#21 - Casey Anthony: An American Murder Mystery
An examination of the Casey Anthony case. The 22-year-old Florida woman was accused of the murder of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. At trial, she was convicted of four lesser charges of providing false information to a police officer, but found not guilty of murder, child abuse and manslaughter.
View Episode Rankings#22 - Lost Women Of Highway 20
Explores the crimes that occurred along Highway 20 between the late 1970s and the early 1990s, where several young women and girls vanished, were sexually assaulted, or were killed.
View Episode Rankings#23 - On the Case with Paula Zahn
Led by Emmy Award-winning journalist Paula Zahn, ON THE CASE features in-depth interviews and original reporting that go beyond the headlines in search of fascinating mysteries from within our nation's justice system. Each episode is highlighted by Zahn's riveting exclusive interviews, which draw out different viewpoints from the people personally connected to tragedies that rocked their local community and the investigations that attempted to piece together the truth.
View Episode Rankings#24 - Gone
A documentary series about cold cases that finally get closure after many years.
View Episode Rankings#25 - I, Witness
One interview. One voice. The whole story. I, WITNESS showcases real-life murder investigations as seen through the eyes of one individual. But their point of view and the story they tell isn’t necessarily the one you might expect.
View Episode Rankings#26 - An American Murder Mystery: The Staircase
Michael Peterson appears to have it all - a doting wife, a loving family and a successful literary career - but, that all changes on December 9, 2001, when Michael's wife, Kathleen, is found dead in a pool of blood at the bottom of a staircase in their home in Durham, North Carolina. Michael claims it was a tragic accident. Investigators, however, fear something far more sinister is at play and direct their attention to him. Did Michael Peterson murder his wife?
View Episode Rankings#27 - Surviving Evil
SURVIVING EVIL features dramatically compelling and emotional stories of victims who fought back against their attackers and, against amazing odds, survived. Joining Investigation Discovery as host of the series is Charisma Carpenter, best known for her role as Cordelia Chase on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off Angel. Carpenter is the survivor of a real-life incident that she endured more than 20 years ago. The actress and two friends were swimming at San Diego's Torrey Pines State Beach in 1991 when they were violently attacked by an armed, rogue police officer. Carpenter fought for her survival after being held at gunpoint, but her two friends were both shot by the attacker and seriously wounded. The police officer was sentenced to 56 years in prison for the attacks in addition to a series of rapes and robberies.
View Episode Rankings#28 - Horror at the Cecil Hotel
In Los Angeles, young Canadian student Elisa Lam's body is found in the water-supply cistern on the roof of the Cecil Hotel, which is known for its rich history of murders, suicides and unexplained deaths.
View Episode Rankings#29 - Nightmare Next Door
"Nightmare Next Door" tells the tales of mysterious murders that rocked small-town America. Each hour brings you a new murder mystery and a new look into the evil that can lurk in the heart and soul of a tight-knit community. Interviews with investigators, prosecutors, family members and neighbors piece together the twisting tale of a classic whodunit.
View Episode Rankings#30 - Cabin in the Woods
Cabin in the Woods explores crimes that take place in remote cabins around the country. It includes investigative elements in a true crime-meets-true horror fashion.
View Episode Rankings#31 - The Curious Case of Natalia Grace
This docuseries offers extraordinary access & exclusive insight into a mystery ripped straight from the headlines. Initially assumed to be a 6-year-old Ukrainian orphan with a rare bone growth disorder that can result in skeletal abnormalities as well as issues with hearing and vision, Natalia was adopted by the Barnett's in 2010. Unfolding over multiple parts, ID presents an unparalleled deep dive into this shocking family saga.
View Episode Rankings#32 - Dead Silent
A snap of a twig. A rustling leaf. In the woods, myth, urban legend, and horror collide with real-life killers. Transporting viewers into a vortex of dark mystery and psychological terror, each episode tells the true story of a crime set in a desolate location.
View Episode Rankings#33 - Betrayed (2016)
Things are not always as they seem in Investigation Discovery’s Betrayed, which revisits heart-pounding cases of deception that ended in murder at the hands of a trusted family member, co-worker, lover, or friend. Told through the lens of the fictionalized, first-person perspectives of the victims, Betrayed treats the viewer like the only confidant they have left. As investigators, family, and friends peel back the layers and facts of each case, the otherworldly narrator already knows where the breadcrumb trail ends. They guide viewers through the various relationships that comprise their life, raising suspicions about who will commit the ultimate betrayal and bring about their doom.
View Episode Rankings#34 - Homicide Hunter: Lt. Joe Kenda
Homicide Hunter is a non-fiction investigative series of murder cases told through the personal experience of retired detective, Lieutenant Joe Kenda. With his personal interviews and compelling storytelling style, Kenda captivates us with the details of a different investigation each week, beginning from when he got the homicide call to when the case was closed. Unlike many true-crime shows, this series delivers the realities of the emotional and psychological effects of a murder on the investigator. Set in Colorado, a state known for its suburban lifestyle, these murders are all the more compelling because they are stories of homicide that can happen to anybody.
View Episode Rankings#35 - Disappeared
A person suddenly and unexpectedly disappears; no trace, no clues, nothing but the lingering mystery they leave behind. According to the FBI's National Crime Information Center, there are now 110,484 active missing persons cases in the U.S., 53% are juveniles under the age of 18. Most of us have heard of the high-profile cases, such as Natalee Holloway, Stacey Peterson, and Chandra Levy. But have you ever heard of Mae Catherine Rocker, Alexis Peterson or Thomas Jay Kerr? Probably not. They are just a few of the hundreds of thousands of people in this country who one day, simply Disappeared. Most missing person's stories have never been told...until now. Disappeared is an exciting series that investigates the disappearance of these victims, who are here one minute, gone the next. Each episode focuses on one victim's story, as told through the perspectives and actual voices of their closest friends and family and the investigators trying to solve the case. Through interviews with family, friends, police, and searchers, each episode recounts the actions, thoughts, circumstances and motivations that led to each person's disappearance. Experience the victim's final hours until they vanished. Watch interviews with experts, from psychologists to forensic specialists to psychics, who will offer new insights into what may have happened in each case, whether the person was a victim of foul play or a runaway. Disappeared will take you inside the world of the missing, where a person can vanish without a trace, investigators race against the clock to solve a mystery, and the victim's anguished family and friends are left to wonder what in the world could have happened.
View Episode Rankings#36 - Deadly Women
Female murderers are often times more horrifying and intriguing than their male counterparts. Their worlds are often defined by obsession, greed, and revenge. Deadly Women fuses bone-chilling story-telling, sumptuous period drama and forensic fact in a bid to explore history's most alluring female killers. Each episode profiles four famous cases from the past; killers and their victims are brought to life by elaborate dramatized reconstructions. The program will span four centuries and seven countries to explore the makings of these deadly women. Candice DeLong, a former FBI agent and profiler, and Dr. Janis Amatuzio, a forensic pathologist will also join the program to give a deeper insight into the crimes and the women who commit them.
View Episode Rankings#37 - The Real Murders on Elm Street
The series explores about small suburban towns across America that have been torn apart by murder. It asks how in a single night, these residential streets descend from peace and tranquility into horror, senseless death and tragedy. Each episode will examine a murder investigation that occurred on one of the many Elm Streets across America
View Episode Rankings#38 - The Atlanta Child Murders (2019)
While touting itself as a mecca for progressive expansion, early 1980s Atlanta has a dark secret. Over two years, at least twenty-nine black children, teens, and young adults have been systematically abducted and murdered from low income neighborhoods. As the mothers of the victims beg law enforcement to take action, the investigation languishes while the country looks on. Suspects include the KKK, the police and known pedophiles. The nightmare is seemingly over when Wayne Williams, a young black man, is arrested and the majority of the crimes are attributed to him. But was he simply a scapegoat? In this 3-part special we explore the case from those closest to it while highlighting the enduring questions surrounding this tragic chapter in Atlanta's history.
View Episode Rankings#39 - Murder Comes Home
When sentimental memories collide with horrific imagery, murder comes closer to home than anyone could ever have imagined. Murder Comes Home pairs actual crime scene video with real home video to create an intimate and emotionally powerful mystery.
View Episode Rankings#40 - Swamp Murders
Swamps, bogs, marshes, bayous and riverbeds can be murky, dark, crazy places, but when a body pops up, things get downright mysterious. Through stylish recreations, Swamp Murders will bring the viewer into the the subculture that's captivating America.
View Episode Rankings#41 - James Patterson's Murder Is Forever
American anthology drama series by New York Times best seller James Patterson. All True American crimes, ripped from the headlines.
View Episode Rankings#42 - I (Almost) Got Away With It
For these perpetrators, their stories may be different, but their motives are always the same: to stay out of prison. The people profiled in this series evaded justice for years, sometimes decades, by using their families, fake identification and even violence to avoid capture. Learn what pushed these individuals to their crimes, how they stayed one step ahead of the police and managed to evade the law -- at least for a while.
View Episode Rankings#43 - Hometown Homicide
The urgency and intimacy of local news reports capture the murder investigations that turned small towns and communities upside down.
View Episode Rankings#44 - Obsession: Dark Desires
Obsessions form in all different kinds of ways. It could be a date, an interview, or even just a passing on the street. In this bone-chilling series they will show real life stories of obsession told by the victims.
View Episode Rankings#45 - Unusual Suspects
THE UNLIKELY CRIMINAL IS EXPOSED - The All-American boy next door. A church-going grandmother. A devoted brother. They were respected role models and trusted members of their community - until the day each of them was charged with a shocking crime. The series shines a light on some UNUSUAL SUSPECTS, showing that even the nicest neighbor can have a sinister side. From vengeful family members to a corrupt officer patrolling the roads, UNUSUAL SUSPECTS profiles those you would least expect to be capable of committing such dark deeds. Each one-hour episode of UNUSUAL SUSPECTS showcases some of the most baffling and challenging cases in contemporary law enforcement, and commends the unwavering investigations that led to the arrest of these unlikely culprits. Featuring in-depth interviews from some of America's top investigative forces, viewers find out how these illusive offenders evaded justice for years, and how persistent police work and a passion for justice ultimately got them caught.
View Episode Rankings#46 - Scorned: Love Kills
Investigation Discovery's new series SCORNED: LOVE KILLS uncovers crimes of passion sparked by a spurned lover's snap from provocative paramour to predacious threat. The 20-episode first season examines the dark side of love with a voyeuristic peek into the lust and obsession that fueled some of the most senseless, but definitely not emotionless, crimes to make front-page headlines. From dalliances with X-rated dancers to a love triangle born from an underground swingers' club, the stories featured in SCORNED pair sexual intrigue with bedded betrayal to form a recipe for murder.
View Episode Rankings#47 - The 1980s: The Deadliest Decade
In many ways, the 1980s are considered the deadliest decade in recent history. Who wants to travel back in time knowing the 10 years consisted of infamous cases like the serial-killing crime spree of ``Night Stalker'' Richard Ramirez, the Menendez brothers' murder of their parents, and Mark David Chapman's cold-blooded shooting of music legend John Lennon? Investigation Discovery explores the dark side of nostalgia to recount other notable murder investigations from the '80s, an era of ego where excess and greed dangerously collide.
View Episode Rankings#48 - The Cult Behind the Killer: The Andrea Yates Story
Follows the Andrea Yates case, exploring how a rogue street preacher's fire-and-brimstone teachings allegedly brought the vulnerable Texas mother under his control, leading to the drowning of her five children in 2001.
View Episode Rankings#49 - Jared from Subway: Catching a Monster
Jared Fogle, aka The Subway Guy, is a pop culture icon and an inspiration to millions of Americans -- but behind his loveable public persona lurks a monster. This three part docu-series reveals the untold story of how he dupes America and how he is brought to justice.
View Episode Rankings#50 - Crimes Gone Viral
Crimes Gone Viral explores the riveting stories behind shocking crimes caught on camera that gain viral fame on the internet. From business security cameras to home surveillance systems and cell phone cameras, someone is almost always watching. Gripping clips of kidnappings, break-ins, wild car chases, violent road rage incidents and other crimes rack up millions of views. But CRIMES GONE VIRAL goes beyond the jaw-dropping footage to tell the full story. This series features compelling interviews and behind-the-scenes information of some of the internet's most viral crime clips.
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