The BEST episodes of Real Detective

Every episode of Real Detective ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of 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.

Last Updated: 1/23/2024Network: Investigation DiscoveryStatus: Ended
Share:
Angel Doe
star
8.12
82 votes

#1 - Angel Doe

Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 4/20/2017

Investigator Clarence Douglas tackles the case of Angel Doe, a little girl found dead in a ditch near the Houston Bayou, promising not to neglect her in death, like she was in life.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
The Riverside Killer
star
7.99
95 votes

#2 - The Riverside Killer

Season 2 - Episode 2 - Aired 3/9/2017

One year into the most demanding case of his career, Riverside, Cal., senior investigator Bob Creed arrives at the scene of the 16th murder in a string of slayings. But this one is different. It's on his grandfather's property, where he spent most of his youth.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Misery
star
7.95
84 votes

#3 - Misery

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 2/25/2016

John Cameron attempts to clear a suspect's name in the disappearance of a child and along the way he finds out about the world of a ritualistic child killer.

Directors: April Mullen
Writer: Scott Bailey
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Puppet Master
star
7.92
83 votes

#4 - Puppet Master

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 4/13/2017

A young woman fails to return to her home in Boulder, Colo, and she is later found decapitated; Detective Steve Ainsworth soon learns she was part of a mysterious Apostolic church group, led by a pastor who has a reputation for preying on the weak.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Every Rose Has a Thorn
star
7.89
88 votes

#5 - Every Rose Has a Thorn

Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 3/30/2017

A missing person case turns suspicious when a well-liked Wausau, Wis., man doesn't show up for work one morning. Investigator Larry Woebbeking finds himself in an unexpected predicament when the girlfriend of the victim appears to have fallen for him.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Vengeance
star
7.88
94 votes

#6 - Vengeance

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 2/18/2016

A Seattle PD detective's investigation into a series of murders of women is aided by a call from an inmate at King County Jail.

Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Lambs to the Slaughter
star
7.86
83 votes

#7 - Lambs to the Slaughter

Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 4/6/2017

In Lake County, Fla., Chief Investigator Rocky Harris is called in to investigate a haunting case, the rape and murder of a young girl; wading through bad police work and dead ends, Harris is sickened when he uncovers the identity of the killer.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Blood Brothers
star
7.80
111 votes

#8 - Blood Brothers

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 3/2/2017

Long-time partners and best friends, police detectives John Conaty and Ray Giacomelli never thought things would happen the way they did on a Pittsburg, Cal., murder case, where the prime suspect is a killer who was put behind bars years earlier.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
No Remorse
star
7.78
90 votes

#9 - No Remorse

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 3/23/2017

Sacramento FBI Special Agent Jeff Rinek sought out the worst cases because he was the best at solving them. After 7-month-old Frankie Proctor is kidnapped at gunpoint from his family home, Rinek knows the chances of finding the child alive are slim to none.

Writer: Tim Doiron
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Damage
star
7.71
111 votes

#10 - Damage

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 1/21/2016

A Texas Ranger's investigation into the murder of a young woman leads him to suspects with friends in high places.

Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
No One Is Safe
star
7.71
93 votes

#11 - No One Is Safe

Season 2 - Episode 3 - Aired 3/16/2017

Indianapolis detective Christine Mannina arrives on the scene of an execution-style shooting that's left one man dead and another in critical condition. She knows she must convince a reluctant witness to come forward and put her life on the line.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Malice
star
7.67
126 votes

#12 - Malice

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/14/2016

Still troubled after killing someone in the line of duty, Detective C.W. Jensen faces the most haunting case of his career: A missing child becomes a harrowing pursuit of a Portland, Oregon child serial killer, pushing C.W. to the brink of suicide.

Directors: Petro Duszara
Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Silence
star
7.58
95 votes

#13 - Silence

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 1/28/2016

A hardened LAPD homicide detective has his eyes opened by the mother of a senselessly murdered woman.

Directors: David Hackl
Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Retribution
star
7.52
98 votes

#14 - Retribution

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/4/2016

A rookie homicide detective becomes too close to the mother of a murder victim and shares the dark secrets that led to the son's death with her.

Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Darkness
star
7.47
96 votes

#15 - Darkness

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 2/11/2016

After a hit-and-run accident tears a family apart, Detective Tommy Ray takes the grieving wife and daughter under his wing; later, a chance encounter will make the detective realize he doesn't really know them.

Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Redemption
star
7.39
162 votes

#16 - Redemption

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/7/2016

Detective Eddie Herman of Cobb County, Georgia is a homicide detective at the top of his game, solving major high profile crimes. But when a missing persons turns into a double homicide, Eddie's ego gets in the way and the killer walks free.

Writer: Mark Bacci
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV