Arrow seasons, ranked
What’s the best season of Arrow? That’s the question we’re going to answer. It’s been more than three years since the end of Arrow, the most important superhero show in modern history. To celebrate the great series, we ranked all eight seasons of Arrow from worst to best.
Arrow ended after eight seasons on The CW in January 2020 following the epic Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover, one of the greatest Arrowverse episode arcs. The series premiered on The CW in October 2012. Fans from all over the world tuned in to watch Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) become the Green Arrow, the vigilante of Starling City and later Star City
It’s hard to imagine the landscape of superhero TV without Arrow. The show launched, the Arrowverse, an interconnected universe of superhero shows on The CW including The Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, Batman, Superman and Lois, and more! There are so many good episodes of Arrow.
Let’s get the ranking of Arrow seasons started with Arrow season 6!
8. Arrow season 6
- Year: 2017-2018
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, Echo Kellum, Rick Gonzalez, Juliana Harkavy, Katie Cassidy, and Paul Blackthorne
Arrow season 6 is unfortunately the worst season of the series. If you’re a big fan of season 6, please know that I take no pleasure in this. Arrow season 6 just isn’t that good to me. The series has changed so much and gotten so much bigger than the first few seasons. Clearly, the show works better when it’s more grounded and focused. There are so many characters in season 6 and so many new directions that the show is getting pulled, and I feel like it just lost its way a bit.
That’s not necessarily cutting criticism. I don’t think anyone is to blame. It’s just really hard to keep interest high and keep the story moving forward in an entertaining way after so many episodes. We’re nearly 120 hours into Arrow by season 6; that’s just an incredible achievement for this creative team. Yet, the story was suffering around this time.
In Arrow season 6, Oliver is surrounded by enemies on all sides at the battle at Lian Yu, and he’s forced to cut a deal with the feds for their help cleaning up Star City. In the deal, Oliver GOES TO PRISON. Sorry for the ALL CAPS, but it’s the worst storyline in the history of the show in my opinion. Like, why did they have to do that? I know he needed to pay for his crimes, but come on.
Arrow season 6 also sees the end of Paul Blackthorne’s character Quentin Lance in the series.
Enough about Arrow season 6. Let’s talk about another not-so-good season of Arrow.
7. Arrow season 4
- Year: 2014-2015
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, John Barrowman, and Paul Blackthorne
I don’t know how to say this, but Arrow season 4 is one of the worst seasons of the series. It’s not that the show suddenly just imploded or something like that, but it’s hard to keep the momentum generated in those first two and a half seasons. With 23 episodes per season, Arrow almost went over the 100-episode mark in season 4. That’s insane for a superhero show like this one! I think the story just ran of out steam from a creative perspective until it had to reset and take things in a new direction later in the series.
In Arrow season 4, Oliver finds himself and Team Arrow up against another formidable opponent in Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough), who has his own team of assassins known as HIVE. Team Arrow is really up against it in their fight with Damien Darhk. It’s the first time like actual magical powers introduced in the series, which is definitely a shift.
The beginning of Arrow to me was so similar to Netflix’s Daredevil. It was so grounded, and it felt so street-level compared to what we were seeing in the MCU and DCEU. This is where I feel the show started to lose me a little bit.
Arrow season 4 also features the death of one of the fan’s favorite characters, Laurel Lance, also known as Black Canary. As we learned later, this wouldn’t be the last time we’d see Katie Cassidy in this series, but things just weren’t quite the same in my opinion.
6. Arrow season 7
- Year: 2018-2019
- Episodes: 22
- Cast: Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, Emily Bett Rickards, Echo Kellum, Rick Gonzalez, Juliana Harkavy, Colton Haynes, Kirk Acevedo, Sea Shimooka, and Katie Cassidy
After a not-great Arrow season 6, things really start to get back on track in Arrow season 7. It’s a clear tier below the best seasons of Arrow, and it’s still below what I consider the “good” seasons of Arrow, but it’s not season 6. That’s a good thing!
In Arrow season 7, which features a lengthy time jump, Oliver is dealing with the prison issue, but he’s released from prison to stop the Longbow Hunters from terrorizing Star City. Eventually, Oliver and Team Arrow come out victorious, but they are betrayed by Emiko Queen (Sea Shimooka), Oliver’s half-sister, who teamed up with them only to begin dismantling everything Oliver worked for in Star City.
We also get another time jump at the end of the season 20 years into the future, and that sets the stage for the story that plays out in Arrow season 8 with Oliver and his daughter, Mia (Kate McNamara).
At the end of Arrow season 7, Emily Bett Rickards, the fan favorite of all fan favorites in Arrow, leaves the series before returning in the series as Felicity Smoak.
5. Arrow season 5
- Year: 2016-2017
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, Echo Kellum, Josh Segarra, and Paul Blackthorne
Arrow season 5 marks another big shift for Team Arrow and the series overall. Following the events of Arrow season 4, Oliver must regroup and add a few new members to Team Arrow. That’s when we get the introductions of new cast members and characters, including Curtis Holt aka Mr. Terrific (Echo Kellum), Rene Ramirez aka Wild Dog (Rick Gonzalez), Evelyn Sharp aka Artemis (Madison McLaughlin), and Rory Regan aka Ragman (Joe Dinicol). Felicity stays as part of the team while Diggle moves on in his own journey for a time. Juliana Harkavy also joins the series as Dinah Drake aka Black Canary in season 5.
In Arrow season 5, Oliver and Team Arrow are up against one of the most challenging supervillains yet in Prometheus, who is a respected Star City citizen with a dangerous grudge against Oliver. Prometheus stops at nothing to target Oliver, his team, and even the people closest to Oliver.
The season features a huge moment in the show’s history by bringing all of the main characters and those in Oliver’s life to Lian Yu, where it all started for the Green Arrow.
Arrow broke the 100-episode mark in season 5, which is a huge feat for so many TV shows. It’s clear the tone and overall vibe has shifted a little bit since the beginning of the series. The story was always heading in this direction, but it’s wild to see how the show has evolved over its first five seasons. Unfortunately, until the final season, Arrow gets worse in season 6 and 7.
4. Arrow season 3
- Year: 2014-2015
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, Colton Haynes, John Barrowman, Caity Lotz, and Paul Blackthorne
Arrow season 3 is another great season of the series. It’s not quite in that top tier of the seasons, which you’ll see in the top 3 of this ranking, but it’s close. As the story continues, it really starts to dive deeper into Oliver’s purpose and the dilemma he faces as the Green Arrow.
In Arrow season 3, Oliver is forced to confront the biggest and baddest antagonist yet in Ra’s al Ghul, who is the top dog in the League of Assassins. We also see one of the major character deaths of the series in season 3. Sara Lance, also known as The Canary, is killed in Arrow season 3. Although it’s not the last time we see the character, it’s still a tough one!
Overall, I didn’t enjoy all of Ra’s al Ghul and Oliver’s game of cat and mouse in Arrow season 3. I mean, I did enjoy parts of it, but it was the first time I thought the series started to move away from what made it good. The quality of the series really starts to suffer in the later season, although it remains one of the top superhero shows on TV.
Arrow season 3 is still in the top half of the show’s seasons, but it’s not quite as good as the first two seasons.
3. Arrow season 1
- Year: 2012-2013
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, Colin Donnell, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Susanna Thompson, and Paul Blackthorne
Arrow season 1 is the third-best season of Arrow, but it’s definitely top tier with Arrow season 8 and season 2. Overall, I think the first season of the series does an incredible job of introducing these characters, storylines, and mystery. It provides enough information to hook viewers, but there’s enough substance and intrigue building that set up an incredible run for this series, The Flash, and many of the Arrowverse shows.
In Arrow season 1, Oliver Queen returns to Star City after five years away. He was shipwrecked on a remote island, but what happened during those five years? Oliver becomes the Green Arrow and forms a vigilante team with John Diggle and Felicity Smoak. Together, they try to rid the streets of Star City of crime and corruption.
Why does Oilver become a vigilante in Star City? What’s in it for him? That’s one of the questions the series starts to answer. And luckily, we don’t get those answers immediately. The twists and turns in this show are set up in the very early episodes.
One of the things I love about Arrow season 1 is how we’re introduced to these characters and how much chemistry these characters have with each other. We don’t get the full story right away, but there’s so much drama and tension in every interaction. It’s great TV!
2. Arrow season 8
- Year: 2019-2020
- Episodes: 10
- Cast: Stephen Amell, David Ramsey, Rick Gonzalez, Juliana Harkavy, Katherine McNamara, Ben Lewis, Joseph David-Jones, LaMonica Garrett, and Katie Cassidy
Arrow season 8 is the final season of the hit series. It’s the shortest season of the full show, so it’s hard for me to rank it no. 1, especially compared to Arrow season 2, which was a truly formative year for the CW series. But, Arrow season 8 is as good as the show has ever been. The tight story leading into one of the most epic TV superhero events of all time in Crisis on Infinite Earths is relatively unmatched for an Arrowverse show. In terms of scope, The Flash’s final season rivals the Arrow ending in my opinion, but Arrow’s final season is better than The Flash, for sure.
Arrow season 8 finishes Oliver Queen’s story and journey (for the most part). Most of the season revolves around Oliver helping to prepare for the Crisis on Infinite Earths and the battle with the Anti-Monitor. That’s his physical arc, but we also see Oliver trying to come to grips with his role in this saga and the sacrifice that he must make.
I covered the final panel for Arrow at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019. Everything was running late and long, and the press room ran way over time, but the cast stayed in the press room until everyone got to speak to them. That doesn’t always happen at these big conventions. In my experience, it rarely happens, so it was a testament to the cast’s respect for those covering the show and the show’s fans who’d stayed with them for all eight seasons.
Most of the former stars of the years who had left the show and moved on returned for the final season of Arrow in some capacity, including Emily Bett Rickards, Colton Haynes, Paul Blackthorne, Colin Donnell, Willa Holland, and more. That was a great moment for the fans, too!
1. Arrow season 2
- Year: 2013-2014
- Episodes: 23
- Cast: Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Willa Holland, Emily Bett Rickards, Colton Haynes, Manu Bennett, Susanna Thompson, and Paul Blackthorne
There’s no doubt in my mind that Arrow season 2 is the best season of the series. The first season was an incredible introduction into the world of Oliver Queen, Star City, and what would later become the Arrowverse.
In Arrow season 2, the mystery of what happened to Oliver on Lian Yu continues with the flashbacks. They get more intense than ever, and we continue to learn more about Oliver, what happened, and how it’s going to shape the rest of the story. We also get the introduction to Deathstroke/Slade Wilson as a major player in the season. Deathstroke is one of my favorite characters in Arrow, so it’s bonus points from me. We also see the team add Sara Lance as Canary and Roy Harper as Arsenal in the second season.
For me, this is where Arrow really found its footing and became the show that shaped a decade of programming for a major network.
The creative team also took some bigger swings with their twists and turns in season 2. The first season is, more or less, straightforward. There’s a bigger mystery that’s unfolding, but we’re learning more and more about these characters. In season 2, that foundation was established, and it opened the door to a lot more of the big reveals that we’d come to expect in The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, and the other Arrowverse shows on The CW.
We also get The Flash backdoor pilot in Arrow season 2. The eighth episode of the season introduces Barry Allen, played by Grant Gustin, and the rest is history.