Among TV detective series of the streaming age, arguably none has had more impact than Prime Video’s Bosch. The wildly popular show is based on Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch novels and was adapted for the screen by Eric Overmeyer, whose history writing and producing crime drama includes work on The Wire, Law & Order, and Homicide: Life on the Street.

Such genre pedigree is evident throughout Bosch’s seven seasons, as Overmeyer’s adaptation of Connelly’s books is reinforced by expert crime screenwriters like Diane Frolov and George Pelecanos, and a career-best lead performance from Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch himself.

A no-nonsense yet larger-than-life homicide investigator for the LAPD, Bosch is one of TV’s best-ever detective characters, whose knack for cracking hardened criminals and teasing the truth out of seemingly unsolvable cases has made him a staple of our screens for over a decade. Harry Bosch’s finest hours are as thrilling as they are genre-defining.

“Some Measure Of Justice”

Season 6, Episode 10

The season 6 finale of Bosch illustrates why this crime drama stands out from its contemporaries as a modern-day masterpiece of hard-boiled detective fiction. The show’s title character takes center stage in the interrogation room here, revealing just how frightening he can be in front of the right criminal.

Among the best conclusions to a season in the entire series, “Some Measure of Justice” is one of just two episodes of the show written solely by novelist Michael Connelly, who originated Harry Bosch as a character in the first place. Connelly exercises his peerless command of plot to keep us enraptured throughout one of Bosch’s most fast-paced narratives.

“The Magic Castle”

Season 1, Episode 9

Raynard Waits is possibly the best Bosch characters on the wrong side of the law, and the ninth episode of the show’s debut is his moment in the spotlight. As cunning and manipulative as he is bloodthirsty, Waits enjoys stringing the police along while he murders victim after victim. But he’s ultimately no match for Harry Bosch.

“The Magic Castle” is a straightforward enough episode, but its climactic moment is still profoundly powerful. Bosch’s showdown with Waits is the highlight of season 1, with the moment of truth a masterclass in suspense. We even get a pithy one-liner from Bosch to conclude the episode, straight from the playbook of classic TV crime drama.

“Pill Shills”

Season 5, Episode 2

Both Jerry Edgar and Honey Chandler are characters who return in Bosch: Legacy, Prime Video’s sequel spinoff to the main Bosch series. But they’re never quite as pivotal as they are to the main show in its prime, in episodes like “Pill Shills”. Edgar’s diligence and attention to detail are essential to the parallel investigations he’s a part of here.

Harry Bosch might get most of the credit for solving the cases he works on, but he’d conclude very few of them without Edgar’s help. It’s great to see Bosch’s partner placed front-and-center in this episode, working on his own case, while Honey Chandler proves herself to be equally indispensable in the Borders appeal plot thread of season 5.

“Por Sonia”

Season 7, Episode 8

One of Bosch’s most important episodes was always going to be its series finale, but “Por Sonia” doesn’t disappoint in terms of thrilling and shocking plot twists, either. Far from a happy ending, the episode shores up the show’s noir credentials by having Harry Bosch leave the LAPD in disgust following a gruesome shooting outside his police station.

Although Bosch rarely hides his anger or frustration if a case isn’t going well, his decision to turn in his badge is a major shock that goes far beyond momentary emotion. This ending to the main series of the franchise is highly original and executed to perfection, in large part thanks to an outstanding performance by Titus Welliver.

“Two Kinds Of Truth”

Season 5, Episode 1

This episode shares its name with the Harry Bosch book that the season it’s part of, and the story it tells serves as a philosophical meditation on the nature of criminal guilt and the moral justification for deceiving others. Bosch famously can’t stand liars, and he gets a taste of his own medicine when an attempt at espionage ends badly.

“Two Kinds of Truth” strikes the perfect balance between its flashforward and the actual beginning of season 5’s plot. The time-jump is blended seamlessly into the general tone of the episode, which is mired in murkily ambiguous perspectives on the morality of justice.

“Aye Papi”

Season 3, Episode 8

Years before J. Edgar’s Bosch spinoff was canceled, the character could have met a very sticky end in this season 3 episode of the original streaming series. The shocking final scene of “Aye Papi” leaves us fearing for Edgar’s life, when he’s shot by one of the heavies working for the suspect Bosch is trying to catch.

Harry Bosch himself, meanwhile, is reeling from an incident related to the murder of his mother, which is a key element of trauma in his troubled backstory. As a result, we see Bosch in more psychological turmoil and less concerned with the right course of action than at almost any other point in the series. It makes for gripping viewing.

“The Coping”

Season 4, Episode 5

Titus Welliver gives one of his best Bosch performances in the episode that marks the halfway point of the show’s greatest season. We see his character grappling with his feelings towards three generations of women. First, he recalls the day his mother was murdered, before diving headfirst into a search for his wife’s killer, while trying to comfort their daughter.

“The Coping” reveals the fragility beneath Bosch’s thick-skinned exterior more than any other episode. His emotions are exposed, as are the underlying reasons for how he behaves. Harry Bosch’s idea of justice is motivated by a deep-seated – but ultimately misplaced – sense of personal responsibility, something that this episode lays bare with immense sensitivity.

“Book Of The Unclaimed Dead”

Season 4, Episode 10

The death of Eleanor Wish is an especially harsh reality for Harry Bosch to face in season 4 of the show. Eleanor is Bosch’s ex-wife, and one of the few people he’s ever been truly open with. Nevertheless, this plot point makes the best season of Bosch what it is, including its finale episode, in which Eleanor’s killer is found.

Yet, solving the case of Eleanor’s murder is just the start of an action-packed closer, in which Bosch also finally solves the mystery of his own mother’s murderer. This storyline marks the tense conclusion of a plot arc that can be traced right back to the first episode of the show.

“Follow The Money”

Season 2, Episode 8

When it comes to the elements that make Bosch great, “Follow the Money” has just about all of them. A complex web of deceit and subterfuge, a mystery-solving trail of breadcrumbs, and a spectacular shootout, pitting the LAPD against an entire gang of criminals, come together to make one of the show’s very best episodes.

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Harry Bosch and Jerry Edgar face some perilous challenges throughout, and the manner in which the story is resolved is far from clean-cut. This episode is Bosch at its gritty, hair-raising finest.

“Past Lives”

Season 4, Episode 4

Season 4 of Bosch proves why it’s Prime Video’s most thrilling binge-watch, as episodes of jawdropping plot twists and emotive character development flow into one another effortlessly, creating the effect of one long movie. “Past Lives” is the most dramatic installment of the lot, and is as flawless as it is compelling.

It features the intriguing case of Harry Bosch’s former partner in the LAPD, Frank Sheehan, and the sudden, horrifying murder of Eleanor Wish, as well as the initial stages of shock and grief Bosch and his daughter with Eleanor, Maddie, go through together. As Bosch episodes go, this one sits right at the top of the pile.

Release Date

2015 – 2021-00-00

Network

Prime Video

Showrunner

Eric Ellis Overmyer

Directors

Alex Zakrzewski, Ernest R. Dickerson, Patrick Cady, Aaron Lipstadt, Adam Davidson, Daisy von Scherler Mayer, Kevin Dowling, Neema Barnette, Tim Hunter, Zetna Fuentes, Christine Moore, Jim McKay, Laura Belsey, Matt Earl Beesley, Phil Abraham, Roxann Dawson, Sarah Pia Anderson, Stephen Gyllenhaal, Tara Nicole Weyr, Thomas Carter, Hagar Ben-Asher

Writers

Jeffrey Alan Fiskin, Tom Bernardo, Elle Johnson, John Mankiewicz, Shaz Bennett, Alex Meenehan, Katie Pyne, Osokwe Vasquez, Lolis Eric Elie, Jessica Kivnik, Mitzi Roberts