Netflix’s original content is notoriously hit or miss. Either it hits a home run with subscribers like Stranger Things, or it’s causing them no end of consternation as they endlessly swipe through choices. Still, as one of the big giants in the realm of streaming services, Netflix’s original series and films have become something of an industry-standard, with subscribers continuing to login to uncover hidden gems worthy of a binge.
2020 looks to be an exciting year for the platform, with several already anticipated series generating press (albeit almost no films). With Season 4 of Stranger Things slated for a 2021 release, there’s still plenty of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror to discover, such as with Messiah or October Faction. Let’s take a look at the 5 most buzz-worthy Netflix originals coming in 2020, and the 5 most forgettable.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: THE STRANGER
We’ve been intrigued by The Stranger since the first teaser dropped, dropping a bombshell of a secret along with it. We see Adam Price (The Hobbit’s Richard Armitage) faced by The Stranger, a woman who seems to know a great deal about his family life, and the secrets that it contains. In the upcoming eight-part series, Price will investigate the life he thought he knew, and be pulled into a dark conspiracy.
Armitage has enjoyed great success lending his vocal talents to Netflix’s Castlevania series as Trevor Belmont, as well as Marvel’s Wolverine podcast as Logan/Wolverine, and he’s no stranger to thrillers, having recently starred in the espionage series Berlin Station and Spooks. The games will begin on January 30th.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: OCTOBER FACTION
Somewhere in between The Umbrella Academy and The Addams Family, you get the IDW comic series October Faction, about a family of monster hunters that travel the world dressing sharply and smiting the forces of evil with sharp objects. The series will premier as a Netflix original January 23rd.
Over 10 episodes we’ll follow Fred and Deloris Allen, a married couple of monster hunters who return to Fred’s hometown after the death of his father. As the family adjusts to living in upstate New York, they must conceal their identities as members of a secret supernatural slaying organization. We imagine there will be humor as they attempt to “blend in” despite obvious eccentricities, as well as some fun horror elements.
NOT: RATCHED
Sarah Paulson and Ryan Murphy, who have collaborated many times over the course of American Horror Story, are teaming up to bring Ratched to Netflix in 2020. The series will chronicle a young Ratchet on her trajectory from mental health nurse to becoming the intimidating psychiatric ward administrator in 1974’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.
Louise Fletcher won an Academy Award for Best Actress for playing Nurse Ratchet, a representation of power corrupting at the highest levels of authority. While we can’t deny Paulson is more than up to the task, and we’re thrilled to see Michael Douglas producing (he helped get the ‘74 classic made), we worry about a character like Ratchet being humanized and losing some of her mystery.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: AJ AND THE QUEEN
The Supermodel of the World is taking her show on the road in Netflix’s new series AJ and the Queen. RuPaul will star as Robert aka Ruby Red, a female impersonator who gets dumped by the love of his life and decides to take his show on a grand tour. His travel buddy is a wise-talking 11-year-old orphan who’s decided to become his “bodyguard” at gigs.
Fans of Ru and Rupaul’s Drag Race have probably wondered what took Ru so long to graduate to films. The teaser shows laughs, tears, and enough glitter and glamour served up by Mama Ru to snatch more than a few wigs. It’s Paper Moon meets Priscilla Queen of the Desert in this charming buddy comedy, set to be released January 19th, 2020.
NOT: THIEVES OF THE WOOD
When looking for something to fill the gap left from Vikings and The Last Kingdom, we settled on Thieves of the Woods, which seemed to have the energy of the two historical dramas, as well as a healthy dose of Robin Hood thrown in for good humor.
Unfortunately, by the looks of the teaser, it seems to be another costume drama with a lot of violence to make up for a lack of plot, ala The Bastard Executioner. When following the shenanigans of highwaymen, it’s hard not to think of the absurdity of Men in Tights as opposed to the downtrodden fighting against a corrupt Belgian aristocracy.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: DRACULA
While it may seem strange for a horror series to premiere so soon after the New Year, you’ll want to sink your teeth into this Netflix/BBC collaboration. The 3-part mini-series will tell the traditional story of Dracula as he makes his way from his iconic castle in Transylvania to London, encountering Jonathan and Mina Harker, Van Helsing, and all the characters from Bram Stoker’s novel.
Based on the trailers, the series looks like a lush period drama with some dark humor, stunning art direction, and strong performances. Prepare for American Horror Story levels of disturbing imagery with this one, but a fine contribution to the legacy of the Prince of Darkness.
NOT: ARES
Netflix is premiering its first-ever Dutch collaboration series in 2020, and based on the trailers, it looks underwhelming. Ares follows a university student in Amsterdam desperate to be part of an elite organization, complete with rituals, cloaks, and hundreds of flickering candles.
The student soon discovers that like all exclusive societies whose members wear black hoods, masks, and form semi-circles around you chanting in tongues, this one is committed to evil. As enticing as the visuals and atmosphere are for this series, the plot of a secret organization that’s really a demonic cult just seems tired and unimaginative.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: ALTERED CARBON
When Netflix first premiered Altered Carbon, the cyberpunk series involving future generations being able to move their consciousness to new bodies (“skin”) over time, viewers didn’t know the wild ride they were in for. Based on Richard K. Morgan’s neo-noir, it took place 300 years in the future and featured some pretty Blade Runner level visuals.
Fans that have hailed it as one of the best “true sci-fi” series in production are waiting to see what happens to Takeshi Kovacs, the supersoldier who was resurrected to solve the murder of Laurens Bancroft. He uncovered a diabolical plot in the process, and the finale seemed to get no closer to sealing the fate of the Bancroft family. Season 2 is set to drop sometime in late 2020.
NOT: THE CIRCLE
Netflix has gone ahead and greenlit a reality series for 2020 called The Circle, and it’s pretty much the worst thing ever. Not just because it adds to the hundreds of gimmicky reality programs already in existence, but because contestants lie, cheat, and catfish each other to win $100,000.
A series that contains commentary on the projected image society has on social media might seem refreshing, but not when you realize there was a 2015 Netflix film also called The Circle. with a better approach. A group of 50 people arbitrarily chose social norms to vote for the people around them to be killed off, thereby guaranteeing their own survival. We think that would make for a more interesting series (if a bit controversial).
