Since the streaming giant Netflix started producing series like on an assembly line, the shows Dark side of series excess: not every novelty is also continued. Because nothing is worse than investing your own valuable time in a new show, which is then simply canceled again – and in the worst case even ends with an agonizing cliffhanger and big promises for a sequel.
The problem: many Netflix series start close together. If you don’t stay in the top 10 charts and don’t attract the masses of viewers, you’ll be dropped again. Netflix has disappointed, hurt and frustrated quite a few fans with this merciless method. Even if Netflix saves series from time to time, the mass of highlights that ended far too early prevails. Here are 10 Series Cancellations We Can’t Forgive Netflix.
1st unforgivable Netflix cancellation: Altered Carbon
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Altered Carbon
There are those who say that Altered Carbon – The Immortality Program feels like throwing the most well-worn cyberpunk clichés into a pot and then stirring it twice with little motivation. But that’s unfair, because: The dystopian narrative about a world where human consciousness is stored on chips and can be transferred to any body, was one of the strongest sci-fi seriesthat ever aired on Netflix.
The result of this horror vision: The rich are de facto immortal, accumulate more and more fortune over the centuries and live in heaven. The poor eke out a living in the filth of the metropolis and have nothing to sell but their bodies. Season 1 in particular, starring Joel Kinnaman as convicted terrorist Takeshi Kovacs, whose imprisoned mind is transferred into a new body to solve the murder of a super-rich man, was just the right mix of crime fiction and stylishly staged dystopia. Unfortunately, Netflix pulled after a weaker second season — starring Anthony Mackie as Kovacs — unplugged in February 2020. (LL)
2nd unforgivable Netflix cancellation: American Vandal
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American vandals
It’s a vain endeavor to debate which are the best series Netflix has ever produced. But it would only be logical if American Vandal landed on every single top list. In the True crime mockumentary young filmmakers try to get to the bottom of illegal to just disturbing incidents at an American high school. In Season 1, a student is suspected of smearing penises on the teachers’ cars. But was it really him?
The amateur documentary filmmakers try to find out through investigative interviews and 3D animations of heavy petting scenarios. Season 2 is dedicated to an assassination attempt on the entire school: someone put laxative in the soda in the cafeteria, causing an epochal escalation of diarrhea. It sounds totally silly, and it is. And yet American is Vandal one of the smartest, funniest and most surprising showsthat Netflix has ever produced. At least until 2018, after season 2 and a total of 16 episodes, it was over. (LL)
3. Unforgivable Netflix Cancellation: Daredevil and the Defenders-verse
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Marvel’s Defenders
In this case is Netflix, for once, it’s not their own fault on a dismissal. The era of Marvel Netflix series around Daredevil, Jessica Jones and the Punisher ended with a series mass extinction that left fans stunned and shocked – after all, highlights like Daredevil and The Punisher are among the best Marvel shows ever. Within a few months, all 5 solo series were gradually discontinued.
The reason: Disney ended the old Marvel TV era to usher in a new era of Marvel Studios series on the Disney+ streaming service. There is one small consolation for fans, however: some of the Defenders characters will be reintegrated into the MCU. Matt Murdock aka Daredevil soon celebrates in She-Hulk as well as Echo his Marvel series return and will then have its own series (or a 4th season), which could also bring Jessica Jones back. (MW)
4th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
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The Dark Crystal
Even the best shows don’t stand a chance of renewal on Netflix if they can’t get enough views. Fans of the epic fantasy doll series The Dark Crystal: Experience the Era of Resistance firsthand. Despite being showered with praise from audiences and critics, the lavishly produced fantasy highlight failed to generate the hype needed to justify a sequel.
Because the series was for Netflix with its handmade dolls, elaborately designed fantasy sets and well-known speakers: inside extremely expensive endeavor. In the end, what remains is a fantastic series, but unfortunately the story is not over. Particularly annoying: Netflix let the fans fidget for a long time and they Discontinuation only more than a year after the start of series production announced. (MW)
5th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: I Am Not Okay With This
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I Am Not Okay With This
I absolutely disagree with the fact that Netflix canceled I Am Not Okay With This. This extremely crisp told Coming-age story with a fantasy twist had found an audience and fans in no time. It was not without reason that a second season was quickly ordered. But then came the blow to the stomach: Netflix canceled the sequel in August 2020 before the start of production. The reason is said to have been the COVID-19 pandemic.
The series revolves around a teenager who not only has to deal with the problems of a normal teenager, but also suddenly develops superpowers. Two charismatic young stars (Sophia Lillis and Wyatt Oleff from Es) performed brilliantly in sensitive roles. The plot came to a head within the very short runtime (just under three hours) leading up to the season finale. Then the cliffhanger. And the dismissal. The maximum penalty for fans. What did we do to deserve this, Netflix? (hb)
6th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: Jupiter’s Legacy
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Jupiter’s Legacy
Jupiter’s Legacy should have been the next big superhero franchise and ended up being one of the most expensive flops in Netflix history. The film adaptation of Mark Millar’s comic epic about the Conflict of two generations of superheroes on several time levels could not inspire the fans oversaturated by Marvel and DC.
Jupiter’s Legacy failed because of its own ambitions. Less than a month after launch, Netflix pulled the ripcord. The cancellation of Jupiter’s Legacy was particularly painful for fans of the comic book template. Because season 1 only adapted a fraction of the comic and seemed more like a kind Prologue to a really good series, which we will never see. (MW)
7th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: Santa Clarita Diet
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Santa Clarita Diet
The story of the suburban mom-turned-bloodthirsty zombie was funny from the start, but Santa Clarita Diet still managed to keep getting better and better. What initially seemed like a high concept idea that can hardly last more than one season developed into an exciting one horror comedy with sometimes touching insights into a marriage under (blood) pressure.
Now, there’s really nothing to complain about when you’re getting three seasons starring Drew Barrymore, Timothy Olyphant and series MVP Skyler Gisondo, but the nature of the cancellation still infuriates years later. Season 3 of the zombie series ended on a massive cliffhanger, which promised a new direction for the story. Since then, Santa Clarita Diet has remained little more than a rump in the Netflix catalogue, which is why the show cannot even be recommended more highly. (YY)
8th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: Skylines
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skylines
The history of German Netflix series is changeable. There is dark. And there is Dogs of Berlin. One of the strongest representatives so far is Skylines, which goes into the German rap scene from Frankfurt. I don’t know if it was all authentic, but the many cameo appearances by stars like Nura Habib Omer at least gave the impression and that’s the most important thing.
Anyway, the topic was interesting. Skylines told two rise-and-fall stories and combined them with not-too-clichéd gangster elements. The up-and-coming producer Jinn (always great: Edin Hasanovic) is on the way up, the rap star Kalifa (great: Murathan Muslu) on the way down. By the end of the series, I felt like things were just getting started. Unfortunately nothing came of it. Netflix pretty much silently dropped Skylines. (hb)
9th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: The OA
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The OA
Netflix is now pretty good at assessing which stuff works on its platform and which doesn’t. When it comes to announcements, there are hardly any surprises. However, there was a time when the streaming service was great extremely willing to experiment and didn’t even shy away from niche projects. One of the most unusual series in the entire Netflix catalog dates from this period: The OA.
The mystery drama series was created by Brit Marlin and Zal Batmanglij, which is mostly known in the indie space. she is abstract, bulky and full of mysteries. It’s too bad the story never got past two seasons. Here, new dimensions could not only have been told on the content level. The series itself could have discovered new dimensions of storytelling. (MH)
10th unforgivable Netflix cancellation: The Society
©Netflix
The Society
Actually, The Society sounded like the perfect hit series for Netflix: When a group of young people return from a school trip, everything is suddenly different. All adults have disappeared and their hometown is surrounded by a dense, seemingly endless forest. So the teenagers have no other chance than to build their own society. Lord of the Flies with no sea viewso to say.
The cast was young and interesting, the character dynamics both entertaining and profound, and Season 1 raised enough questions and mysteries to keep audiences engaged for years to come. The season finale even ended on an ultimate mindfuck moment! Particularly bitter: despite the extension for Season 2, Netflix pulled the plug and cited the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason. The Society ended after only 10 episodes. Unfortunately. (LL)
Podcast for Series Fans: These 22 Series Highlights Coming Later This YearWhat’s Coming to Netflix, Amazon, Disney+ and More This Year? In the Moviepilot podcast, we are looking forward to the new series that await us in the second half of the year, apart from the big series blockbusters like Lord of the Rings and House of the Dragon:
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For you, this means a lot of streaming tips for your watch lists. There are sci-fi hits like Star Trek: Strange New World and Star Wars: Andor, new horror fodder that gives you goosebumps at midnight, and insider tips like 1883 and The Bear.
Which canceled Netflix series are you still mourning?