Interestingly enough, all of the top shows are action-driven, and three out of five are non-English series — a curious trend that reflects viewers’ internationalization and becomes more and more noticeable on all streaming platforms. With different genres, languages, and focus, these top-performing 2021 Netflix original TV shows are a must-watch.
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Squid Game is a unique Netflix phenomenon that, once it premiered in September 2021, has taken over the world by storm and became the most-watched non-English show in the streamer’s history. The simple yet brutal premise of this gripping series reminiscent of Battle Royal has helped it gain widespread popularity that extended outside of the cinematic borders. The story follows a group of people who compete over a massive cash prize by playing several children’s games, with a simple condition — those who lose die. And just like with Highlander, there can be only one (winner).
The survival game concept is not new, with examples like the previously mentioned Battle Royal, Alice in Borderland, 3%, and even Hunger Games. However, what sets Squid Game apart is the relatable characters, including the goodhearted and lovable yet flawed protagonist Seong Gi-Hun (Lee Jung-Jae), chilling simplicity and innocence of the selected games, social commentary, and expressive brutality and gore that go hand-in-hand with personal drama. The show became so popular that it spawned a wave of imitations, cosplays, and real-life replicas of the series’ massive Doll popping up in public places around the world.
The popularity of Squid Game has opened doors to other Korean dramas on Netflix, and Hellbound promptly followed in its violent steps. Created and directed by Yeon-Sang-ho, known for successful Train to Busan, and based on his webtoon Hell, Hellbound takes Squid Games’ thrill-filled drama and gore and adds a layer of explicit horror and dark fantasy to them. The story takes place in an alternate reality, where demonic creatures deliver prophecies to seemingly random people containing the exact date and time when they will be torn to pieces and dragged to hell. After the live stream of the first death causes mass hysteria, a religious organization, known as the New Truth, rises to power, branding those condemned as sinners and influencing the perceptions of right and wrong.
Hellbound’s lovable and relatable characters, moral deliberations, social analysis, and an ultimate twist make it one of the most popular Netflix shows of 2021.
In stark contrast to violent and gory Squid Game and Hellbound, Sweet Tooth has a more good-natured and fairy tale tone while focusing on human psychology and exploring the topics of prejudice and discrimination. Based on a comic book by Jeff Lemire, the show follows Gus, a young ‘hybrid’ boy, part human and part deer, who embarks on a journey to find his mother in Colorado. The story is set in a post-apocalyptic world that suffered a deadly virus named The Great Crumble that led to the birth of other hybrid kids like Gus, who are now persecuted and hunted down.
The show is much less violent than the original comics, aimed to attract a younger audience, features endearing and fleshed-out characters and relationships, and tells an engaging and morally complex story — all of which makes it one of the most popular Netflix shows of the year. Sweet Tooth has been confirmed for a second season, backed up by Robert Downey Jr. and his wife, Susan Downey, serving as executive producers, and promises to expand on the topic of the treatment of half-breeds and further explore the characters’ journeys.
Another highly successful international show, Lupin, has already released two popular seasons, and the third one is officially in the works. The French mystery series follows Assane Diop (played by The Intouchables’ and Jurassic World’s Omar Sy), who aims to avenge his father, framed by a wealthy family for a crime he didn’t commit. Diop embarks on a quest to reveal the truth, using the clever deception tricks and plotlines from Arsène Lupin heist novels he read as a kid.
This nail-biting show throws one clever twist after another, doing an excellent job at keeping the audience at the edge of their seats. While the first chapter set the scene and showcased the protagonist’s remarkable con artist and disguise skills, as well as his sharp intellect, the second part turned up the action and the stakes, escalating the tension and the threat to Diop. Lupin Part 1 scored a whopping 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, followed by an impressive 96% for Part 2.
Video game adaptations are often hit-and-miss, either deviating too much from the source material and failing to appease the hardcore fans or relying too much on the viewers’ topic knowledge and scaring away the uninitiated audience. Arcane did a rare job of working for both cohorts. Based on an immensely popular League of Legends MOBA game and its ever-expanding universe, the animated action-fantasy show follows the story of Vi and Powder, two sisters raised in the dark underbelly of a futuristic society, dragged to opposite sides of a larger conflict by grim circumstances, and inevitably pitted against each other. While most of Arcane’s main characters are playable in the game, their backstories are rarely delved into to a significant extent, making the plot reveals and the character development appealing to both game fans and newcomers.
Visually stunning, filled with game references and Easter Eggs but never excluding the general audience, featuring a gripping and emotionally-driven plot, as well as relatable characters and an excellent soundtrack, Arcane is an undeniable Netflix hit that scores a rare 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and remains one of the absolute must-watch series of 2021.
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