The Best Shows On Netflix With Only 1 Season

Created by: Bo Burnham, Dan Lagana

Cast: Bo Burnham, Tom Wilson, Kari Coleman, Cameron Palatas

Bo Burnham and Dan Lagana‘s Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous is about a high schooler Zack Stone who has used up all his savings to hire a film crew to film his daily life. His end goal? To become famous. This sitcom follows Zack as he navigates through friendships, relationships, and family problems, all while trying to gain popularity.

For those who enjoy standard comedy with profanity and frequent explicit humor, Zack Stone Is Gonna Be Famous is the right sitcom. It’s the kind of show that keeps the audience laughing at the ridiculousness of the main character, and while most sitcoms last a couple of seasons, this series accomplishes it all in 12 episodes.

Creator: Shonda Rhimes

Cast: India Amarteifio, Adjoa Andoh, Michelle Fairley, Ruth Gemmell, Corey Mylchreest

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is a prequel spinoff to Shonda Rhimes’ hit contemporary period drama Bridgerton. The story follows a young Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifio), who desperately wants to get out of her marriage to King George (Corey Mylchreest). But royal obligation and George’s surprising swagger pave the way for their long-lasting love story. Through mental illness, social pressures, and an initial racial divide, the tale is one of perseverance and fighting for change in a kingdom that is too stuck in its ways. Amarteifio propels this series from start to finish as young Queen Charlotte, and though it is a limited series, her impact is huge. – Tauri Miller

Created by: Ben York Jones, Evan Mujica

Cast: Jahi Di’Allo Winston, Peyton Kennedy, Patch Darragh, Claudine Mboligikpelani Nako

Set in the real-life town of Boring, Oregon, in 1996, Everything Sucks! focuses on a group of teenagers who attend the fictional Boring High School as they proceed to make a movie together while dealing with issues such as mental health, growing up, and discovering their sexualities.

While banking on nostalgia, Everything Sucks from creators Ben York Jones and Michael Mohan felt like a breath of fresh air as a high school drama that doesn’t take itself too seriously and focuses on issues that most teenagers have to go through at some point. With acting that feels real and honest, the show deserved to be continued or at least concluded in a way that didn’t leave the audience hanging.

Creators: Dan Cross, David Hoge

Cast: Madison Reyes, Charlie Gillespie, Owen Patrick Joyner, Jeremy Shada

Madison Reyes absolutely dominates as Julie, one of the titular characters in the devastatingly short-lived musical family series Julie and the Phantoms. Adapted from the Brazilian series, Julie and the Phantoms draws direct inspiration from High School Musical, even employing the legendary director Kenny Ortega (Hocus Pocus) to helm some episodes. Following a teenage girl grieving her mother’s death, Julie and the Phantoms touches on themes of loss, following your dreams, and living life to the fullest. Co-creators Dan Cross and David Hoge allow Reyes to shine with support from a trio of gorgeous and undeniably talented phantoms, played by Charlie Gillespie, Owen Patrick Joyner, and Jeremy Shada (Adventure Time). – Yael Tygiel

Creators: Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese

Cast: Emily Beecham, Aneurin Barnard, Andreas Pietschmann, Miguel Bernardeau

Dark co-creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese reunited to introduce audiences to 1899, a breathtaking mystery drama starring Emily Beecham, Aneurin Barnard, Andreas Pietschmann, and Miguel Bernardeau. 1899 follows a steamship of immigrant passengers from multiple origins on their journey to a new future in New York, only to encounter a puzzling second ship on the open sea. With limited physical space to explore the mystery narrative, 1899 relies on deliberate and clever writing to tell the intriguing story. Merging a period drama with a mystery and sprinkling in a hint of science-fiction, 1899 is an enthralling ride introduced through a short eight-episode season. – Yael Tygiel

Created by: Kathleen Jordan

Cast: Maddie Phillips, Anjelica Bette Fellini, Kadeem Hardison, Virginia Williams

After denting their father’s pickup truck, high school students and fraternal twins Sterling (Maddie Phillips) and Blair Wesley (Anjelica Bette Fellini) fall into bounty hunting for grizzled bounty hunter Bowser Simmons (Kadeem Hardison) to pay for the truck’s repair – without their parents’ knowledge.

With an outlandish premise like this one, Kathleen Jordan‘s Teenage Bounty Hunters should not have been as good as it was. With only one season, it is impossible to say how great this show could have been, but given a chance, the potential is clear. With funny and witty dialogue and a premise that is so ridiculous yet works so well, Teenage Bounty Hunters proved that sometimes ridiculous is better than everything else out there. With heart and wit, this show could have become special if it had only been given a chance.

Created by: Jonathan Entwistle, Christy Hall

Cast: Sophia Lillis, Wyatt Oleff, Sofia Bryant, Kathleen Rose Perkins

I Am Not Okay With This have only gotten one way-too-short season, but it is still well worth your time. Created by Jonathan Entwistle and Christy Hall and set in a small Pennsylvania town, this series is part queer coming-of-age story part superhero mystery – and balances both aspects incredibly. I Am Not Okay With This follows seventeen-year-old Sydney Novak (Sophia Lillis) as she struggles with the loss of her dad by suicide, her growing feelings for her best friend Dina (Sofia Bryant), high school drama, growing anger issues…and her developing superpowers.

Unlike other superhero series, I Am Not Okay With This feels grounded and intimate. Without the weight of the outside world or a connected universe, we get to focus solely on Sydney’s journey and her relationships in this small town. The series is a refreshing take on the superhero origin story and has an explosive ending that won’t be easy to forget.

Created by: Lisa Rubin

Cast: Naomi Watts, Billy Crudup, Sophie Cookson, Lucy Boynton

Lisa Rubin‘s Gypsy is a wild, twisted ride. The show follows Naomi Watts as Jean Holloway, a New York City psychologist who oversteps professional (and personal) boundaries as she infiltrates the lives of her clients by getting close to people in their circle. To do this, she uses an alias named Diane Hart.

Things get even more complicated when she meets Sidney (Sophie Cookson), the ex-girlfriend of one of her patients. The two have an undeniable chemistry that threatens to unravel both their lives. Though the plot can get silly at times, Gypsy is sexy, soapy fun.

Created by: Christopher Keyser

Cast: Kathryn Newton, Gideon Adlon, Sean Berdy, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Jacques Colimon

We’re still mourning the loss of this one. While it was originally renewed for a second season, COVID ultimately took it from us way too soon. The series was a bright spot in a sea of lesser teen mystery shows and followed a group of teens who have to figure out how to survive after the rest of their town disappears.

Though all of them come from vastly different backgrounds, they must work together to build their own community and, for the first time, play by their own rules. If you’re a fan of shows like The Wilds and Yellowjackets, you’re sure to love Christopher Keyser‘s The Society, too.

Created by: Samantha Stratton

Cast: Kaya Scodelario, Willow Shields, Evan Roderick, David James Elliott

Competitive ice skating media is a subgenre all its own, from I, Tonya to Ice Princess to The Cutting Edge. Spinning Out from creator Samantha Stratton is a nice addition to the genre, following Kat (Kaya Scodelario), an elite skater on the verge of quitting after a nasty injury. However, she gets a second chance at her dream – with a catch. She will have to compete as a pair with bad-boy Justin (Evan Roderick).

Spinning Out has everything you want from a young adult sports show, from romantic tension to the lesson to never give up on your dreams. The show also explores important and underrepresented themes of mental health and self-harm with the storylines between Kat and her sister (Willow Shields) and mother (January Jones).

Created by: Katie Cappiello

Cast: Odessa A’zion, Odley Jean, Amir Bageria, Maliq Johnson, Amalia Yoo

Let’s face it: there are a lot of high school shows out there right now. Katie Cappiello‘s Grand Army is one of the best, offering a refreshing look at real issues many teens face, from racism to rape culture. The series starts with our students in lockdown after a terrorist bombing nearby, not pulling any punches from the very first episode.

The young cast is incredible, giving raw and relatable performances across the board. If you’re looking for gritty shows like Euphoria or Genera+ion (another gone-too-soon gem), you’ll get exactly what you’re looking for with Grand Army.

Based on the book by: Sakyo Komatsu

Cast: Shun Oguri, Kenichi Matsuyama, Anne Watanabe, Toru Nakamura

Japan Sinks is another animated series, but this one takes a much more serious note. In this series, Japan has suffered a catastrophic earthquake which has then caused other disasters of larger intensity, and soon the cast finds out that the entirety of Japan is sinking.

This series follows track runner Ayumu as she navigates through the disaster alongside her family. It’s a show that relies on emotional tension as conflicts arise between friends, family, and strangers, all while everyone is fighting for survival. Despite having one season, the show does well at bringing individual characters to life and making the audience care about their lives.

Based on the book by: Joo Dong-geun

Cast: Yoon Chan-young, Park Ji-hu, Cho Yi-hyun, Lomon, Yoo In-soo

All of Us Are Dead is a Korean drama about a zombie outbreak that occurs in school. A science professor has developed an infectious virus that isolates the gene that makes the host grow not only immensely stronger but also mindless.

This is a zombie thriller that takes place primarily in a high school, showing the perspectives of the last surviving students, and survival is uncertain. While it focuses on students, it also shows the stories of different characters, such as a detective, a rescue and search employee, among others. Most zombie ideas work best as movies, but All of Us Are Dead has enough content and interesting characters to keep the audience engaged.

Created by: Rachel Ramras, Hugh Davidson, Larry Dorf​​​​​​​

Cast: Kristen Bell, Michael Ealy, Tom Riley, Mary Holland

If it wasn’t obvious from the title, this series is about a woman who witnesses a murder across the street through the window. Emma is a neighbor to Neil and Anna who have moved in across the street, and immediately, she is taken by both of them. However, one night, she witnessed a murder in their home, and she is confident that the victim was Neil’s girlfriend.

In this parody of popular murder mysteries, there is twist after twist as Emma dreams up potential suspects to the murder. The plot relies heavily on common tropes and clichés, such as Emma being an alcoholic and there being a murderer named Massacre Mike, but this is done well.

Created by: Rebecca Sonnenshine​​​​​​​

Cast: Mamoudou Athie, Dina Shihabi, Evan Jonigkeit, Julia Chan

Archive 81 is a horror series that follows an archivist—Dan—as he examines a filmmaker’s damaged footage. Archive 81 is based on a popular podcast of the same name. Isolated in a building, he watches the damaged tapes in hopes of recovering the footage, but as he delves deep into the madness of the films, he begins to grow made himself.

Archive 81 brings found footage to a unique level, as what happens in the past can be affected by present actions. Dan does his best to make things right and save the filmmaker’s life. However, as this is the horror genre, not everything can end happily. The ending unveils a twist that is somewhat satisfying to end on, as it really emphasizes the horror of it all.

Created by: Studio Dragon

Cast: Song Kang, Lee Jin-wook, Lee Si-young, Lee Do-hyun

Sweet Home is a Korean drama based on a popular webtoon. It follows the main character Hyun-Soo who moved into an affordable apartment after losing his family. After he moves into the apartment, a disaster strikes Korea—and the rest of the world—where humanity is turning into deformed monstrous creatures.

Those in the apartment complex come together to survive as the turning monsters lurk the halls and attack those they come across. The monsters are all relatively unique, and oftentimes they emphasize the desires that caused the characters to turn.

Created by: Tony Ayres, Christian White​​​​​​​

Cast: Zoe Kazan, Betty Gabriel, Phoenix Raei, Abraham Lim

Clickbait follows a woman by the name of Pia. After a fight with her brother at her mother’s birthday party, she is consequently kicked out of the house. She then proceeds to go out and party. The following morning at work, she discovers a video of a man in a hostage situation. It is revealed that when the video gains five-million views, he will be killed. This man is her brother.

Pia and her brother’s wife go to the police to report the video. As Pia and the police work to find her missing brother before the video hits five-million views, they begin to make new discoveries about her brother’s kidnapping. This show is filled with plenty of twists that keep the audience’s interest.

Created by: Harlan Coben

Cast: Michael C. Hall, Amanda Abbington, Marc Warren, Audrey Fleurot

Harlan Coben‘s Safe is about a father who searches desperately for his missing daughter. As he investigates the town, he begins to uncover hints relating to his daughter’s disappearance. As it turns out, many of his neighbors and fellow townsfolk are lying to cover up their own mistakes.

Safe carries an uncanny atmosphere throughout the show, as many of the characters act suspiciously. The audience’s suspicions arise even more as some characters are shown to be liars. Safe is a well-done crime series that explores the anxieties of a parent whose child never returns home after a late night out. It encapsulates the helplessness when a parent can do nothing but wait.