The Covid-19 pandemic has taken its toll on the entertainment industry, finding itself the cause for many production delays and cancellations. Most recently, the wrestler-comedy GLOW found itself being Netflix’s next victim as it was canceled after three seasons. Though it was renewed for a fourth and final season, the costs of adhering to pandemic protocols to keep the cast and crew safe was too much, and Netflix scrapped the show. There's a sliver of hope for a GLOW movie to tie up loose ends, but even if that never materializes, GLOW is well worth watching anyway. And it's not the only Netflix series in that particular situation.
Netflix has bid adieu to plenty of shows, but many of them are completely watchable and bingeable post-cancellation. All of that hard work shouldn’t go to waste, right? Be prepared to pop some popcorn and get comfortable: Here are a few post-mortem Netflix recommendations.
Santa Clarita Diet
Starring Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant, Santa Clarita Diet offered a hilarious take on the comedy-horror genre. Focusing on a stereotypical suburban family who has to come to term with the matriarch of the household becoming a flesh-eating zombie, this show was packed with nonstop action and silly antics.
It was the perfect combination of heartfelt family moments, teenage angst, and eating Nazis.
The show was canceled after three seasons.
Marvel’s Luke Cage
Marvel's Luke Cage had all of the best components of a Marvel production like snappy dialogue and incredible fight scenes. The show focused on the titular character, a bulletproof man who gained his strength and superhuman capabilities from a failed experiment. While consistently fighting crime and corruption, he quickly becomes a reliable hero throughout the city of Harlem.
Luke Cage featured many distinguished actors like Mahershala Ali and Rosario Dawson while being headlined by The Good Wife’s Mike Colter.
The show was canceled after three seasons.
Spinning Out
Drug abuse, ice skating, and a dysfunctional family? Spinning Out had it all.
Skins’ Kaya Scodelario took on the role of a figure skater who is at the end of her wits as she struggles to cope with trauma and anxiety after a dangerous fall. On top of that, she suffers from bipolar disorder which she shares with her mother, played by Mad Man’s January Jones. The show was brilliantly filled with high-tension and dramatics, as well as captivating figure skating performances.
The show was canceled after one season.
Altered Carbon
With its award-winning visual effects, Altered Carbon created a cyberpunk universe based on a novel from the early-2000s. The first season featured Suicide Squad's Joel Kinnaman, who handed off to Marvel’s Anthony Mackie in the second season. Dollhouse’s Dichen Lachman, and Hamilton’s Renée Elise Goldsberry are the people who matter most to main character Takeshi Kovacs,though whether they're friend or foe depends on the day.
Based on the novel of the same name, Altered Carbon brings a surprising humanity to a world drenched in advanced technology. It's a rewarding watch thanks to high-quality aesthetics and big action sequences.
The show was canceled after two seasons.
I Am Not Okay With This
Packed with angst, I Am Not Okay With This features a 17-year-old girl who is the standard social outcast. She is unhappy, is struggling to understand her sexuality, and has a distant mother and a dead father. It comes off as an ordinary coming-of-age drama but sticking to the graphic novel the show is based on, it features a character with supernatural psychic ability and a little dose of murder.
It’s a bit like Stranger Things, just darker.
The show was canceled after one season.
Marvel’s Daredevil
From Drew Goddard, contributing writer to the legendary hits Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Martian, and Cloverfield, came Marvel’s Daredevil.
The show focused on Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox), a blind vigilante who fights crime on the streets of Hell’s Kitchen. The show's reception often credits it for creating a more realistic approach to superheroes, despite the exaggerated of the Murdock's heightened senses. Many fans stand behind Daredevil despite its cancellation, dubbing it one of the greatest superhero television shows in existence.
The show was canceled after three seasons.
All six shows are available for streaming on Netflix.