Stranger Things has come to an end after its over a decade run, and thanks to the massive fanbase it has, many viewers are looking for a new show to watch. Stranger Things combined mystery, fantasy, 80s nostalgia, and a Dungeons & Dragons inspiration to create a unique mix that few shows have been able to copy (although many have tried).
However, in the years before and after Stranger Things, several shows have been released that are great because of their reliance on some of the same elements. So, if you’re looking for another TV show like Stranger Things after its ending, these five shows are great from start to finish.
5) The Midnight Club
Created by Mike Flanagan and Leah Fong and based on the book of the same name, The Midnight Club tells the story of a group of terminally ill teens in hospice who meet up every night to tell each other scary stories. Although the series was meant to run for two seasons, Netflix sadly canceled the show after one season despite it earning critical acclaim. Even though it is short, it is a great next show for viewers wanting more teens in horror stories after Stranger Things.
4) The Legend of Vox Machina
Image courtesy of Prime Video
Stranger Things is heavily inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, with the series creating a resurgence in D&D media in pop culture. While Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is a great movie that delves further into the lore, in the world of television, there is no better place to turn than The Legend of Vox Machina.
Created by Critical Role Productions, The Legend of Vox Machina adapts the first campaign of Critical Role, a Dungeons & Dragons web series. While Stranger Things crafts its story around elements of a D&D game, The Legend of Vox Machina is a literal adaptation of a D&D game. The series has been acclaimed throughout its three seasons, and with season 4 on the way, this praise is expected to continue.
3) True Detective
Stranger Things season 5 is a far cry from the small-scale and grounded tone of season 1, which is what initially got fans hooked to the Netflix series. Although the later seasons are all about wormholes and big CGI monster battles, season 1 was more of a thriller mystery with the supernatural elements being much more sparing. As many have pointed out, this made Stanger Things almost like Netflix’s 80s-nostalgia take on HBO’s True Detective.
Created by Nic Pizzolatto, True Detective is a crime anthology series that follows detectives as they often uncover criminal conspiracies. Many of the show’s stories feature underlying supernatural elements and the same grounded thriller tone as Stranger Things. While True Detective aims for an older audience than later seasons of Stranger Things, it is a great next step for viewers looking to recapture those season 1 vibes.
2) Gravity Falls
Image courtesy of Disney Television Animation.
Although the animated Disney show may not seem like it has a lot of similarities to the more mature live-action Netflix series, Gravity Falls is one of the best companion pieces to Stranger Things. Created by Alex Hirsch, Gravity Falls follows twins Dipper and Mabel as they are sent to Gravity Falls, Oregon, to live with their great-uncle for a summer. While there, the duo begins to unravel supernatural mysteries that plague the town, eventually discovering a massive overarching conspiracy.
Like Stranger Things, Gravity Falls follows a group of kids in a small wooded town, uncovering supernatural forces that they can’t possible understand. Conspiracies, government involvement, and interdimensional monsters are present in both shows. Plus, Gravity Falls caters to teens more than kids, meaning that it has a similar tone to Stranger Things.
1) Dark
Image Courtesy of Netflix
While all of these aforementioned shows give Stranger Things vibes in one way or another, Dark is the most clear parallel to the Netflix show. The German series created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese is set in a small town where, after two kids go missing, a mystery unravels secrets of the town’s history and those connected to it.
Although Dark initially comes off as a grounded mystery, it quickly incorporates sci-fi and fantasy elements, following the same playbook as Stranger Things. However, the show’s tone and style are much more consistent throughout its three seasons, with it never getting as big and action-heavy as season 5 of the Duffer Brothers’ show.
Dark currently has a 96% critic score and a 94% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, proving how beloved the show is. Dark is considered to be one of Netflix’s best shows of all time, and since fans of Stranger Things already have the streaming service, it is a fantastic next series to check out.
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