Image via Netflix
Published Apr 22, 2026, 5:34 AM EDT
Jiminna Shillingford is an avid reader and a passionate storyteller. She is obsessed with all things TV, from anime and romantic fantasy to action-packed series. With that deep affection, Jiminna longs to share her excitement with all her readers through the Collider platform as a TV author. Through her writing she has created stories and blog posts of amazing book recommendations, showcasing her love of writing. Jiminna's goal is to inspire others to discover and embrace their love of stories in all of its forms.
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There have been quite a few times that fantastically ambitious shows have never seen the recognition they truly deserve. While Netflix is well-known for producing some of the finest global hits ever made, there have been a great number of bold, genre-blending releases that quietly came and went without leaving a lasting mark in mainstream discussions. Whether it's unconventional storytelling styles, high-concept fantasy worlds, or experimental tones, many shows on the streaming platform have taken creative risks only to be put on the back burner, never finding their mainstream audiences.
Netflix shows like the teen dramedy Teenage Bounty Hunters, which balances wit and coming-of-age elements into its very entertaining story, and the bold superhero fantasy/sci-fi blend that is The Imperfects, are two series that wielded an appreciated originality that has somehow been mostly forgotten. Compiled on this list are Netflix gems that are extremely ambitious watches, but have sadly slipped from the minds of most audiences.
1 'The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself' (2022)
Image via NetflixThis underrated gem is a Netflix adaptation that never got a chance to reach its full potential. The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself follows teen Nathan Byrne (Jay Lycurgo), whose origins as the illegitimate son of the incredibly feared witch Marcus Edge (David Gyasi) have trapped him between two warring magical clans.
The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself's ambition shows in its tonal bravery — a YA adaptation that refuses to shy away from brutality or moral mess, while also skillfully delivering kinetic action and incredibly stylish world-building. It’s genuinely one of Netflix's boldest fantasy projects that beautifully blends coming-of-age storytelling with dark magic. The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself has been lauded as an under-promoted gem that fans still wish would receive another season. With an early cancellation, the fantasy show, with heaps of potential, is quickly cut short, ensuring it is forgotten by most and lost to the ether of other series.
2 'Daybreak' (2019)
Image via NetflixDaybreak is a creative sci-fi take on the end of the world through a rather youthful perspective. The one-season Netflix series, set after an apocalypse, turns adults into zombie-like creatures known as “Ghoulies" and focuses on teenager Josh Wheeler (Colin Ford), who spends his time roaming Glendale searching for his missing girlfriend Samaira “Sam” Dean (Sophie Simnett).
Daybreak is widely inventive — an enticing mix of post-apocalyptic antics, with vicious teen drama, and chaotic humor. The show came onto the scene with a captivatingly vibrant tone, wielding rule-breaking storytelling that felt unlike anything else on Netflix during that time. Daybreak’s unique voice made it a cult favorite despite its abrupt cancellation, which only elevated its already underappreciated status. Without an expected continuation, the apocalyptic comedy — with its ambitious genre mash-up of fourth-wall breaks, zombies, and outrageous teen humor — still takes the spot as one of Netflix’s most ambitious tries that, despite being mostly forgotten, remains consistently remembered for being a standout watch.
3 'The Imperfects' (2022)
Image via NetflixThis bold mixture of superhero fantasy and sci-fi elements is one of Netflix’s most understated, ambitious gems to come out in 2022. The Imperfects follows three Seattle young adults — Abbi Singh (Rhianna Jagpal), Juan Ruiz (Iñaki Godoy), and Tilda Weber (Morgan Taylor Campbell) — after undergoing experimental gene therapy, resulting in them suffering from “monster” side effects that give them dangerous abilities that drastically alter their bodies and lives.
During its run, The Imperfects stood out as an entertaining combination of emotional storytelling and humor. In a fresh and character-driven way, the show delivers an ambitious fantasy series that showcases real potential. Unfortunately, The Imperfects was part of Netflix’s famous wave of early cancellations, cutting short its ambitious story and ensuring that it'd be forgotten by most of the streaming platform’s subscribers. While it met an early end, The Imperfects remains an underrated, ambitious watch that sadly left behind a foundation that could have grown into something so much greater.
Collider Exclusive · Taylor Sheridan Universe Quiz
Which Taylor Sheridan
Show Do You Belong In?
Yellowstone · Landman · Tulsa King · Mayor of Kingstown
Four worlds. All of them brutal, complicated, and built on power, loyalty, and the price of survival. Taylor Sheridan doesn't write heroes — he writes people who do what they have to do and live with the cost. Ten questions will reveal which one of his worlds you were made for.
🤠Yellowstone
🛢️Landman
👑Tulsa King
⚖️Mayor of Kingstown
FIND YOUR WORLD →
01
Where does your power come from? In Sheridan's world, everyone has leverage. The question is what kind.
ALand, legacy, and a name that's been feared and respected for generations. BKnowing the deal better than anyone else in the room — and being willing to walk away first. CReputation. I've earned it the hard way, and everyone in the room knows it. DBeing the only person both sides will talk to. That makes me indispensable — and dangerous.
NEXT QUESTION →
02
Who do you put first, no matter what? Loyalty in Sheridan's universe is always absolute — and always costly.
AFamily — blood or chosen. The ranch, the name, the people who carry it with me. BThe company — or whoever's signing the cheques. Loyalty follows the contract. CMy crew. The men who stood with me when it counted — I don't abandon them for anything. DMy community — even when my community is a powder keg and I'm the only thing stopping it from blowing.
NEXT QUESTION →
03
Someone crosses a line. How do you respond? Every Sheridan protagonist has a line. What matters is what happens after it's crossed.
AQuietly, decisively, and in a way that sends a message to everyone watching. BI outmanoeuvre them legally, financially, and politically before they even know I've moved. CDirectly. Old school. You cross me, you hear about it to your face — and then you deal with the consequences. DI absorb it, calculate the fallout, and find the move that keeps the whole system from collapsing.
NEXT QUESTION →
04
Where do you feel most in your element? Sheridan's worlds are as much about place as they are about people.
AWide open land — mountains, sky, silence. Somewhere you can see trouble coming from a mile away. BThe oil fields of West Texas — brutal, lucrative, and indifferent to whoever happens to be standing on top of them. CA mid-size city where the rules haven't quite caught up yet — fertile ground for someone with vision and nerve. DA rust-belt town built around a prison — where everyone's life is shaped by what's inside those walls.
NEXT QUESTION →
05
How do you feel about operating in the grey? Nobody in a Sheridan show has clean hands. The question is how they carry the dirt.
AI do what has to be done to protect what's mine. I'll answer for it eventually — but not today. BGrey is just business. The line moves depending on what's at stake, and I move with it. CI have a code — it's not the law's code, but it's mine, and I don't break it. DI've made peace with it. Keeping the peace requires compromises most people don't have the stomach for.
NEXT QUESTION →
06
What are you actually fighting to hold onto? Every Sheridan character is fighting a war. The real question is what they're defending.
AA way of life that the modern world is doing everything it can to erase. BMy position — and the leverage that comes with being the person everyone needs to close a deal. CRelevance. I've been away, I've been written off — and I'm proving that was a mistake. DWhatever fragile order I've managed to build — because without it, everything burns.
NEXT QUESTION →
07
How do you lead? Authority in Sheridan's world is never given — it's established, maintained, and constantly tested.
ABy example and force of will. People follow me because they believe in what I'm protecting — and because they know what happens if they don't. BThrough negotiation and leverage. I don't need people to like me — I need them to need me. CBy being the smartest, most experienced person in the room and making sure everyone quietly knows it. DBy being the calm centre of a situation that would spiral without me — and accepting that nobody thanks you for it.
NEXT QUESTION →
08
Someone new arrives and tries to change how things work. Your reaction? Every Sheridan show has an outsider disrupting an established order. Sometimes that outsider is you.
AThey'll learn. Or they won't. Either way, the land was here before them and it'll be here after. BI figure out what they want, what they're worth, and whether they're an asset or a problem — fast. CI was the outsider once. I give them a chance — one — to show they understand respect. DNew players destabilise everything I've built. I assess the threat and manage it before it manages me.
NEXT QUESTION →
09
What has your position cost you? Nobody gets to where these characters are without paying for it. The bill is always personal.
AMy family's peace — maybe their innocence. The ranch demands everything, and I've let it take too much. BRelationships, time, any version of a normal life. The job eats everything that isn't nailed down. CYears. Decades in some cases. Time I can't get back — but I'm not done yet. DMy conscience, mostly. And the ability to ever fully trust anyone on either side of the wall.
NEXT QUESTION →
10
When it's over, what do you want people to say? Sheridan's characters all know the ending is coming. The question is what they leave behind.
AThat I held the line. That the land is still ours and everything I did was worth it. BThat I was the best at what I did and that no deal ever got closed without me at the table. CThat I built something real, somewhere nobody expected it, and I did it on my own terms. DThat I kept the peace when nobody else could — and that the town is still standing because of it.
REVEAL MY SHOW →
Sheridan Has Spoken You Belong In…
The show that claimed the most of your answers is the world you were built for. If two tied, both are shown — you're complicated enough to straddle two Sheridan universes.
🤠 Yellowstone
🛢️ Landman
👑 Tulsa King
⚖️ Mayor of Kingstown
You are a Dutton — or you might as well be. You understand that some things are worth protecting at any cost, and that the modern world's indifference to history, to land, to legacy, is not something you're willing to accept quietly. You lead from the front, you carry your family's weight without complaint, and when someone threatens what's yours, you don't escalate — you finish it. You're not cruel. But you are absolute. In Yellowstone's world, that combination of ferocity and loyalty doesn't make you a villain. It makes you the only thing standing between everything that matters and everyone who wants to take it.
You thrive in the chaos of high-stakes negotiation, where the money is enormous, the margins are thin, and the wrong word in the wrong room can cost everyone everything. You're a fixer — the person called when a situation is already on fire and needs someone with the nerve to walk into it. West Texas oil country rewards exactly what you are: sharp, adaptable, unsentimental, and absolutely clear-eyed about what people want and what they'll do to get it. You're not naive enough to think this world is fair. You're smart enough to be the one deciding who it's fair to.
You are a Dwight Manfredi — someone who has served their time, paid their dues, and arrived somewhere unexpected with nothing but their reputation and their wits. You adapt without losing yourself. You build loyalty through respect rather than fear, though you're not above reminding people that the two aren't mutually exclusive. Tulsa King is for people who are still standing when everyone assumed they'd be finished — who find, in an unfamiliar place, that they're more capable than the world gave them credit for. You don't need a throne. You build one, wherever you happen to land.
You carry the weight of a system that is broken by design, and you do it anyway — because someone has to, and because you're the only one positioned to do it without the whole thing collapsing. Mike McLusky's world is for people who are comfortable operating where there are no good options, only less catastrophic ones. You speak every language: law enforcement, criminal, political, human. That fluency makes you invaluable and it makes you a target. You've made your peace with both. Mayor of Kingstown belongs to people who understand that keeping the peace is not the same as being at peace — and who do the job regardless.
↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ
4 'Cursed' (2020)
Image via NetflixCursed came and went in a blast of magic and a visually rich reimagining of Arthurian legend, delivering a far darker, more character-driven take on a rather familiar story. The series focuses on Nimue (Katherine Langford), a young woman with mysterious powers who embarks on a dangerous journey to deliver an ancient sword to Merlin.
What makes Cursed such an ambitious project is its genuine attempt at retelling one of fantasy’s most iconic myths by shifting focus away from the traditional main characters and placing it on a female protagonist with the odds promptly stacked against her. The series may have lasted just a single season before it was abruptly canceled, but its world-building, tone, and aim for the mature cinematic fantasy experience dub it a standout. Due to Cursed's slower pace and quick end, the series has become a forgotten Netflix gem that has consistently faded into the background of fantasy.
5 'The Get Down' (2016–2017)
Image Via NetflixThis underappreciated gem is one of the most visually stunning and musically driven series on Netflix. The Get Down is set in late-1970s New York and centers around a group of teens, including Ezekiel “Books” Figuero (Justice Smith) and Mylene Cruz (Herizen F. Guardiola), who are actively chasing music as both an escape and a sense of identity.
A stylized, maximalist, historically curious musical drama that aims to be both a social history lesson and a pop opera, The Get Down presents a pretty ambitious watch. The show is hard to remember, as it was released in parts and was hardly easy to summarize, but was one of Netflix’s genuinely biggest swings, and even with its short lifespan, one of the streaming platform’s most quietly admired projects. The show’s vibrant style and stellar combination of history, music, and drama delivers a larger-than-life narrative that, even in its short run, left a lasting impression on those who watched, marking it as forgotten by many but cherished by a loyal few.
6 'Santa Clarita Diet' (2017–2019)
Image via NetflixSanta Clarita Diet is an underrated Netflix hit that captivated its audience with its addictive mix of humor and horror. The series follows the married real-estate agent Sheila Hammond (Drew Barrymore) as she undergoes a grotesque transformation that leaves her craving human flesh — all the while her husband Joel Hammond (Timothy Olyphant) tries his best to keep their suburban life intact.
With a bizarre premise that hosts clever comedy, Santa Clarita Diet was able to garner a solid fanbase during its run, standing as an ambitious TV project that wielded the appropriate amount of potential to grow into a long-running series. Its performance and laugh-out-loud humor made it a quick fan favorite that most Netflix subscribers wished lasted much longer than it actually did. Due to Santa Clarita Diet never making it to the top of mainstream TV hits, the ambitious comedic horror’s cancellation drove it into the dark corners of the streaming platform. Today, the series, with its lost momentum despite its creative story, has been forgotten by most viewers and stands as a masterful what-if for those who do remember.
7 'Teenage Bounty Hunters' (2020)
Image via NetflixThis 2020 underrated Netflix drama is a far more layered series than most would ever expect. Teenage Bounty Hunters centers around fraternal twins Sterling Wesley (Maddie Phillips) and Blair Wesley (Anjelica Bette Fellini), who stumble into bounty hunting and a partnership with veteran agent Bowser Jenkins (Kadeem Hardison) after wrecking their father’s truck.
Teenage Bounty Hunters is an ambitious blend of coming-of-age drama with unexpected action. Its impeccable balance of heartfelt storytelling and genuine humor makes it all the more compelling. With sharp writing and far more depth than one would ever assume, Teenage Bounty Hunters delivers a truly fantastic teen dramedy that wields tons of potential. Unfortunately, none of it was realized, as the series was cut short after its first season despite its bold narrative. Teenage Bounty Hunters' inventive tonal balance of teen drama, wannabe crime caper antics, satire of Southern respectability, and a surprisingly sincere coming-of-age story, all without collapsing into parody, shows impeccable TV craftsmanship.
8 'Between' (2015–2016)
Image via NetflixBetween is an ambitious Netflix masterpiece that skillfully maintains a steady sense of tension throughout its run. The entertaining series focuses on a mysterious illness that kills everyone in a small town over the age of 21, leaving teenagers and children abruptly in charge as authorities quarantine the area, and follows characters like Wiley Day (Jennette McCurdy) as they grow into leadership roles and tackle countless dystopian challenges.
Between is a constantly overlooked dystopian Netflix drama that holds some pretty creative ideas. The story delivers a unique take on the genre while it examines societal breakdown within a quarantined community. What's really ambitious about Between is less spectacle and more distribution strategy, as it aims for a bleak, procedural “youth governance” story rather than a teen soap, with a release model that differed from Netflix’s usual binge format due to its weekly Canadian broadcast. Today, there aren’t many who know that the unique watch even exists, even though its premise is echoed by various series that came after, cementing its status as a forgotten game changer that never got its chance to shine.
Between
Release Date 2015 - 2016-00-00
Network Netflix, Citytv
Directors Jon Cassar
Writers Mark Bacci, Malcolm MacRury
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Jennette McCurdy
Wiley Day
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English (US) ·