Fantasy TV shows are the perfect escape. From series that take place in entirely fictional worlds, to shows where fantastical beings and creatures have to live in the real world, they can be really great to get lost in. These series may introduce a new world with new lore, or may expand on existing lore to create something entirely new.
There are a number of excellent fantasy shows in both the drama and comedy genres, but there are some that are just essential watches. These series embrace their fantasy elements for a truly unique and enjoyable viewing experience. They pull viewers into these fantastical worlds and unlikely scenarios, with a number of great aspects, like shocking plot twists, creative uses of magic, and new settings. These are fantasy TV shows that everyone should watch at least once.
‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ (2005–2008)
Aang in a glowing bubble held by a giant Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender.Image via Nickelodeon
Avatar: The Last Airbender is one of the most creative fantasy series of all time, with really fascinating wordbuilding and deeply emotional character arcs. The series follows Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen), the Avatar and last living Airbender. After being trapped inside an iceberg for 100 years, Aang is suddenly woken up by two siblings from the Southern Water Tribe, Katara (Mae Whitman) and Sokka (Jack De Sena). From there, it’s up to Aang and his friends to restore balance to the world and end the Fire Nation’s reign of terror.
20 years after it first aired on Nickelodeon, Avatar: The Last Airbender is a true classic. It tackles a number of complex themes and storylines in really engaging and creative ways, and it continues to gain more viewers all these years later. For all TV fans who love fantasy shows with nuanced characters and well-developed lore, Avatar: The Last Airbender is a must-watch. If you enjoy it, maybe you’ll check out Netflix’s live-action adaptation of the masterpiece.
‘My Lady Jane’ (2024)
Edward Bluemel and Emily Bader standing in front of a fireplace in My Lady Jane.Image via Prime Video
Although My Lady Janewas sadly cancelled after one season, its single season is a phenomenal contribution to the fantasy genre. Based on the novel of the same name by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Joni Meadows, the series is a fictionalized retelling of the story of Lady Jane Grey (Emily Bader). The series follows Jane as she reluctantly enters an arranged marriage, is suddenly thrust into power, and tries to make a real change in England.
In My Lady Jane, England is split into two groups: the Ethians, who can turn into animals, and the Verity, who cannot. Things become complicated for Jane as she falls in love with her husband, Lord Guildford Dudley (Edward Bluemel), who is secretly Ethian.My Lady Jane is an excellent fantasy series with high stakes, a strong emotional throughline, and the perfect blend of historical fiction and fantastical elements.
‘Galavant’ (2015–2016)
King Richard and Galavant stand together, dressed in armor, with smolder looks on their faces, in GalavantImage via ABC
Galavanttakes place in a fairytale world with a comedic spin, and it follows a once-successful knight named Galavant (Joshua Sasse). After spending a long time wallowing after being left by his true love, Madalena (Mallory Jansen), Galavant finally gets a second chance in the form of an epic quest. The quest is actually a trap, though, so that Madalena’s husband, King Richard (Timothy Omundson), can kill Galavant.
For fantasy fans who love the tone of films like The Princess Bride, Ella Enchanted, and Monty Python and the Holy Grail, there is no better show to watch than Galavant. The series starts out with the grounded fairytale elements of knights in an old-timey kingdom, then eventually implements more classic fantasy elements, like an evil sorcerer and even a dragon. To top it all off, Galavant has a number of silly and over-the-top musical numbers per episode.
‘Game of Thrones’ (2011–2019)
Even with its unbelievably disappointing ending, Game of Thronesis one of the classic fantasy TV shows. The show did a great job of bringing the George R. R. Martin books to life, with epic settings, wild plot twists, and some of the best and most visceral death scenes put to screen. The series follows the fight to see who will get to sit on the Iron Throne and rule the Seven Kingdoms, as well as a number of quests that occur during the meantime.
Game of Thrones has since inspired a number of prequel series that are on the way, as well as the currently-running House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. The show is an essential watch for fantasy fans, both for those looking to watch the spin-offs, and for those who appreciate truly excellent world-building. With some of the absolute best fantasy characters and lore, Game of Thrones is a series that everyone should watch.
Collider Exclusive · Middle-earth Quiz Which Lord of the Rings Character Are You? One Quiz · Ten Questions · Your Fate Revealed
The road goes ever on. From the green hills of the Shire to the fires of Mount Doom, every soul in Middle-earth carries a destiny. Ten questions stand between you and the truth of who you are. Answer honestly — the One Ring has a way of revealing what we most want to hide.
💍Frodo
🌿Samwise
👑Aragorn
🔥Gandalf
🏹Legolas
⚒️Gimli
👁️Sauron
🪨Gollum
01
You are handed a responsibility that could destroy you. What do you do? The weight of the world falls on unlikely shoulders.
02
Your closest companion is heading into terrible danger. You: True loyalty is revealed not in comfort, but in crisis.
03
Enormous power is within your reach. Your instinct is: Power corrupts — but only those who reach for it.
04
What does “home” mean to you? Where we long to return reveals who we truly are.
05
When a battle is upon you, your approach is: War reveals what we are made of — whether we like it or not.
06
Someone comes to you for advice in their darkest hour. You: Wisdom is not knowing all the answers — it’s knowing which questions to ask.
07
How do you see yourself, honestly? Self-knowledge is the most dangerous kind.
08
Which of these best describes your relationship with the natural world? Middle-earth speaks to those who know how to listen.
09
You encounter a wretched, pitiable creature who has done terrible things. You: How we treat the fallen reveals the height of our character.
10
When the quest is over and the songs are sung, what do you hope they say about you? In the end, we are all just stories.
The Fellowship Has Spoken Your Place in Middle-earth
The scores below reveal your true character. Your highest number is your match. Even a tie tells a story — the Fellowship was never made of simple people.
💍 Frodo
🌿 Samwise
👑 Aragorn
🔥 Gandalf
🏹 Legolas
⚒️ Gimli
👁️ Sauron
🪨 Gollum
You carry something heavy — and you carry it alone, even when you don’t have to. You were not born for greatness, and that is precisely why greatness chose you. Your courage is not the roaring, sword-swinging kind; it is quiet, stubborn, and terrifying in its refusal to quit. The Ring weighs on you more than anyone can see, and still you walk toward the fire. That is not weakness. That is the rarest kind of strength there is.
You are, without question, the best of them. Not the most powerful, not the most celebrated — but the most essential. Your loyalty is not a trait; it is a force of nature. You would carry the person you love up the slopes of Mount Doom if it came to that, and we both know you’d do it without being asked. The world needs more people like you, and the world is lucky it has even one.
You were born to lead, and you have spent years running from it. The crown is yours by right, but you know better than anyone that right means nothing without the will and the worthiness to back it up. You are tempered by loss, shaped by long roads, and defined by a code of honour you hold to even when no one is watching. When you finally step forward, the world shifts. Because it was always waiting for you.
You have seen more than you let on, and you say less than you know — which is exactly as it should be. You are a catalyst: you do not fight the battles yourself, you ignite the people who can. Your wisdom comes not from books but from an age of watching what happens when it is ignored. You arrive precisely when you mean to, and your presence alone changes what is possible. A wizard is never late.
Graceful, perceptive, and almost preternaturally calm under pressure — you see things others miss and act before others react. You do not need to make a scene to be remarkable; your presence speaks for itself. You are loyal to those you choose to stand beside, and that choice is not made lightly. You have lived long enough to know that the most beautiful things in this world are also the most fragile, and that is why you fight to protect them.
You are loud, proud, and absolutely formidable — and beneath all of that is one of the most fiercely loyal hearts in Middle-earth. You don’t do anything by half measures. Your friendships are forged like iron, your grudges run as deep as mines, and your courage in battle is the kind that makes legends. You came into this fellowship suspicious of everyone and ended it willing to die for an elf. That is not a small thing. That is everything.
You think in centuries and act in absolutes. Order, dominion, control — not because you are cruel by nature, but because you have decided that the world left to itself always falls apart, and you are the only one with the vision and the will to hold it together. You were not always this. Something was lost, or taken, or betrayed, and the version of you that stands now is the answer to that wound. The tragedy is that you’re not entirely wrong — just entirely too far gone to course-correct.
You are a study in contradiction — pitiable and dangerous, cunning and broken, capable of both cruelty and something that once resembled love. You are defined by loss: of innocence, of self, of the one thing that gave your existence meaning. Two voices war inside you constantly, and the tragedy is that the better one sometimes wins, just not often enough, and never at the right moment. You are a warning, yes — but also a mirror. We are all a little Gollum, given the right ring and enough time.
‘The Good Place’ (2016–2020)
Kristen Bell has her mouth open in shock as she stands next to Ted Danson in ‘The Good Place.’Image via NBC
The Good Placeis one of a number of great sitcoms with fantasy twists, but this one stands out due to its unique setting. The series follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell), a selfish woman who has just died. When Eleanor gets sent to The Good Place by mistake, she convinces her mistakenly-assigned soulmate, Ethics and Moral Philosophy Professor Chidi Anagonye (William Jackson Harper), to teach her how to be a good person.
Aside from having one of the best TV plot twists of all time in its Season 1 finale, The Good Place is just a really well-written and intentional fantasy series. It uses Eleanor’s journey in the afterlife to explore major philosophical questions, while also introducing a number of wildly funny and creative pieces of fantastical lore related to various aspects of the afterlife.
‘Interview with the Vampire’ (2022–Present)
Sam Reid as Lestat de Lioncourt and Jacob Anderson as Louis de Pointe du Lac in a car in Interview with the Vampire.Image via AMC
Based on the Anne Ricenovels, AMC’s Interview with the Vampire tells the story of vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson), as he shares his story with journalist Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) in the present day. In the past, Louis meets the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid), and they develop an intense relationship, as Lestat turns him into a vampire and they become companions.
Even though Interview with the Vampire is still currently releasing seasons, it is already one of the great fantasy series. In just two seasons, the show has both brought the Anne Rice novels to life, while also making a number of phenomenal changes that have made it really stand out. It is one of the best vampire shows of all time, and for fantasy fans looking to watch just one series about vampires, it should be this one.
‘Pushing Daisies’ (2007–2009)
Chuck Charles kissing Ned the piemaker through plastic wrap in Pushing daisies Season 1.Image via ABC
There is no fantasy TV show that is as essential of a viewing experience as Pushing Daisies. The series follows a piemaker named Ned (Lee Pace), who can wake the dead with a single touch. Ned uses his power to help Private Investigator Emerson Cod (Chi McBride) solve murders. When the latest murder victim is Ned’s childhood sweetheart, Chuck (Anna Friel), Ned finds himself unable to touch her back to being dead.
Pushing Daisies is the perfect blend of a crime procedural with silly and over-the-top deaths, and a beautiful but forbidden fairytale romance (because Ned and Chuck can’t touch, or she will die again for good). It has one of the best TV settings of all time, and Ned’s powers are handled in a really creative and compelling way, as he struggles to navigate all the rules related to them.
