One of the most ambitious TV shows on Netflix has dealt with criticisms across its two-season run so far, but the fantasy series is simply an undeniable hit, and a major streaming update has set it up to have a perfect final run. Netflix’s library of TV shows has many examples of how the streaming service knows how to do genre TV right.
When it comes to Netflix’s fantasy series, there are different types of shows for subscribers to engage with. Anyone wanting an action-packed, live-action fantasy series with a major star and plenty of blood will find so in the form of The Witcher, which starred former Superman actor Henry Cavill for three seasons before The Hunger Games‘ Liam Hemsworth took over as Geralt of Rivia.
One of the best fantasy TV shows of all time is also on Netflix, and it comes in a different medium. That would be the animated Arcane, which comes up with hard-hitting backstories for many characters from the popular world of League of Legends. While that fantasy series was universally beloved, one of Netflix’s biggest genre shows has had to deal with some criticism.
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01
Squid Game shattered records on launch in 2021, becoming Netflix’s biggest-ever series debut. Hwang Dong-hyuk’s South Korean thriller centres on a desperate gambler named Seong Gi-hun. What is his player number?
✓ Correct! Gi-hun is Player 456 — the last number drawn. Kang Sae-byeok (the North Korean defector) is 067, Cho Sang-woo (the Stanford-educated finance crook) is 218, and the mysterious elderly Oh Il-nam is 001. Squid Game became Netflix’s first show to hit #1 in every country it launched in, amassing over 1.6 billion hours watched in its first month alone.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is 456. Gi-hun’s number is the very last of the 456 players. 067 is Sae-byeok the defector, 218 is Sang-woo the Stanford grad, and 001 is the mysterious old man Oh Il-nam whose identity becomes the series’ biggest reveal. Squid Game became Netflix’s most-watched launch ever, hitting #1 in 94 countries.
02
The Tim Burton-directed Addams Family spin-off set at Nevermore Academy became Netflix’s second-biggest English-language debut in 2022 and launched a TikTok dance craze. Which young actress plays the deadpan title character?
✓ Correct! Jenna Ortega — a Disney Channel graduate and indie-horror favourite (X, Scream VI) — took the role Christina Ricci made iconic in the 1990s films and made it entirely her own. Her now-famous cello-accompanied dance scene became an overnight TikTok phenomenon, and her performance earned Wednesday two Emmy nominations despite airing mid-season.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Jenna Ortega. Millie Bobby Brown is Eleven on Stranger Things, Sadie Sink plays Max Mayfield (also Stranger Things), and Maya Hawke plays Robin. Ortega’s deadpan Wednesday Addams — and her viral cello-dance scene — turned the show into a global phenomenon in late 2022.
03
In 2013, Netflix released a dark political thriller starring Kevin Spacey as a ruthless congressman breaking the fourth wall. It became the first major streaming original to land a Primetime Emmy nomination and effectively invented prestige streaming TV. Which show was it?
✓ Correct! House of Cards — adapted by Beau Willimon from the 1990 BBC series — became Netflix’s first prestige original and proved a streaming service could go toe-to-toe with HBO. Kevin Spacey’s Frank Underwood and his asides to camera defined early streaming TV. Orange Is the New Black followed months later in July 2013 and became Netflix’s longest-running original at the time.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is House of Cards (February 2013). Orange Is the New Black launched five months later (July 2013), Arrested Development’s Netflix revival came in May 2013, and Hemlock Grove was a horror effort the same spring. House of Cards was the flagship — the first streaming original to earn a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
04
Peter Morgan’s The Crown famously recast its entire ensemble every two seasons to age the royal family. After Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth II in seasons 1-2, which Oscar-winning actress took the crown for seasons 3-4?
✓ Correct! Olivia Colman — fresh off her Best Actress Oscar for The Favourite — played the Queen across seasons 3 and 4, covering the late 1960s through the early Thatcher years. Imelda Staunton took over for seasons 5-6, Helena Bonham Carter played Princess Margaret in seasons 3-4, and Gillian Anderson stole the show as Margaret Thatcher in season 4.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Olivia Colman. Imelda Staunton took over for the final two seasons (5-6). Helena Bonham Carter played the chain-smoking Princess Margaret during seasons 3-4 alongside Colman. Gillian Anderson delivered an Emmy-winning Margaret Thatcher in season 4. Colman anchored the show’s middle era fresh off her 2019 Oscar win.
05
The Duffer Brothers’ 1980s nostalgia juggernaut sees Eleven and the gang battle inter-dimensional horrors from a portal beneath the town’s Hawkins National Laboratory. In which fictional US town and state is the series set?
✓ Correct! Hawkins, Indiana — a fictional Midwestern small town that became one of TV’s most iconic settings. The Duffer Brothers chose Indiana for its unassuming, ordinary-America vibe, making the supernatural chaos feel more jarring. Derry is Stephen King’s It setting, Hill Valley is from Back to the Future, and Twin Peaks is David Lynch’s famous town.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Hawkins, Indiana. Derry, Maine is the fictional town from Stephen King’s It. Hill Valley is Marty McFly’s home in Back to the Future. Twin Peaks, Washington is David Lynch’s famous fictional town. Hawkins is The Duffer Brothers’ deliberately ordinary Midwestern setting — the flat, unassuming backdrop that makes Vecna’s horrors hit harder.
06
Netflix’s Regency romance juggernaut — based on Julia Quinn’s novels and famous for its colour-blind casting, string-quartet pop covers, and narrated gossip column — is produced by which prolific showrunner’s production banner?
✓ Correct! Shonda Rhimes — the creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal — produces Bridgerton through her Shondaland banner as the first major fruit of her massive 2017 Netflix deal. Chris Van Dusen created the show, but Shondaland’s signature ensemble-romance DNA is all over it. Julian Fellowes did Downton Abbey, Ryan Murphy did Monster/Dahmer, and Jenji Kohan did Orange Is the New Black.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Shonda Rhimes (Shondaland). Ryan Murphy produces true-crime anthologies like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Julian Fellowes is the Downton Abbey/Gilded Age creator — a different period drama entirely. Jenji Kohan is behind Orange Is the New Black and Weeds. Bridgerton was the first big payoff of Rhimes’ nine-figure Netflix deal.
07
La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) became a global phenomenon on Netflix after a modest Spanish TV debut — partly thanks to its gang’s instantly recognisable red jumpsuits paired with a mask of which famous figure?
✓ Correct! The Salvador Dalí mask — with its upturned moustache — became the show’s defining visual alongside the red jumpsuits, a nod to Spanish artistic rebellion and surrealist individuality. It inspired protest iconography worldwide, from Lebanon to France. The original Antena 3 version underperformed; Netflix acquired it in 2017, re-edited it, and turned it into a global sensation.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Salvador Dalí. Guy Fawkes is the V for Vendetta mask that Anonymous adopted. Che Guevara is a common revolutionary image but not the heist crew’s mask. Picasso is a frequent wrong answer given he’s the more globally-known Spanish artist — but the Dalí mask, with its iconic moustache, is the one fused forever with Money Heist’s red jumpsuits.
08
Netflix’s 2020 limited series about a Cold War-era chess prodigy named Beth Harmon caused a global surge in chess-set sales and was one of the streamer’s most-watched shows that year. Who played Beth?
✓ Correct! Anya Taylor-Joy — already a cult favourite from The Witch and Emma — broke out globally as Beth Harmon, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress. The Queen’s Gambit pulled 62 million households in its first 28 days and caused such a chess-boom that Chess.com and retailers ran out of sets. It also made Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel a surprise bestseller almost 40 years later.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Anya Taylor-Joy. Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Oppenheimer), Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People, Where the Crawdads Sing) are all frequent competitors in similar roles. Taylor-Joy’s Beth Harmon earned her a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and turned Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel into a sudden bestseller.
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That would be Avatar: The Last Airbender, which is a live-action adaptation of the animated masterpiece of the same name. Having to limit its stories more due to a live-action budget, and with fewer episodes than the original animated series, Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender has faced complaints across two seasons. However, it remains a major streaming hit.
Avatar: The Last Airbender Soars High On Netflix
Nielsen‘s latest report on the performance of original streaming series shows just how much of an impact Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender continues to have. The fantasy series simply managed to land at #3 on both the Nielsen overall TV show chart and the original streaming TV show chart. Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender amassed a high total of 1.098 billion minutes watched in the week from June 29 to July 05. Given how Avatar: The Last Airbender released all of its seven episodes on June 25, in the week before the one Nielsen reports, it shows nice longevity.
The hit Netflix fantasy series was only surpassed by two shows on Nielsen’s charts, with one of Netflix’s most-watched series of all time, the Harlan Coben adaptation I Will Find You, amassing 1.1 billion minutes, and the multi-streamer reality show Love Island USA racking up an insanely high count of 1.944 billion minutes. That said, Avatar: The Last Airbender ranked higher than shows like Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone sequel series Dutton Ranch, the culinary drama The Bear, the Legally Blonde prequel series Elle, and more. The streaming success of Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender sets up season 3, the show’s last, to soar.
Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Live-Action Series Perfectly Sets Up Season 3
Team Avatar facing off against Azula in Netflix’s Avatar The Last Airbender season 2
Since before it debuted, the Netflix fantasy series has had to deal with heavy criticism. Given how the original Avatar: The Last Airbender series is considered a masterpiece, many did not see the point of coming up with a live-action reimagining. When season 1 of the Netflix show debuted and made some major changes to the story of the animated series, like Aang not learning how to water bend yet, the show was heavily criticized. Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2 then took an even bigger nosedive in public perception in a key metric.
On Rotten Tomatoes, season 1 of the Netflix fantasy series sports a decent 69% audience score, but season 2 comes in considerably lower, sitting at a disappointing 51%. Like the animated series, Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender will end with the already filmed season 3. Given the criticism surrounding the first two seasons, there were concerns that the show might go out on a whimper, as season 2 dealt with a viewership drop. That said, as Nielsen’s numbers show, Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender still has more than enough air blowing in its sails to fly high one more time to conclude the show.
