Only 5 Fantasy Shows Are Better Than ‘Supernatural’

Everyone loves a good fantasy series—a product that will take the audiences off their couches and whisk them away to another world unlike their own, because sometimes, the real world is a bit too hard. However, if someone’s going to spend their time in another world, it had better be a good one. One of the best in television history is the series known as Supernatural. It has its critics, sure, but it’s also hard to argue with the whopping 15 seasons they received—even crossing over with the Scooby-Doo franchise.

This doesn’t mean that Supernatural is the greatest fantasy series ever created (well, to most people), though. There have been some iconic, phenomenal television shows from the fantasy genre over the decades, and that’s provided audiences with plenty of them finding themselves being better than one of the pinnacle shows, Supernatural. Whether they’re in a world that reminisces ours, one way far back into the ages of knights, or even a steampunk-ish reality, all of these shows have something that sets them above the rest. Yes… even Supernatural.

‘Arcane’ (2021–2024)

Image via Netflix

One of the greatest series that Netflix originals has ever put out is, without a doubt, the fantasy/science fiction series, Arcane. It’s been able to take over the world because it takes the best of both fantasy and sci-fi genres and merges them into an amazing animated fantasy series with a steampunk makeup job. Based on the fantasy world built within the video game franchise, League of Legends, Arcane is exciting and thrilling. Fans of this franchise would never have guessed it’d birth something like this project, in the best way. This two-season journey made the ever-vast and diverse universe of League of Legends accessible to so many other people who have never touched or even heard of the actual game.

Audiences fell in love with the likes of Vi (Hailee Steinfeld), Jinx (Ella Purnell), Ekko (Reed Shannon), Viktor (Harry Lloyd), Jayce (Kevin Alejandro), and the many other characters in this universe almost immediately in 2021. The way that the show pretty much perfectly blends fantasy with the other steampunk elements that contrast it in all the best ways makes it so engrossing. While it may not last a massive 15 seasons, the two that it did stay on the air for are more than worth the watch and leave viewers feeling satisfied. With the journey they went on. Would people have taken more seasons of Arcane? Most definitely. But many would argue that where it ended is very fulfilling and wrapped things up neatly.

‘Games of Thrones’ (2011–2019)

Based on the extremely popular book series by George R. R. Martin—similarly titled, A Game of Thrones—this HBO show is one of the most impactful and important shows in television history. Game of Thrones was the biggest show in the world for quite some time. It brought record viewership to the studio and that popularity led to an ever-increasing budget, which made it have some of the largest scope on T.V. The first season’s budget was estimated to be somewhere between $50 million and $60 million, eventually leading to the last season having a budget of roughly $15 million per episode. With a budget like that, some amazing content was produced.

While people didn’t enjoy some of the last season, that doesn’t mean that the seven that came before that weren’t awesome. There’s a reason it’s not only become one of the largest television shows ever made, but one of the biggest fantasy franchises, period—up there with The Lord of the Rings. It’s hard not to love something with this much love, care, and effort placed into it. Everyone in the cast—who all gave almost perfect performances—and crew clearly had so much dedication to the series, trying to make it the best it could be (for most of the series). No series is perfect, no, but for the majority of its run, Game of Thrones feels like it came pretty close. Success at the scale and density this series experienced doesn’t just come out of nowhere. It has to be earned, and this show certainly did.

‘Adventure Time’ (2010–2018)

Image via Cartoon Network

If people are looking for proof that animated shows for all audiences can stand up against and even be better than live-action ones, they need to look no further than the likes of Adventure Time. It has all the makings of a show that can be viewed by younger audiences (goofy humor, bright colors, etc.) but also includes plots, themes, and messages that older audiences can not only enjoy, but that they can relate to, as well. These factors are all the most important things that are needed to make a successful animated series, also making Adventure Time a show that helped set the standard for modern 2010s cartoons—fantasy or otherwise. Adventure Time was so successful that it got to run an incredible 10 seasons, a whole eight years. The world is beyond fun, with diverse biomes all across their planet that are fun, funky, and very fantasy-inspired.

The lighthearted tone is a huge part of what makes it so enjoyable to such a wide array of audiences, and, even to this day, it remains one of the best fantasy shows out there, given how much it can stand out among the rest. It’s not an easy genre to stand out in, either, which makes Adventure Time all the more impressive in the long run. Jake the Dog (John DiMaggio) and Finn the Human (Jeremy Shada) are a duo that are super entertaining to watch, and their friendship solidifies itself as the beating heart of the show. Everyone loves a sweet, “hopecore” show about friendship and how important it is.

‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ (2026–Present)

Image via HBO

With how successful Game of Thrones ended up being, it only makes sense that HBO cashed in on that success and branched it off into a franchise, based on other works by George R. R. Martin. The most successful and well-received of the two that have come after the 2011 show is, without a doubt, this year’s A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. This project takes a far more grounded and intimate approach to storytelling in comparison to Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, which has helped people connect to it more, and invest deeper into the characters. After two whole shows that have gigantic casts with multiple protagonists, getting to sit back and take a journey with just two

Following the two underdog characters known as Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) and Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell), A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a prequel to Games of Thrones and a sequel to House of the Dragon. This newborn series shows that the franchise from George R. R. Martin has the potential to keep living, despite what some thought after the first prequel series’ second season. The world in this universe is a vast one filled with many characters left to meet and stories left to tell. People want more Game of Thrones and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is proof of why exactly that is. Regardless if one thinks the franchise as a whole should continue, almost everyone who’s seen it can say that, without a doubt, they want to see more of Ser Duncan the Tall and the ever-lovable Egg.

‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ (2005–2008)

Image via Nickelodeon

Avatar: The Last Airbender is not only a great fantasy series, but is genuinely one of the greatest television shows ever put on screen, still being hailed as such over 20 years after it aired for the first time. The animation—done by the exceptional Nickelodeon Animation Studio—is fluid, fast-paced, and extremely expressive. It’s one of the most well-animated Nickelodeon shows of all time. That, paired with the beautiful, anime-based art style, makes Avatar: The Last Airbender a visual marvel the entire way through. Thousands of frames from this series could be hung on the wall of an art gallery, and the art only continues to get better, sharper, and cleaner as the series progresses into its second and third seasons.

To make matters better, on the other hand of the series—directing and storytelling—there’s just as much quality, if not more so. Avatar: The Last Airbender can be a genuine masterclass in good storytelling, character writing, and natural-feeling dialogue work. Not to mention, the same that was said about this show’s art applies to writing, too—it truly does only improve as the episodes goes on and the characters and plots are allowed to grow and expand. Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, the creators of the series, created something that branched into a franchise that truly feels like it had the legs to last for a very long time, still being actively developed today. All of this was only made possible because of how genuinely amazing Avatar: The Last Airbender truly is, and the way that it has stood the test of time to still be one of the best of the best to this very day.