Why Netflix's Masterpiece New R-Rated Fantasy Series Has Become A Global Streaming Hit
Netflix has a new global phenomenon on its hands in the form of a dark fantasy series, and based on its story and execution, the show's success is understandable. Netflix is one of the best streaming services for fantasy fans. Sure, it is true that many of Netflix's best TV shows and movies come from the thriller and sci-fi genres.
That said, the streamer has a wide range of fantasy offerings. For instance, Henry Cavill's The Witcher series is perfect for those wanting high-octane action and a compelling depiction of magic in a live-action fantasy series. On the animated side, I could not stop listing all the positives that subscribers could find watching another video game adaptation.
As many must have thought, that would be Arcane, the two-season animated series that explored the world of the League of Legends franchise, giving complex backstories to many of the game's characters. Netflix's most-watched movie of all time also comes from the fantasy genre and is an animated offering, as KPop Demon Hunters racked up a wildly high total of 325.1 million views over its first 91 days on the streamer.
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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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Now, another Netflix fantasy release is conquering the streaming service's charts around the world. That would be the dark fantasy series The East Palace, which dropped all of its eight episodes on Netflix on July 17. The South Korean fantasy series joins other hit shows from the country, like Squid Game and All of Us Are Dead, on Netflix, and it is now trending around the world.
At the time of writing, The East Palace is the 7th most-watched TV show on Netflix worldwide, according to FlixPatrol. The new TV-MA fantasy series edges out shows like the Spanish drama The Map of Longing, Will Ferrell's controversial golf comedy series The Hawk, and the Western romance Little House on the Prairie. Netflix's The East Palace finds itself right below the returning Ransom Canyon on the streamer's global charts, with Netflix's top three TV shows worldwide being the fellow South Korean action series Agent Kim Reactivated, the streamer's latest Harlan Coben adaptation I Will Find You, and France's Elite Force.
The East Palace is currently trending in a whopping 59 countries. Some of those include Chile, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, France, Nigeria, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, and more. The East Palace ranks as high as Netflix's most-watched TV show in one country: Thailand. The new Netflix fantasy series is not trending in the United States right now, with the streamer's nationwide chart being led by the Western series Ransom Canyon, which recently returned with season 2. Despite it missing Netflix's US chart, The East Palace has become a true global phenomenon.
Why The East Palace Is Worth Watching On Netflix
The East Palace has been met with an overwhelmingly positive reception. Based on nine reviews thus far, the new Netflix fantasy series stands at a perfect 100% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, making the show one of Netflix's best. It also has a high audience score, which is currently at an excellent 88%. The show follows a unique concept, where a man who kills spirits is paired up with a woman who can hear them. Working together, they are tasked with ending a generational curse on the royal family as they explore a hidden realm within the fantasy series' title palace.
There are so many elements that explain why reviews are so positive and The East Palace has become a Netflix global hit. Making it a period piece with a dark supernatural story made this fantasy world immersive, haunting, and just irresistible. After watching the first episode, viewers are immediately pulled into this binge-worthy story, as there are so many interesting mysteries and details about this original world. The cast's performances are also all top-notch, and the action sequences are both creative and hard-hitting. Overall, The East Palace is a dark fantasy series with an intriguing concept and perfect execution.