Sayak Basu
‘The Society’ is a mystery-drama series created by Christopher Keyser. It centers around a group of young adults who return to their town after a vacation to find that all the adults of the town have vanished and the town is blocked in such a way that none of them can escape. There are forests all around the town which keep them trapped in the area. The show does remind us of the famous book ‘Lord Of The Flies’ by William Golding where a group of young boys find themselves stranded on an island, or the surrealistic film ‘The Exterminating Angel’ (1962) by Luis Bunuel wherein a group of high-class people get trapped inside a dining hall for days, somehow being unable to escape.
‘The Society’ brilliantly mixes elements of thriller, mystery and drama. If you’re looking for shows that are thematically and stylistically similar to this one, then you’ve come to the right place. Here’s the list of best shows similar to ‘The Society’ that are our recommendations. You can watch several of these series like ‘The Society’ on Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime.
7. The Red Road (2014-2015)
‘The Red Road’ centers around a police officer named Harold Jensen. Harold is in a deep family crisis as his wife Jean is a schizophrenic, and instead of seeking help from a psychiatrist, she treats herself using alcohol, which, naturally, hasn’t gone very far. Meanwhile, a college student disappears from the town the Jensens live in. As he investigates, Jensen comes across a Native American tribe who are not recognized by the government. One of the tribesmen is Philip Kopus (Jason Momoa). He is an ex-conman and thus the townspeople do take him to be very peaceful. The show received critical acclaim upon its release.
6. The Leftovers (2014-2017)
A proper combination of mystery, drama and supernatural elements is a great offering if well-done, and one show that offers all of these is undoubtedly ‘The Leftovers’. This show is set in a time when 2% of the total humans living in the world have disappeared overnight. This event has been termed ‘Sudden Departure’ by the people left behind. This unnatural incident triggers a number of religious cults and other leaders who try to explain the happening in their own ways.
The first season centers around a family called the Garvey family, wherein the mother and son have joined two different cults after the incident. One cult is called the Guilty Remnant. They are chain smokers and always wear white. The other cult is led by a person called Holy Wayne. Wayne believes he is Jesus Christ in his second coming. The series received critical acclaim upon its release, with Rotten Tomatoes saying, “Its dour tone and self-seriousness may make for somber viewing, but The Leftovers is an artfully crafted, thought-provoking drama that aims high and often hits its mark.”
5. 12 Monkeys (2015-2018)
The story of this series is inspired from the Terry Gilliam film of the same name starring Brad Pitt and Bruce Willis. The show, set in 2043, starts with a scavenger called James Cole being recruited by certain scientists to go back in time to 2015. A cult called “Army Of The Twelve Monkeys” has decided to spread a virus which can kill seven billion people via a plague. The 2043 world is a time when this plan has been successful and the scientists now want a man to go back in time and prevent this incident from happening.
Cole travels back in time and comes in contact with a biologist called Cassie. Cole and Cassie come across various dangerous people while looking for the leader of the 12 Monkeys. This leader is simply known as The Witness and he is someone who’s extremely shrewd and always remains ahead of them. Their only way to prevent unparalleled death and destruction is to bring him, and as a consequence, his organization down. Both the first and second seasons of the show received huge critical acclaim. Critics praised the series for moving beyond a simple time travel story and making it into an intense philosophical discourse.
4. Westworld (2016-)
‘Westworld’ is a show set in the near-future where a company has managed to create recreational theme parks crowded with human-like androids. One such park is Westworld. In this park, the visitors can fulfill their dreams of being in the American Wild West. There are androids in the park who behave and talk exactly like humans. Moreover, the humans who enter the park have the complete license to do whatever they want with the androids. They can kill or rape or torture these androids to fulfill their dark fantasies.
After certain intervals, the androids are brought out of the park and their memories are deleted. However, slowly and steadily, these androids keep remembering the horrific deeds done to them by humans and slowly gain sentience. The series has many important philosophical points to make, like whether it is permissible to treat androids however we want to despite knowing they now share some of the feelings and remember the experiences. The series received numerous awards during its run and was also critically acclaimed.
3. Dark (2017-)
One of the most interesting science fiction/thriller series of recent times is surely the Netflix original ‘Dark’. The story of this series is set in a small town called Winden in Germany. This town is haunted by the disappearance of certain children. And these disappearances open a door into the dark and disturbing past of four families in the town.
There are three main characters in the story and it is from their perspectives that the entire story unfolds. The first of these characters is Jonas Kahnwald. He is a teenager whose father has recently committed suicide. The second one is a police officer called Ulrich Nielsen. Nielsen’s brother had disappeared without a trace when he was young and no evidence or trace of him has been found yet. The other person in the story is the chief of police, Charlotte Doppler. Later, it is discovered that under a nuclear plant situated at the edge of the town, a porta has been opened, which can be used for time travel. And this is what connects the families, the disappearances and the people of Winden. The show was critically acclaimed for its unique concept, direction, and storytelling.
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2. The Sparticle Mystery (2011-2015)
What happens if all the adults suddenly disappear from the street leaving only children behind in this world? This is the exact theme of the show ‘The Sparticle Mystery’. A group of 11 children have to work together and gather their own food and resources after everyone above 15 years of age in the world disappears. At first, the children have a gala time. They enjoy their unlimited freedom, go on raids at sweet shops, and enjoy their freedom. But after a few days, the resources begin to end and they understand that they have to bring back the adults in order to survive. So these youngsters gather themselves and go on the lookout. They have heard about a secret scientific project going on called ‘The Sparticle Project’ and are sure that it has something to do with their condition. They also have a scientist along with them, named “Doomsday” Dora. She was one of the scientists working on the Sparticle Project. On their adventure, the kids discover many life skills and special powers within themselves.
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1. Counterpart (2017-2019)
Created by Justin Marks, ‘Counterpart’ centers around a government official called Howard Silk. He works for a highly secretive organization but does not know exactly what the organization does. It is then revealed that Silk’s office is responsible for overseeing communication and transportation to a parallel world known as Earth Prime. Howard’s counterpart from Earth Prime is a regular traveler across these two worlds and he is a secret agent who informs Howard that his wife’s life is in danger. The lead character is played by J.K. Simmons, who does a wonderful job as both the Howards. The series also received widespread critical acclaim for its unique story and concept.
Read More: TV Shows Like Counterpart
