Are all Netflix original series crap?

Irish Guitarist

I'm on my free trial of Netflix and am having trouble finding anything I really want to watch. Anything decent that I missed out on when it was on television just isn't available in Ireland.

I've been trying some of their original series but haven't found anything worth watching. I started the OA but turned it off as soon as I saw Brit Marling. I've seen two of her films and they were both nonsense so have no desire to see her in anything ever again.

I've watched one episode of Daredevil but it was so boring I can't face watching the second episode. I watched Stranger Things and thought it was just about watchable but nothing to write home about. I've watched a few episodes of The Returned. It's the kind of thing you'd see on SyFy. Really bad acting and dialogue and decisions that make absolutely no sense. I've started a few of their other series but end up turning them off. There's something about them that that I can instantly tell they'll be no good. Bad lighting and weird, muffled sound quality. The acting seems really bad too.

Are all their series this bad or have they made anything decent? I like science fiction, superhero and action kind of things.

Matthew Gleeson

'Orange is the new black', 'House of Cards' and 'Stranger things' for me are the only decent shows on it. The crown is good if you like those period shows. Honestly the rest doesn't peak my interest. I renew mine every now and again to catch up on those. It's got a few good films but once you've burned through those you're left with very little else.

s15r330

Matthew Gleeson wrote: »

'Orange is the new black', 'House of Cards' and 'Stranger things' for me are the only decent shows on it. The crown is good if you like those period shows. Honestly the rest doesn't peak my interest. I renew mine every now and again to catch up on those. It's got a few good films but once you've burned through those you're left with very little else.

House of Cards and Stranger Things are good but Narcos is much better.

kev1.3s

Narcos is a must.

Unearthly

Narcos is the best.

Bloodline is good. Daredevil is great compared to other super hero tv shows like arrow verse in terms of how mature and adult it is.

Black mirror season 3 is very good.

They aren't hbo standard shows but I am happy enough with them.

Agent Coulson

Yes.

slavetothegrind

check out Muscle shoals if you have any interest in the recording industry, should still be on there....

QuietMan2010

Not a Netflix original, but Person of Interest should be of interest to you if you like sci-fi, superhero and action.

Also Touch (Keifer Sutherland series).

And Making A Murderer is compulsory viewing. Stick with it, after episode 3 you'll binge the rest.

randy hickey

Everybody's tastes are different, but no, I don't think all Netflix originals are crap.
Have you tried Shooter, Designated Survivor or Frequency on for size yet?
Recently I binge-watched the rather excellent Fauda, which in turn led me on to Mossad 101. Now both of these are subtitled, but I was glad I persevered.

Also, all day long and twice on Sundays, Better Call Saul.

QuietMan2010

randy hickey wrote: »

Also, all day long and twice on Sundays, Better Call Saul.

Yes. Yes. Yes. Can't believe I forgot this one.

Yourself isit

Bojack, Kenny schmidt and master of none for comedy.

Sleeper12

Some shows are added the same day as the states. So you don't get any spoilers. Big ones for me were Breaking Bad & now Better Call Saul

irishchris

House of cards, breaking bad, better call Saul, designated survivor in that order are all excellent.Also making a murderer is also an excellent series

Sleeper12

irishchris wrote:

House of cards, breaking bad, better call Saul, designated survivor in that order are all excellent.Also making a murderer is also an excellent series

First three are all in 4k too. A big bonus for anyone with a 4k tv

appledrop

House of Cards is outstanding. I'm also really enjoying The Crown but it wouldn't be for everyone.

pickarooney

I like Club de Cuervos, OITNB and Bloodline so far. House of Cards and Stranger Things aren't bad.

mdwexford

Almost everything I've watched I have really liked.

Better Call Saul
Daredevil
Jessica Jones
Luke Cage
Orange is the New Black
Master of None
Stranger Things (one of my fav things of recent times)

Not to mention new episodes of Arrested Development and Trailer Park Boys.

Have yet to watch House of Cards, Narcos, Making a Murderer and so many other highly regarded shows.

Occono

Irish Guitarist wrote: »

I'm on my free trial of Netflix and am having trouble finding anything I really want to watch. Anything decent that I missed out on when it was on television just isn't available in Ireland.

I've been trying some of their original series but haven't found anything worth watching. I started the OA but turned it off as soon as I saw Brit Marling. I've seen two of her films and they were both nonsense so have no desire to see her in anything ever again.

I've watched one episode of Daredevil but it was so boring I can't face watching the second episode. I watched Stranger Things and thought it was just about watchable but nothing to write home about. I've watched a few episodes of The Returned. It's the kind of thing you'd see on SyFy. Really bad acting and dialogue and decisions that make absolutely no sense. I've started a few of their other series but end up turning them off. There's something about them that that I can instantly tell they'll be no good. Bad lighting and weird, muffled sound quality. The acting seems really bad too.

Are all their series this bad or have they made anything decent? I like science fiction, superhero and action kind of things.

They're most of my favourite shows.

Sense8, The Expanse, Narcos, OITNB, Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Midnight Diner, Stranger Things, Kimmy Schmidt, Grace and Frankie, Travelers, The Get Down.......Yeah, I really like a lot of their shows. And some of their movies. Not so much The Ranch or Fuller House or Shadowhunters or Adam Sandler movies, but I get more than my money's worth.

The Returned was a bad remake they bought international rights to. Try more shows I guess.

Guy Sajer

Was it the English version of The Returned you were watching? French version is better if you can sit through subtitles.

Bloodline is excellent. American Horror Story Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul all really good. Dexter.

I didn't like Stranger Things at first but it turned into one of my favourites.

Sleeper12

The American version of Shamless is great with William H Macy. I think there's 8 seasons so far. Far better than the UK version.

appledrop

Just started watching Designated Survivor its really good so far.

Yggr of Asgard

appledrop wrote: »

Just started watching Designated Survivor its really good so far.

Oh, are we allowed to include things that are not really a Netflix Original like that which are just distributed in Ireland via Netflix?

If so, I can recommend Nobel, an excellent Norwegian drama.

Irish Guitarist

Thanks for the suggestions. I've now watched Frequency up to the latest episode. It's pretty good. I watched Travelers and it wasn't bad. I'm now watching Shooter and am up to episode four. It's a bit generic with a story that's been done a lot over the years but it's watchable enough. I might give Narcos or Designated Survivor a try once I've finished watching this.

Roddy23

A second vote for Nobel here - really good Norwegian drama on Netflix.

Anachrony

They're quite hit or miss.  They are willing to take risks and produce things with widely varying styles and budgets.  So you can't just assume that any Netflix series will be good, but some of them are very good.
The OA was a poor choice to start with.  I would agree with you on Daredevil.  A lot of people would disagree, but I couldn't get into it.  However, their Luke Cage series in the same universe drew me in immediately, and Jessica Jones (also related) was a slow start but became compelling over time.
There are lots of other good shows, many of which have been listed already, and a few that haven't.  You won't like every single one.  They provide very diverse programming and aren't afraid to fund niche projects that will please different groups of people, some of which won't include you.  Do some research and you should be able to some that appeal to you, unless you just hate good television altogether.

ScrubsfanChris

The hit and miss ratio of good shows for Netflix is much much better than the traditional tv companies (except maybe HBO)

Narcos and stranger things were superb. I also like the MCU shows but being a male in his 20's I would be the target demographic
Their documentaries are good too like Making a Murderer and Last Chance U

The Black Oil

In short, yes. Most focus too much on plot at the expense of character development.

Autonomous Cowherd

I am LOVING The Expanse. Wow

eldest200

It's not a Netfilx show but I'd recommend It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. It's a great comdey show. It's not for everyone but it's similar to Seinfeld if you like that type of comdey.

Yggr of Asgard

Autonomous Cowherd wrote: »

I am LOVING The Expanse. Wow

It's originally on SyFy and Space in North America (as it's not a Netflix original) and Season 2 is back on 1 Feb, I am looking forward to it.

No idea when Season 2 will be available on Netflix.

ED E

Sense8 hasn't been mentioned? Maybe I'm crazy but...

Captain Chaos

Yggr of Asgard wrote: »

It's originally on SyFy and Space in North America (as it's not a Netflix original) and Season 2 is back on 1 Feb, I am looking forward to it.

No idea when Season 2 will be available on Netflix.

I think season 2 is going straight to Netflix as it releases. Can't wait for it either, great show.

Bahanaman

Not a Netflix original show but Detectorists from the BBC is excellent. It's created by Mckensie Crook and features himself and Toby Jones as a pair of metal detectors or detectorists as they are officially known. It's set in the English countryside and despite what most people would expect, is really funny with brilliant characters.

crustybla

ED E wrote: »

Sense8 hasn't been mentioned? Maybe I'm crazy but...

I'm crazy too, love it. What did you think of the Christmas special, I enjoyed it.

I'm three episodes into Travelers, for anyone who has seen it, is it worth continuing?

GottaGetGatt

Not s Netflix original but the Expanse is fantastic. Season 2 I think will be released when it's finished on Syfy.
Daredevil is class, season 2 with Jon Bernthal as the punisher is an excellent performance.

wrmwit

Roddy23 wrote: »

A second vote for Nobel here - really good Norwegian drama on Netflix.

Third vote.....very good show.

In general the Netflix originals are good. There's something there for everyone. Depends on you genre! A lot of the popular new shows that have been released are sci fi which wouldn't be my cup of tea.

I've been watching BBC shows recently that I somehow missed. Line of Duty is very good. I'm watching Hinterland at the moment and I'm enjoying it. The only thing is that there's only 4 episodes on Netflix but there's 12 episodes according to IMBd.

ted1

The seige of jadotville is a great film.

crustybla

Started Nobel after reading here, really good so far.

pickarooney

wrmwit wrote: »

Third vote.....very good show.

In general the Netflix originals are good. There's something there for everyone. Depends on you genre! A lot of the popular new shows that have been released are sci fi which wouldn't be my cup of tea.

I've been watching BBC shows recently that I somehow missed. Line of Duty is very good. I'm watching Hinterland at the moment and I'm enjoying it. The only thing is that there's only 4 episodes on Netflix but there's 12 episodes according to IMBd.

Isn't it all in English on Netflix too? Or is therea choice of audio tracks?

wrmwit

pickarooney wrote: »

Isn't it all in English on Netflix too? Or is therea choice of audio tracks?

Audio tracks? You mean subtitles? Any foreign show I've watched is subtitled and the option is there if you want to turn the subtitles off or have English voiceover.

Jan_de_Bakker

I discovered Bojack Horseman last night .

I have a cough - it gets worse when I laugh ... I couldn't finish the 1st episode last night from coughing spasms, this is the funniest show I've seen since I discovered Family Guy 17 years ago ...

hidinginthebush

Jan_de_Bakker wrote: »

I discovered Bojack Horseman last night .

I have a cough - it gets worse when I laugh ... I couldn't finish the 1st episode last night from coughing spasms, this is the funniest show I've seen since I discovered Family Guy 17 years ago ...

You will probably love Rick & Morty so. Recently started it and genuinely laugh out loud even when on my own

Jan_de_Bakker

Jan_de_Bakker wrote: »

I discovered Bojack Horseman last night .

I have a cough - it gets worse when I laugh ... I couldn't finish the 1st episode last night from coughing spasms, this is the funniest show I've seen since I discovered Family Guy 17 years ago ...

Something I've found with BoJack Horseman is that it isn't a laugh riot show - and it isn't supposed to be. Oh I've laughed at many episodes, but I also cringed and almost cried at many things.

beauf

I liked the expanse. It's old school Scifi. Not sure it would be everyone elses cup of tea. The Detectorists I also liked. I must check out the other stuff mentioned here.

With the Expanse, if you can, try to watch Season 2. It was supposed to be released week-by-week, like what we're seeing with Designated Survivor, but I believe they've since changed and will now put the entire season up when it is released on traditional network.

pickarooney

wrmwit wrote: »

Audio tracks? You mean subtitles? Any foreign show I've watched is subtitled and the option is there if you want to turn the subtitles off or have English voiceover.

No, audio tracks as in the choice of language you hear.

I binged Please Like Me a couple of weeks ago. Fantastic series, very funny and quite touching.

beauf

Deleted User wrote: »

With the Expanse, if you can, try to watch Season 2. It was supposed to be released week-by-week, like what we're seeing with Designated Survivor, but I believe they've since changed and will now put the entire season up when it is released on traditional network.

They seem to up to episode 6 or 7 in the US

gimmick

Jan_de_Bakker wrote: »

I discovered Bojack Horseman last night .

I have a cough - it gets worse when I laugh ... I couldn't finish the 1st episode last night from coughing spasms, this is the funniest show I've seen since I discovered Family Guy 17 years ago ...

Jealous. Bojack is brilliant. There are a few themes which run through it which get funnier with repetition.

Hollywoo for example

Series 1 is good, series 2 is amazing, series 3 is on a par with 1.

sky88

i thought season 3 was terrible have still to force myself to watch the entire season.

I think Season 3 is excellent, when you look at it from the point of view that BoJack has everything that he finally wants, but is so deeply unhappy. That episode with the undersea film festival, which is mostly silent, is incredibly well done.