The 50 Best Crime Drama and Thriller Shows On Netflix: 2018 Edition Share For the year 2018, we have conducted a new comprehensive review of new murder mysteries and crime dramas on Netflix to find out the best shows (see our 2017 edition of the 40 best crime dram and thriller shows here ). Netflix's catalogue is a mystery even to the most seasoned viewer. Check out the best mystery shows available on Netflix today.
Action and mystery
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Not far from Riverdale, where Archie Andrews and friends have their hijinks, sits the town of Greendale, a place where, we are told, it seems like Halloween all year round. It’s here that teen witch Sabrina (Kiernan Shipka) lives, juggling her ordinary life as a high schooler with her extracurricular activities practicing the dark arts. Sabrina is enjoying the best of both worlds, at least until her 16th birthday, when she must sign away her soul to the Dark Lord and cast off her mortal life. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is a fun, occasionally very creepy slice-of-life show, with Sabrina and friends having adventures and dealing with a variety of supernatural threats.
Castlevania
Video game adaptations have a spotty record, probably because they tend to be cash grabs rather than earnest attempts at art. Netflix’s Castlevania succeeds — despite its flaws — because of the great passion for the source material that is apparent throughout. The show begins with Dracula’s (Graham McTavish) love affair with a human woman, Lisa (Emily Swallow). After a corrupt bishop executes her on charges of witchcraft, Dracula unleashes his demonic hordes on the countryside, butchering people indiscriminately. It falls to Trevor Belmont (Richard Armitage), the last, drunken son of a famed vampire-hunting clan, to stop the slaughter. Castlevania is a violent show, with savage fight scenes and gore, but Warren Ellis‘ script adds plenty of levity.
Stranger Things
The opening sequence of Stranger Things lays out the series’ sci-fi aspirations clearly: A scientist flees down an empty hallway, pursued by some unseen force that eventually nabs him as he waits for elevator doors to close; it then cuts to a group of kids playing D&D in a suburban basement. From Alien to E.T. in a matter of seconds. The show is a stew made of various influences from the ‘80s. A mysterious creature and a secret government agency, a group of kids having adventures around their rural town, teens experimenting with sex, drugs, and peer pressure.
There are pieces of Stephen King, Steven Spielberg, and John Hughes strewn throughout Stranger Things, and the result is a show that will feel immediately familiar to people who grew up with that source material. The show is not shallow in its emulation, either. The acting and direction are superb, giving even the most derivative scenes some heft.
Broadchurch
When an 11-year-old boy is killed, the coastal town of Broadchurch is subjected to the onslaught of media attention. At only eight episodes, this British show is easy to binge in a weekend, with twists and turns that will keep you watching. David Tennant stars as the testy head investigator of the murder, who finds himself dealing with high emotions and high stakes in his search to find the person who would commit an unthinkable act.
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Additional Videos
Good Sam
- Good Sam (Trailer)