We're halfway through December, and Netflix has already released so many great shows this month. We're talking about series like The Ultimatum: Marry or Move on season 3, Black Doves, Queer Eye season 9, No Good Deed, etc.
Of course, some become instant hits with viewers, but others end up flying under the radar. This doesn't necessarily mean that they're bad. It's just that people either didn't know about them or they just didn't pull them in right away. These are called hidden gems, and they deserve some love and attention, just like the more popular shows.
In this article, we shared four underrated Netflix shows released this month that you should add to your watchlist. Don't you think it's time to broaden your horizons and watch something different from what you're used to watching? We think so!
Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld
This beautifully animated fantasy series was created by Echo Wu. Beef star Ali Wong voices the main character of Jentry Chau, a Chinese-American teen girl who is brought to a small Texas town where she was raised. She discovers that the supernatural powers that she was trying so hard to repress have returned and that a demon king is after her for them.
With the help of her great-aunt, an expert in weapons, and a centuries-old Chinese vampire, Jentry must face a horde of monsters while also dealing with the typical challenges of high school life.
The first season has 13 episodes, each about 30 minutes long. Thus, it's a series that can be easily watched in one sitting.
1992
1992 is a Spanish crime thriller miniseries from Álex de la Iglesia (30 Coins). It centers around a grieving widow named Amparo who teams up with a troubled security guard to investigate the mysterious death of her husband in a factory explosion.
What they discover is that there have been many other murders, and they've all been committed by an enraged serial killer who leaves a small Curro doll on the bodies of his victims. This doll is the mascot of the Expo '92 in Seville, and Amparo and the security guard must figure out what the connection is and try to take him down. There are only six episodes in this series, so this is another show that's easy to binge-watch.
One Hundred Years of Solitude
I feel like One Hundred Years of Solitude is a show that many people probably skipped over because the plot didn't seem that interesting, but I advise you to give it a chance. It's a Colombian magical realism series that's based on Gabriel García Márquez’s 1967 book of the same name. The show takes place in the mythical town of Macondo and tells the multigenerational tale of the Buendía family.
It starts with two characters named José and Úrsula, who get married against their parents' wishes and leave their village, seeking a fresh start in a new location. They end up discovering Macondo, where seven generations of their family end up living. There are a total of 16 episodes in this series. However, only the first eight have been released. The remaining eight episodes will be released at a later date.
The show's official synopsis via Netflix reads, "Married against their parents' wishes, cousins José Arcadio Buendía and Úrsula Iguarán leave their village behind and embark on a long journey in search of a new home. Accompanied by friends and adventurers, their journey culminates with the founding of a utopian town on the banks of a river of prehistoric stones that they baptize Macondo. Several generations of the Buendía lineage will mark the future of this mythical town, tormented by madness, impossible loves, a bloody and absurd war, and the fear of a terrible curse that condemns them, without hope, to one hundred years of solitude."
Echoes of the Past
If you're into suspenseful mystery thrillers, you should be watching Echoes of the Past. It's a Middle Eastern Netflix original series centering around a man named Yehia, who is wrongfully accused of the murder of his sister, who died in a scuba diving accident.
He is sent to prison where he serves a long sentence. After finally being released from confinement 15 years later, Yehia is hellbent on getting his revenge and uncovering the real killer. The first season consists of eight episodes, which is the typical amount a Netflix series is given.
Don't forget to check out all four of these underrated shows on Netflix!