5 Near-Perfect Netflix Shows That Deserved More Promotion

On top of that, Netflix fails to promote some shows, pouring its advertising funds into its flagship titles even when they don’t need it. They kept giving Stranger Things more money until the end, even after it had a dedicated fandom that essentially promoted the show for them. Bridgerton has become the streamer’s darling romance TV show. People keep turning out season after season. Unfortunately, big advertising pushes like these come at the expense of nearly perfect shows. These five series got shortchanged by Netflix, and they deserved better.

5 Julie & The Phantoms

Netflix’s Julie & the Phantoms is a standout musical series that got surprisingly little advertising and gained popularity almost exclusively through word of mouth. The story follows Julie Molina (Madison Reyes), a grieving teenage girl who loses her love of music after her mom’s death. She plays an old CD from 1995 while cleaning out her mom’s studio, summoning the ghosts of Luke, Alex, and Reggie, the band members. She starts a band with them and rediscovers her love of music.

Every musical show needs a powerhouse soundtrack and musical cast, and Julie & the Phantoms brings both those things. The pop music is high-energy and vibrant, and Reyes has strong vocal abilities. On top of that, Julie & the Phantoms has a deep emotional core that’s written brilliantly without ever feeling too heavy.

The story is extremely wholesome and G-rated, but it never feels too childish for adult audiences. The four main characters bring diverse experiences and backgrounds to the screen. Unfortunately, the show was unfairly canceled, largely due to Netflix’s lack of marketing. Many folks didn’t even know that the show existed until after it was gone.

4 Teenage Bounty Hunters

Teenage Bounty Hunters was one of the most punchy and entertaining Netflix TV shows of the 2020s. In the show, high school twins Sterling (Maddie Phillips) and Blair Wesley (Anjelica Bette Fellini) dent their father’s pickup truck. To pay for the repairs, the two start bounty hunting for a weathered bounty hunter named Bower Jenkins (Kadeem Hardison).

The twins’ actors have phenomenal chemistry, and Phillips, Fellini, and Hardison bounce off each other perfectly. There are plenty of funny one-liners. Plus, the story is full of twists and surprises that keep audiences engaged.

Netflix really gave a one-two punch to the 2020 TV show Teenage Bounty Hunters. First, they gave it an awful name that severely limited its potential. The streamer barely advertised the show ahead of its release, and when it did, it used the original name Slutty Teenage Bounty Hunters. They quietly changed the title a week or so before release, and the one-word difference might not seem like much, but it's enough to confuse audiences. Unfortunately, the final title is still a disservice, as it is entertaining for more than just young teen viewers.

3 Spinning Out

Netflix has become notorious for not advertising its prestige TV shows released during the holiday season. The sports romance Spinning Out got the short end of the stick because it was released on New Year’s Day 2020, meaning it got very little promotion and came out on a low-viewership day. On top of that, it didn’t actually need a holiday release, which makes the choice even more frustrating.

Despite this, Spinning Out is phenomenal and deserved so much more attention. The show follows Kat Baker (Kaya Scodelario), an ice skater who gets very injured, ruining her Olympic dreams. However, she’s given a second chance when Justin Davis (Evan Roderick), a rich and bad-boy pairs skater, partners up with her. The two quickly find the sparks flying as they try to work together. At the same time, Kat tries to navigate this while living with bipolar disorder, taking care of her sister, and dealing with her abusive mother. Meanwhile, Justin deals with the pressure from his family.

Rather than making a spectacle out of bipolar disorder, they present it with raw honesty, showing ups and downs without sugarcoating or sensationalizing the illness. The ice skating was praised for its choreography and hiring professional skaters as acting doubles. Plus, Scodelario and Roderick have electric chemistry that sucks viewers in.

2 Alias Grace

Based on the Margaret Atwood novel, Alias Grace is considered one of Netflix’s best miniseries of all time. Based on the 1843 true-crime story of Grace Marks, played by Sarah Gadon, the show tells the story of a young Irish immigrant and servant in Upper Canada who was arrested on charges of murdering her employer.

Because of the distance between now and 1843, Alias Grace feels a lot less weighted than modern true crime stories. The script pulls much of the story and dialogue from the Atwood novel. Grace is the ultimate unreliable narrator, making it such an engaging story. On top of that, Alias Grace is beautifully filmed, making it visually pleasing to watch.

Unfortunately, the show didn’t get much promotion for numerous reasons. First, the show was a partnership between the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and Netflix, so the CBC promoted it in Canada, and Netflix didn’t advertise it. On top of that, they put most of their advertising into multi-season flagship shows instead of miniseries, so Alias Grace wasn’t a valuable investment of their advertising. Plus, Hulu's The Handmaid’s Tale released two months earlier with a massive marketing push, and there’s no way Alias Grace could’ve competed.

1 Warrior Nun

Warrior Nun is a unique and entertaining fantasy TV show on Netflix based on the comics by Simon Barry. The story centers on Ava Silva (Alba Baptista), a 19-year-old who wakes up in the morgue with a new goal in the battle of good and evil. She learns that she’s part of an ancient Catholic Church organization, called the Order of the Cruciform Sword, that fights demons on Earth.

There’s so much to love about Warrior Nun. The story integrates Vatican lore and martial arts in an engaging way. The hand-to-hand fight choreography is top-notch. The costuming really stands out thanks to its distinctive visual style. Plus, the story dives into themes of faith and found family. The fantasy TV show Warrior Nun got a little bit of a push during season 1, but not nearly as much as it deserved. Then, by the time season 2 came around, they just dropped it on the platform with almost no advertising.

The media analysts at The Fandomentals broke this problem down in much more detail. Warrior Nun was virtually impossible to find unless you directly searched for the show. The streamer only gave it one teaser, one trailer, and a season 1 recap. They didn’t give it paid promotion. They didn’t provide screening materials or press packets. Warrior Nun persevered despite the clear advertising failure. Yet, Netflix canceled it. Had they given the show proper advertising and a press push, it could have thrived for many more seasons.