Summary
- Stranger Things is Netflix's flagship show, transcending boundaries with its coming-of-age story and action-packed episodes.
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Veronica Mars share similarities with Stranger Things, focusing on mystery, supernatural elements, and high schoolers.
- Other shows like The Midnight Club, All Of Us Are Dead, Paradise, I Am Not Okay With This, and Freaks and Geeks offer unique takes on high school-centered stories rich with mystery and supernatural themes.
Since its beginning over a decade ago, Stranger Things has gone on to become Netflix's flagship show, delivering even more jaw-dropping action and pulsating spectacle every season as Eleven and the gang face off against the demons of The Upside Down.
The Last of Us: 10 Characters With The Best Combat Skills, Ranked
These Last of Us characters mastered stealth, weapons, and tactics to become elite survivors in a post-apocalyptic world.
Emerging as a pop culture revolution centering on an assortment of nerdy kids who discover another world in their small town of Hawkins in the 80s, the journey of Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Eleven has transcended boundaries across the world, with its coming-of-age story resonating with millions. Like Stranger Things, coming-of-age stories have found a home in the television medium, with many sharing familiar aspects of the Netflix behemoth.
7 Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Cult Classic Following The Adventures Of A High School Monster Hunter
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 1997 - 2003
- Showrunner
- Joss Whedon
- Seasons
- 7
- Streaming Service(s)
- Hulu, Dis
Not many shows had more of a cultural impact in the 90s than Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the supernatural high school drama that was the original coming-of-age horror that rocked the world, before the likes of Stranger Things and the streaming era came to pass. Like the title suggests, Buffy is a high school girl who becomes a vampire slayer, tackling a world of evil that continually threatens Sunnydale, with Buffy and the Scoobies ready to vanquish ghouls, vampires, and demons alike.
Although not Demogorgons, the supernatural forces Buffy takes on are formidable dark foes that prompt continual issues for the protagonist, such as anxiety, teenage angst, and identity, themes that preside heavily in Stranger Things, a show that builds on its monumental success almost two decades later.
6 The Midnight Club
Terminally Ill Teenagers Hold A Scary Story Club That Brings Unwanted Terrors
The Midnight Club
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2022 - 2022-00-00
WHERE TO WATCH
- Network
- Netflix
- Showrunner
- Mike Flanagan
- Seasons
- 1
Among Mike Flanagan's many projects on Netflix, the horror auteur developed The Midnight Club, a teen horror centered on eight sickly teenagers in a hospice. As friends, the eight patients come together at midnight, forming the Midnight Club, where the teens tell spooky tales that begin to play into reality.
Teeming with Flanagan's trademark horror tropes, the young patients are soon haunted by supernatural occurrences. At the same time, the protagonists deal with themes of grief, paranoia, and kinship, with their bonds and exclusive club having similarities to Stranger Things' famed squad featuring Mike and Dustin among others.
5 Veronica Mars
High School Student Who Becomes A Top-Notch Detective
Veronica Mars
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2004 - 2019
WHERE TO WATCH
- Network
- UPN, The CW, Hulu
- Showrunner
- Rob Thomas
- Seasons
- 4
- Streaming Service(s)
- Hulu
Despite their mature themes and differing backdrops, Veronica Mars and Stranger Things have more in common than meets the eye, with both shows placing mystery at the heart of their premise, having small towns with big secrets, and high schoolers dealing with dangerous situations above their pay grade. After the passing of her best friend, Veronica Mars, a complex high schooler, devotes her life to solving crimes that continually occur in the small town of Neptune.
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Kristen Bell's tremendously layered performance as Veronica puts much of the show on her back, with the neo-noir story in a high school setting, providing a fresh take on the genre.
4 All Of Us Are Dead
Korean Zombie Mayhem Featuring High Schoolers
All Of Us Are Dead
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- January 28, 2022
WHERE TO WATCH
- Network
- Netflix
- Creator(s)
- Chun Sung-il, JQ Lee, Kim Nam-su
- Seasons
- 1
- Number of Episodes
- 8
Among a surge in Korean entertainment making its mark in the West, such as Parasite and Squid Game, All of Us Are Dead continues the trend, offering a high school story brimming with mass horror aspects thanks to its exhilarating zombie premise. In a story that reinvents the tried and tested zombie formula, All of Us Are Dead chooses to tell the perspective of a zombie outbreak from the perspective of a group of Korean high schoolers, with its high school backdrop bringing a sense of non-stop action and adrenaline.
Along with the usual school friendships, romances, and petty drama, the international hit's focus on a group of teens battling petrifying and vicious fiends parallels its fellow network smash, Stranger Things.
3 Paradise
Spanish Sci-Fi Show That Finds Teenagers Trying To Find Missing Girls
Paradise
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2021 - 2022
- Seasons
- 2
- Streaming Service(s)
- MAX
The Spanish show Paradise overtly takes inspiration from Stranger Things, mirroring its supernatural premise, meshed with the inclusion of teenagers carrying an exciting sci-fi narrative. After the disappearance of three girls, a group of meddling friends band together to unearth the mysteries in a seaside town enshrouded in hidden supernatural secrets.
Encompassing elements of horror and mystery, avid fans of Stranger Things who can not get enough of teenagers gallivanting around dark entities can find Paradise offering many of the same qualities, albeit in a foreign language.
2 I Am Not Okay With This
High School Girl Learns To Deal With Superpowers And Love
I Am Not Okay with This
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2020 - 2019
WHERE TO WATCH
- Showrunner
- Shawn Levy
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- Netflix
Stranger Things is not the only high school-centered story featuring superpowers to grace Netflix, with I Am Not Okay With This entering the scene in the early months of the decade. Following the high school adventures of Sydney Novak, a student who learns to deal with several problems, such as sexuality, love, the emergence of superpowers, grief, and the highs and lows of high school that are thrown at her.
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In the show, Sydney's telekinesis is found to be tied to her feelings, with the attraction to her friend Dina and the death of her father culminating in uncontrollable emotions, reminiscent of Eleven's struggles throughout Stranger Things.
1 Freaks And Geeks
Iconic Springboard Show Featuring Future A-Listers
Freaks and Geeks
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 1999 - 2000-00-00
- Network
- NBC
- Showrunner
- Paul Feig
- Cast
- James Franco, Busy Philipps, Jason Segel, Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- Hulu, Paramount Plus
Before the likes of Seth Rogen and James Franco blossomed into some of Hollywood's brightest stars, the actors made their start in the one-season wonder that was Freaks and Geeks. From the minds of comedic geniuses Paul Feig and Judd Apatow, a group of obscure and unusual high schoolers gain the spotlight, with their chaotic and unflattering school and social lives coming to the forefront.
While it was canceled only one season into airing, Freaks and Geeks has gone on to earn a legendary status for its representation of outcasts in high school, highlighting the realities of school life and the disarray that comes with growing up, akin to Stranger Things' depiction of coming-of-age life.
Stranger Things
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2016 - 2025-00-00
- Showrunner
- Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
- Writers
- Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock
- Seasons
- 5
- Streaming Service(s)
- Netflix
- Story By
- The Duffer Brothers
