The Martial Arts Adventure Series The Witcher Fans Need To Binge On Netflix

When Netflix's The Witcher dropped its inaugural season back in December 2019, it immediately rose in the ranks as one of the streaming juggernaut's biggest successes. In the post-Game of Thrones era, fans are able to get their fantasy fix from a new property that offers a fresh take on the typical tropes of the genre. It takes all of the sword-clanging, mystical elements its contemporaries are known for and entertainingly reinvents them. Also, with a megastar like Enola Holmes and Superman actor Henry Cavill leading the charge as Geralt of Rivia, The Witcher carried a certain legitimacy to it that helped it stand out from the pack, bringing in and captivating even the most casual of viewers.

In fact, audiences responded so well to the first eight-episode season that Netflix ordered a second one shortly after. The only downside is that, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Witcher season 2 won't reach homes across the globe until sometime in 2021. Of course, as with any property, comprised of die-hard fans, a wait like that feels like a lifetime. 

Thankfully, to fill that void, the streamer is packed with other shows worth checking out. One series available to stream on Netflix hits all of the same action, adventure, and drama beats that audiences praise The Witcher for, making for a nice binge in the meantime. 

Here's why — Witcher fan or otherwise — Into the Badlands' three seasons should be your next TV escapade.

Unlike The Witcher's fictional-past setting, Into the Badlands is set roughly 500 years in the supposed real-world future. At this point, the United States looks nothing like it does today, following a destructive global conflict. With no law and order remaining from the old world, a feudal society rises from the ashes to reorganize what's left of humanity. Engulfed by a stretch of Earth known as the Badlands, the bulk of the country is ruled by Barons, who use their power to control their subjects and the trade of valuable resources in their respective regions. The series mainly follows Sunny (Daniel Yu), a deadly warrior and master combatant who finds himself falling in and out of favor with the various monarchs he employs. 

Into the Badlands originated on AMC back in 2015, before the network unceremoniously canceled it, and its finale aired in 2019. Despite its run being incredibly brief, the series garnered a niche following in its day, and it's not difficult to see why. The show is a simultaneous tribute to the American Western genre and to Japanese samurai films, as evidenced by its overall visual presentation and meticulous choreography. The characters that inhabit Into the Badlands' post-apocalyptic world are memorable, and the stories they help tell are incredibly poignant, striking a masterful balance between physical and emotional conflict throughout. 

With no date attached to The Witcher season 2 as of this writing, now is as good a time as any to give the beautifully brutal Into the Badlands a proper go.