Netflix’s Hardest-Hitting Sci-Fi Thriller With 75% RT Is Better Than It Has Any Right Being

While it’s become something of a cottage industry to observe the cult classics that have gotten the axe from Netflix over the years, one 2018 hit still stands out to fans. Alongside other shows cancelled too soon like Mindhunter, the cyberpunk smash hit Altered Carbon quickly developed an eager fan base before it sadly diminished in season 2.

This observation alone isn’t new, with season 2’s reception being a common disconnect between audiences and critics at first, and even critics crossing the aisle over time. Altered Carbon’s story was fantastic in its unexpected success, introducing a dense cyberpunk world juxtaposing its stratified societies grasping at immortality, with a complicated, fascinating antihero at its center.

What Went Wrong with Netflix’s Altered Carbon?

Season 1 of Altered Carbon felt like a beautiful secret in Netflix’s library, one of the few series to truly nail the multifaceted worlds of a cyberpunk dystopia. The show balanced gritty megalopolis scenery like the Bay City and the ostentatious Aerium, home of the ultra-wealthy, with former rebel Envoy Takeshi Kovacs taken out of prison to solve an apparent murder.

This neo-noir storytelling was a tight adaptation of Richard K. Morgan’s eponymous novel, praised as an elevation of the story’s emotional beats, with Chris Conner’s AI hotel proprietor Edgar Poe being a particularly excellent tweak. Its action, especially in episode #4, is wildly satisfying as fans become familiar with Kovacs’ brutal woken fury, and Kinnamon’s physical portrayal really sells it.

The series was bogged down with exposition, grew unfocused, and although Anthony Mackie was ostensibly fine as Kovacs’ new sleeve, he didn’t measure up.

But fans quickly turned on the series in season 2. It felt less guided by the novels than season 1. Laeta Kalogridis was no longer the primary showrunner, Alison Schapker instead taking on the role. The series was bogged down with exposition, grew unfocused, and although Anthony Mackie was ostensibly fine as Kovacs’ new sleeve, he didn’t measure up.

While Altered Carbon season 1 defied the odds and had an excellent reception, it ultimately never reached season 3 due to the show not meeting standard viewership metrics to justify renewal. It’s a shame, but not surprising, especially with the suddenly disparate reception of the viewers compared to the critics for season 2.

Altered Carbon’s Show Thankfully Has Plenty Cyberpunk Successors

While Altered Carbon not getting a longer life is sad, now’s as good a time as ever for cyberpunk fans across multiple genres. The CD Projekt RED game Cyberpunk 2077 eventually reversed course following its disastrous debut to become a beloved modern AAA game after many desperately-needed tweaks, and its anime adaptation counterpart is among the medium’s best.

But for those seeking an alternative to the Night City, soon to even get a live-action treatment, there’s one other essential series soon to be adapted from perhaps the most important cyberpunk trilogy ever. Coming to Apple TV+ is Neuromancer, adapting the first of William Gibson’s Sprawl trilogy, the genre’s first recognized novel (handily predating Altered Carbon) since its inception.

Neuromancer certainly has its doubters, a fair concern given its lacking novelty even relative to the time of Altered Carbon’s release, let alone the 41 years since the novel’s debut, it’s likely the series to follow the most closely for fans of Netflix’s 2018 hit. Given Apple TV’s track record with sci-fi in general, it has a strong shot, though.