Netflix's German-language thriller series Dark celebrated its seventh anniversary on 1 December 2024, with fans taking to social media to praise the show as one of the best ever made. The series, which first aired in 2017, follows four estranged families in the fictional German town of Winden after a child disappears, uncovering a time-travel wormhole hidden in a nearby forest.
The show explores generational trauma and the effects of time on human life across multiple timelines. It holds a 95% critic rating and a 94% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, making it one of the highest-rated shows on Netflix.
Fans have expressed a desire to erase the show from their memories to experience it anew. On Reddit, user Feukorv called it 'one of the best thought out and planned shows,' while Urat declared it 'THE best show ever.' On X, The Cineprism described it as 'the best sci-fi thriller series of all time.' However, some viewers found the plot too confusing or boring.
The series stars Louis Hoffman, Maja Schone, Lisa Vicari, Moritz Jahn, and Oliver Masucci, with multiple actors playing the same characters across different timelines. Initially compared to Stranger Things due to its child disappearance plot and alternate universe premise, Dark quickly forged its own path.
Netflix commissioned a spin-off, 1899, which aired in 2023 but was cancelled after one season due to low ratings. Kelly Luegenbiehl, former VP of international originals at Netflix, said: 'When we first heard about Dark, we realised very early on that we hadn’t seen anything like this show before.'
