The Boys just wrapped up its third season and is regarded as one of the weirdest TV shows currently airing, as it offers an exaggerated and brutally funny take on the superhero archetype. Even though the show delivers some of the strangest scenes of the last few years, it takes more than over-the-top violence and wicked superpowers to top some of the titles suggested by Reddit users.
Challenging the limits of non-sense and delivering totally unconventional storylines, the weirdest TV shows of all time often deal with galactic journeys and crazy investigations in the most over-the-top way possible. Reddit users discuss those unusual series that best commit to crossing every possible boundary.
Raised By Wolves (2020 - )
Raised By Wolves tells the story of two androids assigned to raise human children on a mysterious planet. As the human colonies break up due to religious differences and selfish values, the android's task becomes increasingly difficult to work on a way to keep these people in line. JinxPutMaxInSpace calls it the "weirdest show on TV right now."
With impressive set locations and an important commentary on faith, and one of the few current sci-fi shows that are bold enough to deep dive into the absurd of the world it presents, Raised By Wolves is committed to making its viewers think. Without offering easy answers to the conflicts that unravel, the show treats themes like the human condition and the evolution of life in the most otherworldly way possible.
The Midnight Gospel (2020 - 2022)
One of the best ways to portray the weirdest stuff possible is through animation, where only the sky is the limit. The Midnight Gospel tells the story of Clancy, a charismatic spacecaster who owns a malfunctioning multiverse simulator and has a thing for shoes. Leaving the comfort of his home, he sets out on a journey to interview the strangest of beings in dying worlds.
Suggested by DailyNewsJohn, the show ended up being canceled, but The Midnight Gospel's existential quotes and psychedelic visuals mark the animated show as one of the craziest things Netflix ever produced. Using bright neon-like colors to animate fantastic dimensions, the worlds portrayed in The Midnight Gospel look like discarded dreams and hallucinogenic realities, but the themes addressed in the show are painfully relatable.
Legion (2017 - 2019)
Certainly not the conventional Marvel kind of story, Legion follows David Haller, Charles Xavier's mutant son and an anti-hero who suffers from a severe mental condition since he was a child. After a strange encounter, he realizes the voices and hallucinations that hazard his life might be real and connect to newfound powers that have the potential to change David's life forever.
According to joep06, "Legion has to be part of any list" about weird tv shows. It quickly turns into a psychedelic fest, with wicked visuals and lots of nightmarish sequences, the show is committed to portraying a troubled mind by mixing sci-fi and horror in a stylish fashion. The editing is clever and makes viewers feel like they're taking by the hand into the heart of madness, where nothing is what it seems but every part of all that insanity feels like a crucial piece of a jigsaw puzzle.
The Kingdom (1994 - 2022)
Fans of the legendary Danish television series The Kingdom are happy to hear that the show is set for a 2022 return 30 years after the last episode, according to Little White Lies. Lars Von Trier, a popular director famous for his disturbing movies, is once again taking the lead and will be actively involved in the project.
Archamasse states, "it makes no sense, compels me though." The Kingdom follows the staff and patients of an ultramodern Danish hospital as they witness the most bizarre and otherworldly events happening in the place. With plenty of body horror and weird imagery, the show deals with a range of themes, from ghost stories to flesh-eater zombies, and it manages to deliver all that with a strange sense of humor.
Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969 - 1974)
Probably the most influential comedy show of all time, Monty Python's Flying Circus offered a unique kind of humor that often crossed the boundaries of reality. Suggested by darkdoppelganger, the show has sort of a theatrical appeal, making fun of contemporary society as well as ancient periods.
With lots of yelling, weird costumes, and physical comedy, Monty Python's Flying Circus can be as clever as it is nonsense at the same time. Most importantly, the British show delivers it all in the simplest way, without intricate scenarios or accurate make-up. The cast's witticisms and well-structured punch lines alone make every episode an unforgettable experience.
Severance (2022 - )
One Redditor brings up the recent Severance as their weird TV show pick. Released early in 2022, the show provided one of the craziest first seasons of the past years and an original story that could as well be part of a Black Mirror episode.
After an anxiety-inducing season finale that ended in a mind-blowing cliffhanger, Severance left fans with more questions than answers, but in a good way. The minimalist look of the office in contrast with the cold atmosphere from the "outside life" offers two narratives that happen in parallel but are equally weird, which fits perfectly with the awkward personality of the main characters.
The Twilight Zone (1959 - 1964)
It's difficult to talk about weird shows without mentioning the classic anthology series The Twilight Zone. Brought up by cory120, the show was probably responsible for the nightmares of many teenagers back in the '60s as it deals with the most uncanny themes on the verge of crossing the PG-13 rating boundaries.
Inspiring wicked shows with linear narratives such as The X-Files and Fringe, the show deals with supernatural themes as they invade reality, often making characters (and viewers) question whether or not they are going mad. From creepy doppelgangers to the actual end of the world, and some of the scariest characters, each episode of The Twilight Zone is weird in its own way.
Doom Patrol (2019 - )
hidood5th compared Doom Patrol to "all the weird parts of superhero comics that no sane man would ever want to adapt" and they are "eternally grateful that someone did." Based on the DC comics of the same name, the show follows a team that gained peculiar abilities through means that left them weirdly disfigured and haunted by demons from the past.
Doom Patrol is extremely comfortable in its own absurdity and offers nothing but complete insanity throughout three seasons. The show's dark humor is consistently in sync with its violent tone, making it another remarkable series that offers a new take on the "superhero" trope, presenting characters that aren't even slightly morally right, but deep inside have a good heart.
The Leftovers (2014 - 2017)
Damon Lindelof returns after Lost for an ever weirder show and another unconventional story. Suggested by jez124, The Leftovers is a character-driven drama that follows the inhabitants of a small town trying to cope with a catastrophic event that caused 2% of the global population to suddenly disappear.
Each character has their own unique battles to fight and engage in an almost biblical journey where they can't seem to escape destiny. Throughout the seasons, The Leftovers deals with themes such as loss, guilt, and faith in a surrealist fashion, and it only gets weirder as seasons go by. With unforgettable performances and a narrative that comes full circle at the end, the show has aged incredibly well, providing a deep meditation on religious fanatism and the difficulties of moving on.
Twin Peaks (1990 - 1991, 2017)
According to tetoffens, "nothing is weirder than Twin Peaks." The show is written and directed by the renowned film director David Lynch and adds layers of nightmarish visions and surrealist elements into a heavy-drama narrative made of various characters, each one with unique traits and a particular role in the show's investigation.
The show was already weird enough in the 90s with spectral figures and the unsettling "black lodge" taking over the grounded main storyline, but it got even crazier when it returned five years ago for the third season. With David Lynch given full creative control, Twin Peaks became a straight-up surrealist show, where nothing is what it seems and weird dimensions blend into our world.