After their adaptation of The Witcher surprised a lot of people by becoming the most popular TV show on the planet, Netflix appear to be making a concerted effort to establish themselves as a major player in the realm of fantasy. With Game of Thrones now in the cultural rearview mirror, there’s a gap in the market for someone to step in and take the series’ status as the most talked-about thing in the genre, especially with Geralt’s second run of adventures not due for a while yet.
Netflix have two major new fantasy shows debuting in July, and they couldn’t be more different despite the fact that both are action-heavy graphic novel adaptations with a female lead. While subscribers will have to wait until mid-July to see if Cursed manages to put a fresh spin on the well-worn legend of King Arthur, their time will likely be occupied in the interim by Warrior Nun, which arrives this coming Thursday.
Based on the title alone, you can probably figure out already whether or not Warrior Nun is for you, and from the footage we’ve seen so far it has all the makings of being another breakout hit from Netflix’s lineup of original shows, promising no shortage of style and self-awareness in among the action scenes.
With Warrior Nun’s imminent release on the horizon, early reviews have been making their way online and are offering hugely favorable comparisons to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which is encouraging given that Joss Whedon’s cult classic has remained one of the most popular fantasy shows ever made, and has retained a dedicated and loyal following despite being off the air for almost two decades.
As Decider says:
In many ways, Warrior Nun can best be summed up as “Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but ultra Catholic.” It’s a rip-roaring adventure full of gorgeous young women fighting demons. You could say it’s nothing but silly fun
We’ll find out for ourselves later this week if Warrior Nun can live up to both the promise shown in the trailers and the early Buffy comparisons, but from the looks of things, Netflix are poised to have another huge success story on their hands.