16 TV Shows With Bizarre Premises That Totally Work
The perfect pick-me-up when I'm feeling down is watching a fun TV series. It's especially satisfying when you discover a show with a bizarre premise because it's so unique. There are some series with strange premises that totally work, even though on paper they shouldn't.
1. The Good Place (2016)
The Good Place is one of those shows that makes no sense and yet is so much fun to watch. Plus, the satire of the afterlife is so funny that you won't be able to turn it off.
2. Psych (2003)
Psych is an oldie, but a goodie. If you're interested in minor corrupt cop shows that dabble in playful, wholesome humor, this show definitely takes the cake.
3. Santa Clarita Diet (2017-2019)
When an average realtor living in suburbia with her husband and daughter suddenly vomits up an organ at a house showing, she soon realizes she's a member of the undead. Her doting husband and sarcastic daughter team up with a neighbor to help the woman hunt humans for her meals. But can they keep this shocking secret from their neighbors and coworkers?
4. Resident Alien (2021-)
Resident Alien is about a doctor who isn't what he seems and only one nine-year-old boy can see through his act. The doctor is an alien in disguise with a sadistic mission to kill every human he meets. But when the alien is roped into helping solve a murder, he begins to question his morality.
5. The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window (2022)
This miniseries, starring Kristen Bell, follows a mentally ill child psychologist with a fear of rain and a heavy dependence on alcohol. When the woman believes she witnessed a murder while looking out her window, her plans to seduce the neighbor across the street come to a halt.
6. Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (2020)
When a bubbly 12-year-old girl is stuck outside her safe underground bunker, she's thrown into a wild adventure on the planet's surface with strange mutant animals called mutes that are larger than life and can speak. But when the girl learns one of the mutes has an evil plan to use all humans to help him become king, she does everything it takes to unite humans and mutes against her foe.
7. Raising Hope (2010-2014)
When a young man who works as a pool skimmer has a one-night stand with a felon on the run, his life changes forever. He soon learns the woman, now in prison, is pregnant, and he is the only one who can raise the baby and give her a chance to live a normal life.
8. Better Off Ted (2009-2010)
Better Off Ted is a comedy series about a man who works as the head of the Research and Development department at an outlandishly evil mega-corporation. As the man uncovers more horrific truths about the company's practices, he does whatever he can to retain his title while pushing back against his bosses.
9. Death Valley (2011)
In the special Undead Task Force (UTF) of the Los Angeles Police Department, officers work tirelessly to take down vampires, werewolves, and zombies. This horror-comedy series pokes fun at police procedurals with creative monsters and incredible paranormal fight scenes.
10. The Umbrella Academy (2019-)
When an eccentric billionaire adopts seven children born because of an unknown phenomenon, he discovers that six of the kids have supernatural powers and turns them into a crime-fighting team of superheroes. But years later, when the kids are grown, they return to their father's home after his death, family drama is unearthed, and the kids learn they may be the only people on earth who can prevent the apocalypse.
11. Happy! (2017-2019)
Happy! is a dark comedy series about an ex-cop turned hitman who bungles a job and is chased by police with a bullet wound in his side. As he tries to evade his enemies and treat his injuries, he's followed by a little blue horse with a positive attitude that won't leave him alone.
12. Wilfred (2011-2014)
When a young man meets his neighbor's dog, Wilfred, he realizes he's the only one who sees the dog as an Australian man wearing a cheap dog costume. The two embark on unlikely adventures together while discussing existential topics to help the young man discover what he truly wants in his life.
13. Manimal (1983)
This strange sci-fi series is about a shape-shifting man who works for the police. Equipped with the power to transform into any animal, the man assists his local police force in solving crimes with his incredible abilities.
14. iZombie (2015-2019)
iZombie follows a perfectionist medical student who is turned into a zombie during an outbreak while she's on shift. The young woman must grapple with her newly undead body without hurting anyone, which leads her to find a job in the coroner's office to feed on recently dead people's brains. But when she realizes she holds the memories of the brains she eats, she helps the police solve the murders of the people she feeds upon.
15. The Tick (2016-2019)
In a world where almost everyone has superpowers, one man with no special abilities accidentally uncovers a sinister mystery and realizes he's in a dangerous position. He tries to warn the world that an evil supervillain everyone thought was dead is alive and has terrible plans, but no one believes him except a strange hero dressed in blue named The Tick, who may only exist in the man's imagination.
16. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015-2019)
This musical dramedy series follows a young and talented New York City lawyer tired of her high-speed lifestyle. When she runs into an old fling from summer camp, she hatches a plan to ditch her job and her life to move to California, hoping to win back her teenage crush from all those years ago. But she doesn't realize before she moves that the man of her dreams already has a girlfriend.
