Summary
- The best fantasy TV shows all have incredible world-building.
- For example, One Piece accurately translates the world of Eiichiro Oda’s manga to television and features unique characters and locations.
- Another example is Wednesday’s world-building in the Netflix series, which is consistently solid, with clear thought and intent put into character design and craftsmanship akin to Tim Burton’s work.
From The Witcher to One Piece, world-building is a key aspect of fantasy TV, and shows vary in their ability to make their respective fictional universes believable. Immersion is a key aspect of fantasy series, as viewers often want to escape into a reality unlike their own, filled with magic and wonder. A great fictional world can feel real, despite not being realistic, if it is believable within itself.
Elements of great world-building include vast locations with meaningful detail, varieties of developed cultures, languages, magic systems, costumes, and mythologies. An excess of details and world size doesn’t always equate to good world-building. What’s more important is that the depth of its details builds to form a coherent story. For television, production design and CGI are major factors in bringing these worlds to life, and poor design can damage the immersion one feels when watching them. Here are the best fantasy TV shows, ranked by worldbuilding.
10 The Witcher
The Witcher’s world is beautiful, with multiple nations that exist on a land mass known as the Continent. Game players and book readers understand the vastness of the Continent, from the fortress of Kaer Morhen to the dense city of Novigrad, to the beautiful mountains of Skellige. The primary fault of the world-building for The Witcher series on Netflix can sometimes be the production design and poor CGI. Commonly, locations look clearly fake with computer effects often used to overcompensate and create a fantasy ‘feel’, and the costuming often lacks believability, which is why the show doesn’t rank higher.
9 Wednesday
Wednesday was lightning in a bottle, bringing a new take to The Addams Family. The world-building for the Netflix series is consistently solid, with costumes and scenography used to build on Wednesday’s character. Largely, Wednesday takes place in a normal, modern world, limiting world-building to primarily exist in the Nevermore Academy. Every character is a believable entry with clear thought and intent put in their design. This style and craftsmanship is a common staple of Tim Burton’s work, making it no surprise.
8 The Sandman
Inspired by the graphic novels of Neil Gaiman, The Sandman varies in its world-building abilities. Like Wednesday, much of the series takes place in a modern world, with the series trying its best to directly draw style from its source material. Generally speaking, the production design and computer effects are solid for a series, with many of the show’s issues instead coming from its writing. The system of the Endless is introduced in a way that’s understandable, making the mythical characters distinct and clear in their roles.
7 The Rings of Power
Amazon’s Lord of the Rings series, The Rings of Power, varies greatly from amazing world-building to strange choices. The costuming and character designs have seen tons of criticism, with the Greco-Roman style of human clothing being a source of great controversy. Other designs, like that of the Elves, who have short hair and dress with gold, fail to represent the Elves of Tolkien’s work. However, in terms of building an atmosphere, the larger scope of The Rings of Power does feel like Middle-Earth. Khazad-dûm, for example, serves as a great representation of a populated Dwarven city, though the time spent in the larger areas of it was limited.
6 Good Omens
Another series that comes from Neil Gaiman, as well as Terry Pratchett, Good Omens is a fantasy comedy series. The series is filled with well-known actors, and largely takes place in a fictionalized version of the real world, following an angel and demon who team up to prevent the end of the world. The idea is farfetched, but that’s precisely its strength, as the series explores ideas of history and mythology. Great acting and writing go a long way in making the series feel believable, despite its ridiculous nature.
5 The Wheel of Time
Robert Jordan’s The Wheel of Time book series was known for being excruciating in detail, regarding the vast cultures in its world. The Amazon Prime series has had criticisms for its adaptation of The Wheel of Time books, mostly due to the writing and large changes being made to the structure of the novels. However, the TV series is filled with vibrant elements of world-building that make the adaption feel lively, though it suffers from poor CGI compared to other fantasy series.
4 Arcane
Arcane was a highly esteemed animated fantasy series that saw a massive audience due to its adaptation of the world of League of Legends. Even fans who tried the show without knowledge of the game were able to immerse themselves. The show implies a much larger world, despite only taking place in a corner of it. The events of Arcane take place in the city of Piltover, which has a Victorian/Steampunk look to it, and the mix of different styles with the city’s culture makes Arcane’s world feel authentic and original.
3 Shadow and Bone
Shadow and Bone’s world takes place in a high fantasy setting, with most of its events taking place in a war-torn nation called Ravka. The series takes Eastern cultures from the real world and creates fictionalized, fantastical versions of them, making up the cultures of Ravka. Shadow and Bone heavily utilizes magic and fantastical elements in its storytelling, and the CGI for both has very strong moments. Unfortunately, season 2 was seen as a departure from the strong quality of season 1.
2 One Piece
One Piece was the manga live-action adaptation Netflix hit that no one saw coming, partly due to its world-building. The 18th-century style of One Piece is complimented by a modern touch that makes its fantasy feel unique. The manga is filled with outlandish visuals that help tell the story, which was part of the reason the show saw so much doubt before its release. However, the crafting that went into the project managed to make it feel believable while retaining its aesthetic.
1 House Of The Dragon
Game of Thrones did much of the heavy lifting for introducing the world of Westeros on fantasy TV, but House of the Dragon has still managed to expand on it in breathtaking ways. The Targaryen dynasty, from the family’s culture, its many characters, and their beautifully designed dragons, make up the majority of the show’s world. Even characters who had little screen time, like Aegon or Aemond, feel incredibly familiar due to the clever craft in their costuming and style. The series also brought forth House Velaryon and House Hightower, who feel as unique as any house in Game of Thrones
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