Netflix is the king of the streamers. No other service produces as much content with such consistency, for better and worse. While not all their shows are winners — and some others aren’t allowed to become such — Netflix remains the primary source of entertainment in the streaming world.
Many Netflix shows stand out because of their inherent campy sensibilities. From delightful original productions to fan-favorite acquired content, these shows represent camp in all its delightful glory, thanks to their over-the-top characters, visual language, dramatic storylines, or an explosive combination of all these elements.
10’Ratched' (2020)
MostRyan Murphyshows are campy; even when they try to be serious, they fall down the rabbit hole, andRatchedis no exception. Emmy-winner and Murphy favoriteSarah Paulsonplays a young Mildred Ratched, with the show telling her story before becoming the ruthless warden audiences meet inOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
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Although it alludes to the psychological thrills expected from a Nurse Ratched origin story,Ratchedalso succumbs to Murphy’s love for exaggeration. The show features a collection of over-the-top storylines heightened by Paulson andJudy Davis' wickedly campy performances.Ratchedwill probably never get a second season, but it will remain a curious campy effort in Netflix’s ever-expanding library.
9’Firefly Lane' (2021-2023)
Adapted from the eponymous novel,Firefly Lanestars television veteransKatherine HeiglandSarah Chalke. The plot centers on the lifelong friendship between two women, chronicling their relationship from adolescence into adulthood.
Corny and overly dramatic,Firefly Lanetries to beSteel Magnoliasand only half-succeeds. The show earns some much-needed gravitas from Heigl and Chalke’s performances and on-screen chemistry, but it often falls prey to its cheesy look at life, love, and friendships. Still, who doesn’t love a bit of cheese in their lives?
8’Mighty Morphin Power Rangers' (1993-1996)
No show from ’90s television is more shamelessly campy thanMighty Morphin Power Rangers. The show followed the adventures of a close group of friends who received superhuman abilities to fight against numerous alien enemies, particularly the wicked Rita Repulsa.
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Mighty Morphin Power Rangersis camp in all its glorious and over-the-top splendor. Bright, silly, colorful, and unabashedly enthusiastic, the show embraced camp in every aspect of its production, from the costumes to the acting and dialog. Featuring some of the funniest fighting sequences in ’90s television and with a collection of curious villains,Mighty Morphin Power Rangersis a beloved part of many people’s childhoods.
7’Riverdale' (2017-2023)
Riverdalebegan as a surprisingly gritty, neo-noir take on theArchiecomic book strip. The show’s first two seasons opted for a grounded approach, attempting to be a crime thriller mixed with a classic teen soap. However,Riverdalegave into the comic’s campy sensibilities somewhere after Season 3, descending into a mess of increasing ridiculousness.
Now, in its final season,Riverdalehas featured everything from witchcraft to time travel.The show is so bad it’s good, taking campy to a whole new level.Riverdaleindulges in its worst instincts, producing a chaotic mix of exaggerated storylines barely put together by a cast of talented performers holding on for dear life.
6’Fate: The Winx Saga' (2021)
Based on the animated seriesWinx Club,Fate: The Winx Sagapremiered on Netflix in 2021. The show follows a group of teen fairies attending an otherworldly magical school to learn how to control their powers. Like most other teen shows,Fate: The Winx Sagaoffers plenty of romance and drama.
Like the cartoon that inspired it,Fate: The Winx Sagais a campy ride. However, unlike its animated counterpart, the show feels less buoyant, as if embarrassed by its inherent campy sensibilities. UnlikeRiverdale,Fate: the Winx Sagarefused to embrace its wackier side, contributing to itscancelation after only one season.
5’The House of Flowers' (2018-2021)
In many ways,Manolo Carois like Mexico’s Ryan Murphy, or at least he tries to be. Nowhere is this particular sensibility clearer than in his Netflix soap opera,The House of Flowers, starringCecilia Suárez. The show revolves around the De la Mora clan, a wealthy family whose lives are upended when their father’s mistress kills herself, bringing to light many long-kept secrets.
The House of Flowersis a satirical take on classic Mexican telenovelas, campy and unafraid to explore the limits of its ridiculousness. The show thrives on the absurd, with Suárez delivering an instantly iconic performance as the sharp Paulina de la Mora. The character is camp embodied, from her mannerisms, fashion sense, and now-iconic languorous speech pattern.
4’The Politician' (2019-2020)
Ben Plattstars in Ryan Murphy’s satirical teen political comedyThe Politician. The plot revolves around Payton Hobbart, an overly-ambitious high school student running to be class president. As his campaign becomes increasingly challenged by numerous characters, Payton becomes more obsessed with securing the elusive victory.
The Politicianis a lesserElection, all the way to portraying Payton as a male version of Tracy Flick. However, the show rises above mediocrity to become a surprisingly sharp portrayal of politics, especially during Season 2.The Politicianis a camp jewel featuring a distinctive pastel-colored palette, fast-paced dialog, and a collection of wild performances that take it to new melodramatic levels.
3’Insatiable' (2018-2019)
Insatiableis among the most controversial Netflix originals.Debby Ryanstars as a 17-year-old high school senior hellbent on revenge against the students who bullied her for being overweight.Alyssa MilanoandChristopher Gorhamalso star.
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Although it offers a terrible view on weight issues and self-image,Insatiablesucceeds as a wicked and near-delirious high school satire. It’s far from perfect, and there’s much to hate about its questionable storylines and overall message, butInsatiableis a campy guilty pleasure that offers a few laughs.
2’Emily in Paris' (2020-)
Few shows are as divisive asEmily in Paris.Lily Collinsstars as Emily Cooper, an American marketing executive sent to Paris to work for a high-end agency. Experiencing romantic entanglements and exciting career opportunities, Emily makes the best of her time in the City of Lights.
Emily in Parisis the ultimate guilty pleasure, a campy delight that exists in a parallel, carefree universe of glamour, beauty, wealth, and fashion. Campy and self-aware, the show knows it doesn’t make sense but doesn’t care about it, embracing its absurdity and upping the ante with each new season. It’s as easy to hateEmily in Patisas it is to love it, making it a one-of-a-kind entry in the pantheon of bad campy shows.
1’AJ and the Queen' (2020)
RuPaulco-created and stars in the 2020 Netflix originalAJ and the Queen. The Queen of Drag plays Ruby Red, a down-on-her-luck drag performer traveling across the United States accompanied by her unlikely sidekick, a recently-orphaned 10-year-old girl.
Powered by RuPaul’s larger-than-life persona,AJ and the Queenis a heartwarming, heartbreaking, and deeply empathetic love letter to camp and drag. Uneven but endlessly entertaining, the show balances cringe-worthy scenes with genuinely affecting storylines to deliver a campy triumph that will go down in history as one ofthe best one-season Netflix shows.
