Netflix picks up a new animated show with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes – one that Max just cancelled

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Despite excellent reviews, the sci-fi animation show Scavengers Reign has been axed by Max – but from the end of this month you’ll be able to stream the entire first season on Netflix. And according to Variety, Netflix is considering greenlighting a second season – but it won’t make its final decision until it’s seen how season one performs. So if you’re a fan you might want to spread the word.

Scavengers Reign will be streaming on Netflix US, UK, Ireland and New Zealand from 31 May, and if you haven’t already seen it it’s worth checking out. Variety called it one of the top shows of 2023, although its suggestion that Warner Bros. might want to renew it has clearly fallen on deaf ears. 

What is Scavengers Reign?

Scavengers Reign is a sci-fi animation set on a dangerous planet on which a damaged deep space freighter’s crew find themselves stranded. And it’s been wowing the critics. The Spool says that “extrapolated from an Adult Swim short, Max’s biggest surprise is also one of science fiction’s greatest TV triumphs,” giving it another nomination as one of 2023’s best shows, and The New Yorker says it’s “A triumph of imagination, using animation to bring wondrously unfamiliar flora and fauna to life.”

Miles Surrey of The Ringer is another fan. “Even in a year packed with impressive small-screen sci-fi, Scavengers Reign stands alone in its eerie, absorbing originality,” he writes, while New York Magazine’s Kambole Campbell says that “Scavengers Reign’s animated imagination of outlandish cycles of life and habitats free from our tampering is uniquely thrilling.”

Some reviewers felt the plot was a little tired, but as Julia Glassman of The Mary Sue says: “Don’t watch Scavengers Reign for the plot. Watch it for its beautifully rendered alien landscapes, its bestiary of unsettling creatures, and its languid eco-horror.” And Sean Collins of Decider agrees: “While it won’t win any points for originality, its ambition, creativity, beauty, and slightly menacing tone will keep your attention, and its moments of ‘whoa!’ deliver.”

Some people absolutely would’ve put it among the best Max shows – but it looks like it wont get the chance to flourish there. Here’s hoping it finds its audience on Netflix.

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