netflix time travel series german

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A family saga with a supernatural twist, set in a German town where the disappearance of two young children exposes the relationships among four families. A family saga with a supernatural twist, set in a German town where the disappearance of two young children exposes the relationships among four families. A family saga with a supernatural twist, set in a German town where the disappearance of two young children exposes the relationships among four families.

• Baran bo Odar
• Jantje Friese
• Louis Hofmann
• Karoline Eichhorn
• Lisa Vicari
• 4.1K User reviews
• 182 Critic reviews
• 8 wins & 25 nominations

Episodes 26

Photos 1259

Top cast 99+

• Jonas Kahnwald

• Charlotte Doppler …

• Martha Nielsen

• Hannah Kahnwald …

• Katharina Nielsen …

• The Stranger …

• Peter Doppler …

• Bartosz Tiedemann …

• Ulrich Nielsen …

• Magnus Nielsen …
• Aleksander Tiedemann …

• Franziska Doppler …

• Regina Tiedemann …

• Mikkel Nielsen

• Claudia Tiedemann 1987 …

• Elisabeth Doppler …

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• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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• Trivia Many of the forest scenes were filmed at the Fahrtechnikakademie Kallinchen near Berlin. This place is a former military testing area of the German Democratic Republic.
• Goofs The police car used by Egon in 1953 is actually a model from a much later year as evidenced by the large rear window. A 1953 beetle had a small oval window in the back.
• Connections Featured in The Reel Rejects: DARK | Official TRAILER | Netflix REACTION & REVIEW!!! (2017)
• Soundtracks Industry Written by Emelie Molin and Victoria Skoglund Performed by Mire Kay

User reviews 4.1K

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• Aug 8, 2020
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• December 1, 2017 (United States)
• United States
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• Unicorn Cave, Scharzfeld, Germany (Cave scene)
• W&B Television
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

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• Runtime 1 hour
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Atmos

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Everything You Need to Know About ‘Dark,’ Netflix’s Most Arresting Show

As the German time-travel series enters its second season, two Ringer staffers attempt to unspool the mysteries from the previous 10 episodes

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If you haven’t watched the first season of Dark and would rather not know what happens in it, turn back now. This post contains spoilers. Like, right after this sentence.

Dark is a German drama on Netflix about time travel and confused teenagers. But if you were constructing a course about its themes, Item 1 on the syllabus would be the variable concepts of responsibility and free will; Item 1a would be multigenerational trauma. I guess I no longer need to describe Dark as grim—central to the plot is the unexplainable disappearance of two young boys in the small town of Winden—but the show’s preoccupation is whether or not we’re doomed to repeat past mistakes.

Other salient questions: How far in the past? How past is the past? How changeable are the present and future? There’s a nuclear power plant in Winden; in the first episode, a fuzzy radio broadcast congratulates the town on never having an incident. Yet every 30 years or so, birds fall from the sky and dead livestock dot the fields.

Dark is an extremely plot-driven show best understood in flow charts and infographics, but to attempt a brief summary: There’s a blond kid named Jonas. He just returned from a mental health facility in France, where he was getting clinical help dealing with the emotional and mental aftereffects of his father’s suicide. Jonas returns to school to find things not as he left them—his best friend is now dating the girl Jonas finally kissed last summer before his nervous breakdown, and the guy he used to score weed from vanished without a trace a few days before. The town is in a real tizzy about it; there are a lot of community meetings and curfews are put in place. Also, Jonas’s mom is having an affair with Ulrich, the lead detective on the missing persons case, who’s married to the principal at Jonas’s school. Ulrich’s son Mikkel also goes missing, and over the course of 10 really gripping episodes, you come to realize that Mikkel was also Jonas’s dead father “Michael,” and that control—like the boundaries between past, present, and future—is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.

Dark returns to Netflix for its second season this week, so I’ve enlisted my colleague and fellow Dark fan Meg Schuster to help unspool some of the key events of the show, address lingering questions from the first season, and otherwise ramble about determinism.— Micah Peters

Peters: SO. Megan. My first question is also my most annoying: Is time linear? Or is everything happening at once, across infinite timelines? IS THERE A DARK CINEMATIC UNIVERSE? Please say no.

Megan Schuster: Micah! I’m so glad you asked, and I just want to say off the bat that I’m both thrilled and preemptively terrified of opening my mind back up to the Galaxy Brain of television shows. But here we go.

In the Dark universe, time is an obsession. Every character is touched by the Matrix fluctuations that occur in the present (2019), past (1986), and super-past (1953) timelines. In the show’s “present day,” H.G. Tannhaus, a Winden watch-repairer-turned-apocalypse-machine-maker-turned-writer (same) explains his theory of time to the Stranger, a hooded figure who later reveals himself to be the future version of Jonas. To illustrate his idea, Tannhaus uses the image of a light shining into a dark, infinitely large room. Without interruption, the light should continue on its path indefinitely. Toss an obstacle into the mix, though—something rational like, oh, I don’t know, a wormhole —and all bets are off.

Having recently delved back into the Dark texts, my instinct is to say that all of these timelines are happening at once. Despite how difficult that is to wrap my limited human brain around, it somehow feels like the tidiest solution? Take, for example, the way characters time-hop, the fact that Senile Helge could confront Middle-Aged Helge in 1986 and not have the world implode, and even the realization that Michael (a.k.a. grown-up Mikkel/Jonas’s father) and the original Mikkel had to have existed in the same timeline— in the same town —for at least 11 years. It all makes me think these loops are plodding along on some predetermined schedule, hitting all the right notes in concert with one another. But is that theory too easy? (“Easy” obviously being a relative term since we’re talking about time travel here.)

Peters: You’re right, I wouldn’t say there’s anything easy about understanding what’s happening in Dark. But let’s expound on “predetermined schedule” because another obsession of the denizens of Winden, or at least of future-Jonas and present-Tannhaus, is the question of whether our decisions between separate courses of action are distinctly our own. At the beginning of the penultimate episode of Season 1, “Everything Is Now,” there’s a long cut of the different temporal versions of all the characters we’ve met so far staring blankly into the camera. I want to stress blankly , because it elevates a really heady Tannhaus voice-over about man’s origins, the meaninglessness of existence, and whether or not we’re all just pawns on a chessboard being moved by forces we can never hope to fully comprehend.

Schuster: Here is where I’d like to jump in and briefly mention how extremely “hits blunt once” Tannhaus’s character is, but also give him kudos for being … almost entirely spot on?

Peters: I mean, as far as we know? The paper trick Tannhaus does is a visual representation of an Einstein-Rosen bridge , which is basically just a guess at how divergent points across space-time might be connected. So if what happens at one point affects all the rest, then does anything that anyone does actually matter? If Jonas pulls back from a kiss with Martha Nielsen and spares his best friend’s feelings instead of following in his mother’s romantic footsteps (which would mean making out with his aunt ), does the world as we know it still end? “Is it even possible to change things? Or is time an eternal beast that can’t be defeated?”

Schuster: That first question—which Tannhaus asks in Episode 8—is especially interesting to me heading into the show’s second season, because in Season 1, the answer was largely no. We saw so much of the “present day” plot play out in the first few episodes that each trip back in time seemed designed to show us how we got there. Ulrich had to travel back to 1953 and bludgeon a Young Helge (essentially trying to “kill baby Hitler”) for Middle-Aged Helge to turn into a pawn who could be easily manipulated by a stronger presence (more on that in a bit). Future Jonas couldn’t let Present Jonas out of the bunker in the final episode because then Future Jonas couldn’t complete his mission. Any time a character gets an original idea— Present Jonas trying to bring a Young Mikkel back to the present; Old Helge attempting to reason with his younger self—there’s a force there to stop them.

But toward the end of the season, two puppet masters revealed themselves: Claudia Tiedemann, who controlled the town’s nuclear power plant for years, and in the 2019 timeline resides in a creepy Unabomber-like basement, and Noah, the non-religious priest who possesses a talent for manipulation. Noah convinces Middle-Aged Helge to kidnap children so he can use them to test a time machine. And Claudia incepts Future Jonas to think he’s actually shutting the wormhole down, when in fact his actions cause it.

Both have their own agendas: Noah, in a recruitment-style conversation with Jonas’s friend (and Claudia’s grandson) Bartosz Tiedemann, says that there are light forces and dark forces vying for control of time travel; he claims to be on the side of the light (though that is extremely up for debate, given that he kills children to achieve his ends). Claudia is a bit more of a mystery, though her motivations seem to be tied up in her former role within the power plant.

I want to hear your thoughts on this idea of predetermination, Micah, and whether you think Noah and Claudia have control over this world, or some kind of extra information that we don’t. But also, given the screen time Noah has in the Season 2 trailer, I also wanted to ask you: What do you think his role is in all of this?

Peters: Well I was gonna say that in the beginning, it seems as though there are a lot of people doing stuff for no other reason than because the plot says so. Eventually, we come to find that Noah sort of wants to be the plot, via a choice of a back tattoo:

Schuster: Perhaps the only back tat that could rival Ben Affleck’s .

Peters: Yeah Noah’s is extremely less … Spencer’s Gifts. Anyway, Noah is probably definitely not to be trusted. He dresses like a priest but he’s actually a hermeticist. Without getting too into the weeds about it: He believes that God gave one true theology to man long ago, and that all the world’s religions are like denominations of the same faith. He also believes the world is doomed, and that the completion of his time machine can save it. That’d be a noble endeavor if it weren’t for the fact that, you know, it necessitates kidnapping and experimenting on kids.

Still, though—regardless of what we know about how or why Claudia wields her soft power—I don’t really love the idea of any one changeable human person deciding the fate of the world. Universe? Multiverse? Are we even clear about what exactly is on the line here?

Schuster: We are certainly not! At least I’m not. Since we really only see how all of this time-hopping mumbo-jumbo affects Winden, it’s unclear whether there’s been any impact on the rest of civilization. It seems impossible that there wouldn’t be, and yet, Winden is so insular—and has been for generations—that we have to at least entertain the idea that it’s largely been contained.

I suspect we’ll find out more about this in Season 2, though, because the final scene of the first season shows Jonas being spat out into the future—the year 2052, to be exact—and it appears as though we’re in a post-nuclear-apocalypse world. Given how nuclear catastrophes tend to work (I just finished watching the wonderful HBO series Chernobyl , so I feel pretty confident in my expertise on this matter), there’s no way the damage is contained to Winden. Or Germany. Or probably even Europe. I don’t expect we’ll stray too far beyond Winden this season, but we might get some insight into Noah’s and Claudia’s larger plots. I mean, there’s really no point in “harnessing time” if your machinations affect only one small German town.

Another interesting wrinkle to the future plot comes from the last line of Season 1. When Jonas is sprung forward into 2052, he’s met by an armored truck full of what look like guerrilla forces. They’re all masked—though I must say, quite poorly for an area that’s crawling with radiation. (Again, I’m an expert.)

A woman steps down from the truck and approaches Jonas. He asks her what year it is. She stares him down, and then, right before knocking him out with the butt of her gun, says, “Welcome to the future.” Micah. MICAH. How does she know she’s in “the future”? Do people in 2052 all know about time travel? Is this what we have to look forward to in 33 years?

Peters: So you’re sure we’re in 2052 and not further in the future? I wasn’t—when Helge and Jonas switch places across a time rift between the year 1953 and the weird wallpaper room in 1986, respectively, right before Future Jonas sets off his time machine, doesn’t that mean he could’ve ended up anywhere? Any when.

But still, whenever he ended up, it’s definitely on the other side of an apocalyptic event. My guess is this season we’ll see exactly what that event was, and whether reversing it, or ensuring that it happens, is the quote-unquote right thing to do. What if the rest of the world survives because of what happened to Winden? What if saving Winden means the end of everything else? I mean, otherwise, I can’t figure what the point of the 2052 (?) timeline would be.

Schuster: When Season 1 wrapped up, it felt like they purposefully kept the year of the future foggy because, outside of the 33-year loops, that plot really could have come at any time. (Netflix has since said that it’s 2052.) The important part isn’t the year, it’s that we get closer to answering the overarching “What’s the point” question.

As you wrote when the show first came out, Season 1 was so plot-driven that we didn’t get much in the way of broader scope. So much energy was concentrated on keeping characters straight and setting up plot developments that it could only hint at Larger Ideas at work. Now that the table is set and characters’ motivations have been laid out, it’s time to more closely examine those themes.

About a minute into the trailer, white letters flash across a black background: EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED. That’s the idea that the first season set up. Season 2’s responsibility is explaining why that connection matters.

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‘dark’ creators answer burning questions about that reality-bending final season.

'Dark' final season: here's what happens at the end of the Netflix time travel thriller.

By Josh Wigler

Josh Wigler

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[This story contains major spoilers for the final season of Netflix’s Dark .]

In a time where new genre television content feels rare and must be savored at all costs, one specific rabid fandom has a show to sell you on: Dark , Netflix’s German time travel thriller from creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese.

Describing the premise of the series feels almost impossible. One must watch it. Even after watching it, there is no such thing as a cursory consideration of its events; each and every character who lives in the fictional town of Winden, Germany is greatly impacted by one another, whether it’s because someone is secretly someone else’s time-traveling father or, weirder still, their own time-traveling granddaughter. (Seriously, if someone can please step in and explain the Elisabeth / Charlotte Doppler effect, slide in right here .)

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So, in moving forward, let’s assume you have watched all of Dark . Doubtlessly, you have questions on your mind, about the two new worlds introduced in the final season, how the Dark production team put the parallel universe into reality, what Jonas and Martha’s final sacrifice meant, the logic behind the final dinner scene, and most importantly this: is there more to the story? Is the final season truly the final season, or will the cycle continue, as it does ad infinitum within the context of the story? For answers to those questions and more, The Hollywood Reporter turned to Odar and Friese for a closer look at the final season of Dark .

Was it always your intention to introduce multiple worlds from the outset?

Jantje Friese: We wanted to introduce the parallel world in the second season. That was the initial plan. When we got to the second season, we changed it again. We thought it better to shift the puzzle pieces around. There were a lot of [directions] we knew we wanted to go, but didn’t necessarily know at which points in the narration we would address them. As you know with Dark , you don’t have the straightforward narrative where you can go from one thing to the next. We’re going back and forth. That was the biggest structural issue: when do we reveal what? Some of it, we knew. Some of it was something that we developed throughout the process.

Do you wish there were more than three seasons to explore the story?

Friese: It was absolutely the perfect amount. Anything else would have felt like stretching it unnecessarily and making it more complicated on a narrative level. We love symbolism and we believe you have to be true to the symbols you lay out. The triquetra and things coming in three is one of them. It would have felt like selling our souls and not delivering on what we wanted to do [if we had more seasons]. It feels quite right and satisfactory.

What were the biggest challenges in establishing the parallel world?

Baran bo Odar: As we have so many different timelines and characters, we would figure out things like, if we use a certain color in this decade, we won’t use it in another one. It was really challenging for us in the third season to establish another world with maybe even other timelines, too. In talking about a mirror world, though, we wanted to use that trick and actually mirror the images. To mirror the world we know, we could either do that by rebuilding all of the sets. For example, if a stair goes from left to right, in the other world it would go from right to left. If a door was on the left side, it would then be on the right side in the other world. We realized that was insane to do on costs. We already have so many timelines; revamping them for other timelines and then building them for the mirroring? Insane.

How did you pull it off?

Odar:  We mirrored the image in the camera. The actors had to act like they are in a mirrored world. If they are right-handed, they had to act with their left-hand, though it would appear as though they are right-handed. I love challenges, and I get bored very easily, even on set. That was a challenge I really loved. It was something to give to the actors. At first, they were like, “Really? We have to do this?” But then they loved it, too. It was such an interesting challenge. Very simple things like opening a door, you have to do it with your left hand. You can try that for a day, and it’s really awkward to do if you’re not left-handed. We had to get cars from England for some shots where the steering wheel had to be on the other side. It was really fun. Sometimes on set, the actors would deliver a really great performance, but they used the wrong hand. They would go, “God damn it! I used the wrong hand!” ( Laughs .) That was very fun.

Friese: Some people have already found a lot of the imagery and paintings we used [throughout the series]. The idea of the three worlds is constantly shown in the second season, through the picture in the book young Elisabeth is reading. There’s a picture with three worlds in it. You see Adam blowing wind on the one world, and on the other, you see Eva blowing wind on the other world. Then you have the world of origin in the middle. There are all of these images, and even in dialogue, hints that give it away. But you can only read it once you see how it ends. Once you rewatch it, it’s obviously great fun to find all of those little things.

Jonas and Martha sacrifice themselves and their own worlds in order to stop the loop and save the origin world. Do you view it as a happy ending?

Odar: I definitely view it as a happy ending, though you can also interpret it as a suicide mission, of course. I always liked the idea that there are two components who are opponents, fighting each other all of the time, actually having to realize that they are not important. They have to realize that, yes, we suffer and we have pain and desires, but we two are not so important that we must exist so someone else can’t be happy. For me, it’s a very happy ending, realizing it’s not just about you all of the time. You can actually do something good by not being there so someone else can be lucky and happy. It gives this other world a huge chance. I always loved that idea. That’s why, for me, it’s a very happy ending, even though it feels very sad.

Friese: I completely agree. What resonates with a lot of viewers is this feeling that we also sometimes have: do we matter? Can we change anything? Do I actually have free will? How does it feel to be almost in a prison, because you can’t get out of yourself? How can I get over always reacting in the same patterns to certain situations? How do I free myself from my reactions to certain impulses? Letting all of that go, for me, feels very satisfying.

The series ends with a dinner party in the origin world. Was this scene always part of the plan or was it something that developed in the writing?

Friese: It was one of the things we always wanted to do. We always knew we wanted to save Regina. That was the thing Claudia wanted to achieve. We wanted to make sure we got there. We wanted to end on something that looks normal. We wanted it to be something that everyone can relate to: dinner with family and friends. 

Hannah reveals she’s thinking about Jonas as a name for her unborn child. Is this a hopeful note in your mind?

Friese: We are big believers in ambivalence. We don’t think there’s only one answer to a thing. That relates to everything. It’s both hopeful and ominous at the same time. In other [projects] we’ve done before, we don’t like to end on a dot. We put a dot, wait a little, and then we put a question mark at the end. It’s just a nice nuance with which to end.

Odar: It’s really up to the audience to answer it. I have an answer, but it’s very personal. You might have an answer, and it’s very personal. That’s the beauty of storytelling. You will have something very personal toward the story. It’s the same with Blade Runner , and how there are still people thinking Harrison Ford is not a replicant; where I’m thinking, “How can you think he’s not a replicant?” That’s the beauty of that story, that there’s a question amrk.

Friese: It’s a good thing because it helps you see who you are yourself. By making this choice and what you read into it, you’re learning something about yourself. 

How did Woller lose his eye?

Odar: The question about Woller’s eye is the question about, is there a god or not? That, for us, is a metaphor. You can never give a satisfying answer. You will never know the answer. It’s what we love about this thing. We know people will be going insane about it, but we always knew this would be our answer: we don’t have an answer, because we do not know if there’s a god or not.

Friese: There was supposed to be a scene in season two that got cut out. There are some stories that live on when there are still questions left open. That’s why we decided against showing it.

With that being said, is there still a story to tell in the universe of Dark , or do you feel closed at this point? Do you feel you have said all there is to say about these characters and this world?

Friese: I think there is a lot to tell. I love that there’s so much fan fiction out there. I think it’s great. People write stories about the relationships between Aleksander and Regina, and stuff like that. I think that’s awesome. If you leave enough open for people to pour their own creativity into it… in that way, it lives. But I don’t want to fill those gaps.

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New German-language Netflix series Dark is the crime mystery time travel series you never knew you needed

Creators baran bo odar and jantje friese tease the new series set to be on everyone's lips, article bookmarked.

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New Netflix series Dark is literally two shows for the price of one.

“There were two concepts we really liked," creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese state ahead of the brand new Netflix series. "One was a crime series we developed for Channel 4 and another was a feature film. So those two things were lying on the table and we were like, ‘You know what? Let’s mix it up.’ We pitched it to Netflix and they liked it.”

The series sees the lives of four families thrown into turmoil following the disappearance of two young children in a German town, an event which - through means that won't be spoiled here - propels them across varying periods of time. Dark is the kind of series that is willing to show an adult in the 80s sharing screen time with younger versions of the same characters they will go on to meet in the future. Dishing out Nordic noir-style grit with Lost -sized cliffhangers, Dark is a Rubik's cube of mystery masterfully combining two genres - one of which is pure and simple time travel.

Stranger Things this is not.

“We didn’t do the pop cultural reference thing,” Friese says when discussing their approach to the show's sci-fi elements. "We really just delved more into the scientific aspect of it - read a lot about Einstein, Hawking… The important thing is the question of free will versus determinism because when you play with time travel you have to decide which side you’re on - you can either change things in the past or you can’t. Setting up the rules was the one important thing."

Odar elaborates: “We like to follow a character who goes to the past to change the future [and so] we’re raising the questions of what’s there first: the chicken or the egg? and the only answer we as human beings can give is that they have to be there at the same time because there is no real answer to it. If you do have an answer, you’d know if God exists or not.”

Having created a series that will no doubt capture the attention of fellow showrunners, the conversation flows to TV shows the writing duo have recently enjoyed themselves. Considering Dark 's titular tone, one unsurprising name is mentioned by Odar.

“I really really loved David Fincher's new show, Mindhunter . I was really surprised [by it] - it’s such a smart show with people talking in rooms about highly philosophical human questions.”

Friese agrees, citing true crime series Making a Murderer as a recent high point.

“It’s the first thing I watched in three days - my first heavy binge-watching experience,” she declares.

Odar laughs. “Basically we love serial killers.”

Dark can sit alongside both as a show that subverts viewers' expectations while simultaneously appeasing fans of the genres it tackles.

Having previously collaborated on hacking drama Who Am I? in 2014, the duo have crafted a taut must-see filled with rising stars (Louis Hofmann) and a pulsating score courtesy of Fortitude 's Ben Frost (just wait for the closing credits). Dark is mystery crime saga, time travel mind-bender and a very likely contender for your next binge watch.

Dark is available to watch on Netflix from 1 December

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‘Dark’ Season 3: Netflix Dates Final Entry In Time-Twisting German Original; Watch Debut Trailer

By Tom Grater

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Here’s the trailer, and date announcement (June 27), for the final series in Netflix’s hit German original  Dark .

That day matches the date of the promised apocalypse in the show. Expect more time-bending (and possibly mind-bending) twists this time. “The end is the beginning, and the beginning is the end,” teases the trailer.

The show was one of the streamer’s first big international successes, receiving critical acclaim and reportedly major viewership outside of its native Germany (though Netflix has not confirmed numbers). It is produced by local outfit Wiedemann & Berg Television.

All ten episodes in the “final cycle” will debut June 27.

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• What To Watch Next?

The aptly named 'Dark' is a mind bending, time-travelling thriller set in a small remote German town called Winden. When children start disappearing, similar to 33 years ago, the town goes into free fall, especially when some of them start to return...

It’s rather on the nose that this German sci-fi noir show is entitled ‘ Dark ’ because you are going to spend some time within it, both figuratively and narratively.

There have been slew of miserable dramas that focused on the absolute parental horror of a child being kidnapped (something which The Missing did with aplomb) yet Dark builds over these foundations with sediments of time travel, mind twisting paradoxes, and family trees that will make you want to cower in that dark cave that features so prominently throughout the show.

What Is Dark About?

The fictional town of Winden is a typical small-town territory. Dominated by the local nuclear power plant, most of the residents in town are inter-related and have been bedded in for generations.

When children start disappearing in 2019 it harks back to a similar disappearance from 33 years ago in 1986, when Ulrich Neilsen (who is now grown up and a local cop) lost his own brother in the woods.

This is quite a similar set-up to French thriller Black Spot .

In episode 1 Ulrich’s own son, Mikkel, goes missing in the same woods leaving Ulrich to tear the town apart looking for him.

In the same episode Michael Kahnwald commits suicide, leaving an envelope that instructs that it must not be opened until months later at a specific date and a specific time.

On the face of it, this is a normal dramatic set up. The town of Winden is pure noir territory. People harbour secrets that come bubbling up to the surface as the show slowly reveals itself. Symbolically surrounded by a large forest, Winden’s people are totally cut off.

There is never a feel for anywhere else; our characters exist in a microcosm of secluded intrigue. Rain pounds down with violent constancy and the score parps forebodingly at the slightest provocation.

Underneath dense foliage and tunnelling beneath 99 years of Winden’s history , the gaping caves descend into mysterious darkness.

Something is very wrong with Winden. Bodies of dead children reappear, dressed in clothes that are decades out of time: their eyes burned out and ear canals burst.

With this time travel mechanic, it feels like an already complex murder mystery plot enters the realms of 3D chess when certain characters pop in and out of time frames where they shouldn’t be.

Dark Official Trailer

Is Dark Worth Watching On Netflix?

Whilst each series creators and showrunners Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese ( 1899 ) expertly keep a steady hand on the wheel so that scenes do make sense in context, it still causes some migraines trying to remember the convoluted family trees involved.

Four main families (parents, children, grandparents) have a variety of ties to the plot, and when the action skips between 2019, 1986 (and later 1953) you need to not only keep track of who is who, but also who the new actors playing younger versions of themselves are!

More than once I had to pause the show – rubbing my temples – in order to get my head around what the characters’ relationships to each were.

Despite some headaches, Dark is expertly crafted. The show has enough relationship drama with both the adults and the teens to ensure that nothing gets too bogged down in time paradox problems, but similarly, time is given to discussing the nature of destiny.

If an object is brought from the future to the past only to cycle round again, where did it even originate from? The aspirations of philosophy add a nice intellectual element.

That said, it is a shame that Dark lacks confidence in these scenes as it has a habit of oppressively blaring loud musical discord over the most innocuous of conversations, just to make sure you are still paying attention.

Even so, things move along at a ‘just one more episode’ pace and, come the conclusion of season 1, there is enough left unexplained (with new mysteries dropped in) that you’ll want to jump straight into season 2, as I now have!

Alternatively, you can check out our list of shows like Dark to keep the drama coming.

Words by Michael Record

How Many Seasons Of Dark On Netflix

In total there are three seasons of the Netflix German drama Dark . They ran from 2017 – 2020 and have a total of 26 episodes, with ten in the first season adn 8 in each of the second and third seasons.

Season 2 Recap

Season 2 picks up where Season 1 left off, delving deeper into the mysterious disappearances and the connections between the four interconnected families of Winden.

The town's people grapple with the fallout of the previous season's events, and the existence of the secret Winden caves' time travel portals becomes more widely known.

Jonas finds himself in a post-apocalyptic Winden of the future and learns more about the shadowy group, Sic Mundus, and their intentions.

The season intensifies as the day of the apocalypse approaches, and characters race against time to prevent or ensure it.

Dark Season 3 Recap

The third season further complicates the already complicated narrative by introducing the concept of a parallel universe or alternate world.

This “mirror” world is similar yet different from the one we've known. Events play out differently, relationships are changed, but the core conflict remains – the impending apocalypse and the fight to prevent or trigger it.

We come to understand that there's a knot tying the two worlds together, formed by the characters and events across timelines and dimensions. The season works towards unraveling this knot, with Jonas and the alternate version of Martha playing pivotal roles.

By the end, the truth about the origin of the time loop and its initiator is revealed, and characters must make final decisions to resolve or perpetuate the cyclical events.

• Apple TV brings you the future of television, right at your fingertips. Immerse yourself in the world of laughter, inspiration, and heartwarming moments with the critically acclaimed show, Ted Lasso, and a plethora of other captivating content.
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• Welcome to a world of boundless entertainment, where thrilling stories come to life at your convenience. Amazon Prime Video invites you to explore a universe of gripping narratives, including the adrenaline-pumping series, "Reacher," and an extensive selection of captivating content that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
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Dark: How the German Netflix Show Uses Death and Determinism to Tell a Great Story

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Netflix Finally Reveals the Fate of Hit Superhero Series Supacell

What really happened to amanda antoni in unsolved mysteries, everything deadpool & wolverine did, she-hulk did better.

If you’re looking for a new, supernatural mystery on Netflix , Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese’s German thriller Dark is the way to go. Spanning across three brilliant seasons, the co-creators take audiences on many complex paths and mind-bending twists that will leave you questioning reality. Put simply (which is almost impossible, considering the complexity of this show's plot): Dark tells the story of a German town, Winden, that is shocked by a child’s mysterious disappearance. The series focuses on four estranged families who are connected to an evil time travel plot in Winden, and contemplates the influence of time on human beings (and, perhaps, vice versa).

Dark is a suspenseful and dramatic show, but one that is brimming with philosophical and scientific ideas (free will and determinism, the butterfly effect, Fermi’s paradox, string theory and quantum physics, and so on). In a discussion with Thrillist , co-creator Jantje Friese explains that he read “probably 100 books” on science, philosophy, and spirituality over the course of the series. Friese felt that although the books were different subjects, they were really “talking about the same thing.” This concept can certainly be applied to Dark .

The Philosophy of the Netflix Series Dark

Although Dark is packed with thrills and chills, the Netflix series is mainly character-driven and considers bigger conflicts for humanity than individual melodramas. Mainly, the series examines death and determinism and contemplates how some events (including mortality itself) are outside human control.

If you’re not sure what determinism is, it's essentially a theory that cause and effect are absolute (nothing exists without a cause), and therefore everything that has and will happen has been determined. Basically, we’re all controlled by external circumstances like genetics, situation, and other people, and thus have no free will; for instance, what causes someone to choose something?

Related: Best International Netflix Original Series You Can Stream Right Now

When someone likes something, do they choose to like it, or do they like it because of a litany of external causes? Does someone choose to not like broccoli? Does someone choose to have type one diabetes, or is it hereditary? Does someone choose to like rap more than rock or vice versa, or is it a result of cultural and filial influence, intellectual distinctions, and inherent preferences? Mortality and death is another key feature of Dark , the thing humanity is simultaneously driven by and terrified of. Here is exactly how Dark uses inevitable death and determinism to tell a great tale.

Determinism in Dark

If you think about it, most time travel stories end up considering determinism. When a character is allowed to use time travel to visit the past and alter their own future, there is the issue of whether these changes will help anything or actually set in motion the events you want to manipulate.

For example, in Dark , police officer Ulrich Nielson attempts to prevent the 2019 kidnapping of his brother and son by attempting to murder the kidnapper, Helge Doppler, when Helge is a child in 1953. All this does is scar Helge’s face permanently and add to his sinister, tortured reasons for the kidnapping. The events actually motivate him to work underneath a man named Noah, a priest who believes that controlling time will help humanity end suffering. This emphasizes the question of whether time travel actually manipulates events or is simply a waste of 'time,' because the suffering is predetermined. If you could actually change the past or future, what would happen to all the events and lives that occurred before that change took place? If you prevented World War 2, what would happen to the last 80 years? Would reality split?

Related: Primer: Arguably the Most Realistic Movie About Time Travel

In parts of Dark , it is also emphasized that “God is time.” At one point, Adam describes time as not an entity but a non-negotiable force, and that “our destiny is nothing but cause and effect.” This deterministic outlook is similar to the concept of the chicken and the egg, so you’re always asking which came first (with time travel, is it the cause or the effect?). Many of the characters are motivated to alter their fate, which is ultimately death, but circumstances reinforce time and time again that time is death and death is inevitable.

Death in Dark

As we talked about above, a lot of time travel is fixated on changing consequences, specifically death. One character who is motivated to change death and time is H.G. Tannhaus, a scientist and clockmaker in Winden. Tannhaus loses his son, Marek, when Marek drives over an unstable bridge and he and his family are killed. Guilty and grief-stricken, Tannhaus works to create a time-traveling device to prevent his son’s death. The mechanism, instead of reversing the events Tannhaus wanted to prevent, instead produces two more parallel worlds and destroys the origin world (perhaps as a result of actually changing time and fate and splitting reality, as previously mentioned).

There is then a conflict between time-travelers about the preservation of the two worlds and all the people in them. It seems like they are all destined to suffer, with their time-travel only reinforcing or causing the suffering they were destined to endure. Nonetheless, they are alive in these split realities. One faction of time-travelers (led by Eve) arranges things to keep the system moving, playing the role of fate and assisting in the clockwork of their world. Another faction of time-travelers (led by Adam) seeks to destroy it all, to end the otherwise endless loop of suffering and time.

Near the conclusion of the show, Jonas and Martha (two characters who grow to become the time-travelers Adam and Eve) eventually prevent Marek from using the bridge in a decision which embraces their mortality. Tannhaus is then never motivated to manipulate time and the alternate worlds are eliminated. Messy, right? Although Dark is complex, it makes some great points about consequences and humanity’s issues with what we can and can’t control.

As a whole, Dark examines the invisible forces which appear to influence the motion of our lives, including how they end. It covers multiple ways in which humanity might fight determinism and death, via a temporal cave, a time box, and Noah’s ark, but also finds peace and satisfaction in not resisting the inevitable. Basically, let’s not mess with time.

Currently, Dark has three seasons available for streaming on Netflix and maintains a high rating with critics.

Dark: How Time Travel Works in the Netflix Series

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Tim Blake Nelson on His Return to the MCU in Captain America: Brave New World & His Character's Rage

Julie louis-dreyfus and 'thunderbolts' cast promise a gritty mcu film with deeply flawed characters, this vampire diaries episode remains one of the show's darkest.

Netflix's German sci-fi drama Dark relies on the mind-bending concept, "The beginning is the end, and the end is the beginning," a mantra that permeates the series as it focuses on how time travel has affected the small town of Winden. Season 1 kicks into high gear in 2019 with a kid, Mikkel, going missing at a cave in the nearby woods, leading to the mysterious Stranger offering clues to Jonas -- one of the teens involved in the incident -- to solve the case.

What ensues is Jonas discovering key families in Winden have been part of a closed time loop, all tied back to the suicide of Michael (Jonas' father), months before Mikkel's disappearance. With the Stranger's guidance, he decides to harness the temporal ability of the cave to rescue Mikkel, figure out his own past and set things right. However, there are a few other time travel methods in the show, so let's break them all down in detail.

THE TEMPORAL CAVE

The main plot tool for time travel is, as mentioned, this haunting cave in Winden's forest. The Winden Nuclear Facility covered up a disaster in 1986, in which a leak spewed radiation that affected the main tunnel connecting the compound to the cave. As a result of the unique nuclear material the Germans were experimenting on in the wake of Chernobyl, a wormhole was inadvertently created in the cave.

RELATED: Dark: The Apocalypse Can't Be Stopped in Season 2 Trailer

Certain mini-tunnels in the cave turned into "doors" that led to different timelines. However, each passageway offered the user the ability to travel forward or backward 33 years in time according to which one he/she took. The show hints this is also linked to a cosmic alignment that has supernatural ties to numbers such as "33" and "66," figures the series' occultists believe have a deeper meaning as to why folks can time-slide.

The entire cave becomes active every 33 years when the same stars align, which means the cave is rendered inert after this period. To traverse these pathways, users like Jonas and the Stranger have created a network of strings to guide them along their desired route. In the season finale, these secrets were revealed by the Stranger, who turned out to be Jonas from a dystopian future. He had to provide insight to his younger self on how the cave worked before plunging the teen forward to 2052, putting him on the path to becoming this Stranger.

THE TIME BOX

The Stranger's main mode of time-sliding, however, comes via the Box, although it's not clarified if this Box can be activated at any time or if it's just during the activity period of the cave. As for its design, it basically looks like the inside of a clock with old-school gears. We first get insight into its inner-workings when the Stranger travels to meet H.G. Tannhaus, a clockmaker and engineer in 1953, and leaves him with the initial blueprints. At this point, the unsuspecting Tannhaus is caught off-guard by news he'll be the one to design the Box.

RELATED:  Dark: Jonas Searches For The Beginning in Season 2 Teaser

Using this knowledge, Tannhaus is able to perfect his old schematics and create the Box, which the Stranger will then get in the future, thus firming up the show's closed loop. Tannhaus also gets another version of the Box from Claudia (an old lady time-traveling with a Box just like the Stranger) so he can complete his design, which of course, is passed down to her years later as well. Tannhaus also receives a copy of "A Journey Through Time" from the Stranger -- a book he wrote decades later, which also guides him in finalizing this device. In other words, he gets his  book from the future to help him with his Box in the past.

To complete the first working design of the Box, Tannhaus also used a cell phone brought from the future by Mikkel's dad, Ulrich, who used the cave in 2019 to try to find his kid, not realizing he was going to get stuck in 1953. The electromagnetic field from the phone, and lastly, radioactive material Claudia left with Tannhaus from 2019, would allow the clockmaker to create this portable wormhole generator. As for how it operates, it sucks you up into a black hole and transports you to wherever you set the timer in accordance with the 33-year rule. In short, everything Tannhaus would use to make this Box work in the past was based on material brought to him from the future.

NOAH'S 'ARK'

The main antagonist in Season 1 is Noah, the head priest of a mysterious occult group. He's the reason kids have gone missing from Winden in the past and why their dead bodies are popping up over three eras (1953, 1986 and 2019) near the cave. It turns out in 1986 he began using a torture chamber-esque time machine, strapping kids into it to conduct experiments in order to see how they'd traverse the timestream.

Sadly, this burnt their eyes out and threw their corpses through the temporal gateways uncontrollably, leaving Noah to log data he simply didn't understand because of his lack of a scientific background. However, he appears in all the timelines without having aged a day so it could be that he learned how to use the machine on himself, or secretly got his hands on a separate Box.

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That said, we never really see how the technical aspects of the chamber function. It's hinted, though, that Noah's machine could be mystically powered as there's no radioactive fuel opening up a wormhole. Given the biblical passages tattooed on his back, and from his own beliefs about heaven and hell, it could be that his arcane machine actually uses the souls of children as its temporal fuel.

Created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, Dark stars Oliver Masucci, Karoline Eichhorn and Jördis Triebel. Season 2 arrives Friday on Netflix.

• CBR Exclusives
• Dark (2017)

The Dossier

by Mark Selby

Time Travel in “Dark”: Embrace the Paradox

German Netflix series simply called “Dark” has been around since June 2017 (seasons 1 and 2) . The new season 3 has only recently become available. Watch out for the first scene in the first episode: a gruesome suicide by hanging which you might want to hit fast forward through. Very dark indeed. If you do fast forward don’t miss the short sequence in which the victim’s mother grabs the suicide note before anyone else can read it. The victim here is Michael Kahnwald and his mother is Ines. This whole scene, and the names of the characters, are pivotal to the whole story. We’ll return to the intrigue, setup by the first scene, after discussing some general comments about the time travel genre. Take the opportunity for a pause because “Dark” is a bumpy, head-spinning journey. (Edit: to be found in the continuation in Part 2 ).

It is sometimes said that time travel is impossible because of the paradox that you could go back in time and kill your own mother before she gave birth to you. One common theme explored in sci-fi movies, for instance in “ Star Trek ” franchise, is that time travel is permissible only if the time travellers don’t do anything in the past that will alter the future. You might remember the scene in Star Trek IV: The Journey Home (1986) when Kirk and crew travel back to the mid-1980’s San Francisco. They try to disguise Spock’s Vulcan ears with a beanie so he isn’t noticed. Spock, subsequently, nearly blows his cover when he applies an aggressive Vulcan nerve pinch to a punk-rocker on a bus.

By way of contrast, “Dark” is quite different in that it fully embraces the time travel paradox. It’s set in a fictional German town of “ Winden ” (not to be confused with the town of Winden im Elztal ). “Dark” is in the tradition of the French short sci-fi classic La Jetée ( The Jetty ) [2] by Chris Marker (Argos Films, 1962), “Dark” is also in the tradition of the 1995 production 12 Monkeys with Bruce Willis as the time-travelling Cole, 12 Monkeys was inspired by La Jetée and shares several common themes with that short film. A TV series of 12 Monkeys , made by Syfy ran over four seasons 2015 to 2018.

The Winden of “Dark” is, unsurprisingly, a dark dismal place made up of a number of families that have lived there over several generations: in addition to the Kahnwalds mentioned above there are the Nielsens, the Tiedermans, and the Dopplers, The Wikipedia entry on the “Dark” series contains handy family trees for each season, made available under a CC license by Christianlorenz97. I recommend having the printed family trees with you when you start your binge watching of “Dark”.

The townspeople of Winden are no less dark and dismal than the town itself. As the series introduces each character you start to suspect that each of them is carrying the heavy burden of deep and dark secrets which warps their character and actions. It’s not much of a surprise when you find that they all have dark secrets (such as Michael Kahnwald and his mother in the opening scene, mentioned above). What does surprise, as the series unfolds, is just how warped of character and dark of deed some of the townspeople really are.

Just because you can time travel in Winden it doesn’t mean that you can escape the consequences of your actions.

You see, even in Winden, consequences have a way of catching up with you even through the recesses of time. Whatever else it is, Winden is still part of a moral universe. Amid all the darkness of “Dark” you won’t find it unexpected when it transpires that the world Winden occupies, is living in the prelude to an apocalypse. The apocalypse, of course, is centered upon Winden, specifically Winden’s Nuclear Reactor which also plays a crucial part in time-travel through the tunnel under the nuclear plant (depicted here in the opening poster image)..

The apocalypse is a common theme shared between La Jetée , 12 Monkeys and Dark. After all, those time traveing paradoxes have to resolve themselves somehow. One point of difference between “Dark” and the films mentioned, is that “Dark” doesn’t shy away from asking some very deep and difficult questions, in particular.

Why is it that we think, when a tragedy overcomes us, either through our fault or not: that if we could just go back in time and change this or that event, that we could resume our former life once again?

The insight that “Dark” offers is that time-travel, if it were possible isn’t an escape. If you were able to time travel and change events then you can, as “Dark” well-illustrates, set in train an even worse tragedy. One point that James Gleick offers in his book on time travel [2] is that it’s the prospect of death that makes us think of time travel. After watching “Dark” I would add: death, separation and the loss of a loved one make us look to time travel, but it’s only illusory. As much as we’d like to be able to, there are some things we just can’t change.

As it says in the promotional poster (see above): “ Everything is connected .” You can’t just change one event without having unforeseen ramifications: pull on one thread and everything unravels. But is there one single thread, if you could find it, in time and space, that could undo it all? This second question is what the mysterious character Noah in “Dark” seeks to answer.

Is there are way to avoid all of this? If time travel caused all of the darkness and damage, is there a way to avoid the apocalypse; to repair relationships and overcome all that hatred?

The answer to this question is, I think, completely original in the time travel genre, it can be found in the stunning finale at the end of Season 3. Far be it from me to give away spoilers for the conclusion. I’ve tried my best to be spoiler-free so far. You’ll just need to watch all the episodes through to the very end. I promise you you’ll be glad you did.

As I mentioned, the reason why anyone looks to time travel in the first place is either death or separation or loss of a loved one. But time travel, on its own, solves nothing. The only way to prevent the apocalypse, the hurt, the pain the brokenness; is to avoid the original death and loss that’s the heart of the events at Winden . if you can stop this, you can stop the darkness in “Dark” from ever occurring. But even then, are you prepared for the sacrifice(s) required ….

May I say: I hope you’ll find yourself embracing the time-travelling paradox and celebrating the apocalypse by watching “Dark” very soon. I highly recommend it as suitable for your pandemic lock-down viewing. Though do put your younger children to bed first.

To be continued… the series has been completed: Part 2 and Part 3.

Disclaimer : I have no connection, financial or otherwise with Netflix Inc. or any of its subsidiaries.

Afterthought added 15 August, 2020. For a series that I almost didn’t watch because of the gruesome suicide in scene 1 of episode 1, I came to find “Dark” the most consciousness expanding experience I’ve had in …. well, a very long time. For the first time, it made me take the prospect of time travel, as a scientist, seriously. It made me go back and reread much of James Gleick’s “ Time Travel: A History ” in a different light.

BTW: I received an email from James Gleick: “ Thank you for this. I’ve never watched it, but your piece makes me want to .”

I’d be interested in your comments. What would you like me to write about in the continuation?

[1] This image from a promotional poster for “Dark” is the property of Netflix Inc. It is used here for the purpose of a review of the TV series under fair usage provisions of Copyright Law.

[2] Like many anglophones, I wasn’t aware of the classic short-film La Jetée . That was until I read about it in the book “ Time Travel: A History ” by James Gleick (Vintage, 2017). As Gleick points out, La Jetée is a play on the French, j’étais – I was. You can watch for yourself in the YouTube video below:

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You need to watch the most inventive time-travel thriller of the century on Netflix ASAP

“What we know is a drop. What we don’t know is an ocean.”

What is it about time travel that’s so enthralling?

The pop culture staple first became popularized by H.G. Wells’ 1895 novel The Time Machine , but time travel as a concept has been toyed with in literature as far back as ancient Hindu and Japanese mythology. One of the oldest “true” time travel accounts comes from a first-century B.C. Jewish scholar, Honi HaMe’agel, who was certain he fell asleep and woke up 70 years in the future.

Humans are fascinated with not only the ability, but its aftermath. How can one tweak in the timeline affect the rest of history? Countless creations have taken a stab at interpreting this question — 12 Monkeys , 11.22.63 , Paper Girls , Doctor Who , and 13 Going on 30 , to name just a few disparate examples — and all offer different answers. For some, messing with the timeline is perilous. Others feel victorious, and yet more characters come to the bitter realization that nothing can be done to change fate.

But we’re hard-pressed to find a better exploration of how time travel can affect the lives of ordinary people than Dark .

Dark debuted on Dec. 1, 2017 and ran for three seasons, becoming Netflix’s first bonafide non-English hit (and setting the stage for Squid Game in the process). The German-language barrier initially made it an obscure title, but word-of-mouth created hype until it became a must-watch for sci-fi fans. The duo behind the genre-bender, Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, are releasing a mystery-at-sea dubbed 1899 on Nov. 17, so now’s the perfect time to familiarize yourself with their work.

“Have you heard of Master Zhuang’s paradox?” grandmother Ines Kahnwald asks. “‘I dreamed I was a butterfly. Now I’ve woken up and I no longer know if I’m a person who dreamed he’s a butterfly or if I’m a butterfly who’s dreaming it’s a person.’”

Dark is obsessed with unraveling the Chinese philosopher’s paradox and the existential implications of time. All of its characters, at one point or another, no longer know where (or when) they start and where or when they end. That may leave you just as perplexed as the residents of Winden, the town where Dark takes place, but we promise that the rewards for keeping up will be worthwhile.

Dark spans various timelines and generations, but always takes place in the fictional town of Winden.

The relationships between four estranged families are untangled and retangled, as characters realize their bloodlines are more intertwined than they first thought. It all begins with modern teen Jonas Kahnwald (Louis Hoffman), who’s just lost his father to suicide and the love of his life to his best friend. Jonas’ life gets even worse when neighborhood boy Mikkel Nielsen (Daan Lennard Liebrenz) disappears into a wormhole and winds up in 1986.

Any further details would detract from the juicy mysteries, especially since part of the fun comes from trying to wrap your head around the confounding time jumps. They span from the 1880s to the 2050s, and you’ll quickly become engrossed in the detective work that Jonas and his friends tackle.

Everything and everyone is connected.

Dark also shines in its production values — the moody and rainy cinematography is gorgeous, Ben Frost’s score is chillingly beautiful, and the period piece costuming and set design is immersive — and in its casting. We have Simone Bär to thank for finding strikingly accurate doppelgängers of all of Dark ’s characters, which makes the family drama aspect one of the show’s most believable.

This colossal ensemble cast was tasked with portraying four generations’ worth of characters, most of whom required a child, teenage, adult, and senior actor. It’s delightful to look at the painstaking lengths both the casting and makeup departments went to ensure characters had features that made them aesthetically unique — birthmarks, freckles, bushy eyebrows, glasses — and enhance visual and thematic continuity.

A young and older Jonas show off Dark’s impeccable casting.

Dark is also better than most modern mystery series because it had the chance to conclude on the creator’s terms, a rarity in a saturated streaming landscape eager to discard projects before people have an opportunity to press play. Pacing remained consistent throughout Dark ’s run, and it had a satisfying ending that actually made sense of its spider web narrative while tying up loose ends.

Your heart might break at the end of Dark, but not because its central riddle is left unsolved. It’s a heavy lift, but it’s great to have the increasingly rare opportunity to see a show through from start to finish.

Dark is streaming on Netflix .

• Science Fiction

Should You Watch Netflix's German Time Travel Series, 'Dark'?

By Dustin Rowles | TV | July 17, 2019 |

Tori has already covered questions that viewers of Netflix’s phenomenally brain-melting time-travel series Dark may have had upon the conclusion of season two — it was that piece that inspired me to watch the series — but I cannot get over how cool the time travel elements are in this series. But what about those who have never seen Dark ? Will it be something you like?

I’m sure that the time travel elements are not unique to Dark — people immersed in sci-fi are probably familiar with the bootstrap paradox and the Godfather paradox — but to implement these time travel elements in a series as expansive as Dark is an enormous undertaking that probably requires a team of researchers just to maintain the series internal logic.

It’s also a show that’s hard to explain without giving away spoilers because the big plot reveals also explain how the time-travel elements work, and for me anyway, it took roughly a season and a half for it to really sink in. I am so used to shows like Quantum Leap , Travelers , or Doctor Who or even movies like Back to the Future and The Terminator , where characters travel in time to effect or prevent a future or past change. Paradoxes, likewise, are problematic: I recall an episode of Doctor Who where a character saw herself in a different timeline and it ripped a hole in the space-time continuum. But paradoxes are almost the point of Dark .

Take, for instance, Back to the Future : Marty McFly goes back in time and accidentally interrupts the event that would lead to his parent’s meeting, getting married, and having children. Marty has to find a new way to connect his parents or else he will cease to exist.

If Back to the Future operated under the same rules as Dark , Marty couldn’t change the past. The past is fixed. The only reason Marty exists is because he traveled in the past and connected his parents, and had he not traveled into the past, he wouldn’t exist, but he does exists, therefore, he had to have traveled back into the past. Marty wouldn’t even exist if time travel weren’t possible. It’s a paradox. Likewise, the Delorean Time Machine would only exist because the Dr. Brown of the ’50s learned how to invent it from reverse-engineering the Delorean Time Machine he invented in the ’80s. If Marty had not driven the time machine into the 1950s, Dr. Brown never would have invented it in the 1980s, and Marty McFly never would have traveled back in time in it.

In Dark , when a character goes back in time to change it, he invariably creates the event he meant to change. Let’s say, for instance, in 2001 Marty McFly knows that Dr. Brown was run over and killed by bad people in 1985. Marty McFly cannot change that; in fact, if he attempts to do so, he will unleash the very chain of events that leads to Dr. Brown being killed by bad people in 1985. The past and the future are interconnected. The past knows the events of the future, and the future knows the events of the past. If you go back in the past to try and kill Baby Hitler, the bitterness over the bullet wound will be what creates the adult Hitler. If you try and stop the assassination of JFK, your efforts will put Lee Harvey Oswalt on the path to assassinating JFK.

In Dark , the characters are stuck in a time loop, the end of which is basically the end of the world. The characters who survived the end of the world nevertheless saw it happen, an therefore it is. They exist in this future dystopia, but all of their efforts to go back in time to prevent it invariably result in creating the very conditions that result in the end of the world. It’s like if the Terminator went back in time to save Sarah Conner and ensure she gives birth to John Connor, only to realize that John Connor’s very existence is why the world went to hell in the first place. It was the Terminator’s fault all along!

So, what’s the point of the series if nothing can be changed? Well, that is kind of the point. Through two seasons, the characters are still trying to find a crack in the time loop they can exploit to undo the end of the world, and the second-season finale throws in a new wrinkle that’s even mindfuckier than before. It’s also a very good character drama, and the time travel elements play havoc on relationships. Imagine, for instance, if you fell madly in love with someone who died, but then you travel back in time to prevent her death only to precipitate it. You killed your soul mate! Also, it takes most of the characters a lot of time to realize that time travel is at play, and the entire focus is on a small universe of basically four families, and let’s just say there’s some wild inadvertent incest at play. Like, one woman is her mother’s daughter. That sort of thing.

Basically what I’m saying is, if all of that sounds intriguing, Dark may be the perfect show for you.

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Entertainment

This Mysterious Book From Netflix's 'Dark' Has Roots In Real Literature

Some spoilers for Netflix's Dark ahead.

Even though Netflix's new German original series, Dark, is drawing some Stranger Things comparisons, there are a lot of important differences between the two shows. Though Dark has the same delightfully creepy sci-fi vibe that makes Stranger Things so bingeable, its complex plot shines under its own merit. One of the show's key characters is a watchmaker named H.G. Tannhaus, who builds a working time machine and then later writes a book about it, which a few characters are seen reading. So, is H.G. Tannhaus' A Journey Through Time from Dark a real book?

In the 1953 timeline, Winden's watchmaker receives the blueprints for the time machine mechanism from Claudia. It is only later in his life — presumably in the 1986 timeline — that he sits down to write A Journey Through Time , which we see Helge give to Claudia as a gift when she starts her new job at the nuclear plant in 1986. At some point during the writing of the book, we can assume that Tannhaus realizes that Winden is stuck in a time loop , because he starts cryptically telling people things like, "The past doesn't just influence the future, the future also influences the past," and "It's like the question of the chicken and the egg. We can no longer say which of the two came first. Everything is interconnected."

Since H.G. Tannhaus likely isn't a real person , we can safely assume that A Journey Through Time is not a actual book. However, just as the character of H.G. Tannhaus is likely based on a few key historical references, we can surmise, then, that A Journey Through Time is meant to remind us of a few actual works of literature.

One of those was written by H.G. Wells, who, in addition to sharing two initials with the clockmaker, also famously wrote a novella called The Time Machine , which follows a character simply named the Time Traveler who goes on occasionally harrowing adventures into the future and the past; he later disappears and his fate is left open-ended . Wells is commonly credited with coining the concept of a vessel called a time machine , which could allow for passage backwards and forwards through time.

A Journey Through Time is definitely not a published book that actually exists as a manual for time travel in real life. After all, there can't yet be a book about the subject or methods involved in actually traveling through time, because science has not actually figured this whole thing out just yet. However, there is a work of fiction not unlike that of H.G. Wells that deals with what might happen should time travel become possible. Time and Again by Jack Finney tells the tale of a 20th century fellow who is transported back to New York City in 1882. The whole thing treats time travel as a method of transportation or to carry messages between times, which us almost what it becomes in Dark . This book, along with Wells' The Time Machine, was named one of the Top 10 Time Travel books by Huffington Post .

By all accounts, the bespectacled and quirky H.G. Tannhaus is unfortunately not a real person and A Journey Through Time is sadly not a real manual for a working time machine, but he and his ideas certainly seem to have been inspired, at least partially, by some real figures who dabbled in the notions of time travel. Whether it's fiction or a nod to some real possibilities, the conversation surrounding time travel remains alive. If the subject even slightly interests you, Netflix's Dark , whose first season is now streaming, is a fascinating and thrilling ride to take.

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5 Reasons Why You Should Be Watching ‘Dark,’ Netflix’s New Twisty German Time Travel Show

In the era of peak TV, it often feels next to impossible to actually keep up with the shows you already watch, much less try to start new ones. I get it. I watch TV for a living and even I can’t keep up with as many shows as I would like.

So with that in mind, I’m gonna pitch you on “Dark,” the extremely heady new time travel show that just landed on Netflix. It’s going a bit under the radar right now, sandwiched between “The Punisher” and the second season of “The Crown.” Also it’s in German rather than English, which may put you off. But having watched its 10-episode first season twice now, I can confirm it’s worth your time.

“Dark” takes us to the small town of Winden, Germany, a place full of fun personal melodrama — and also children who have gone missing without a trace. It centers on a handful of families that have lived there for a long time and are prominent in the community. The time travel conceit does more than give us a window into how these families have evolved over many decades — it’s brings a whole new meaning to “things are not quite what they seem here.”

Also Read: Top 25 Best Netflix Original Series, Ranked From Great to Phenomenal (Photos)

I’m going to stop there with the description. I’m not usually one to be overly concerned about spoilers, but “Dark” is such a weird and twisty thing that It’s tough to talk about it much without delving into a place that even I would call spoiler territory. “Dark” is a show best discovered with the bare minimum of information about its premise. That being said, I’m going to, without spoilers, explain why I like the show below, if you need more encouragement.

1. It’s a little bit “Stranger Things,” a little bit “Twin Peaks,” a little bit “Lost” and a whole bunch of doing its own thing

“Dark” is the kind of show where, early on before you really get to know it, you can feel the vibes of shows that came before. The stories that influenced “Dark” are ones that deal with people who are wrestling with extra-natural forces that are just beyond their understanding. But it’s certainly not a show that wears those influences on its sleeve — series creators Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese have crafted a fiercely original piece of fiction that is one of the most thoughtful and unique TV shows of 2017.

Also Read: 14 Time Travel TV Shows You Should Be Watching Right Now, From '12 Monkeys' to 'Time After Time' (Photos)

2. It’s one of the rare on-screen time travel stories with airtight time travel logic

Time travel is hard, OK. It’s inherently illogical and can’t follow the rules of reality as we know them in the real world. So the foundation of any good time travel story has to be the rules. You can set whatever time travel rules you want, so long as you stick with them — if you don’t, the story falls apart. It’s a whole extra thing the writers of a story have to deal with, in addition to simply trying to write a good story in the usual sense. So it’s easy to mess that up, because it requires basically double the work.

“Dark” is one of the ones that doesn’t mess that up. It was actually kind of startling when I realized that, because it’s a very complicated story arranged in a complicated way — a way that I was worried midway through was constructed to hide the show playing fast and loose with its rules. But by the time it was over I realized I had worried in vain, because it ultimately does not stray from the time travel framework it set up early . I did have a few nagging questions after it was over, but that’s inevitable since this is a TV show with plans for multiple seasons. Rest assured, this is the type of heady, smart time travel story that really does work on its most fundamental level. It’s kind of a puzzle, so you will have to put some brainpower into it — but that’s a good thing.

3. It’s also a super compelling personal drama

There’s one major character, Ulrich (Oliver Masucci), who I’ve been really fascinated by since I watched the series. “Dark” puts Ulrich at the center of things for a while, and successfully made me care about him even though he’s really kind of a terrible and not particularly likable person the whole way through. What makes him work as a character is how truly human he feels, and Ulrich is representative of how Odar and Friese treat all their characters. There isn’t a single major character on “Dark” who you can’t empathize with on some level, which makes all their myriad interactions and conflicts all the more engrossing.

Also Read: Netflix in December: What's Coming and What to Watch Before It's Gone (Photos)

4. It uses time travel as a religious metaphor

Without delving into the particulars, “Dark” takes a sort of existential angle with its time travel shenanigans, with characters talking about time as if it were God — and who talk about time travel is if it were a means to exert power over God. It’s a fascinatingly weird angle for a time travel story, and one that worked like gangbusters on me since I come from an extremely religious part of the U.S. That Friese and Odar would even think to take the story this way is demonstrative of how “Dark” goes to places you find anywhere else in the realm of television this year.

5. It’s just extremely cool looking, with a stellar score to boot

Aside from simply being an excellent show, “Dark” also manages to be one of the more visually striking shows around. It’s up there, in fact, with “Westworld,” the new “Twin Peaks,” and “Hannibal.” And it’s got a score to match, simple and booming and dread-fueled. “Dark” would probably still be very good were these elements not working on this level, but that they do elevates the show into a truly complete package.

Related stories from TheWrap:

Here's Everything That's Coming and Leaving Netflix in December

Top 25 Best Netflix Original Series, Ranked From Great to Phenomenal (Photos)

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Netflix’s Time-Traveling Crime Series Should Be Your Next Binge

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The Big Picture

• Bodies is a time-traveling Netflix series that explores the passage of time and the impact of our choices on the people around us.
• The series jumps across four time periods and follows different detectives trying to solve the same murder, linking them together.
• The show features a phenomenal cast without big Hollywood names, allowing viewers to fully engage with the story without being distracted by celebrities.

Time holds all secrets to the universe in the time-traveling Netflix limited series Bodies . Based on the DC Vertigo graphic novel, it's much more than just another entertaining entry within the science-fiction genre . It's an exploration into the passage of time, and how the choices we make not only define us but more importantly, the people around us. Jumping across four different time periods, the thriller series is a murder mystery, period piece, and family drama all rolled into one. One of the main draws of Bodies is its phenomenal cast , and though there is no glaring star power with big Hollywood names, it does the series a service, as viewers aren't distracted by celebrities. It's often rare that time-traveling series can be digestible with its infamously complicated storylines, and it's no small feat that the Netflix limited series more than accomplishes this.

The British thriller is an adaptation first and foremost, and it is one of the many successful comic book adaptations to come out in recent years. With adaptations come die-hard fans of the original source material, and Bodies more than honors its roots while creating something magical of its own. The DC Vertigo graphic novel was written by author Si Spencer , and across eight episodes, his story is brought to life through rich characters and philosophical pondering. The series jumps across four time periods and follows a different detective attempting to solve the same murder to varying degrees of success. A conundrum with seemingly no answer, a man's naked body appears on the same street in 1890, 1941, 2023, and 2053, and his inexplicable death and appearance is what links all four detectives together.

Kyle Soller Leads a Great Ensemble Cast in 'Bodies'

Bodies stars Kyle Soller , Jacob Fortune Lloyd , Amaka Okafor , and Shira Haas as the four detectives, respectively, and each faces adversity within their time period as they go on the hunt for a murderer who evades justice by jumping through time. All four actors portraying the tortured detectives are the beating heart of the show , and each one hides secrets of their own as they attempt to uncover others' hidden truths. This is partially what sets Bodies apart from other series within its genres. It takes the time to explore the past in order to understand the present better and demonstrates the daily struggles former generations went through to fight for change. Soller's performance as Detective Inspector Alfred Hillinghead is particularly moving, as he must conceal who he is in a society that is not yet ready to accept his true self. Soller, previously known for his work as Syril Karn in the Star Wars series Andor , fully embraces his gifts as a dramatic actor in Bodies .

Why 'Bodies' Is the Perfect Murder Mystery to Binge-Watch

If science fiction and time-travel aren't enticing enough to tune in, then the murder mystery at the series center should be. There are hundreds of rabbit holes and shady suspects, and Bodies becomes an addictive whodunit that will make you unable to resist binge-watching the entire series in an entire sitting. If you need a break from the same predictable cop procedural shows, this is the perfect solution. British actor Stephen Graham portrays the main murder suspect who seems to appear in each time period, and he is the series' secret weapon. Appearing in acclaimed series such as HBO's Boardwalk Empire and Peaky Blinders , he gives one of television's most wicked performances in recent years and is sure to be nominated for numerous awards. His evasion of the law as the four detectives attempt to track him down is invigorating to watch, and the series pays many homages to classic detective mysteries.

Bodies is dark, and grimy, and leads viewers into the dingiest of places with pulse-inducing jump scares . It has tense, cigarette-smoke-filled interrogation rooms with startling revelations, and checks off every box that a good murder mystery series should have while delivering even more. The most fun and exciting time period to watch is the one set in the present day, thanks to a phenomenal performance by Amaka Okafor who shines as a meticulous detective and single mother. Portraying Shahara Hasan, she is the first of the detectives to realize something otherworldly is happening, and she inarguably becomes the star of the series. As she gets closer to the truth and discovers chilling secrets, Bodies becomes the next best Netflix original crime thriller viewers have been desperately craving as the streamer has been struggling with churning out hits.

How 'Bodies' Compares to Netflix Time-Travel Series 'Dark'

While Bodies sucks viewers in with a disturbing murder that launches a hundred questions with no answers, it morphs into something much deeper and profound as the series delves further into life and death. What if there was a way for humans to cheat death? Would it make you a God, or the devil? Good versus evil is at the root of Bodies , and the series argues that when power falls into weak hands, the demons within often win. Yes, there are plenty of wolves hiding in sheep's clothing who prowl the streets in this addictive thriller, but goodness is never too far away.

The German Netflix original series Dark had similar themes as it jumped around different time periods, but it wound up being much more concerned with the meaning of life, and the things humans do to each other. It was universally acclaimed, and Bodies clearly took inspiration from the series and follows proudly in its footsteps. Bodies shares similar interests with Dark , and its concern with existentialism is its crowning jewel through the murder mystery investigation. How do we find meaning and identity in a meaningless world? It doesn’t offer simple answers. It makes us think and gifts us with something so much more profound than a time-traveling series with a gruesome death.

At its core, the series argues that we are not defined by what we think, but by what we do. Evident to anyone tuning in to watch, Bodies has a bit of everything for everyone to love : tortured detectives with vices, determined to solve the case. It's got ruthless mob bosses, cults, and heroes willing to sacrifice anything for the ones they love. It’s no secret that Netflix has been in need of the next big hit as it competes with its streaming rivals, and Bodies more than delivers. It also uses the various time jumps to explore issues of racism, anti-Semitism, and homophobia, leading it to feel more relevant than ever as a compelling study of how people in society have strived to not only survive but to fight to be their true selves for centuries now. Over its ambitious eight episodes, Bodies offers a rollercoaster ride for viewers to embark on.

Bodies is available to stream on Netflix.

Watch on Netflix

• TV Features

Screen Rant

The 25 best time travel k-dramas, ranked.

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10 Must Watch K-Dramas That Aren’t Romances (& Where To Stream Them)

20 steamy k-dramas you should watch today, 10 k-dramas with heartbreaking plot twists.

• Time travel in K-dramas elevates romantic, detective, and historical stories with sci-fi or fantasy twists.
• While some K-dramas overuse time travel, the best ones cleverly use the trope to tell captivating and unique stories.
• Shows like "A Time Called You" and "Twinkling Watermelon" explore time travel to unravel mysteries and change fates in heartwarming ways.

The idea of traveling through time is a powerful storytelling tool popularized by Hollywood movies, anime series, and the best time travel K-dramas . For K-dramas, the past often involves the Joseon era, riddled with political distress, turmoil, and drama. In some cases, K-dramas get creative and use time travel to solve crimes, like a heinous murder from the past, or with clues unraveling through time. In others, time travel is the narrative catalyst for an epic romance story of lovers separated by centuries.

Not surprisingly, many of the best K-dramas involving time travel use the concept to elevate romantic stories with a sci-fi or fantasy twist. In fact, this happens so much that K-drama audiences largely agree that it's become an overused plot device. That said, whether they are mainly romantic, detective, or historical K-dramas , there are dozens that cleverly use time travel to continue telling captivating stories, and the best time travel K-dramas use the trope to tell some of the most unique stories on the small screen.

25 A Time Called You

Released in 2023, a time called you.

Not available

Based on the Taiwanese TV series Someday or One Day, A Time Called You is a South Korean romantic fantasy drama that centers around a young woman named Koo Yeon-jun, grieving her boyfriend's passing. Koo Yeon-jun's life is thrown for a loop when she wakes up in the 1990s - in an eighteen-year-old girl's body named Min-ju. As she tries to solve the mystery and return home to her original body, her life is complicated further when she meets a young man who looks identical to her former lover.

A Time Called You is actually a remake of a Taiwanese series called Someday or One Day , and it features more science fiction than just time travel. It also includes the characters jumping into the bodies of others and having their own doppelgangers. There is a lot going on, but it makes for a fascinating watch.

The series follows two sets of characters played by Jeon Yeo-been and Ahn Hyo-seop who see both their pasts and futures controlled by an old cassette player. The song on the tape player helps to control aspects of their lives, but not everything, leading to a lot of moving parts in the story. There’s even a serial killer subplot for those who like their K-dramas with a little mystery.

The only reason the series isn’t truly the best time travel K-drama is that the finale of the series doesn’t offer a full measure of closure, leaving some things open-ended for the audience.

24 Again My Life

Released in 2022.

Again My Life isn’t the typical time travel K-drama. Rather than feature someone traveling straight into another time, the person is actually murdered early in the series, but then, the main character comes back as a college student . This actually works in his favor since in his previous life, he was a prosecuting attorney, so he’s already extremely intelligent and excels in the academic program, allowing him to spend his free time figuring out who set out to kill him.

Because this is one time travel series that is more of a thriller, there’s also an action element to it. Lee Joon-gi, who stars as the lead, has a black belt in taekwondo, and he does many of his own action scenes in the show instead of a stunt double. He won an award for his work on the show at the SBS Drama Awards after the show’s release.

23 Twinkling Watermelon

Twinkling watermelon.

Twinkling Watermelon is a South Korean television series that follows the lives of a group of high school friends who form a band. As they navigate the complexities of adolescence, they encounter challenges, build relationships, and discover their passions. Featuring a mix of music and drama, the show delves into themes of friendship, ambition, and self-discovery.

There are shades of Back to the Future in this time travel K-drama as a teenage boy (Ryeoun) ends up in his father’s high school years. The boy and his father (Choi Won-young as an adult and Choi Hyun-wook as a teenager) don’t see eye to eye when it comes to music. While he wants to pursue a career as a musician, his father doesn’t think it’s a good idea. Their fight is the catalyst for the time travel experience.

While in the past, he finds that his father is desperate to connect with another young woman, not one who becomes his mom. He also realizes that his father isn’t hearing impaired as he is as an adult. He decides to try to prevent the accident that causes the hearing loss as well as make sure his father ends up with his mother, even as he’s forming a band with him.

It’s a heartwarming story about getting to know one’s parents and understanding how one decision can change everything.

22 Lovely Runner

Released in 2024, lovely runner (2024).

Lovely Runner is a TV series that follows the story of a young athlete who rises to fame in the world of track and field. As the protagonist navigates the highs and lows of competitive sports, the series explores themes of perseverance, sacrifice, and personal growth.

Those who enjoy K-Pop, athletics, and love stories will certainly enjoy Lovely Runner . The series sees a former superstar named Sun-jae (Byeon Woo-seok) lives a life of mostly isolation while his career explodes. Im-sol (Kim Hye-yoon) is a superfan who has been supporting his career. In their 30s, however, they both wonder what their lives would have been like if they had done things differently. Of course, they also have a past connection.

When one of them dies, the other gets a chance to travel to the past to change their future, and it's revealed that they have both been doing everything they can to protect one another, even if it means their own lives might never be the same. The theme of the show is self-sacrifice as it explores what lengths someone will go to for someone they care about.

Interestingly, Beyon Woo-seok is not a trained K-pop singer, even though there are many artists who have crossed over into the acting world. Despite that, the song “Sudden Shower,” which was recorded for use in the show, charted, demonstrating that he’s got what it takes to lead a boy band.

21 Reborn Rich

The last few years have produced a lot of hugely successful K-dramas that have reached an international audience. Reborn Rich , however, was hugely successful at home as well. It was the most-watched K-drama in South Korea in 2022.

Like Again My Life , this series sees someone who is murdered get a chance to start a new life in a new body, but with the awareness of their previous life. This time, it’s someone who is a hardworking employee at a chaebol - a sprawling family-owned business, the kind that truly runs the economy in South Korea. When he sees something wrong and tries to do the right thing, he is killed for it. He ends up returning to life as the youngest member of a chaebol family in an earlier time and starts putting his knowledge of the future to use.

While the bare bones of the two stories are similar as both characters want revenge on those who took their lives, the worlds they explore are very different. Reborn Rich was nominated for a slew of awards in South Korea and ended up winning for Best Miniseries at the Seoul International Drama Awards.

The Best K-Dramas Based On Webtoons, Ranked

These top K-dramas ranked were once all popular webtoons and either got their start on the webtoons.com site or other sites and platforms.

20 My Perfect Stranger

My perfect stranger (2023).

My Perfect Stranger is a 2023 TV series that follows the story of a woman who discovers a mysterious stranger may be the key to solving a tragedy from her past. As she uncovers the truth, she must navigate a complex web of secrets and lies to uncover the truth about her own life.

When the two cross paths, they find that maybe their time traveling, and their lives, are actually linked to one another.

While most Korean dramas involving time traveling only see one character do the actual time traveling, My Perfect Stranger takes a risk in making both of its main characters time travelers . One does so on purpose though, while the other does not, which is where much of the intrigue comes from.

Hae Jun (Kim Dong Wook) is a journalist investigating a serial murder case who discovers a time machine and uses it to follow his own investigation. Yoon Young (Jin Ki Joo) discovers her mother dead and is then struck by a car, waking up in the same time that Hae Jun traveled to. As is true for many time travelers, they become trapped instead of able to travel between times. When the two cross paths, they find that maybe their time traveling, and their lives, are actually linked to one another.

Released In 2017

Tunnel (2017).

Tunnel is a South Korean television series that premiered in 2017. The show follows a detective, Kwang-ho, who travels back in time from 1986 to 2016 and teams up with a detective in the present day to solve a series of cold cases. As they work together, they uncover hidden secrets and unravel the mysteries of the past.

Instead of traveling to the past, Tunnel is a time travel K-drama that takes the audience to the future - in a manner of speaking. The present-day of the story is actually 1985 in which a string of murders are being investigated. When the detective (Choi Jin Hyuk) pursuing a lead runs after a suspect through a tunnel, he’s hit in the head and ends up 30 years in the future.

The murder mystery element of the series is inspired by a real string of serial killings in Korea, but the story is very much fictional. While the show presents itself as a murder mystery with a time-travel element, there’s also a romantic subplot and a family at the center of the story that makes it a drama that really shines. Incredibly popular outside of South Korea as well, Tunnel has been adapted for Thai television and an Indonesian remake is in development.

Want to enjoy some new TV series from Korea but without all the love and sappy sentimentality of some K-dramas? Check out these 10 great options.

18 Familiar Wife

Released in 2018, familiar wife (2018).

Familiar Wife is a South Korean television series that aired in 2018. The show revolves around Cha Joo-hyuk, a bank employee who travels back in time to when he was in his college days and alters the course of his life, resulting in a different reality where he is married to his first love, instead of his current wife.

A married man (Ji-Sung) with two kids is unhappy in his life. He’s depressed, hates his wife, and is unsatisfied at work. If he had only made different choices in his youth, he might have had a happier life. After traveling through a toll booth and losing control of his car, he winds up in the past and is able to change some of those decisions.

This is one time travel series that doesn't confine the protagonist to one time. Able to travel back and forth between the past and the present, he’s able to see how his different decisions have big outcomes later in life. It’s a similar concept to something like Sliding Doors but with many small changes to help someone understand their path in life. The music truly helps set the stage in the series as well with the soundtrack being nominated at the Korea Drama Awards.

Released In 2021

Times (2021).

Times is a South Korean television series that premiered in 2021, following the story of Seo Jin-Woo, a man who discovers a way to communicate with his past self through a mysterious walkie-talkie. As he navigates this new power, he attempts to prevent a tragic event that occurred in his past.

Times isn’t a traditional time travel K-drama in which one character is transported to another time period completely. Instead, the time travel is a result of a phone line that is able to traverse timelines. Several series have used similar ideas, often with the use of radios instead of phones, with varying degrees of success.

Two journalists, one in 2015 and one in 2020, connect over the use of the same phone line. Initially, they work together to prevent the death of one of their fathers, but while investigating, they uncover a conspiracy that involves time travel and corrupt politicians. The series is definitely a unique take among the time travel shows created for Korean television, which usually focus on history and a romantic subplot instead of political intrigue. While the series didn't reach widespread acclaim, star Lee Joo-young was nominated for Best New Actress at the Baeksang Arts Awards.

16 Tomorrow With You

Tomorrow with you (2017).

Tomorrow With You is a fantasy romance television series that follows Yoo So-joon, a successful real estate CEO who has the ability to time-travel through a subway. He meets Song Ma-rin, a photographer, and falls in love with her, but their relationship is threatened when he discovers his ability to travel through time is linked to his fate with her.

While Tomorrow With You does use romance like most time travel K-dramas do, it also has a unique idea for the time travel itself. While most Korean time travel shows involve time traveling by accident, the main character in Tomorrow With You can decide to travel in time. It’s also done so while traveling the subway instead of falling through a portal or suffering a life-threatening injury in order to do it.

Yoo So-Joon (Lee Je-Hoon) takes on time-traveling adventures when he discovers that Ma-Rin (Shin Min-A) and he are linked by a tragic accident in the future. Intrigued by her, he decides to save both her and himself. He believes that he can change their fates thanks to his ability, but he has to figure out just how they are connected. He resolves to marry her in order to make sure, and they become truly linked as he falls in love.

15 The Best Hit

The best hit (2017).

The Best Hit is a 2017 South Korean television series. The show revolves around the life of a K-pop idol, Lee Ji-hoon, who travels back to 1994 and meets his younger self and a young woman named Kim Hyun-jae. As Lee Ji-hoon navigates his past, he must confront his mistakes and learn valuable lessons about life, love, and friendship.

In The Best Hit, 1993 K-pop idol Yoo Hyun-Jae (Yoon Shi-yoon) gets accidentally transported to 2017, discovers that he is presumed dead after he disappeared in 1994, and investigates why he traveled through time. He does all this while struggling with living in the future, of course. Meanwhile, Hyun-Jae's biological son, Lee Ji-Hoon (Kim Min-jae), is secretly training to become an idol himself and is even enrolled in Star Punch Entertainment's program - while making his parents believe that he's studying for the civil service exams.

Also known as Hit the Top , and Best Punch , The Best Hit is an underrated gem in the world of the best time travel K-dramas. It's also an interesting way for the audience to get a look at what it takes to become a pop idol. Some of the stars of the series are also popular musicians. Kim Min-jae, for example, is also a rap artist and was nominated for the Best New Actor award at the Seoul Awards following the debut of the show.

14 Sisyphus: The Myth

Sisyphus: the myth (2021).

Sisyphus: The Myth is a South Korean television series that follows the story of Han Tae-sul, a genius engineer who tries to uncover the truth behind his brother's death. As he delves deeper into the mystery, he discovers a conspiracy that threatens the entire nation.

The storyline introduces a character who travels from the future to his current time.

This 2021 Netflix K-drama has some serious Terminator vibes to it, but it's full of good laughs, color, and drama. Han Tae-Sul (Cho Seung-woo) is a talented engineer who is determined to uncover the real reason behind his older brother's murder. If that wasn't enough, the storyline introduces a character who travels from the future to his current time. In the future, the world is dominated by gangs and military cliques. Survival entails having serious combat skills, and Gang Seo-Hae (Park Shin-Hye) is just the right warrior.

She travels back in time to help Tae-Sul on his dangerous journey after learning key evidence about his brother's death. What's interesting is that the series doesn't focus solely on the one-way time travel trip, but insists that the two main characters are responsible for breaking a time loop. Some critics disliked that Sisyphus: The Myth breaks its own established rules about time traveling, but it certainly keeps the audience on the edge of their seats.

13 Splash Splash Love

Released in 2015, splash splash love (2015).

Splash Splash Love is a South Korean television series that premiered in 2015. The fantasy romance drama tells the story of Lee Do, a high school student who travels back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty and meets Kim Mu, a prince who becomes his ally and friend. As Do navigates the complexities of court politics, he finds himself falling for the prince's sister, Princess Wonseong.

Splash Splash Love is one of those K-dramas that combine time travel with romance . In the television series, a high-school student gets transported to 15th-century Korea. She soon meets the young king of the kingdom who wants to learn more about mathematics. Thankfully, the heroine of the show is a patient teacher who is more than willing to tutor the King.

Splash Splash Love is a quick and easy watch as it is one of the shortest K-dramas out there, with only two episodes. This is part of why the show has near-perfect pacing and ranks among the best time travel K-dramas. It was originally broadcast as a 10-part webseries on Naver TV Cast. Its popularity led to it being edited into two hour-long episodes, so binging it is really like watching a movie.

12 Rooftop Prince

Released in 2012, rooftop prince (2012).

Rooftop Prince is a South Korean television series that tells the story of Crown Prince Lee Gak, who travels from the Joseon Dynasty to modern-day Seoul in search of his missing bride. With the help of Park-ha, a young woman who resembles his lost love, he navigates the complexities of contemporary life while trying to uncover the truth behind his bride's disappearance.

Rooftop Prince has a lot of storylines to process, but they're well worth it. The titular protagonist is a prince who wakes up in present-day 2012, even though he's actually from the Korean Joseon dynasty/era . The crown prince and his two confidants find themselves on the rooftop of Park-ha's (Han Ji-min) home. After the prince realizes he's time-traveled 300 years into the future, he also sees the long-lost sister of Park-ha - who is the spitting image of his late wife who drowned.

The prince is convinced he will find the answers to his past in 2012 and poses as the grandson of a powerful CEO, who in reality was killed by another family member. Both the characters of the past and the characters of the present have intense backstories and the series leans into the soap-opera-like aspects of those. It works in the show's favor, as the series has become even more popular outside of Korea than in its home. It is most popular in Japan and China.

K-dramas like Love & Leashes are full of passion and romance, but what are some other similarly hot and steamy K-drama series?

11 The King: Eternal Monarch

Released in 2020, the king: eternal monarch (2020).

The King: Eternal Monarch is a fantasy romance drama that tells the story of Emperor Lee Gon, who discovers a mysterious portal that leads him to a parallel universe. He meets a detective named Jung Tae-eul, and together, they navigate between their two worlds, uncovering secrets and conspiracies that threaten the stability of both kingdoms.

Not only does The King: Eternal Monarch have a phenomenal female lead in Jeong Tae-eul (Kim Go-eun), but it's also full of riveting action, features a unique story of parallel worlds, and is also one of the unique time travel K-Dramas available on Netflix. In the show, there are two co-existing realities: present-day South Korea and the Kingdom of Corea.

The current king of Corea witnessed his father's murder as a child at the hands of his uncle. When he discovers a doorway to the parallel world and present-day South Korea, he also discovers that his uncle has been traveling between the two worlds and trying to raise his own army. The king must stop his uncle, but along the way, he learns the truth about the mysterious figure who once saved his life and finds he must travel to a moment in the past. The series explores the idea of a single moment in time altering someone's whole reality.

10 Queen In-Hyun's Man

Queen in-hyun's man (2012).

Queen In-Hyun's Man is a 2012 South Korean television series that tells the story of Kim Boong-do, a dignified and charismatic nobleman, who travels through time from the 17th century to the present day, where he meets and falls in love with actress Choi Hee-jin.

A Joseon Dynasty scholar meets an aspiring actress in the year 2012 in the political and romantic Korean drama , Queen In-Hyun's Man, one of the best time travel K-dramas. In 1694, a noble-born scholar is the only survivor after his family was murdered, but there's a bigger story at play while he supports the reinstatement of the deposed queen and there's a conspiracy involving a royal concubine. Due to a magical talisman, he time travels 300 years into the future and meets an actress who he has a connection with.

What makes the rom-com elements of the scholar from the past meeting the actress from the future is that the actress, so far, is not a household name. instead, her big break is about to be playing Queen In-Hyun, the very woman the scholar is a supporter of.

Faith (2012)

Faith is a South Korean television drama that aired in 2012, starring Lee Min-ho as Choi Young, a skilled warrior, and Kim Hee-sun as Yoo Eun-soo, a plastic surgeon who travels back in time to the Goryeo era. The story follows their love story amidst the political turmoil of the time.

The time travel K-drama Faith follows the story of a plastic surgeon who gets transported to 14th-century Goryeo. She soon learns that a royal guard warrior was the reason why she was brought back more than 600 years into the past. The royal guard begs the plastic surgeon to help their injured queen. However, the plastic surgeon has actually caught feelings for her kidnapper.

Faith is considered one of the better time travel and fantasy-themed romance K-dramas thanks to the stellar performances of the actors, as well as the detailed story that shines a light on Korean history and mythology. It's also got a multi-layered title. While the literal translation of the title is "faith" as in "belief in justice," the Hanja lettering (Chinese letters used to write Korean) actually means "divine doctor," allowing the audience to understand that both terms are important to the long-term storyline of the show.

8 Nine: Nine Time Travels

Released in 2013, nine: nine time travels (2013).

Nine: Nine Time Travels is a South Korean television series that follows the story of Park Sun-woo, a man who discovers a way to travel through time and sets out to prevent a family tragedy from occurring.

In the time travel K-drama Nine: Nine Time Travels , Park Sun-woo (Lee Jin-wook) discovers nine incense sticks that could take him back 20 years in time. He uses his time in the past to save his family, who have been victims of a terrible tragedy. However, he needs to be extra careful when he goes back in time, as he can only do it nine times - the twist that makes Nine: Nine one of the best time travel K-dramas. Park soon finds out that whatever he changes in the past also resonates and affects his present life.

The K-drama was nominated for several awards across Korea for its great cast and romantic storyline, including snagging nominations at the Korean Drama Awards and the Baeksang Arts Awards. It also became popular outside of Korea, broadcast on television in China, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Thailand.

The Smile will definitely Leave Your Eyes with these shocking and heartbreaking K-Drama plot twists.

7 Go Back Couple

Go back couple (2017).

Go Back Couple is a South Korean television series that explores the lives of a married couple, Choi Ban-do and Ma Jin-joo, who are struggling to balance their careers and relationship. After 18 years of marriage, they are suddenly transported back in time to their college days, giving them a chance to re-evaluate their life choices and relationships.

Inspired by a webtoon called Do It One More Time , Go Back Couple (also simply called Go Back in some regions) is a Korean miniseries where a couple wishes that they never met each other. They have both become unhappy and exhausted with their marriage and wish they could have changed their unhappiness at the seeming source of all of their problems - meeting each other. The couple soon finds that they've reverted to their 20-year-old selves, faced with trying to make decisions that will make their future selves happy and satisfied.

The show features plenty of funny and heartwarming moments that will make viewers swoon — and an ending that will surely tug at the heartstrings of every long-time K-drama viewer. After its broadcast, the series was nominated for a slew of KBS Drama Awards, picking up two, one for Best Couple for the lead actors in Son Ho-jun and Jang Na-ra, and Excellence Award for Actress in a Miniseries for Jan Na-ra.

6 Chicago Typewriter

Chicago typewriter (2017).

Chicago Typewriter follows the lives of three individuals: Han Se-joo, a talented writer; Jeon Seol, a passionate fan; and Yoo Jin-oh, a mysterious ghostwriter, who become entwined as they navigate their complex relationships and uncover the mysteries of their pasts.

Out of the most compelling and best time travel K-dramas (as well as general fantasy K-Dramas ), Chicago Typewriter is one of the few that's about reincarnation rather than strictly about traveling through time. Three resistance fighters from the 1930s Japanese occupation of Korea find themselves in a new time period, but not because of mysterious scientific machines or magical objects. Instead, the three are reincarnated as a writer, a fan, and a ghostwriter.

Switching between the 1930s and the 21st century, these three characters start to see parallels between both time periods. As they start to uncover the truth behind their pasts, they worry about how it might affect their present. K-drama fans tired of the same old romantic comedy fare will love the truly unique story elements of Chicago Typewriter. The series was also filmed on location around Seoul, South Korea, so fans will enjoy picking out the real sites.

Netflix Hands Its German Reality Series ‘Kaulitz & Kaulitz’ A Season 2 Renewal

Picture: Netflix

The German reality series Kaulitz & Kaulitz , after dominating the Netflix top 10s over the course of the summer, is set to return for a second season, Netflix has confirmed. 

Arriving on Netflix globally on June 25th, 2024, the 8-part reality documentary series followed the musical duo and twins Bill and Tom, members of the popular band Tokio Hotel. 

The series offered a glimpse into their private lives while they were based in Los Angeles and Germany, and it seems that the duo struck a chord with Netflix members. 

Netflix confirmed the season renewal on social media , writing (translated into English), “OMG, OKAY, IT’S HAPPENING!!! Kaulitz & Kaulitz season 2 is coming!!! Only on Netflix.”

While the show didn’t impact Netflix’s top 10s in most countries, it was likely renewed due to its performance, particularly in Germany and Austria. The show also featured in the global top 10s for a single week between June 23rd, 2024, and June 30th, 2024, picking up 5.9M hours watched, equating to 1M views. 

According to FlixPatrol , the show has featured in the daily top 10s of 10 countries thus far, and here’s how many points the show has racked up so far as of August 7th:

• Latvia (1 day – 1 point)
• Estonia (1 day – 2 points)
• Slovenia (1 day – 2 points)
• Slovakia (2 days – 4 points)
• Czech Republic (2 days – 5 points)
• Hungary (3 days – 9 points)
• Luxembourg (21 days – 120 points)
• Switzerland (24 days – 151 points)
• Austria (40 days – 248 points)*
• Germany (43 days – 300 points)*

Note: The two marked with an asterisk are expected to continue picking up points as they remain in the top 10 as the time of publishing. 

We’ve noted before that titles typically get renewed if they’re global hits but also if they can make a sizeable impact in their own top 10s for around 30 days or more. That’s absolutely the case here, and given reality series tend to be cheaper, it’s a no-brainer renewal. 

No release date on when the show will be returning but we’d guess a 2025 release date is likely. 

For a full list of every show Netflix has renewed for a season 2 or beyond, check out our renewals guide . 

Constantin Television produces Kaulitz & Kaulitz for Netflix. 

Are you going to check out Kaulitz & Kaulitz when it returns for its second season? Let us know in the comments down below. 

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