The 10 Best TV Shows To Watch if You Love ‘Eric’

While the streamer has succeeded in developing acclaimed drama shows like Stranger Things and The Crown, Netflix is often at its best when developing limited-run miniseries that tell a contained story. 2023 alone saw the debut of Steven Zaillian’s inventive new take on Patrica Highsmith’s Ripley story, as well as the incredible stalker series Baby Reindeer. However, the new crime series Eric may be one of the most unusual projects in Netflix’s entire catalog. The thrilling, six-part series explores concepts such as homelessness, police corruption, sexual abuse, drug addiction, and familial dysfunction, all whilst featuring some furry puppet creatures taken out of a dark version of The Muppet Show.

Set in modern day New York City, Eric centers on the puppeteer Vincent Anderson (Benedict Cumberbatch), who is unhappily married to his wife Cassie (Gaby Hoffman). After his son Edgar (Ivan Morris Howe) goes missing, Vincent begins to believe that he can help solve the case by creating the puppet “Eric” to reach out. Based on the strong reviews thus far, fans of Eric may want to check out similar dark comedy, thriller, and drama shows. Here are the ten best television shows to watch if you loved Eric.

10 ‘Mr. Robot’ (2015-2019)

4 seasons

One of the key recurring themes in Eric is that of mental health and addiction; Vincent abuses many drugs, and uses Eric to help him cope with his traumatic childhood. The thrilling hacker series Mr. Robotdoes a great job at analyzing victimization, abuse, and addiction through its protagonist, Elliot Alderson (Rami Malek). Elliot fights to rid the world of debt by leading a hacking group called “fsociety” that is aimed at exposing the crimes of the upper class; however, he privately suffers from haunting memories of the sexual abuse he received as a child.

Both Eric and Mr. Robot prominently feature characters who aren’t really there. Vincent has visions of the puppet talking to him throughout Eric, and Elliot speaks to a vision of his dead father (Christian Slater) through Mr. Robot. The strong cast of characters makes Mr. Robot an essential watch for Eric fans.

9 ‘Escape at Dannemora’ (2018)

1 season

Although it does deal with some satire of the entertainment industry, Eric is a relentless thriller that doesn’t give viewers a chance to breathe; it’s impressive that the series was able to pack so much suspense and intrigue into just seven episodes. The limited series Escape at Dannemora recounts a shocking true story that is sure to get viewers’ blood pumping. The series follows two prisoners (Paul Dano and Benicio del Toro) who escape from a maximum security prison after forming a romantic relationship with an employee (Patrica Arquette).

Both Eric and Escape at Dannemora highlight morally ambiguous characters that aren’t easily classified as “heroes” or “villains.” It serves as an interesting way to engage the audience; even if they don’t necessarily agree with what the characters are doing, audiences still may find themselves emotionally engaged with both Eric and Escape at Dannemora.

Watch on Hulu

8 ‘Maniac’ (2018)

1 season

Eric stands out amidst the crop of Netflix’s limited series programs because of how bold and visually inventive it is. The use of odd dream sequences and incorporation of puppetry into an otherwise straightforward neo-noir mystery helps Eric feel exhilarating, even in the slower moments. The Netflix miniseries Maniacincludes some jaw-dropping visuals that question the nature of reality. The science fiction series follows the mental health patients Owen Milgrim (Jonah Hill) and Annie Landsberg (Emma Stone) as they undergo a series of experimental tests under the idiosyncratic scientist Dr. James K. Mantleray (Justin Theroux).

Like Eric, Maniac succeeds because its stars are willing to engage with the tonal shifts and nuanced character backstories. Eric certainly has one of the best performances of Cumberbatch’s entire career, but Maniac showed just how much Hill had grown as a dramatic actor.

7 ‘Gen V’ (2023-Present)

Renewed for season 2

Eric is a unique series in that it is both brutally violent and incredibly funny; the show exposes the absurdity of modern life by incorporating puppets alongside real people. While Amazon Prime’s superhero series The Boys incorporated a similarly satirical edge, its spinoff series Gen Vreached some truly disturbing levels of depravity. The show follows a group of young super-powered characters as they attend a university, only to learn that they are involved in a corporate conspiracy. A second season is expected to only deepen the character mythology.

Gen V also featured a puppet-centric episode that included shocking violence, and used the medium for far more adult purposes. Like Eric, the use of puppets in Gen V was able to take the audience off guard, as it was certainly far darker than something like The Muppet Show or Sesame Street.

6 ‘Full Circle’ (2023)

1 season

Although the puppet angle certainly evokes a different tone, Eric is at its heart a kidnapping drama about a guilty father attempting to locate his child. Steven Soderbergh’s brilliant miniseries Full Circleexplores the desperation and fear that a parent experiences when their child is in danger. After their son is targeted by kidnappers, the couple, Sam (Claire Danes) and Eric Browne (Timothy Olyphant) are forced to cooperate with authorities, all whilst hiding their connections to some illicit activity.

Judging from its masterful ending, Full Circle complicates the standard neo-noir structure by using the kidnapping to unpack a series of infrastructural issues. Soderbergh uses the case to examine subjects such as police corruption, class differences, media sensationalism, and the social infrastructure of New York City. Like Eric, it’s a sprawling epic that manages to keep viewers engaged with its constant twists and turns.

Watch on Max

5 ‘Perry Mason’ (2020-2023)

2 seasons

The original Perry Mason series was a fairly straightforward “case of the week” lawyer series that explored the adventures that the titular lawyer went on when investigating intricate cases. However, the recent HBO reboot of the series was a far darker interpretation that is closer in tone to Eric; the Perry Mason reimagining centered on a disturbing case of murder and conspiracy related to the kidnapping of a child. Like Eric, it’s a series that isn’t afraid to embrace the sheer darkness of its subject material.

Both succeeded by featuring Eric and Perry Mason as morally ambiguous protagonists, as both Cumberbatch’s performance as Vincent and Matthew Rhys’ depiction of Mason are haunted by their traumatic backstories. While the second season was perhaps even stronger than its predecessor, Perry Mason was sadly canceled before it got the chance to continue its story.

Watch on Max

4 ‘Angel’ (1999-2004)

5 seasons

Eric is a straight-up neo-noir, as it ties together a rich history of New York City that delves into the sinister forces hiding beneath the facade of infrastructure. While Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a coming-of-age fantasy adventure, its spinoff series, Angelwas a paranormal suspense thriller that drew heavily from the noir genre. Over the course of its five excellent seasons, the show focused on the titular vampire (David Boreanaz) as he helps innocent people survive supernatural threats in Los Angeles.

Angel also included a dark use of puppets in the episode “Smile Time,” in which Angel is transformed into a furry creature when investigating a children’s television program. Although it starts off on a broadly comedic note, “Smile Time” takes a darker turn once Angel realizes that a malevolent demon is planning to ensnare and trap the children.

3 ‘Sherlock’ (2011-2017)

4 seasons

Eric is proof that Cumberbatch can seemingly do anything; he managed to turn a dogmatic, reclusive character into an empathetic protagonist with a surprisingly nuanced backstory. Cumberbatch first proved his talents as a television star on BBC’s Sherlock, a modern reinterpretation of the classic stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The series chronicled Sherlock’s adventures with Dr. John Watson (Martin Freeman) as they outsmarted villains such as James Moriarty (Andrew Scott).

Cumberbatch showed in both Eric and Sherlock that he could play lonely, complex men who have trouble communicating with people. While his version of Sherlock is brilliant, he finds it challenging to understand the complexities of human emotion. Vincent has a similarly difficult personal life in Eric, as his aptitude for overworking himself leaves his marriage and relationships in shambles. It’s impressive that in both shows, Cumberbatch is able to elicit sympathy for characters who might have otherwise been unlikeable.

2 ‘We Own This City’ (2023)

1 season

Eric is a family drama first and foremost, but it also dedicates a significant amount of its runtime to analyzing the systemic corruption and cover-ups of the New York City Police Department. David Simon’s bold miniseries We Own This City examined the history of police brutality as it related to the evolution of Baltimore’s Gun Trace Task Unit. The series shows how the intolerable behavior of the corrupt cop Wayne Jenkins (Jon Bernthal) was allowed for years because of the department’s refusal to enforce consequences.

Both Eric and We Own The City examined the link between law enforcement and government, and how the two systems are instrumental in holding each other accountable. While Eric examines how the crime rate affects New York’s political elections, We Own This City analyzes how the transition between the Obama and Trump administrations led to a different reception to police brutality.

1 ‘Ozark’ (2018-2022)

4 seasons

Eric is a refreshing series because it was unafraid to examine the ugly side of human nature; although the series has its moments of hope, it presents a wholly cynical outlook on the ramifications of greed. Ozark was a series that frequently went to shockingly grim places, exploring how easily innocent people could be corrupted. Over the course of four excellent seasons,Ozark featured murder, kidnappings, conspiracies, torture, and abuse.

Neither Ozark or Eric is for the faint of heart, but both shows are rewarding to those who appreciate subversive narratives. Ozark broke new ground for Netflix because of its refusal to commit to cliches; each season took the Byrde family’s crime saga in a new direction, ensuring that viewers were wholly unprepared for the twists and turns that came next. Although its ending proved to be a divisive one, Ozark is still a journey that is well worth taking.

Watch on Netflix

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