16 Post-Apocalyptic TV Series, but Zombies Have Nothing to Do With It
While doomsday narratives date back at least to ancient Mesopotamia , pop culture over the past few decades has convinced us that there is at least a 70% chance that the apocalypse will specifically involve hordes of shuffling undead. When it comes to the last days, it’s basically George Romero’s world; we just all die in it.
Mostly, but not completely. Apocalyptic tales are now more popular than ever and are rich fodder for filmmakers and TV creators. For some reason, the worse things get in the real world, the more we like to imagine that the end will literally consume us. It may be comforting to remember that things can actually get worse. Or maybe we like to imagine that we can be the ones to restore something better. Whatever the reason, television is crammed with these shows. The latest example of a hit: HBO’s The Last of Us , an adaptation of the award-winning PlayStation game.
No two apocalypses are the same, but the best shows either use old tropes or avoid them entirely. Zombies are the main element of the form (one of them, by the way, uses The Last of Us ), but they are hardly ubiquitous. Here are some great non-zombie series to watch in between episodes.