Ian Somerhalder's Sci-Fi Horror Series On Netflix Should Have Never Been Canceled

Netflix and the concept of untimely cancellations have become quite synonymous with each other over the years. Granted, the streaming service used to be known for saving TV shows from being canceled by picking them up and adding them to its own roster. More recently, however, Netflix itself has canceled plenty of TV shows worth watching, and the list of canceled Netflix shows that ended on a cliffhanger is pretty impressive (and only continues to grow).

One Netflix show that really could have done with a longer life is "V Wars," the 2019 sci-fi horror series starring Ian Somerhalder ("Lost," "The Vampire Diaries"). The show only ran for a single 10-episode season before its cancellation, and it was Somerhalder's final project before he retired from acting and embraced farming. However, "V Wars" remains a cult favorite, and its fresh approach on vampire villains makes it a truly interesting series that could have done with many more episodes (or, for that matter, seasons) than it actually ended up getting.

Based on Jonathan Maberry's comics of the same name, "V Wars" is all about vampires ... but not the usual bloodsuckers you find in the horror genre. Instead, "V Wars" gives its vampiric villains a distinct pandemic twist, as the show's vampires are created by a prion released from its ancient ice prison by global warming. 

As a theme, vampirism as a virus isn't exactly unheard of, and "V Wars" isn't the first project to interpret it literally. ("The Strain" and "Daybreakers," take a bow.) However, where "V Wars" truly excels is its depiction of a world that's struggling to cope with the virus on all fronts. Apart from human society splitting at the seams, the vampires also have their own society known as Blood, causing a very real divide between infected individuals and the uninfected population. Amidst all this, Ian Somerhalder's Dr. Luther Swann works tirelessly to save both factions as chaos continues to reign, new versions of the vampire virus emerge, and notable characters drop left and right. 

Well-regarded by those who've seen it, the first and only season of "V Wars" has time to introduce the world, show just how real the stakes are, and — of course — end with a brutal cliffhanger. Had the series been able to explore its bloody, glorious setting for a few more seasons, who knows how good it might have become?