This Underrated Sci-Fi K-Drama Is The Perfect Black Mirror Replacement
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For those who feel "Black Mirror" is out of idea with the disappointing stories in season 7, there is another quality sci-fi anthology series worth checking out. The 2020 South Korean series "SF8" offers eight standalone science fiction tales (thus the title). Of note, each episode is written and directed by a creative team, including several prominent South Korean filmmakers. But more than just being a show in a similar format, "SF8" does feel like a true successor to "Black Mirror" as the Netflix series suffers from diminishing returns.
Like "Black Mirror," the stories throughout "SF8" usually feature a narrative focus on technology and its impact on society. In one episode, an artificial intelligence fortunetelling service develops a fanatical following of people desperate to learn about their futures. Another tale has a disgraced video game streamer trapped in a virtual reality experience while trying to restore her image. One memorable story has a popular dating app dictate how people approach every step of engaging in a romantic liaison, completely oblivious to the tangible experience in front of them.
This K-drama is full of wild twists, similar to "Black Mirror" and "The Twilight Zone," but "SF8" has its own distinct identity beyond providing a Korean perspective on the genre.
What makes SF8 distinct and how to watch it
The rotating creative teams involved in "SF8" really make each episode stylistically and tonally stand out from each other. "Black Mirror" has certainly experimented with its tone before, but it tends to lean into bleaker stories with even its funniest episodes deriving humor from a fundamentally dark place. "SF8" is broadly linked by its exploration of technology in a variety of genres, from family dramas and thrillers to romantic comedies and outright horror. Those genre, tonal, and stylistic disparities are much more apparent throughout the series in comparison to American and British sci-fi anthology shows.
The tricky part, at least as far as North American availability goes, is how to legally stream "SF8." This isn't a show that's available to watch free like other K-dramas on Rakuten Viki but on the more obscure streaming platform Kocowa+. MHz Connect subscribers can watch the show on Prime Video or The Roku Channel with the extension, though the series is set to leave the platform on March 31, 2026. "SF8" is also currently available to stream on Apple TV, but it's unclear if the show will leave the service after its licensing agreement with MHz Connect expires. The series is also currently available to purchase on DVD through online retailers like Amazon.
For fans of K-dramas and/or "Black Mirror," "SF8" offers its own thought-provoking set of sci-fi tales to enjoy in full.