10 Reasons Maniac Is The Best Netflix Original Series Since Stranger Things

While the lead stars put in excellent work, they are supported superbly by Justin Theroux, Sally Field, and more. They commit to their roles (no matter what direction their characters end up going), further sucking you into the world and making these characters immediately interesting. Each personality varies tremendously from the other, and it feels like they had a great deal of freedom in how their characters come across.

Sally Field's Greta finds a way to tell you so much in every malevolent smile she directs at Justin Theroux's James or Emma Stone's Annie. She consistently exerts power and influence without much of a voice raise. She serves as some backstory behind Theroux's character, who hits such a wide variety of emotions and behavior that you never know what you're going to get with him. He pulls it off expertly, channeling the acting chops he showed off in 'The Leftovers' (of which Maniac showrunner Patrick Somerville wrote for).

To balance out Theroux's James, Sonoya Mizuno's Azumi is no-nonsense and goal-oriented, but isn't afraid to show off a bone-dry sense of humor and even some emotion when the situation warrants it. There are other great characters, but these three illustrate the importance of including developed personalities beyond the central protagonists.

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