10 TV Shows That Were Nothing Like You Expected

4. The OA

Netflix The OA Prairie
Netflix

Netflix deliberately kept The OA mysterious in the build-up to releasing the eight-episode first season, but even then it managed to defy any and all expectations. The basic premise was that of a previously blind girl who returns home after being missing for seven years, and has her sight returned.

It was fair to think it'd explore the mystery of what happened to her and how she got her sight, but The OA didn't stop there or do anything in a conventional way. The first episode alone suggested as much, with the opening credits not rolling until the 55-minute mark, telling us this wasn't a normal TV show.

From there we were plunged into stories within stories, alternate dimensions, questions as to the fabric of reality, a school shooting and, at the very heart of the series, what amounts to interpretive dance. It's baffling, beguiling, and unlike anything else around.

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Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.