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Carnival Row poster

Shows that feel likeCarnival Row (2019–2023)

In a mystical and dark city filled with humans, fairies and other creatures, a police detective investigates a series of gruesome murders leveled against the fairy population. During his investigation, the detective becomes the prime suspect and must find the real killer to clear his name.

If you loved Carnival Row, the closest series we have are Marvel's Jessica Jones (2015), Grimm (2011) and The Night Manager (2016). All three share Carnival Row's contemplative and atmospheric feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Bridge (2011).

★ 7.6 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗2 seasons · Prime Videocreated by Travis Beachamgrittycontemplativecerebraldreamlikeatmospheric
12 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Amazon Prime Video
Stream it:Prime Video ↗

If Carnival Row hit the spot, these will too

Marvel's Jessica Jones poster
Marvel's Jessica Jones
2015–2019 · 3 seasons · Netflix
★ 7.8sci-fi & fantasy · dramaDisney+

Two things both keep coming back to: detective and neo-noir

The difference: Takes it somewhere less gritty than Carnival Row does

After a tragic ending to her short-lived super hero stint, Jessica Jones is rebuilding her personal life and career as a detective who gets pulled into cases involving people with extraordinary abilities in New York City.

Grimm poster
Grimm
2011–2017 · 6 seasons · NBC
★ 7.9drama · mystery · sci-fi & fantasyPrime VideoPeacock

The same preoccupation in both: police detective

The difference: Trades the grit of Carnival Row for an angle of its own

After Portland homicide detective Nick Burkhardt discovers he's descended from an elite line of criminal profilers known as "Grimms," he increasingly finds his responsibilities as a detective at odds with his new responsibilities as a Grimm.

The Night Manager poster
The Night Manager
2016– · 2 seasons · BBC One
★ 8drama · mystery · crimePrime Video

Common ground: neo-noir

The difference: Sits closer to mystery than Carnival Row does

Former British soldier Jonathan Pine navigates the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To infiltrate the inner circle of lethal arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper, Pine must himself become a criminal.

The Bridge poster
The Bridge
2011–2018 · 4 seasons · SVT1
★ 8.6crime · mystery · drama

Both are built on the same subject: murder mystery

When a body is found on the bridge between Denmark and Sweden, right on the border, Danish inspector Martin Rohde and Swedish Saga Norén have to share jurisdiction and work together to find the killer.

Bosch poster
Bosch
2015–2021 · 7 seasons · Prime Video
★ 8.5mystery · drama · crimePrime Video

The same mix in both: grit, then stillness

Harry Bosch, an LAPD homicide detective, stands trial for the fatal shooting of a serial murder suspect. A cold case involving the remains of a missing boy forces Bosch to confront his past. As daring recruit Julia Brasher catches his eye and departmental politics heat up, Bosch will pursue justice at all costs.

Spider-Noir poster
Spider-Noir
2026 · 1 season · MGM+
★ 7.6drama · mystery · crimePrime Video

One thread runs through both: detective

Ben Reilly, an aging and down on his luck private investigator in 1930s New York, is forced to grapple with his past life as the city's one and only superhero.

Angel poster
Angel
1999–2004 · 5 seasons · The WB
★ 7.9sci-fi & fantasy · dramaHulu

Cerebral and dreamlike in the same breath

The difference: Made in the 1990s, in a different era of the craft

The vampire Angel, cursed with a soul, moves to Los Angeles and aids people with supernatural-related problems while questing for his own redemption. A spin-off from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

True Detective poster
True Detective
2014– · 4 seasons · HBO
★ 8.8drama · mysteryMax

Both keep coming back to the same thing: the investigation

An American anthology police detective series utilizing multiple timelines in which investigations seem to unearth personal and professional secrets of those involved, both within or outside the law.

Cowboy Bebop poster
Cowboy Bebop
1998–1999 · 1 season · TV Tokyo
★ 8.9animation · action & adventure · sci-fi & fantasy

Atmospheric sci-fi & fantasy in both cases

In 2071, roughly fifty years after an accident with a hyperspace gateway made the Earth almost uninhabitable, humanity has colonized most of the rocky planets and moons of the Solar System. Amid a rising crime rate, the Inter Solar System Police (ISSP) set up a legalized contract system, in which registered bounty hunters, also referred to as "Cowboys", chase criminals and bring them in alive in return for a reward.

Unbelievable poster
Unbelievable
2019 · 1 season · Netflix
★ 8.3drama · crimeNetflix

One thread runs through both: the investigation

After a young woman is accused of lying about a rape, two female detectives investigate a spate of eerily similar attacks.

Veronica Mars poster
Veronica Mars
2004–2019 · 4 seasons · UPN
★ 8.3mystery · drama · comedyNetflixHulu

Both lean on stillness more than on drama

In the fictional town of Neptune, California, student Veronica Mars progresses from high school to college while moonlighting as a private investigator under the tutelage of her detective father.

Black Bird poster
Black Bird
2022 · 1 season · Apple TV
★ 8.1drama · crimeApple TV+

Gritty crime, and it commits to that

As Jimmy Keene begins a 10-year prison sentence, he gets an incredible offer: If he can elicit a confession from suspected killer Larry Hall, Jimmy will be freed. Completing this mission becomes the challenge of a lifetime.

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The best-reviewed series that share Carnival Row’s defining feeling.