Netflix’s New Serial Killer Thriller Show Is Unlike Anything Else Streaming Right Now

A cop with a lot of family baggage. A woman in prison for murder. A copycat serial killer.

These are the elements that set the stage in Queen Mantis, a new Korean show on Netflix.

It’s based on a French thriller called La Mante (The Mantis) and — if you’ll forgive the bug pun — it’s already generating a lot of buzz.

If you’re intrigued by crime-solving and a heaping dose of family drama, the Watch With Us team thinks you should watch Queen Mantis on Netflix.

The Premise Is Fascinating

Cha Soo-yeol (Jang Dong-yoon) is a police detective whose past hides a traumatic secret — his mother, Jung Yi-shin (Go Hyun-jung), is the infamous serial killer known as the Mantis, who is currently serving time for five murders.

Raised by his grandfather Jeong Hyeon-nam (Lee Hwang-ui), he has no relationship with his murderous mother — until a serial killer begins copying her style with strikingly similar kills around the city. Soo-yeol is forced to team up with his mother to capture this copycat and maybe come to terms with his mother’s violent nature.

It’s a Break from the Netflix Binge-Watch Formula

Bingeing every episode of a show at once can be great, but sometimes it’s way more fun to let the anticipation of the next episode build up every week — especially with crime shows, where suspense is such a huge part of the experience.

Breaking from their typical manner of dropping episodes, Netflix is releasing Queen Mantis in real time as each episode airs in Korea — the first two episodes are available now, with subsequent drops on September 12, 13, 19, 20, 26 and 27. If you like to let the tension build — and follow along with viewers and fan theories online — you’ll enjoy the experience of Queen Mantis.

It Uses a Thriller Trope in a New Way

Crime-solvers consulting with killers is one of our favorite murder-solving tropes — from The Silence of the Lambs to Mindhunter and Copycat — but by focusing on a mother-son relationship, Queen Mantis adds a whole new dimension to this terrifying dynamic. To solve the case, Soo-yeol must confront his own family history and trauma — something many of us avoid doing for our entire lives.

We have no idea how this is going to pay off — no one does, since the show is still airing! — but we’re excited to see how this mother-son relationship will evolve through their bizarre collaboration.

Watch Queen Mantis on Netflix.