Netflix's best new mystery crime show gets a perfect 100% critics rating

This article was published on June 21st and republished on June 23rd.

Netflix has just added a bunch of shows from AMC as part of a licensing deal, which means there's a ton of new content on the platform now. This includes all kinds of shows, including some very bad ones (Fear the Walking Dead), but at least one extremely excellent one that is definitely the best new mystery/crime series added to Netflix in recent memory.

That series is “Dark Winds,” a Native American drama starring the ubiquitous, extremely talented Zahn McClarnon, most recently seen in “Reservation Dogs,” in the lead role as a tribal police officer who solves disturbing crimes.

This is a very, very rare circumstance where both The seasons of the series have received perfect 100% ratings from critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Season 1 has 100% with 36 ratings, Season 2 has the same with 18 ratings. Granted, the audience ratings are lower, 72% for Season 1 and a significantly less good 53% for Season 2. But you can watch the series and see whose side you're on. Here's the official description of the series:

“Set in 1971 on a remote outpost of the Navajo Nation near Monument Valley, Dark Winds follows tribal police Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn as he is plagued by a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. The closer he gets to the truth, the more wounds from his past are uncovered. He is accompanied on this journey by his new deputy, Jim Chee. Chee also has old scores to settle from his youth on the reservation. Together, the two men fight the forces of evil, each other, and their own demons on the road to redemption.”

I've only seen season 1, but I thought it was excellent and would highly recommend it if you're looking for a great new crime thriller, especially if you want to wash the taste of True Detective season 4 out of your mouth.

It is also a series that you can invest in without worrying because yes, AMC has confirmed that there will be a third season of Dark Winds, albeit with a bit of a delay, and it will be released sometime in 2025, a date has not been set yet. It has not been particularly well-received, but it is not exactly expensive and the series is running very now on Netflix, #3 in Netflix's Top 10, which means that it Is draws a lot of viewers there. It beats AMC's A Discovery of Witches at #4 and Fear the Walking Dead at #6. Mayfair Witches (there are a lot of witches here) is at #10. Interview with the Vampire was also added to Netflix, but even though it's better than almost all of the others, for some reason it's not in the top 10 list.

Anyway, check out Dark Winds. It's a great show and there's a reason it did so well, even if it wasn't quite as perfect as stated.

Update (23.6.): Looking at the list again, Dark Winds is still at number 3 and has been performing rock solid since its debut. I think it's possible that the series will overtake Emily in Paris, as that series' half season is very short and Dark Winds is a full two seasons long, albeit with only six episodes per season.

It's hard to say enough praise about star Zahn McClarnon, who is just everywhere these days, especially in Reservation Dogs, and he even showed up in the MCU with a role in Echo and Hawkeye before that. He is the voice of a Native American vampire in the well-received Castlevania: Nocturne, that show's standout effort. He even showed up in Jennifer Lawrence's big comedy hit No Hard Feelings. And that's since 2023 aloneAnd of course, as mentioned, he will be back in the third season of Dark Winds sometime in 2025.

He's had a great career dating back to the mid-90s, with guest roles on shows like Baywatch, In Living Color, NYPD Blue and Chicago Hope. He's put in a lot of time and it's fantastic to see it all pay off for him here. Dark Winds certainly wouldn't have been possible without him. With him being so well known now, we'll no doubt see more of him in the future.

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