'Masterpiece' horror on Netflix is 'greatest zombie series ever' - not The Walking Dead

Zombie shows have been a television staple for years, but few have managed to shake up the genre like this one. While American hits such as The Walking Dead dominated screens for over a decade, one South Korean series has quietly built a reputation among horror fans as the "greatest zombie series ever" - and many viewers are calling it a masterpiece.

Kingdom, which premiered on Netflix in 2019, blends the undead with historical drama, taking the familiar zombie apocalypse and transplanting it to Korea's Joseon dynasty. Created by Kim Eun-hee and directed by Kim Seong-hun, the series was adapted from the webcomic The Kingdom of the Gods and quickly became a breakout hit for Netflix's international slate.

Set against the backdrop of royal palaces and remote villages, the story follows Crown Prince Lee Chang (Ju Ji-hoon) as he investigates his father's mysterious illness. His search uncovers a plague that reanimates the dead, forcing him to confront not only the infected but the political conspiracies festering inside the royal court. Across two seasons and a special episode, the series unfolds as a tense survival drama laced with betrayal, class conflict and relentless horror.

Viewers who were initially unsure have ended up hooked. One Reddit user admitted: "I tried to watch the first episode late at night and was dosing off, but I'm considering starting over again," sparking dozens of responses urging them to give it another chance. "It's one of my favourite zombie shows, so yes, give it a try," one reply said, while another called it "the greatest zombie series ever made."

The acclaim isn't just coming from fans. Kingdomholds a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an IMDb score of 8.4/10, with critics praising its sharp writing, atmospheric visuals and bold setting. One reviewer wrote, "It's hardly a secret that the zombie genre is a dried-out well, proven by Western releases fighting to be the most boring and generic junk out there. Then to my pleasant surprise, South Korea dishes up a series set in a Korean dynastic kingdom... and it does it well. Good acting, believable costumes, lovely cinematic and the monsters blend into a wonderful time that makes this series worth your time."

Another praised the decision to set the story during the Joseon era, calling it "a really fresh idea to place zombies during the Korean middle ages, a direct contrast to most zombie films we see today." A review posted on online magazine Seven Swords also praised it as a "historical horror masterpiece".

The production values are striking. Filmed on location across Korea, the series uses authentic sets and costumes to recreate the era with painstaking detail. Candlelit palace corridors and misty rural landscapes serve as both historical backdrop and horror setting, heightening the tension.

One IMDb reviewer wrote, "This show is amazing in many ways. It is aesthetically gorgeous, has got a great plot, good acting, and so on. But most of all, it speaks about our society more than one could believe: it is about migration, about the happy few exploiting a large mass of people in misery and in starvation, leaving them out of their lands again and again, as if they were just garbage."

The performances anchor the spectacle. Ju Ji-hoon brings weight to the role of the Crown Prince, evolving from reluctant heir to determined leader. Bae Doona plays Seo-bi, a compassionate physician who becomes a moral compass amidst chaos, while Ryu Seung-ryong embodies ruthless ambition as the scheming Chief State Councilor Cho Hak-ju. Their interplay grounds the story's fantastical elements in complex human drama.

Audiences have responded with enthusiasm. "I've just binged watched all six episodes in one sitting (it's now three in the morning) as I couldn't stop watching," one fan admitted. Another summed it up simply: "If you're a fan of the horror and zombie genre, this one is for you and not to miss. Add to that a historical setting with many subplots and subtext, and you get an idea of what kind of complete package this series is."

Kingdom (Seasons 1-2) and the special Ashin of the North are available to stream now on Netflix.