Netflix's Horror Series 'Black Summer' Could Keep You Busy Until 'Stranger Things' Season 3

For nearly a decade, zombies have taken over the world... of fictional TV, that is. Since the premiere of the iconic The Walking Dead in 2010, shows like iZombie, Z Nation, and Fear the Walking Dead have delivered various interpretations of the zombie takeover. But there's a new show in town that's also about the undead and it has fans intrigued. Netflix's Black Summer is a new zombie apocalypse series starring Jaime King, and the new trailer is getting audiences prepared for another zombie takeover.

If the setting looks familiar, that's because Black Summer is a prequel series to Syfy's recently canceled Z Nation. Although, it doesn't sound like you need to have seen that show to enjoy this one. In an October 2018 interview with Syfy Wire, Z Nation producer Jodi Binstock explained:

"Really, the only similarity between 'Z Nation' and 'Black Summer' is that the 'Black Summer' is the first summer that 'Z Nation' took place in. 'Z Nation,' when it begins, is in year four of the zombie apocalypse. 'Black Summer' is three months in; this is the first outbreak, this is when all the sh*t's hitting the fan. It's not tongue-in-cheek at all. It is as realistic as any television I've ever seen."

Released on Monday, the Black Summer Season 1 trailer may give viewers Birdbox-meets-Walking Dead vibes. The video starts with people in sheer chaos, grabbing household weapons like knives and meat tenderizers, while carefully looking through their blinds to avoid savage, bloody zombies on the loose outside. While ominous threats and chaos ensues, viewers see Rose (King), with her family, holding hands and running in the streets seeking safety while a voice-over says, "They don't have a plan for us. Everything is falling apart." After Rose's daughter is taken from her by armed forces, she sets out on her ultimate mission to get her child back.

The trailer doesn't pull punches when it comes to the violence and horror ahead in the show, which premieres April 11. According to Netflix's description, the show is set in "the dark, early days of a zombie apocalypse" and follows Rose as she joins forces with fellow American refugees on a quest to find safety, loved ones, and survival.

It seems the most daunting element about the show is the decisions these characters will have to make. At one point the trailer reads, "Our choices are the only thing that make us human." The description also teases, "In order for Rose and her team to brave this hostile new world, they will need to make brutal decisions to contend with zombies — and each other."

While audiences certainly aren't strangers to zombie shows, another one is always welcome, especially if it comes with a twist. It remains to be seen whether Black Summer will set itself apart from TV's current zombie horde, but at the very least it stands a good chance of keeping horror devotees occupied until the July 4 premiere of Stranger Things Season 3. No, there aren't any zombies in the Upside Down — at least not yet — but this show does have a similar creepy vibe.

Of course, some fans are comparing what they've seen of Black Summer to the another fan favorite genre show: long-running The Walking Dead (which is in its ninth season), with one YouTube user commenting the show seems like the "Netflix version of The Walking Dead." Although The Walking Dead is a beloved series, it seems many people are ready for something fresh in the zombie world. "This looks much better than whatever the Walking Dead is doing right now," one fan wrote, with another saying, "Getting tired of the Walking Dead....so i am up for any new zombie show. This looks good to me." If nothing else, maybe it'll even hold Stranger Things fans over until the long-awaited Season 3 premiere.