I'm sad that Netflix's underrated sci-fi show won't ever return for season 3

It was exactly six years ago to the day, on 22 March, that Netflix aired the first episode of its most ambitious sci-fi show's second season. A show so hyped, yet so underappreciated – or even misunderstood – that it ultimately got the axe.

I'm still sad that there'll never be a third season of The OA. Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij's show was incredibly creative, fiercely original, and at times downright bizarre. Its second season even netted 92% on Rotten Tomatoes – so certainly had the critical acclaim.

As I explore the sci-fi shows I've arrived late to watch – from Severance to Silo to 3 Body Problem – I'm also stumbling upon old favourites. It's well worth checking out the original The OA trailer, below, and tuning in if you missed the show upon its season one release back in 2019.

The OA is about a young lady, Prairie Johnson (played by Marlin), who returns home after a seven-year disappearance. But there's a twist: miraculously she's no longer blind. It's in no way as simple as this, though, as Johnson, the self-proclaimed 'The OA', builds a five-strong team of locals, in cult-like fashion, to open a portal to another dimension – in the only way she can explain the events of what's happened during her disappearance.

Any show that ventures into worlds of interdimensionality and time travel ought to leave at least a few questions. But The OA just got so much right. It felt like fresh, bold film-making – the kind of output that Netflix has shied away from of late, as one of the best streaming services opts instead for big-budget CGI sci-fi movies.

The above is just the tip of the iceberg, though, as the show is multi-faceted and pulls on various threads and themes. At times it's like watching a more adult version of The Goonies. At other moments it's like a sci-fi The Wicker Man. But it never feels incoherent, is always explorative, and with a strong focus on the key characters' story, it really pulls you in.

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Of course, it will forever leave unanswered questions, because Marling and Batmanglij had a five-strong season arc planned. Netflix wasn't having any of that, though, pulling the plug. I can half see why: The OA most certainly won't be a show for everyone (even now), given its sensitive subject matter.

In one sense, that there'll never be a third season of The OA only makes it more impactful. I do think that, like with Apple TV+'s commission statement with Silo – that's going through to season four, its finale – Netflix could benefit from being bolder. Sure, the streamer's current big sci-fi play, 3 Body Problem, has been commissioned for another two seasons – if it'll last those out, though, we'll just have to see.

Netflix's other already cult classic, Kaos, only served a single season just last year – and that's some of the best TV I've ever watched. In absence of anything better on Netflix right now, then, I'm going to have to lament The OA's disappearance all these years later – it'll keep me forever wondering...