Amazon's Cyberpunk Series Based On A William Gibson Novel Deserved A Second Season

Amazon Prime Video contains several series you can binge in one day, but "The Peripheral" might frustrate you. Technically, you could get through each episode in a single sitting, but only because the show was canceled after a single season due to the Hollywood SAG-AFTRA strikes. Still, fans of great cyberpunk stories ought to check it out regardless.

Based on William Gibson's novel of the same name, "The Peripheral" follows a pair of blue-collar siblings (played by Chloe Grace Moretz and Jack Reynor) who get involved in a plot involving virtual reality, murder, and robots in the year 2032. The less said about the show, the better, but fans of futuristic sci-fi will get a kick out of "The Peripheral." What's more, it was produced by Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan, who helped bring HBO's "Westworld" to life.

Gibson is a celebrated sci-fi author, but his works aren't very prominent on the screen, so it's a shame this one got sent to the TV graveyard. "The Peripheral" showed a lot of potential, and the response to the show suggests it might have had some legs if the circumstances were different.

"The Peripheral" made a positive impression during its short run. As of this writing, the series boasts a 79% score on Rotten Tomatoes, indicating that most critics who reviewed it were impressed. What's more, the audience rating is even higher at 85%, so it's fair to say critics and viewers were united in their praise of this adaptation of William Gibson's novel. Reviewing the series for Empire, James Dyer noted that "The Peripheral" might have too much jargon to appeal to all tastes.

However, fans of violent, heady sci-fi will have a blast with it. "'The Peripheral' is a compelling enough window into another reality that utilizes its central premise well; one with a genuinely fresh-feeling take on time-travel that easily sets this apart from lesser techno-fare." Writing for The Wrap, Karama Horne favorably compared the show to other cyberpunk and sci-fi titles, noting that their fans will dig this one. "If you are a fan of cyberpunk crime drama anime like 'Ghost in the Shell' or 'Psycho-Pass,' or are looking for something to scratch that 'Westworld' itch, 'The Peripheral' is a joy to watch."

Despite ending on a cliffhanger, "The Peripheral" is one of many unfinished sci-fi shows still worth watching. It's an ambitious series with grand ideas, and it does a great job of translating William Gibson's vision for the screen, even if it is a rather loose adaptation in the grand scheme of things. However, at least viewers can pick up the book if they want to find out how the series' story might have ended.