Television series

iZombie

iZombie blends case-of-the-week detective work with horror-comedy heart: newly undead med student Liv Moore solves murders by eating victims' brains and briefly channeling their memories, quirks, and appetites. It's breezy, funny, occasionally gruesome, with a slow-burn zombie-outbreak mythology bubbling underneath. Good procedural comfort food for anyone who wants their mystery show with a supernatural gimmick and genuine emotional stakes.

TVMaze rating7.8

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Veronica Mars2004

Same creator, Rob Thomas, bringing the identical rapid-fire wit and outsider-detective energy — a smart young woman solving crimes everyone else has written off.

But No supernatural element whatsoever; it's straight teen noir, so the zombie gimmick's absence might leave you wanting.

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Pushing Daisies2007

A pie-maker who can resurrect the dead solves murders in a candy-colored, whimsical world full of narration, romance, and mystery-of-the-week charm.

But Cancelled after two seasons on a cliffhanger, and the sugary aesthetic may be too twee for some tastes.

Pushing Daisies poster

Buffy the Vampire Slayer1997

The blueprint for monster-of-the-week horror fused with real emotional arcs and jokes that land — this is where the genre's tone was invented.

But Dated effects and late-90s fashion, plus tonal whiplash between seasons that some viewers find jarring.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer poster

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Les Revenants2012no page yet

It strips away iZombie's comedy entirely and asks the same underlying question in dead earnest: what do you owe the living once you're not fully alive anymore.

A French drama where the dead quietly walk back into a mountain town, forcing families and lovers to confront grief, guilt, and what's changed in the people they've lost.

But Glacially paced and subtitled, mournful rather than fun — no jokes, no case-of-the-week structure, nothing tied up neatly.

More like this (7)

Santa Clarita Diet2017

Drew Barrymore turns undead and hungry in suburbia — same 'ordinary zombie with a day job' engine as iZombie, but louder, gorier, and gleefully broad.

But Leans harder into slapstick and gross-out comedy, with far less mystery-solving structure holding it together.

Santa Clarita Diet poster

Dead Like Me2003

Grim reapers collecting souls while working dead-end day jobs — a kindred premise about finding purpose and dark comedy in an afterlife nobody asked for.

But Slower and more melancholic, with less case-of-the-week momentum and more existential drift.

Dead Like Me poster

Warehouse 132009

A case-of-the-week paranormal procedural with easy buddy banter and a found-family vibe that echoes Liv's morgue crew.

But Lower stakes and thinner characters overall — more breezy adventure-of-the-week than horror-tinged mystery.

Warehouse 13 poster

Forever2014no page yet

An immortal medical examiner uses centuries of memory and forensic skill to crack murders — same morgue setting, same case-of-week rhythm.

But Cancelled after one season, and the tone is gentler and more procedural, with far less horror or humor.

Grimm2011

A cop with a hidden supernatural gift solves fairy-tale-monster crimes weekly — the same ordinary-job-hiding-an-extraordinary-secret structure.

But Plays it much straighter, with a flatter comedic voice and none of the personality-swap gimmick that makes iZombie distinctive.

Grimm poster

The Vampire Diaries2009

If it's the CW house style you're after — supernatural ensemble, mythology-heavy plotting, characters wearing different faces — this delivers plenty of it.

But Centers on romantic melodrama over mystery-solving, with a soapier tone and far less procedural backbone.

The Vampire Diaries poster

D.O.A.1949no page yet

Both hinge on a protagonist who has to become a detective in order to make sense of their own death — Liv just gets to keep doing it forever, brain by brain.

A man discovers he's been fatally poisoned and has days left to live, racing to solve his own murder before he becomes one — the original ticking-clock mortality mystery.

But Black-and-white 1940s noir dialogue and pacing will feel stagey and slow next to a modern show.

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