Television series

Teen Wolf

Name: Teen Wolf
Genre: Drama, Romance, Supernatural
Released: 2011
Cast: Tyler Posey, Holland Roden, Linden Ashby, Dylan O'Brien, JR Bourne

Other titles called Teen Wolf: the 1985 film.

Urban fantasy

MTV's supernatural drama follows Scott McCall from invisible high schooler to reluctant werewolf, balancing the mundane torture of adolescence with actual monsters. It's a genuine coming-of-age story that treats teen problems seriously while delivering real scares, mythology, and ensemble chemistry. For anyone who loved a show where the stakes felt personal and the friendships mattered more than the plot.

TVMaze rating

4.1

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like teen drama with a supernatural itch, where high school loyalty and romance carry as much weight as the monsters, and you don't mind a show that gets bigger and stranger over time.

Skip it if you want a tight, self-contained creature feature; this is a sprawling melodrama where romance triangles and school politics take real screen time between the scares, and it runs long.

What it asks of you: Six seasons and a hundred hour-long episodes mean a real commitment, and the early chapters are fairly patient, dosing out the monster business slowly while the characters' emotional lives get room to breathe.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Vampire Diaries2009

Same engine: teen protagonist bitten by supernatural creature, forced to navigate both high school and a hidden supernatural world with genuine stakes, mythology layered across seasons, and a cast that actually grows together.

But Messier tone that veers into melodrama; juggles too many love triangles and mythology threads, and the show's moral compass gets genuinely muddy in later seasons.

The Originals2013

Spin-off that focuses on found family and loyalty in ways Teen Wolf only gestures at. Dark, operatic, with supporting characters who become as important as leads. Better pacing than its parent show.

But Much darker and grittier—less high school warmth, more morally grey characters making terrible choices. Can feel relentlessly bleak if you came for the lighter supernatural fun.

Grimm2011

Procedural that never forgets the emotional toll of supernatural knowledge. Werewolves, monsters, and a detective learning the hidden world exists. Monster-of-the-week structure that still builds to genuine mythology. Great ensemble.

But Episodic format can feel repetitive; mythology payoff is uneven. The tonal shift from case work to mythology can be jarring if you want consistency.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Teen Wolf

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Ginger Snaps2000

Both use the werewolf bite as metaphor for adolescent transformation—the loss of control, the social alienation, the body doing things you didn't consent to. Scott wants to be special; Ginger understands specialness as a curse. Same mythology, opposite registers.

Werewolf film told as female rage story: sisters bonded by death and transformation. Shot like a 1980s horror film. Grim humour, genuine gore, treats lycanthropy as messy embodied nightmare rather than cool power fantasy. Subversive in every direction.

But Low budget shows; bleak and occasionally gross; werewolf transformation scenes are genuinely disturbing rather than cool. Dialogue heavy in ways that feel dated now.

Supernatural2005

Literal gold standard for two protagonists hunting monsters across America. Eleven seasons means you won't run out. Genuine scares, genuine laughs, genuine heart buried under all the blood and one-liners.

But Ridiculously long—mythology gets tangled, retconned, or abandoned; tonal whiplash between comedy and horror. Commitment required. Some seasons drag.

The Owl House2020

Animated series with the same DNA: found family, characters discovering their true power, teen protagonist learning to accept being different. Genuinely moving, gorgeous animation, and mortally stakes that feel earned. Adult viewers love it.

But Shorter seasons than you'd want; animated so some might dismiss it; tonal shifts between comedy and serious mythology can feel uneven if you want pure darkness.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer1997

The DNA ancestor. Girl stumbles into supernatural world, gathers a loyal found family, learns to accept power she didn't ask for. Metaphors for growing up. Perfect monster-of-the-week structure that builds to real mythology. Actually funny.

But 1990s production values show their age; pacing in early seasons can feel slow; some episodes are genuinely bad in ways that are hard to sit through.

Being Human2009

British supernatural roommate drama where a vampire, werewolf, and ghost share a house. Tighter mythology, sharper writing, real emotional consequence. Each season is roughly ten episodes—no padding. Dark humour mixed with genuine pathos.

But Bleak in a way that can exhaust you; British pacing means less plot per episode; cancelled before it stuck the landing, so ending is rushed and messy.

The Magicians2015

College-aged magic protagonists discover a hidden world layered over reality. Character-driven, genuinely scary, mythology builds methodically. Found family theme done well. Balances whimsy and real horror better than most.

But First season is uneven; relies on archetype subversion that can feel smug; pacing slows mid-run; some character arcs feel abandoned when actors leave.

Wynonna Earp2016

Woman discovers her family legacy involves demon-hunting. Tighter cast than Teen Wolf, quicker pacing, genuine character growth. Cult western flavour. Fun, earnest, knows what it is and commits to it.

But Lower budget shows; cult status means inconsistent availability; mythology sometimes sacrificed for humour; fewer seasons means less to sink into.

Over the Garden Wall2014

Both explore adolescence as an unavoidable descent into something darker and stranger. Teen Wolf asks 'how do I control this power?'; Over the Garden Wall asks 'how do I survive this place that doesn't want me?' Same loss of innocence, opposite genres.

Ten-episode animated miniseries. Two brothers lost in a supernatural forest. Folklore horror, genuine unease, folk-song soundtrack. Gorgeous animation. Treats childhood as genuinely terrifying. Real stakes despite the short runtime.

But Animated (dismissible); only ten episodes total; genuinely dark and won't solve its mysteries neatly; folk-horror atmosphere is slow-burn, not action-driven.

Carnival Row2019

Both understand that monstrosity lives in families and small towns—the real horror isn't the creature, it's what people keep hidden. Teen Wolf's Argent family dynamics echo Carnival's generational secrets. But where Teen Wolf finds community and acceptance, Carnival finds only complicity and despair.

HBO miniseries about two families in 1920s Baltimore, one grieving a missing child, the other harbouring dark supernatural secrets. Slow-burn horror layered with genuine period atmosphere. Real dread. Every episode is crafted like a film. Extraordinary cinematography.

But Pacing is glacial; cancelled after one season on a cliffhanger; bleak without the cathartic payoff Teen Wolf provides; absolutely not for anyone wanting action or typical narrative momentum.