If you’re a fan of investigations packed with betrayals, family drama, and even some steamy scenes reminiscent of “Deceitful Love,” Netflix’s latest trending show might be your next binge-watch.
While the streaming service’s No. 1 spot still belongs to the feel-good sports comedy “Running Point” (at the time of writing), a newly released drama-thriller has quickly climbed to No. 7 in the top 10 list.
The show in question is “Medusa” — a Colombian thriller that follows a newly appointed CEO who miraculously survives a yacht explosion off the Colombian coast. Now, she must join forces with a relentless detective to uncover who wanted her dead and why.
Since its arrival on March 5, “Medusa” has already surged past Harlan Coben’s latest mystery “Just One Look” and “Formula 1: Drive to Survive,” which just dropped its seventh season. If you’ve spotted “Medusa” on Netflix’s charts and are wondering if it’s worth a watch, here’s what you need to know.
What is ‘Medusa’ about?
“Medusa” follows Bárbara Hidalgo (Juana Acosta) who has just been named CEO of Medusa, her family’s powerful business empire, which dominates Colombia’s northern coast. Before stepping into her new role, she takes a solo trip on her luxury yacht, only for disaster to strike.
An explosion rips through the vessel, hurling her into the sea. The world believes she’s dead, but Detective Danger Carmelo (Manolo Cardona) isn’t so sure. He suspects the Hidalgo family is hiding something critical, and he’s right, because Bárbara miraculously survives.
But she’s not the same woman she was before the explosion. As she pieces together the truth, she must uncover who tried to kill her and why her own family may want her gone.
Should you stream ‘Medusa’ on Netflix?
Just because a show ranks in the top 10 doesn’t automatically make it worth watching. Whether “Medusa” is worth your time ultimately depends on your taste in dramatic thrillers.
If you enjoy dramas that are over the top in terms of acting and narrative direction, “Medusa” might be worth checking out. From what’s shown in the trailer and having seen the first episode myself, the show seems to fully embrace its exaggerated nature. So if you don’t mind the silliness, you’ll probably find an easy-to-watch, steamy thriller that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
That said, don’t expect deep character exploration or meaningful development. While “Medusa” seems like it could move quickly given its dramatic nature, it may prioritize shock value and dramatic confrontations over a well-crafted narrative, which could make it feel more artificial than actually immersive.
It’s also not one to watch with family. The series appears to include a lot of sexual content (even in the first episode), sometimes in ways that feel unnecessary to the plot. At its core, though, “Medusa” seems like a formulaic thriller designed purely for entertainment.
It's important to note that this dramatic thriller doesn’t have a Rotten Tomatoes score yet. However, there are a few reviews you can find online.
Joel Keller from Decider said: “Pretty much everything about Medusa is patently ridiculous, so your enjoyment of this series will depend on how much you tolerate this ridiculousness.”
Digital Mafia Talkies’ Ruchika Bhat didn’t enjoy it very much either. They stated “after about six episodes, you really start to feel the drag, because it repeatedly throws the same scenes at you while Barbara tries desperately to remember her life in the past. By the time you’re eight episodes in, you start to feel the fatigue creep in.”
“Medusa” feels like the kind of guilty pleasure that keeps you watching out of sheer curiosity. For those who don’t mind a really silly plot, it might be entertaining enough, but I understand its erotic content and lack of realism may be off-putting.
If I had to give an answer, you can probably skip this one and stream these shows on Netflix instead. You can also see what’s new on Netflix this week for more streaming recommendations.
Otherwise, "Medusa" is now streaming on Netflix.
