Legacies was one of those shows that I added to my Netflix queue and ignored for several weeks. One afternoon during my lunch break, I decided I was tired of scrolling past it. Just a few minutes I would watch, and then, I hoped, I wouldn’t like it and could remove it from the queue.

Nope. I was hooked. I didn’t binge the entire season in two days or anything, but it obsessed me for the better part of two weeks, when I looked forward to every lunch break so I could watch an episode. Or sometimes an episode and a half. Or maybe a little more if I was feeling super self-indulgent.

Here’s what I loved about it:

There’s a magical academy!

As a fan of Harry Potter, I was stoked to see all the magic stuff, and all these students with powers. Seeing the school, having everyone there together to learn and develop their magic and control their powers, kept me riveted.

High school and teenager drama.

I thought I would hate it, but it sucked me right in. People get mad at each other, there’s all this lust and angst, and it’s just fun because it’s so far removed from what I’m experiencing now in my late thirties.

Cool abilities.

Witches, vampires, and werewolves all have their own unique subcultures within the school, and I thought it was awesome.

Tragic and fascinating backstories.

So I came to Legacies before watching The Vampire Diaries or The Originals, and I didn’t realize they were connected until partway through this first season of Legacies. Probably I missed some things, but it didn’t bother me very much. What I loved was that there was more to these characters than what I was being shown. Things were hinted and teased. You can bet I went straight from this to The Originals.

Friendship, forgiveness, sacrifice.

Yes, the angsty teenage drama might make it seem superficial or bring the stories into melodrama, but I was totally into it because of the larger (and yeah, glaringly obvious) themes of friendship, forgiveness, and sacrifice. There’s a lot to unpack with such a huge ensemble cast, with betrayals as well as petty grievances, and then the arcs of reconciliation as well.

Season 2

This is already airing on the CW, but I have to wait for Netflix. I’m so looking forward to it!