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If you’re the sort of person that turns towards rather than away from the unknown, the concept of UFOs, UAPs, and other extraterrestrial encounters is a no-brainer.
Now more than ever it feels like there are more of us, thanks in part to Netflix’s recent hit docuseries, Encounters. Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like.
Across four episodes and four stories, Encounters explores all things extraterrestrial and unknown in an in-depth and highly addictive documentarian bent.
In the first episode, viewers are introduced to the townsfolk of Stephenville and the strange mass UFO sightings that plagued the town back in 2008.
Episode two documents what happened in the Welsh town of Broad Haven where over 450 UFO sightings and encounters were documented.
Episode three continues this dizzying tally of encounters, this time from the experiences of a monk who experienced an encounter just moments before the earthquake that caused the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster in 2011.
In the final episode of the series, Encounters steps into the encounters that 62 students in Ruwa, Zimbabwe experienced in 1994.
The unknown always draws curiosity. After so many decades of scrutiny and skepticism, Encounters releases at a time when people are finally taking a look, inspecting the documentation, and best of all, willing to speculate.
If Encounters got your mind racing and your appetite for more UFO shows, we got you covered! You’ll definitely want to check out the following.
Top Secret UFO Projects Declassified
As the title clearly suggests, Top Secret UFO Projects Declassified is a Netflix documentary series that doubles down on the validity of UFO sightings.
Like Encounters, though carrying a slightly dry tone, Top Secret explores the gamut of the unexplained and the extraretinal with an eye to suggestion. When it was initially released, Top Secret proved to be incredibly timely, given that in 2021, during the height of the pandemic, information leaked confirming the existence of UFOs.
If you want to keep that intrigue from Encounters going, Top Secret functions well and rests at top of the “also watch” list.
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch is an ongoing series on the History Channel that explores the strangeness that befalls the eponymously named Skinwalker Ranch in Uintah County, Utah.
Commonly known as “UFO Alley” among those keen on extraterrestrial research, Skinwalker Ranch stretches across 500 acres and has become a hotbed for the unexplained. The show follows Skinwalker Ranch owner Brandon Fugal and a crew of experts as they investigate the locale through ongoing investigations utilizing different devices and technologies that aid in finding anomalies.
Season five was just released in late April 2024, so you can expect quite a satisfying, bingeable television experience.
Unsolved Mysteries – “Something in the Sky”
I’d suggest the entirety of the long-running Unsolved Mysteries tenure is worth watching but for the sake of the topic at hand, there is one episode in particular that is required viewing for anyone delving into the unexplained and the extraterrestrial.
“Something in the Sky” explores a UFO sighting that transpired in 1994. It might have been any typical night if it weren’t for what many townsfolk in western Michigan glimpsed in the night sky on March 8, 1994.
We’re not talking about a handful of complaints or calls from people already seeking something odd. Over 300 911 calls were made that night from local residents claiming to have seen unusual lights in the sky.
The episode goes into detail about what might have happened, producing theories that might explain, as often Unsolved Mysteries is known to do. Some truly compelling viewing.
Unidentified: Inside America's UFO Investigation
For those looking for more docuseries to dive into pertaining to UFO speculation and investigation, Unidentified: Inside America’s UFO Investigation is a solid descent into military counter-intelligence, secret government programs, and more.
Across two seasons and dozens of topics, the Tom DeLonge (guitarist from Blink 182) produced series offers a lot to think about, especially with notable individuals such as Luis Elizondo, an officer who directed the Defense Intelligence Agency's Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program, and Christopher Mellon, the former United States Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence.
And if that wasn’t enough, in 2019, footage from the series was confirmed by the US Navy to be authentic. Yeah, if that isn’t enough to sell you on giving this series a watch, I don’t know what will.
Ancient Apocalypse
It has to start somewhere, and that somewhere can be found sprinkled throughout human history.
A bit different from other shows on this list, Ancient Apocalypse is an eight-episode docuseries on Netflix that opts to dig even deeper into the unexplained and the unknown.
British writer Graham Hancock is at the helm of the series as it digs through ancient history while it is claimed that there were advanced civilizations back during the Ice Age.
It’s a show that offers something a little different from UFO sightings, all the while acting as a puzzle piece in the greater puzzle that is still best expressed using a single word: aliens.
MH370: The Plane That Disappeared
What do you think of when someone mentions the Bermuda Triangle? If you’re like me, it’s almost always planes disappearing, thought to have crashed into the sea.
In MH370: The Plane that Disappeared, the Netflix docuseries explores the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in 2014. Flight 370 carried 239 passengers and went missing on March 8th, 2014.
Though there is skepticism about the way the series sometimes leans on conspiracy theory, MH370 doesn’t hide that fact; instead, it offers multiple theories as a means of actively disproving them in hopes of potentially finding reason.
Skeptic or not, MH370 is worth your time—especially if you’re not a fan of flying.
