15 Great Shows Like Outer Banks You Need To See

"Cruel Summer" and "Outer Banks" both chronicle one fateful summer that completely changes the lives of their overzealous teenage protagonists. The former begins in the summer of '93, when pretty and popular Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt) is abducted. Her classmate Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia), who has been a wallflower all her life, begins to bloom in the wake of this disappearance by effectively taking over Kate's life. For the first time, Jeanette has everything. This show might not make as sizable a statement about social and class divides as "Outer Banks" does, but in this transformation, it vividly depicts the yawning chasm between the haves and the have-nots.

When Kate is finally rescued, she levels a weighty accusation against Jeanette, claiming that she knew where she was being held but failed to contact the authorities. The show proceeds to explore both sides of this enigmatic story. There aren't any sunken treasure chests or dead bodies in "Cruel Summer," but the series does come bearing plenty of buried secrets and skeletons in the closet.

Take away the serious air of "Outer Banks" and you get "American Vandal." This might seem surprising, as any and all efforts to describe the plot of "American Vandal" sound almost as comical as the show itself. In Season 1 of this mockumentary-style series, the titular high school vandal draws phallic iconography across dozens of teachers' cars, leading to widespread uproar. Two teens, Peter Maldonado (Tyler Alvarez) and Sam Ecklund (Griffin Gluck), are out to document every moment of it. Season 2 follows a similarly crude mystery, which Peter and Sam attempt to solve through the power of fine detective and camera work. 

Netflix may have (tragically, in our opinion) canceled "American Vandal" after this season, but viewers still get two self-contained stories to feast upon. Even die-hard true crime fans can't help but love the way "American Vandal" satirizes the melodramatic excesses of the genre, and anyone can enjoy the genuinely well-written characters on display. If you like the way "Outer Banks" plucks a compelling coming-of-age story out of twisty noir, you'll love how "American Vandal" crafts a very real drama about the trials of young adulthood from a seemingly unsophisticated premise.

If you're a serial consumer of adventure mysteries like "Outer Banks," chances are you're already familiar with the classic "Hardy Boys" books. But did you know this beloved series has been adapted into a brand new TV show? Hulu's "The Hardy Boys" follows a pair of brothers with killer detective skills and plenty of mysteries to tackle. Not only do the two shows resemble each other thematically, they also share a similar plot point: Protagonists from both series grapple with the loss of a parent and the many secrets they've left behind.

"The Hardy Boys” starts off on a somber note. Frank (Rohan Campbell) and Joe Hardy (Alexander Elliot) are dealt two blows back to back: Their mother has met with a fatal "accident," and they're moving to live with their aunt in a dreary place called Bridgeport. As it turns out, this quintessential small town and the people who live there hold the answers to all the questions Frank and Joe have about their mother's untimely death. This is more than a little reminiscent of "Outer Banks," where the townspeople always seem to know more than they let on.

This list would be lacking indeed without the inclusion of "Skins," which Paste aptly hailed as the "gold standard for teen drama series." As fans of the series might have already guessed, we're referring to the original British version of "Skins" and not the American remake. Now, comparing any series to "Skins" is doing the entirely unique show a disservice, but it's safe to say that the British drama depicts teenage life in all its glory and gore in a manner not dissimilar to that of "Outer Banks." Like their North Carolina counterparts, the Bristol-bound youngsters of "Skins" — ranging from the razor-sharp Tony Stonem (Nicholas Hoult) to the meek Sid Jenkins (Mike Bailey) — raise havoc wherever they go. 

Unlike "Outer Banks," "Skins" prefers not to get bogged down in adventures and mysteries, instead exploring teenage life unto itself. If you like the sound of more raw glimpses into adolescence and fewer nefarious twists and turns, "Skins" is the show for you.

As far as teen programming goes in this day and age, "Euphoria" clearly reigns supreme. Like "Outer Banks," "Euphoria" chooses to focus on the less-than-rosy aspects of teenager-hood. Neither show shies away from depicting sensitive subjects like drug addiction, domestic abuse, or mental illness, not to mention social ills like classism, racism, and homophobia. At the nexus of it all in "Euphoria" is recovering addict Rue Bennett (Zendaya), who isn't so much clean as she is good at pretending to be. It doesn't help that she is constantly surrounded by teens who are as self-destructive as she is. 

Zendaya has been praised by outlets like The Guardian for depicting a complex character like Rue with "astonishing, mesmerizing" sincerity.  However, every ounce of praise the show receives has been swiftly met with an equal portion of controversy. The series has previously faced criticism for its nudity, graphic violence, and high-shock-value storylines. It might not be for everyone, but if you like the intense emotion of "Outer Banks," you should give "Euphoria" a try.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

If you consider John B and Sarah Cameron's (Madelyn Cline) chemistry to be the highlight of "Outer Banks," this fiery love story might also catch your interest. In "We Are the Wave," romance between privileged high-schooler Lea Herst (Luise Befort) and boy-from-the-wrong-side-of-the-tracks Tristan Boch (Ludwig Simon) cuts similarly across class lines. 

The commonalities between these shows hardly end there: "We  Are the Wave" and "Outer Banks" expand their purview far beyond teen melodrama into social criticism. Lea and Tristan round up a group of misfits to establish "the Wave," an outfit that takes (often hilarious) action against injustice, not unlike the Pogues. Both gangs of young adults essentially launch crusades against the powerful and the power-hungry. Despite being thought of as unserious and harmless, the Wave's campaign gathers steam. But as groups of youngsters all over town mobilize against systemic injustice, Lea and Tristan realize they may have gotten more than they bargained for.

One could be fooled into thinking that the sun-soaked island town of "Outer Banks" would have little in common with the rural Texan backwater of "Panic." But beneath Carp's idyllic façade are deeply buried secrets, just as there are in small-town North Carolina. The ripple effects of these skeletons in the closet (some more literal than others) can be felt throughout both towns, especially by their teenage residents. While the Pogues look to change the course of their depraved lives on "Outer Banks," the teens of "Panic" aim to escape it entirely.

But that's easier said than done. Carp holds a vice-like grip over its residents, and only those of means can afford to move on to greener pastures. To become men and women of means, the youngsters of Carp participate in a unique game, which consists of a series of dares — each worse than the last. The victor walks away with $50,000 and a get-out-of-Carp-free-card. All the while, scheming forces work behind the scenes to sabotage the game and its outcome, creating a sense of ... you guessed it, panic.

In the surprisingly robust genre of teen noir shows, "Elite" and "Outer Banks" are touchstones. That these two productions, which hail from two different continents and are helmed by two completely different sets of people, could resemble each other so much speaks to how pervasive class divides really are. On "Outer Banks," the rivalry between the Pogues and the Kooks stems from their vastly different social statuses. Similarly, on "Elite," class war breaks out in moneyed private school Las Encinas when a handful of working-class students join the ranks. More often than not, this culminates in brutal murder. 

Each season of "Elite" brings a new murder mystery and a smattering of fresh characters to the fore, even while the old ones continue to rule the roost. The show doesn't forget the "teen" in "teen noir," though: It spends as much time exploring its subjects' heartbreaks, hopes, and fears as it does indulging in murder and mayhem.