New ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ on Netflix May Help Solve Cold Cases

Have you watched Netflix’s ‘Unsolved Mysteries’ yet? The new series is getting mixed reviews–but it also has the potential to get results.

How the Revival Is Different

Fans of the original series, hosted by Robert Stack, may be disappointed by the Netflix version. For one thing, there’s no host. Despite the lack of cheesy, b-move reenactments, and Robert Stack’s magnificent gravitas (and trench coat), the new show sticks with the original themes.

Executive producer Terry Dunn Muerer said that they just couldn’t replace Robert Stack. “Everybody talks about how they hear that music from the original episodes and it sends a chill up their spine,” she said. “And then we had to make a tough decision: Should we have a host? We decided it would be impossible to fill Bob’s shoes.”

We’ve got the same bizarre mix of true crime with alien abductions. However, the new series has a grittier, more cinema verite style. Each episode focuses on just one case, kicking reenactments to the curb in favor of realism.

That’s not to say it’s gruesome; in fact, the new series is actually less graphic than the original. However, the reboot is not likely to get the same cult-like following, either. In a crowded field of 24/7 true-crime TV networks, an abundance of true crime podcasts, and scores of dedicated internet sleuths whose hobby is solving murders, Unsolved Mysteries can’t help but feel like a college grad who shows up at a freshman party.

Someone, Somewhere Knows the Truth…

Despite the differences–and poor comparisons–to the OG Unsolved Mysteries, the shows share the drive to actually solve these crimes. Netflix opened the mysteries to viewers and encouraged tips to bring closure to the cold cases.

Meurer told USA Today that they started receiving tips soon after the episodes went live. She explained that when the production company gets viewer tips, “we pass them on to the appropriate authorities. It’s only been 24 hours. We’re hoping there’s a lot of people who still haven’t watched and maybe this weekend they’ll sit down and binge the episodes and we’ll get more leads.”

At this time, it looks like the episodes about Alonzo Brooks, Rey Rivera, and Lena Chapin are receiving the most tips. If the show brings just one of these cases to justice, we’ll overlook our disappointment and clamor for another season.

But we’d really like more ghosts next time.