This unexpected series is now super popular on Netflix
When I was younger, I watched quite a few movies and series that not many of my peers watched. As an eight-year-old, I was already sitting in front of the screen watching Die Hard and Terminator . And when I came home from school? The same series was often waiting for me: Little House on the Prairie. With a cookie in one hand and tea in the other, I devoured the episodes. I don't remember much of it, but those big hills and amazing log cabin have always stuck with me. So, when I found out that my childhood had been given a new look, I had to watch it. Apparently, all of the Netherlands had the same thought, because this old classic is number two in the top ten. And if you think a series set in 1870 is boring, you are very mistaken. The drama grabs you, and this is why.
What was the original Little House on The Prairie about?
In 1974, the popular Little Housebooks by author Laura Ingalls Wilder were adapted into a film. Although nowadays This series of no less than two hundred episodes followed the Ingalls family, who moved from the forests of Wisconsin to the prairies of Kansas. It was a quiet series where the biggest challenges did not come from far outside the town of Walnut Grove. Think of natural disasters, diseases, poverty, tensions with the original inhabitants, and injustices against others. It was not a superhero drama, but it revolved around real situations that you secretly kept watching longer than you had planned. Despite the fact that almost the entire world now considers the well-known books controversial due to the expressions and behavior towards people of different backgrounds, Netflix decided to give it a new life.
As of 2026, a broom has swept through the classic
Although the new adaptation looks aesthetically and plot-wise quite similar to the original, a significant broom has gone through the story. The main change is the behavior towards the indigenous population. In the old series, Ma wanted nothing to do with the ‘half-naked savages.’ Pa believed that white people had more right to the land than the original inhabitants. And his daughters Laura and Mary? They were terrified of the Indians. In the reboot, this is different. There is more respect. In the first episode, daughter Laura meets an Indian girl her age. She and her family do not live in a tent camp, but in a house. They speak English and wear the same clothes as everyone else. This is a good development, but certainly different.
In addition to the different behavior towards the Indians and the casting of a black actor for the role of the village doctor, the characters are also written more gently. Pa reflects on his behavior, admires the knowledge of the Indians, and even shows his emotions. In 1974, they apparently did not know that men could shed a tear. Ma is also different. She is no longer someone who just stays silent and watches while everything happens around her. As of 2026, she – as she should – also has a voice.
Boring? Not at all. This is why this is quality TV
It may sound boring, a series in which ‘not much happens’, but that is really not the case. The sweetness is gone, and the characters deal with real problems that add more depth to the story. Already in the first episode, dog Jack gets swept away by the water during a dangerous river crossing and remains missing for a long time. For everyone who cannot stand animal suffering: prepare yourself. Because there is a Hachi-worthy fiasco coming.
The danger in this series does not come from serial killers or dragons, but from life itself. The family has little money and has to build a life in the middle of nowhere. A life where you can't just call the doctor or take a paracetamol. With malaria, food shortages, and the dangerous nature, life on the prairie is anything but a cozy camping holiday. This is really one of those series that you first think is nothing, but then you end up watching all day. Through the family, it feels just like you are spending quality time with your own family. Is it the most exciting series? No, but that is not always necessary. Sometimes you just want something nice, and Little House on the Prairie just happens to be exactly that.
