History SpiritualAdaptation / LiveActionTV

** The premise of [[Recap/BlackMirrorHatedInTheNation "Hated in the Nation"]] sounds like it came right out of the ''Manga/GhostInTheShell'' manga series, especially its anime adaptation ''[[Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex Stand Alone Complex]]''. Some fans would argue that this episode has more in common with ''[=GitS=]'' than its [[Film/GhostInTheShell2017 2017 live-action film adaptation]].

* ''Series/{{Riverdale}}'', as a DarkerAndEdgier reimagining of ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'', has been [[https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/02/before-you-watch-riverdale-read-the-best-non-archi.html compared]] by some people to a TV adaptation of Creator/EdBrubaker's ''ComicBook/{{Criminal}}: The Last of the Innocent'', though ''Riverdale'' doesn't get quite so {{deconstructi|on}}ve.

* ''Series/WhatWeDoInTheShadows'' and ''Series/WellingtonParanormal'' combined make for a fantastic DeconstructiveParody of ''TabletopGame/WorldOfDarkness'', with the former being akin to ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' and the latter ''TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil''.

* ''Series/HogansHeroes'' drew inspiration from many POWCamp movies, but it's especially close to being a PlayedForLaughs version of ''Film/Stalag17''. ''Stalag'' has the sadistic Col. von Scherbach, ''Hogan'' has [[{{Expy}} the sadistic Col. Klink]], and the addition of a T to his surname is [[CaptainErsatz basically the only difference]] between ''Stalag'' 's Sgt. Schulz and ''Hogan'''s Sgt. Schultz. The writers of the original play sued for copyright infringement and won, but it got overturned on appeal (on the grounds that the tones of two works were vastly different).

* ''The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window'', an AffectionateParody of 2010s SuburbanGothic mystery thrillers like ''Literature/GoneGirl'' and ''Literature/TheGirlOnTheTrain'' in which an actress best known for comedy (in this case, Creator/KristenBell) plays ''[[AvertedTrope barely]]'' [[PlayingAgainstType against type]] as somebody who gets caught up in a murder scheme, comes very close to translating the humor of ''Film/ASimpleFavor'' to the small screen.

** The same could be said about ''Series/MediciMastersOfFlorence''. Heck, you can almost ''wait'' for them to mention the Auditores by name.

** Arya's story in Seasons 5 and 6 of ''Series/GameOfThrones'' actually makes for a pretty decent ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'' miniseries. It's even set in Braavos (a {{fictional counterpart}} of Venice, Italy) in a time period based loosely on the 15th century, making it surprisingly close to the look and feel of ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedII''.
** The series is also considered UsefulNotes/TheNewTens' equivalent of ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'', as both are epic-scale adaptations of {{doorstopper}} fantasy literature that are considered genre-definers in their respective media (TV and film). Both works also broke the FantasyGhetto in their respective media, and while the ''LOTR'' films were groundbreaking for being highly successful adult-oriented HighFantasy adaptations, ''[=GoT=]'' takes this even further by catering ''exclusively'' to mature audiences with its graphic content and intricate plot and characters. Many jokes were made about Creator/SeanBean featuring in both franchises and getting killed off both times.

* ''Series/PennyDreadful'', a sprawling Victorian fantasy saga starring [[Literature/{{Frankenstein}} Victor Frankenstein]], [[Literature/ThePictureOfDorianGray Dorian Gray]], and an aging GreatWhiteHunter as part of a crossover between {{Public Domain Character}}s, may as well be a better live-action adaptation of ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'' than [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen the 2003 film based on the comic series]]. In a rather uncanny coincidence, it even stars a former Franchise/JamesBond actor, Creator/TimothyDalton, as Mina's father Malcolm Murray. [[note]] The original ''League'' graphic novel series involved James Bond's grandfather, Campion Bond, as a major supporting character; in something of a CastingGag, the [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen film adaptation]] cast Creator/SeanConnery in the lead role of Allan Quatermain, and it was rumored that the producers also wanted to cast Creator/RogerMoore as Campion before the character was cut from the movie.[[/note]]

*** It can even be argued that it's basically a live-action adaptation of ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', as both shows have sci-fi elements and deal with themes of mental health and trauma.

* ''Series/HogansHeroes'' drew inspiration from many POWCamp movies, but it's especially close to being a PlayedForLaughs version of ''Film/Stalag17'', with Sgt. Schultz an obvious CaptainErsatz of the film's Sgt. ''Schulz'' and Col. Klink an {{Expy}} of Col. von Scherbach. The writers of the original play sued for copyright infringement and won, but it got overturned on appeal (on the grounds that the tones of two works were vastly different).

* ''Series/WhatWeDoInTheShadows'' and ''Series/WellingtonParanormal'' combined make for a fantastic DeconstructiveParody of ''TabletopGame/WorldOfDarkness''. With the former being akin to ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' and the latter ''TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil''.
* ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'' is the best live-action Franchise/WonderWoman show since the [[Series/WonderWoman Lynda Carter series]].

* ''Series/TheGoldbergs'' is the closest anyone has come to doing a sitcom InTheStyleOf Creator/JeanShepherd. The influence of ''Film/AChristmasStory'' is very obvious, but it also manages to replicate Shepherd's deconstruction of the NostalgiaFilter, broadly-drawn characters and use of pop culture to evoke a certain era.

** The CruelTwistEnding of the first season makes it one to [[spoiler:Creator/JeanPaulSartre's ''Theatre/NoExit''. All of the main characters were selected to torture each other by making each other's lives a living hell through their clashing personalities, all while [[ThisIsntHeaven believing they'd been sent to the "Good Place"]].]] ShowRunner Michael Schur [[https://www.denofgeek.com/us/tv/the-good-place/275396/the-1944-existentialist-play-that-inspired-the-good-place described the play]] as a major inspiration for the show.

* ''Series/HappyDays'' owes a lot to ''Film/AmericanGraffiti'' - it's [[Creator/RonHoward star]], introductory theme song, setting and nostalgia, even if it took the bittersweet themes of ''American Graffiti'' and just made them sweet.

* When the Netflix series ''Series/JessicaJones2015'' premiered, many noted that the show felt like an adaptation of a famous non-Marvel (and non-comic book) superhero property: ''Film/{{Unbreakable}}''. Both are {{Capepunk}} psychological thrillers with an emphasis on the characters rather than their superpowers, a super-strong hero pitted against a purple-clad MagnificentBastard, and even a NighInvulnerable hero who calls himself "unbreakable".

* [[https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/jun/23/loki-episode-three-recap-is-this-just-doctor-who-with-a-big-budget Arguments have]] [[https://www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/loki-is-an-american-riff-on-doctor-who been made]] that ''Series/Loki2021'', with its TimeyWimeyBall, running around with [[NeverTheSelvesShallMeet multiple versions of the same person]], and the story being centered around a millennia-old person trying to make sense of their role in the universe ([[WalkingDisasterArea and the destruction they cause in their wake]]) makes it a big-budget American version of the Creator/RussellTDavies and Creator/StevenMoffat era of ''Series/DoctorWho'' set in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, only [[PerspectiveFlip with the twist]] that this time, [[https://www.cbr.com/loki-doctor-who-master-protagonist/ a Master-like character]] is [[VillainProtagonist the focus]].[[note]]It's also appropriate to note that Marvel actually has assigned an official number to a universe inhabited by the Doctor: [[https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/The_Doctor_(Earth-5556) Earth-5556.]][[/note]]

** Convoluted plots with plenty of memory tempering and world-hopping, a MassiveMultiplayerCrossover with just about everything in the Creator/{{Disney}} catalog, and a naive kid caught in the center and trying to set things right. It's also the closest we get to a TV adaptation of ''Franchise/KingdomHearts''.

* ''Series/PushingDaisies'': Could be called the TV series Creator/TimBurton never made.

-->Jodie and Eleven are both the result of horrific scientific experiments [[spoiler:that left their mothers in a comatose state]]. They were then put in the care of [[TheMenInBlack snazzily dressed but amoral government villains]] who vaguely resemble '90s [[Creator/MatthewModine character]] [[Creator/WillemDafoe actors]]. They're then subjected to similar neurological testing, right down to the weird sci-fi crown thingamajig. Also, remember how Eleven has a [[PsychicNosebleed nosebleed]] after using her powers, but they never explain it? Here's the explanation: ''Beyond: Two Souls'' did it as well! By the end of both the game and the show's first season, the girls are running around sporting hospital gowns and buzz cuts. The same can be said about their respective netherworlds, which both involve terrifying journeys through ominous portals to the same desolate, depressing land where it's always snowing.

* ''Series/WandaVision'' is a parody of classic {{sitcom}}s, complete with a DeliberatelyMonochrome first two episodes, in which the protagonists' idyllic life in an artificial StepfordSuburbia slowly unravels as the seams in the setting grow increasingly visible and eventually tear the world apart. In short, it's ''Film/{{Pleasantville}}'' in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, albeit done less as a social satire and more as a {{surreal|Horror}}, {{psychological|Horror}} SuperheroHorror story.
** Many fans and even some critics have also favorably described the miniseries as what would happen if Creator/DavidLynch ever helmed a Marvel Cinematic Universe project, to the point that Creator/BobChipman [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kF5tkIXjtE0 outright described]] the series' slow burn as a melancholic {{Deconstruction}} of the American Dream interspersed with moments of psychological/surreal horror as "Baby's first David Lynch".
* ''Series/{{Warehouse 13}}'' has been referred to by many as ''Wiki/SCPFoundation: The Series''.

* While ''Film/TheCraft'' already had an acknowledged Spiritual Adaptation in the form of ''Series/{{Charmed}}'' (see below), one could make the case that ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryCoven'' captured the film's spirit more faithfully, albeit with the '90s {{goth}}ic fashion sense and iconography swapped out for SouthernGothic and {{camp}}. Both are about the potent, ancient powers of witchcraft falling into the hands of teenage girls who, while skilled at wielding such for their own ends, have little idea of how to do so ''responsibly'', and use their powers to [[WitchWithACapitalB turn their catty infighting up to the next level]]. Madison Montgomery can easily be seen as the show's analogue to Nancy Downs, both being [[ItsAllAboutMe ragingly narcissistic]] {{Alpha Bitch}}es who see their powers solely as a means to satisfy their desires no matter who gets hurt along the way. They even both have subplots in which the heroine uses her powers to get revenge on a sexually-harassing JerkJock, only for it to [[GoneHorriblyWrong go horribly wrong]] one way or another.

* ''Series/PennyDreadful'', a sprawling Victorian fantasy saga starring [[Literature/{{Frankenstein}} Victor Frankenstein]], [[Literature/ThePictureOfDorianGray Dorian Gray]], and an aging GreatWhiteHunter as part of a crossover between {{PublicDomainCharacter}}s, may as well be a better live-action adaptation of ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'' than [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen the 2003 film based on the comic series]]. In a rather uncanny coincidence, it even stars a former Franchise/JamesBond actor, Creator/TimothyDalton, as Mina's father Malcolm Murray. [[note]] The original ''League'' graphic novel series involved James Bond's grandfather, Campion Bond, as a major supporting character; in something of a CastingGag, the [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen film adaptation]] cast Creator/SeanConnery in the lead role of Allan Quatermain, and it was rumored that the producers also wanted to cast Creator/RogerMoore as Campion before the character was cut from the movie.[[/note]]

* ''Series/PennyDreadful'', a sprawling Victorian fantasy saga starring [[Literature/{{Frankenstein}} Victor Frankenstein]], [[Literature/ThePictureOfDorianGray Dorian Gray]], and an aging GreatWhiteHunter, may as well be a better adaptation of ''ComicBook/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'' than [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen the 2003 film based on the comic series]]. In a rather uncanny coincidence, it even stars a former Franchise/JamesBond actor, Creator/TimothyDalton, as Mina's father Malcolm Murray. [[note]] The original ''League'' graphic novel series involved James Bond's grandfather, Campion Bond, as a major supporting character; in something of a CastingGag, the [[Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen film adaptation]] cast Creator/SeanConnery in the lead role of Allan Quatermain, and it was rumored that the producers also wanted to cast Creator/RogerMoore as Campion before the character was cut from the movie.[[/note]]

** Due to shared inspiration (specifically, the real life UsefulNotes/WarsOfTheRoses), fans have considered ''Series/GameOfThrones'' the closest thing to a DarkerAndEdgier (as if that was necessary) live action adaptation of VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics they're ever likely to see.

* ''Series/TheGoldbergs'' is the closest anyone has come to doing a sitcom InTheStyleOf Creator/JeanShepherd. The influence of ''Film/AChristmasStory'' is very obvious, but it also manages to replicate Shepherd's NostalgiaAintLikeItUsedToBe sentiments, broadly-drawn characters and use of pop culture to evoke a certain era.

* ''Series/TheGoldbergs'' is the closest anyone has come to doing a sitcom InTheStyleOf Creator/JeanShepherd. The influence of ''Film/AChristmasStory'' is very obvious, but it also manages to replicate Shepherd's NostalgiaAintLikeItUsedToBe , broadly-drawn characters and use of pop culture to evoke a certain era.

** ''Series/TheLibrarians2014'' has many similarities to ''Series/DoctorWho''. We have an eccentric genius with an almost encyclopedic knowledge of magic and several others fitting in the companion role. Just replace aliens with magic, and the Time travelling TARDIS with a magic door that can send someone to any other door on Earth.