Netflix Set to Renew Popular Historical Series for Season 2

Netflix is set to serve up more bite-sized history lessons because the streaming giant is reportedly getting ready to renew one fan-favorite docuseries. According to a new report from Deadline, Netflix is set to renew History 101 for Season 2 and work on the new season is reportedly already underway. At this time, Netflix has not confirmed a renewal and the show's fate still remains in limbo.

Originally premiering its first season on the platform back in May 2020, History 101 uses "ITN's deep archive of material, drawn from 66 years of newsgathering" and graphics to provide viewers with short lessons on historical moments human achievements, and social movements. Season 1 began with a 20-minute episode on the fast-food industry. Throughout the remaining 9 episodes, the season covered everything from the space race to plastics to oil in the middle east. Other topics included feminism, genetics, and the rise of China.

However, the series has not been without controversy. In June 2020, just a month after the show's debut, Netflix removed the ninth episode, which covered the HIV and AIDS epidemic. The episode sparked controversy from members of the Haitian-American community, with a social media, email, and telephone campaign launched calling on the streamer to pull the episode. A Change.org petition with nearly 6,000 signatures said the information in the episode had been scientifically refuted "so many times by multiple organizations" and said Netflix needed to do "better on who they giving access to share information on their platform." One person said, "the biggest issues [are] irresponsible framing in regards to black communities worldwide and the inclusion of misinformation. We can't let these things slide." After removing the episode, it was after restored to the platform in August 2020.

Despite the controversy, History 101 received plenty of praise from viewers. The series has a 6.8/10 rating on IMDb, with 80% of Google reviews being favorable. One commenter said the show is "informative, well researched, and goes into depth about the origin points for all of these topics."

Season 1 of History 101 was executive produced by Simon George, Bruce Kennedy, and Ian Russell. It is available for streaming on Netflix. Season 2 has not been confirmed by the streaming giant and it is unclear when the new episodes would premiere if the greenlight is given.