A touch of sci-fi horror, some masterful storytelling and amazing visuals await anyone willing to explore Netflix’s much awaited Love, Death & Robots. The show was created by Tim Miller – director of the blockbuster Deadpool – with the help of an executive production team which includes the well known dark touch of David Fincher – who also directed the movies Fight Club and Seven. From yogurt taking over the world to Hitler dying in a vat of gelatin, the animated anthology has something for everyone.

Before getting to the actual content, the show's creative history might be enough to pique your interest. Based off of the animated sci-fi film Heavy Metal and related comic series of the same name, the project was a long time coming with Fincher and Miller attempting to pitch it for quite some time. Miller called it his “love letter to nerds” and felt he struck gold with Netflix’s streaming capability and willingness to try something new.

The project involved 13 production teams from nine countries, all essential to creating the show’s intricate animation and storytelling. This isn’t your run of the mill Disney film; from its hyper-realist animation in Beyond the Aquila Rift to a more clunky style in When The Yogurt Took Over, the show is a pure visual spectacle. Each episode compels you to rewatch it simply to fully grasp the visual pyrotechnics. It’s this diverse animation that will bring back your love for the artform and definitely make the viewer reconsider the stereotype that animation is just for kids.

However, with dark themes such as sexual abuse, existential dread and pure horror explored across the episodes, it isn't something you would want your little cousin watching. If a single episode isn’t to your liking, you’ll be in for a treat soon, as every episode is under 20 minutes. Each episode is a stand alone story so you don't have to watch them in any order. Netflix adds to this effect by creating four different episode orders that are randomly assigned to your account. Meaning that if you and I were to start watching on our separate accounts, we would each likely be viewing the episodes in a different order. Each episode focuses on creating powerful short stories with immaculate attention to detail. The episodes also consistently live up to the series’ name. There is love, some amazing robots and lots of death. Working with short stories leads to some dramatic plot twists that often leave the viewer in a wonderful state of confusion and thought. This formula works well across the episodes and rarely falls short. While the graphic violence and nudity give the show a gritty edge, it sometimes feels forced. Still, the dark tone of the show isn’t reliant on its explicit content, it is the concepts and gut feeling you get while you watch that demonstrate its real brilliance.

The diverse episode list and short run time creates an intriguing experience as you go from extreme horror to dark humor. It builds an atmosphere of truly exploring the themes and understanding the worlds presented. Some are closer to reality than others – such as Shape Shifters, an episode following two U.S. American werewolves fighting in Afghanistan.

Some of the more action packed episodes focus on pure visual stimuli while others take on a more comedic tone. Three Robots is one of the quirkier episodes that follows robots taking a sightseeing tour of a post apocalyptic Earth as they wander, confused, at “what humans used to do for fun.”

Whether you like sci-fi or not, Love, Death & Robots is definitely worth adding to your procrastination breaks – get your daily dose of alien horror and existential dread – all wrapped up in under 20 minutes.