Some of the best stories ever told were written more than a century ago — and one of them found a second life on Netflix in a way that left viewers genuinely stunned by how faithful, how beautiful, and how emotionally honest the adaptation turned out to be. Anne with an E, the three-season period drama based on L.M. Montgomery’s beloved 1908 novel Anne of Green Gables, has quietly become one of the most celebrated book-to-screen adaptations on any streaming platform.
If you haven’t watched it yet, or if you dismissed it as a children’s show because of its source material, that’s a mistake worth correcting. This series is something genuinely rare: a period drama that honors the spirit of a classic novel while expanding it into something that feels urgent, modern, and deeply human.
Here’s why Anne with an E deserves a spot on your watchlist — and why it continues to earn new fans years after its final episode aired.
What Makes Anne with an E Stand Apart From Other Book Adaptations
Anne with an E is based on L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, one of the most widely read novels in the English-speaking world. The story follows Anne Shirley, an imaginative and fiercely independent orphan girl who is adopted by siblings Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert on Prince Edward Island in the late 19th century.
What the Netflix series does differently from earlier adaptations — and there have been several over the decades — is treat The show digs into the psychological weight of Anne’s traumatic past in ways the original novel only hints at. It also expands the world around her to explore themes of gender equality, racial identity, and Indigenous rights, all while staying rooted in the period setting.
That balance is genuinely hard to strike. Most adaptations either stay so close to the source that they feel like illustrated audiobooks, or they drift so far that the original story becomes unrecognizable. Anne with an E found the middle ground — and held it across all three seasons.
The Show’s Format: Three Seasons, One Complete Story
One of the most satisfying things about Anne with an E is that it tells a complete story. The series ran for three seasons on Netflix — co-produced with CBC in Canada — before concluding in 2019. While its cancellation was controversial and sparked a significant fan campaign to revive it, the three seasons that exist form a coherent, emotionally satisfying arc.
Each season builds meaningfully on the last, deepening character relationships and raising the stakes without losing the warmth and wonder that made the original novel so enduring. It never overstays its welcome, and it never rushes.
| Season | Episodes | Key Themes Explored |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 7 | Identity, belonging, trauma, found family |
| Season 2 | 10 | Ambition, friendship, gender roles, community |
| Season 3 | 10 | Racial justice, Indigenous rights, love, independence |
Twenty-seven episodes in total. That’s a commitment, but not an overwhelming one — and viewers consistently report that the pacing makes it easy to watch multiple episodes in a single sitting.
Why This Period Drama Feels So Relevant Right Now
Period dramas can sometimes feel like museum pieces — technically impressive but emotionally distant. Anne with an E avoids that trap by grounding every historical detail in human feeling. The late 19th century setting is rendered with real care and visual beauty, but the show never lets the costumes and carriages become more important than the people wearing and riding them.
Anne herself is a character who resonates across generations precisely because her struggles are timeless. She’s an outsider who refuses to shrink herself. She’s a girl who is told repeatedly that her imagination is a problem — and who refuses to believe it. She fights for education, for self-expression, and for the right to define herself on her own terms.
For viewers watching in 2024 and beyond, those themes land with real force. The show has attracted a passionate, multigenerational audience that spans fans of the original novel, lovers of period dramas, and viewers who came to it with no prior knowledge of Anne Shirley at all.
What the Adaptation Gets Deeply Right
Faithful adaptations are often praised for what they preserve. But the best adaptations are also willing to add. Anne with an E introduces storylines and characters that go beyond the novel — including a more prominent exploration of the experiences of Black settlers in Prince Edward Island and the lives of the Mi’kmaq people indigenous to the region.
These additions aren’t grafted on awkwardly. They’re woven into the fabric of the show in ways that feel organic to the world and the period. Critics and viewers alike have pointed to this expanded scope as one of the series’ greatest strengths — a willingness to ask who else was living through this era, and what their stories looked like.
The performances are also consistently strong across all three seasons, anchored by a lead performance that captures Anne’s contradictions — her joy and her grief, her confidence and her fear — without ever tipping into caricature.
Should You Watch It? Here’s the Honest Answer
If you’re looking for a streaming series that is visually stunning, emotionally intelligent, and based on genuinely great source material, Anne with an E is one of the strongest options available on Netflix right now. It’s the kind of show that earns real loyalty from its viewers — not because it’s flashy or plot-twist-heavy, but because it takes its characters seriously and gives them room to breathe.
It’s also a reminder that book adaptations don’t have to be a compromise. When
Anne with an E is exactly that. Three seasons. Twenty-seven episodes. One of the best period dramas streaming right now.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Anne with an E based on?
The series is based on L.M. Montgomery’s 1908 novel Anne of Green Gables, one of the most widely read works of classic literature in the English-speaking world.
How many seasons of Anne with an E are on Netflix?
There are three complete seasons available, totaling 27 episodes. The series concluded in 2019.
Why was Anne with an E cancelled?
The show was cancelled after its third season, a decision that sparked a significant fan campaign pushing for its renewal. A fourth season has not been confirmed.
Is Anne with an E suitable for all ages?
The show is family-friendly in its themes but deals with serious subjects including trauma, racism, and identity, making it most appropriate for older children, teens, and adults.
How closely does Anne with an E follow the original novel?
The series uses the novel as its foundation but expands significantly beyond it, introducing new storylines and characters — including explorations of Black settler history and Indigenous Mi’kmaq experiences in Prince Edward Island.
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