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Is Volume 4 worth watching?
For viewers who enjoy short-form science fiction, horror, dark comedy and animation that changes style from story to story, Volume 4 offers a compact sampler rather than a single continuous narrative. Netflix describes the series as a mix of animation, horror, science fiction and humor; this collection also steps outside conventional animation with a puppet concert film and a live-action short. It arrived on May 15, 2025, and Netflix’s official pages list it for streaming on Netflix. Catalog availability can vary by country and over time.
The same variety creates the central trade-off. A short can make a sharp impression and then give way to a completely different tone, visual technique and set of characters. That makes the volume well suited to viewers who want surprise, but less satisfying for anyone hoping every installment will build toward a common story or a consistently high peak. David Fincher described the series’ creative remit as a “boundary-less sandbox,” while supervising director Jennifer Yuh Nelson said the volume aimed to balance humor and tragedy. Those aims explain the collection’s range; they do not guarantee that every short will land equally well.
What are the ten shorts in Volume 4?
Netflix lists ten shorts, all released May 15, 2025. This spoiler-light guide describes what sets each one apart without ranking them as objectively best or worst.
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- “Can’t Stop” — David Fincher turns the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ 2003 Slane Castle performance into a string-puppet concert film, made by Blur Studio. Fincher said the project connected with his music-video roots and a longstanding wish to animate a band as puppets.
- “Close Encounters of the Mini Kind” — BUCK’s miniature-style alien-invasion story plays with classic science-fiction imagery and human folly.
- “Spider Rose” — A grieving Mechanist at a remote asteroid mining operation finds a new companion and a chance at revenge. Directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson, it returns to the cyberpunk universe of Volume 3’s “Swarm.”
- “400 Boys” — Warring gangs in a post-apocalyptic city face a threat that forces them to unite. Robert Valley directs this adaptation of Marc Laidlaw’s story.
- “The Other Large Thing” — A scheming cat pursues world domination with help from a robot butler voiced by John Oliver. The short is based on a story by John Scalzi.
- “Golgotha” — In a rare live-action installment directed by Tim Miller, Rhys Darby plays a vicar visited by an alien emissary. The visitor’s species believes its messiah has returned as a dolphin.
- “The Screaming of the Tyrannosaur” — Genetically modified gladiators ride engineered dinosaurs in a contest on a station orbiting Jupiter. Miller directs the short, based on Stant Litore’s story.
- “How Zeke Got Religion” — A World War II bomber crew encounters an unholy enemy during a dangerous mission.
- “Smart Appliances, Stupid Owners” — Household appliances comment on their owners; Netflix’s announcement frames the devices as needing better work-life balance.
- “For He Can Creep” — In 1757 London, poet William Blake believes Satan wants a world-ending verse, while Blake’s cat Jeoffry stands between the poet and the Devil. Emily Dean directs this adaptation of Siobhan Carroll’s story.
How the collection’s contrasts shape the experience
Animation is a showcase, not one house style
The volume’s animated shorts range from miniature-scale invasion to cyberpunk grief, post-apocalyptic gang conflict and supernatural wartime horror. That spread invites comparison across the collection, but each short works on its own terms: a visual approach suited to comic exaggeration may not serve a story aiming for tragedy or dread. IGN’s Emma Stefansky called the series “a singular showcase of what animation and genre storytelling have to offer.” Johnny Loftus at Decider likewise praised its room for “left-field thematic choices and story adaptations” and its “rich palette of animation styles.”
“Can’t Stop” and “Golgotha” break the expected pattern
“Can’t Stop” is neither a conventional narrative short nor a standard animated performance: its string puppets reinterpret a real 2003 concert. Fincher, a director and executive producer whose work includes music videos, said, “This was a chance to exercise some old muscles, stretch — and it’s something I’ve always wanted to see.” “Golgotha” makes the opposite formal move, using live action for an absurdly high-concept encounter between a vicar and aliens devoted to a dolphin messiah. Their difference makes the anthology’s range tangible, even if it also makes a unified visual identity less important than the individual shorts’ execution.
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Ideas, clarity and payoff matter more than a single shared plot
With ten separate creative teams, the useful questions are whether each short makes its premise legible, uses its limited runtime well and gives its central idea an emotional or comic payoff. The episode premises promise considerable tonal movement: a cat’s world-domination scheme sits alongside grief and revenge, while dinosaur gladiators and a Blake-inspired confrontation with Satan bring very different kinds of spectacle. The anthology format accommodates those swings; the viewer’s enjoyment depends on which moods and storytelling approaches resonate most.
What critics and score aggregators say
Reception has not been uniform. When checked on October 5, 2026, Rotten Tomatoes displayed a 100% Tomatometer from 14 critic reviews and a 39% Popcornmeter from more than 500 audience ratings. Metacritic displayed 65/100 from nine critic reviews, classifying six as positive and three as mixed. These are dated aggregator snapshots, not fixed verdicts or measures of how many people watched the series; scores and review counts can change.
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The critical divide points to a practical expectation. Loftus’s praise for the anthology’s range sits alongside Andrew Webster’s assessment at The Verge that Volume 4 “doesn’t quite hit the same heights” as earlier volumes and lacks a comparable singular standout. Together, those responses suggest a collection whose variety may be more memorable than any one universally agreed-upon high point.
Is Volume 4 suitable for all ages?
No. Netflix labels the series TV-MA on the US-facing title page consulted and describes it as NSFW, with frightening creatures, dark comedy and science fiction. Maturity labels can differ by region, but this is adult-oriented anthology material, not family animation.
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Does “400 Boys” have a literary source?
Yes. Netflix identifies “400 Boys” as an adaptation of Marc Laidlaw’s story. Tim Miller recalled reading it in Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology, edited by Bruce Sterling. The book offers optional context for the short’s cyberpunk lineage; viewers do not need to read it first.
Quick Recap
Best Value
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