Netflix's docuseries Missing: Dead or Alive? distinguishes itself from the streaming titan's true crime library by adding dramatic tension to it. With a cold and uneasy silence that heightens the atmospheric darkness, the series does more than just narrate bone-chilling stories about disappearances. Despair, fear, investigations, and with questions still unanswered, the series unfolds like a real-life crime story. 

Delving deeper into the unique docuseries, viewers get a detailed look at the history of the missing persons and how the cases were brought to a close.

All the cases shown in the four-part docuseries, Missing: Dead or Alive? are based on real-life occurrences. The series is a true-crime documentary that presents the real investigation of the Missing Persons Bureau of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department in South Carolina. The episodes comprise unfiltered interviews, emotional upheavals, and reveal complex moments of the case, which ultimately makes the show even more haunting. 

Missing persons cases, such as Lorraine Garcia, a 61-year-old woman, take center stage in the docuseries, with cameras following her Iraq war veteran son as the prime suspect. In episode two, the spotlight shifts to a 10-year-old missing along with her mother, followed by real-life cases of David Taylor's disappearance, as well as a 17-year-old girl's trafficking case. The storyline of Season 2 is that of the tragic case of Morgan Duncan, a 27-year-old father, who was from Columbia, South Carolina, who was suspected of having been murdered. While binging Missing: Dead or Alive? on Netflix, one must not expect a typical true crime docuseries interview, as it truly bends the genre.

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This docuseries does not shy away from reality when it comes to its production and storytelling, which gives the show an even more stirring and disturbing atmosphere.

Missing: Dead or Alive?, originally launched in 2023, gained attention due to its honest and realistic portrayal of missing-person cases. The chilling case of Morgan Duncan, in conjunction with other investigations, brought back the hype when Season 2 arrived in 2025. Though shot like a drama, the series does not sensationalize the cases but employs immersive creative flourishes.

Rife with close-ups and interludes, cops, interviews, and seeking evidence, it delves deep into the emotional and psychological suffering of the families, as well as the inner workings of the officers’ minds when they are determined to bring closure to the crimes. It navigates the real pain of missing persons and those who lost their lives, unlike any other true crime docuseries.

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