Top of the Lake vs Lanterns: Which Is More Woke?
Top of the Lake vs Lanterns: Quick Comparison
Top of the Lake and Lanterns are both TV shows. Top of the Lake landed in 2013; Lanterns in 2026. People look up Top of the Lake vs Lanterns, or Top of the Lake or Lanterns, when they want a straight compare of the two.
Below is a side-by-side of the facts we have, then how their political messaging, cultural themes, and IsItWoke scores differ. This is not a review of which is better to watch.
| Field | Top of the Lake | Lanterns |
|---|---|---|
| Release year | 2013 | 2026 |
| Type | TV Show | TV Show |
| Genres | Crime, Drama, Mystery | Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Mystery, Action & Adventure |
| Woke Score | 28/100 | 33/100 |
| Community Score | Not listed | 70/100 |
| Verdict | Very Little Woke | Very Little Woke |
Lanterns appears more woke than Top of the Lake based on AI analysis, with a difference of about 5 points. Community votes are split or too thin to call a clear winner yet.
Community (votes): not enough data yet
See full breakdown for Top of the Lake
AI vs community
AI verdict
Lanterns is more woke than Top of the Lake (AI).
Lanterns leads by 5 points on the AI scale.
Community verdict
Community averages are too close to call (or one side has no votes yet).
Why the scores diverge
- The 5-point gap reflects how much ideology steers each story on our six-dimension pass, not just vibes.
- Lanterns highlight: Dialogue occasionally veers into messaging territory, but not overwhelmingly so.
- Top of the Lake highlight: Dialogue occasionally leans towards moral lecturing, but it remains mostly character-driven.
- Top of the Lake: Characters are well-developed and serve the story rather than merely fulfilling demographic quotas.
- Lanterns: Characters have some depth, though elements of tokenism are present.
Lanterns reads higher on legacy rewriting than Top of the Lake, which nudges the overall profile message-forward. Lanterns reads higher on cultural normalization framing than Top of the Lake, which nudges the overall profile message-forward.
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Frequently asked questions
- Which is more woke, Top of the Lake or Lanterns?
- Lanterns scores higher on the AI pass (33/100 vs 28/100).
- What do community votes say?
- Community averages are within the tie band or too close to call (n/a vs 70 on our vote-weighted scale).
- Why might AI and votes disagree?
- AI scores come from a structured model pass; votes capture how people read the politics or messaging. Trailers, culture-war framing, and release timing can push votes away from the model.