Netflix Kaleidoscope: What’s the Best Episode Order?

Say what you will about Netflix, but it sure doesn’t mind getting creative with structure.

The world’s biggest streaming service frequently experiments with the form of television, helping to pioneer the “Choose-Your-Own-Adventure” TV storytelling with specials like Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy Schmidt vs. the Reverend.

Now, to kick of 2023 on a charmingly inventive note, Netflix is playing around with structure yet again. Kaleidoscope, launching New Year’s Day on the streamer, presents your typical heist thriller at first. A group of safe crackers led by Leo Pap (Giancarlo Esposito) gather together to steal $7 billion in bearer bonds from the world’s supposedly most uncrackable safe. But Kaleidoscope is much more than a traditional heist story – seven of the show’s eight episodes will be presented in an entirely randomized order.

That’s right: only Kaleidoscope‘s eighth and final episode, titled “White,” will appear in a pre-determined spot on every Netflix account. The other seven episodes (all named after colors and all taking place at different points in time in the planning and execution of the heist) will be randomized. This means that the first episode any Netflix subscriber clicks on could range from anywhere to 24 years before the heist in question to six months after it.

While that’s a wonderfully creative way to go about structure, it also runs the risk of being confusing. But fear not! We’ve gathered here a bunch of episode order opportunities for your viewing pleasure. Read on to learn about the many ways you can watch and enjoy Kaleidoscope.

Your Order

The first episode order option is the one that Netflix would probably prefer you abide by. That’s to just watch the episodes in whatever order the randomized algorithm presents to you. Kaleidoscope presents an opportunity for each TV viewer to have their own unique experience in watching the show. You might as well just give it a shot! But if you don’t, here are some alternatives…

Chronological Order

• Violet (Twenty Four Years Before The Heist)
• Green (Seven Years Before The Heist)
• Yellow (Six Weeks Before The Heist)
• Orange (Three Weeks Before The Heist)
• Blue (Five Days Before The Heist)
• White (The Heist)
• Red (The Morning After The Heist)
• Pink (Six Months After The Heist)

This order will present the episodes in a strict timeline order from the earliest moment of the story (24 years before the heist) to the very end (six months after the heist). While this may seem like the simplest way of going about things at first, bear in mind that “White” (the heist episode) is intended to be the finale so you’ll get some major reveals two episodes earlier than intended with a two-episode epilogue to follow.

Reverse Chronological Order

• Pink (Six Months After The Heist)
• Red (The Morning After The Heist)
• White (The Heist)
• Blue (Five Days Before The Heist)
• Orange (Three Weeks Before The Heist)
• Yellow (Six Weeks Before The Heist)
• Green (Seven Years Before The Heist)
• Violet (Twenty Four Years Before The Heist)

This would be an interesting way to tackle Kaleidoscope. Knowing the ultimate ending before the beginning even arrives may make for a compelling viewing experience.

Alec Bojalad Order

• Green (Seven Years Before The Heist)
• Yellow (Six Weeks Before The Heist)
• Orange (Three Weeks Before The Heist)
• Blue (Five Days Before The Heist)
• Violet (Twenty Four Years Before The Heist)
• Red (The Morning After The Heist)
• Pink (Six Months After The Heist)
• White (The Heist)

Have you ever asked yourself “I wonder what it would be like to be handsome Den of Geek TV Editor Alec G. Bojalad?” If so, then now you can live out a little bit of the Bojalad experience by watching Kaleidoscope in the episode order that Netflix presented to my press account. All in all, I appreciated this order but I think it would have been helpful to have seen both Violet and Pink earlier.

Block Order

• Yellow (Six Weeks Before The Heist)
• Orange (Three Weeks Before The Heist)
• Blue (Five Days Before The Heist)
• Violet (Twenty Four Years Before The Heist)
• Green (Seven Years Before The Heist)
• Red (The Morning After The Heist)
• Pink (Six Months After The Heist)
• White (The Heist)

The theory behind this order is that most episodes of Kaleidoscope tend to bunch together into different era “blocks.” These include: before the heist was even planned (Violet, Green), after the heist was planned but before it was executed (Yellow, Orange, Blue), the heist itself (White), and after the heist was executed (Red, Pink). You can arrange those blocks in any order you choose but I like the above option because it gets right into the action, then provides some context, then provides some confusion, all before finally providing closure.

Breaking Netflix’s Rules Order

• White (The Heist)
• Whatever Order You Choose After That

While Kaleidoscope breaks the rules of traditional episode orders by randomizing the experience, the show does come along with one unbreakable law: “White” will always be the eighth and final episode on everyone’s Netflix account. To that, I say “if we’re already breaking the rules why not just go ahead and break them all the way?” Watch “White” first and then the rest in any order you choose just to see what happens. Maybe you’ll like the experience! Or maybe Netflix will send the streaming police to your home. Only one way to find out…

All eight episodes of Kaleidoscope are available to stream on Netflix now.