107. Web-series reviews – 1

Web-streaming is quite a rage these days, with so many serials/series coming out.  In the past 1-2 months I watched quite a few of them.  So, the next few blogs are going to be reviews of the series that I have watched.  In case you find it interesting, you can go ahead and watch the series!!  These series include both English and the Hindi ones.  Hopefully I will be finishing the Queen (on Jayalalitha) serial in Tamil too by that time!!  Let me start with the English ones first.

Chernobyl – This was an excellent series that depicts the actual Chernobyl disaster and its aftermath.  The series is quite spectacular and it captures whatever happened during those and the subsequent days excellently.  The series also features what Gobachev’s government at that time did and the consequences.  The series is told in flashback and is covered in 5 episodes. The series also won an Emmy last year for Outstanding Limited Series.   It tells the stories of people who caused the disaster and those who responded to it.  The series also depicts some of the lesser-known stories of the disaster, including the efforts of the firefighters who were the first responders on the scene, volunteers, and also the teams of miners tasked with the digging of a critical tunnel under Reactor 4.  Definitely worth seeing and a gripping watch. 

Broadchurch – When I first heard about this, I was thinking that it will be based on some church.  It was recommended to me by my cousin sister.  She said it is actually a police detective series and that she has visited the actual site where it was filmed in – Dorset in England.  After doing some research, I found that it ran for three seasons from 2013 to 2017.  The series is absolutely amazing and you feel as if the story is just unwinding in front of you, with everyone acting as if they were born to enact their part in the series.  The first series focuses on the death of a 11-year old boy and the impact of grief, mutual suspicion and media attention on the town.  The second series follows the dual storylines of bringing the boy’s killer to justice and a case from the past returning to haunt the lead detective.  The third series focuses on the rape of a local woman at a birthday party while the earlier two seasons’ boy’s family go to extreme lengths to move on from the boy’s death.  The director had specified that he had intended this series to be a trilogy and there would be no further seasons.  This is a British television series.  A totally engrossing affair. Definitely worth seeing.

Collateral – The first time that I heard about this was from the same cousin’s husband.  They have Netflix, Amazon Prime and all other streaming accounts😊.  We frequently discuss films and series that we have seen and recommend to each other what to watch!!  This is also a British television series and contains just 4 episodes.  The series starts with the shooting of a pizza delivery boy and a detective inspector assigned to investigate the murder.  The series is well made and takes place over 2 days.  The series could have easily got made into a film with a tighter editing.  Worth a watch with refugees, asylum and politics, thrown in.

True Detective – An American anthology crime drama.  I saw the review of the 3^rd season in a newspaper and did some research on the first two series.  The first series came out in 2014, 2^nd in 2015 and the 3^rd in 2019.  What interested me was the kind of actors who acted in the series – Mathew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Colin Farell, Rachael Adams, Vince Vaughn and Mahershala Ali.  Although they appear in different seasons, their names itself lent credence to me to watch the series.  The first season follows a pair of 2 detectives’ pursuit of a serial killer over a 17-year period.  The second season focusses on 3 detectives from 3 cooperating police departments and a criminal-turned-businessman as they investigate a series of crimes they believe are linked to the murder of a corrupt politician.  The 3^rd season takes place over three separate time periods as 2 police detectives investigate a macabre crime involving two missing children.  Even though the pace is somewhat slow, but the focus is always telling on a story and the emotions that each person in the series goes through.  A gripping watch.

Today’s Daffy Definition

Compromise – The art of dividing a cake in such a way that everyone believes that he has got a bigger share!!

Source – Wikipedia for the background stuff