399. Web-series Reviews – 214

More web-series reviews…

The Greatest Rivalry: India vs Pakistan – Came in 2025. Tracing the cricketing rivalry between India and Pakistan, this documentary series explores their intricate past and uncertain present on the pitch.

A review from IMDB...

Right from its announcement, it has created a sense of excitement, as an India vs Pakistan match is not just a cricketing war-it is, in turn, a battle of pent-up emotions.

Another Netflix documentary is here, focusing largely on India's tour of Pakistan in 2004 and bit of Pakistan's tour of India in 1999. It explores the atmosphere of those times-the political scenario, the Cold War-like tensions, and behind-the-scenes moments from the cricketing world, where arch-enemies on the field turn out to be friends off it.

It is surely a nostalgic trip for 90s kids, making you feel like you are reliving those moments all over again. Featuring interviews with Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Shoaib Akhtar, and Inzamam-ul-Haq in prominent screen time, the documentary also includes insights from Wasim Akram, R. Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, and others. The political turmoil between these two nations can be felt through the words of these sporting legends.

The match footage surely evokes emotions and hits hard. Creatively, what works best is that the series is not biased toward one country, giving equal importance to both sides. However, this also dilutes the emotional depth that could have been achieved if it had been told from a single country's perspective. One would have expected more cricketing legends to feature in the series, especially Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, and Yuvraj Singh, but unfortunately, they chose not to be part of it. Additionally, while the documentary primarily focuses on the 2004 tour, it could have explored more.

Watch it if you love cricket. Watch it if you want to understand this historic rivalry. Watch it to experience the emotions behind the game. And lastly, watch it because it is three-episode documentary that won't take much of your time.

My Take – Worth a watch!

 

The Are Murders – Came in 2025.  Police officer Hanna Ahlander has been suspended from her job in Stockholm and dumped by her partner when she moves to her sister's vacation home in Åre. When a young woman goes missing on the icy night of Lucia, Hanna can't help but start investigating the case. With a tough family situation and an understaffed police station, local police officer Daniel Lindskog reluctantly has to accept Hanna's help. But the big question is whether they can trust each other.

A review from IMDB...

I have watched all five episodes and enjoyed them.

They are based on a series of books by a very well known author, Viveca Sten.

There are two distinct stories here... so the first three eps are a complete "story" and then they are followed by two more which extend the characters a bit more.

These are good. I am a huge Scandi Noir fan and love series like this. I find the ones filmed in winter particularly interesting and enjoyable. The conditions are often awful and I just love how the characters move thru the weather like it is nothing special (which it isn't in Scandinavia).

The first story takes a bit of time to get started. By the point we get to the second story, we're familiar if not comfortable with the characters and can sit back and appreciate the plot.

BTW if you're wondering "why two stories?" this is not unusual for series like this. Go with it.

There's nothing super special here. It isn't Beck or Wallander or etc. But it is solid acting and good, engaging plots.

The two main characters (Carla and Kardo) have charisma and a certain *something* between them. And alas, in part this is the reason I'm giving this an 8 instead of a 9 or 10... I don't want to spoil anything but there are hints of something that I'd rather just be left out.

Alternatively, I liked the Charlie plot line in eps 4 and 5.

The other criticism, is, of course, that we see one of the characters doing stupid stuff that in reality I'm guessing the police would never do. But this is common throughout the genre in order to add danger to the plot. So I'm not going to criticize it too much.

So if you're a Scandi Noir fan, or even just a fan of a good detective series, I recommend this.

And as always I recommend watching it in the original language with subtitles. Seriously.

The plots are clever enough to keep you guessing, and yet this is fairly straightforward and dare I say simple storytelling. There's humor. There's drama. There's some intense stuff that gets scary.

My Take – A very good series!

 

Public Disorder (ACAB) – Came in 2025. A night of ferocious clashes in Val di Susa. A team of the Mobile Department of Rome loses its leader, who is seriously injured. That of Mazinga, Marta and Salvatore, however, is not a team like the others, it is Rome, which has learned to oppose the disorders with extreme methods and a tribal harmony, almost from family. A family that the new commander, Michele, son of the reformist police, will have to deal with, for whom teams like that are the symbol of an old school, yet to be re-founded. As if the chaos that affects the new formation at the moment of maximum internal fragility was not enough, there is also that given by a new wave of people's discontent towards the institutions. A new "hot autumn" against which our own people are called to take sides and in which each protagonist is forced to question the deepest meaning of their work and their belonging to the team.

A review from IMDB...

Alright, so let's talk about "ACAB." Considering it's an Italian production, the acting is pretty average. Nothing mind-blowing, but believe me, it could be worse. There are a few performances that are really bad, but thankfully, those characters aren't important.

First off, I gotta say, I'm glad the series ditched the bootlicking vibe of the 2012 movie. This time, they've kept things more neutral, which is refreshing. No over-the-top glorification of the Italian police.

Now, let's get to the wildest part. There's this scene where the riot squad charges in, chasing protesters through the woods, hiding behind trees, and ambushing them. Lol, I'm not saying it's totally unrealistic - cops doing dumb stuff is sadly a thing - but COME ON. Tactically, this makes zero sense. Why tf would a squad ditch the rest of their team to go full Splinter Cell in the woods? They're not commandos, they're not trained for guerrilla warfare, and no squad would ever pull that stunt.

The problem is, this ridiculous event is supposed to be the central plot of the series. But how can I take it seriously when it requires me to completely shut off my common sense?

That said, the show uncovers one interesting thing: the way it portrays the riot squad's lives. From the get-go, it's clear these guys' personal and work lives are a mess, and one feeds into the other. They take their work trauma home and bring their home trauma back to work. Unsurprisingly, it's a recipe for disaster. Think about it: their job is literally beating people up. No matter how much they try to normalize it, that kind of gig will mess with your head. The show captures this well-pretty much all the main characters are portrayed as mentally and emotionally wrecked, and it gets really exhausting.

But even if we set aside the nonsensical main plot, everything else is just plain bad. The scenes feel slapped together, with no flow, random sequences, and nonsensical dialogue. The characters are painfully one-dimensional, like they're all on the verge of a breakdown (which is kinda realistic tho). I couldn't care less about any of them. The storyline? Slow, predictable, and boring.

I couldn't make it past episode four.

My Take – Worth a watch!

Adios till next time😊!!