418. Web-series Reviews – 226

More web-series reviews…

Spy High – Came in 2025. Documentary. A teen's life is upended when his school accuses him of dealing drugs using a photo from his bedroom. His family's lawsuit reveals a shocking scandal that sparks FBI involvement and raises alarming questions about student privacy.

A review from IMDB...

Spy High: When Laptops Become Snitches and Privacy Takes a Sick Day

Spy High, the docuseries that's like *The Office* meets *Black Mirror*-if Michael Scott accidentally activated a surveillance state in a Philly suburb. Directed by Jody McVeigh-Schultz and backed by Mark Wahlberg's Unrealistic Ideas (a name that's either ironic or prophetic), revisits a 2010 scandal where a school-issued MacBook turned into Big Brother's favorite toy.

Imagine being 15, accused of drug dealing because your school remotely snapped a pic of you in your bedroom. Blake Robbins' saga starts here, blending teenage angst with Orwellian vibes. The series nails the absurdity: administrators playing NSA with webcams, parents oscillating between outrage and "wait, they did what?", and Blake's family becoming accidental media darlings (until their past legal drama stole the spotlight).

The show's genius lies in making you laugh before you gasp. Yes, schools spying on kids is dystopian, but watching Blake pause an interview to ask Siri for a Senator's name? The series dives into the creep factor of tech overreach, asking: "If your laptop's watching, is it also judging your Spotify playlists?" Spoiler: The answer is yes, and it's definitely side-eyeing your My Chemical Romance phase.

Here's where *Spy High* gets real. While Blake's family hogs the drama, the series quietly highlights how Black students faced disproportionate targeting. It's the "oh, and also racism" subplot we wish was fictional. The show doesn't fully unpack this-prioritizing Blake's main character energy-but it's a grim reminder that surveillance tools often mirror society's biases.

Social Cohesion? More Like Social Collision: The fallout is a masterclass in how not to build community trust. Parents vs. Admins, classmates side-eyeing each other, and a town learning the hard way that "protecting kids" can mean "destroying privacy." The Robbins family's 15 minutes of fame-complete with talk-show tours-shows how quickly solidarity crumbles when skeletons (and lawsuits) enter the chat.

Spy High succeeds as a dark comedy with a conscience, even if it occasionally gets lost in its own webcam footage. It's a bingeable cautionary tale which presents the dilemma modern technology poses for us. It's a mix of cringe, chaos, and covert ops that'll make you side-eye your kid's school iPad. Also, maybe unplug your webcam.

My Take – An excellent watch!

 

The Glass Dome – Came in 2025.  Behaviourist/criminologist Lejla returns to a small community in Sweden, a place where she once was held captive by an unknown perpetrator, but which is also her foster parents' home. Her foster mother has died, her foster father was the former police chief Valter. Soon the couple starts to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a girl.

A review from IMDB...

Great plot twists on a twisted personality

Many have rushed to criticize the show for being slow and boring. The narrative takes place in a small Swedish town, and many of the cliches of this type of tale-such as tragic family secrets and an evil enterprise destroying the environment-were unavoidable, as in previous top-rated Scandi-noir dramas such as "Katla" and "Trapped". However, this is one of the rare examples where the tiny circle of people playing the roles of suspects and victims served a legitimate goal, which was not to answer the whodunit but to reveal the true relationships between these characters and the real causes of the tragic events. So congratulations to peers who correctly identified the bad person, but this was neither statistically difficult in a pool of a few suspects nor the primary goal of this show.

Giving even a little detail on who, when and where would reveal everything so I will not provide any detail about it since ultimately everything finally seems to play a strong function in the real plot which is not what first seems and which gradually unveils in amazing manner in each of the six episodes.

People also thought the filming seemed emotionless. The Swedish accent makes it difficult for the main characters to experience the feelings they unleash, hence this criticism has only logical grounds-especially for English language viewers. Not only were the laconic dialogues and the characters tense, but I also believe that each part should be closely watched to ensure that what is truly happening is followed. The finest thing about this program is how skillfully it created one of the best character developments of a wicked mind. The story is told under close proximity to a scientific criminologist with the best twists on a warped psyche.

Once more, I want nothing to be spoiled; but, before and after the secrets come to light, pay close attention to the acting of every character to realize how great it is particularly for the three main characters of the show.

My Take – An excellent series!

 

Harikatha: Sambhavami Yuge Yuge – Came in 2024. Telugu series. When 'god' unleashes a killing spree in a picturesque village, a police officer with a traumatic history finds themselves caught up in the chilling mystery.

A review from IMDB...

The title Hari Katha Sambhavame Yuge Yuge is perfectly aligned with the theme of the web series. Every character portrayed their roles with depth and authenticity. The narrative is skillfully crafted to convey a meaningful, message-oriented storyline.

This web series provokes deep reflection, encouraging the audience to recognize and address mistakes often made out of ignorance or due to differences in caste, creed, religion, region, and other societal divides. At its core, the story emphasizes the profound teaching from the Bhagavad Gita, where Lord Krishna declares the unity of God and the self, highlighting the divine principle that God incarnates in various forms to restore justice and counter adharma (unrighteousness).

The series beautifully illustrates that, particularly in Kali Yuga, divine justice manifests in real-time and in unexpected ways, ensuring that no wrongdoing or deviation from truthfulness and dharma goes unaccounted for. This powerful message resonates deeply, reminding viewers of the moral and spiritual truths that govern life. Overall, it is a brilliantly conceptualized and executed piece of storytelling, leaving a lasting impact on its audience.

My Take – Worth a watch!

Adios till next time😊!!