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Reviews
The Clearing: The Season of Unfoldment (2023)
A promising start
A really promising start to a creepy and very different style of crime drama.
The acting is strong and the twist at the end of the first episode (whilst somewhat telegraphed) is certainly a good one.
Knowing that the series is based on a real life cult who snatched children makes this an even more affecting drama. I will certainly be having a search for some articles about the real life cult.
The identikit blond bob haircuts and tracksuits help to make the whole piece more sinister and the music used helps to build the tension without being overbearing.
Definitely worth a watch if you want something a bit different from your usual police dramas.
Der Pass: Episode #3.1 (2023)
Takes a while to get going
After enjoying the first two series of this show, I was looking forward to this third series. However, I have been a little disappointed by this opening episode.
In short, nothing much happens for the first 25 minutes. Stocker mopes around having flashbacks to her colleague's death in series 2 and complaining about a building project in the valley which has received the planning green light (and has a very perfunctory sex scene), whilst Gedeon seems to be tripping for most of the early scenes that he is in (in some sort of mental hospital?).
There is a bike crash, which presumably will form the basis for some kind of plot going forwards but it really has taken a long time to get going.
Triada (2023)
Bingeable, but with some flaws
To start, let's make it clear - this is a very bingeable series. Short episodes, cliff hangers and a plot that speeds along.
The acting is generally good (the lead actress in particular does well to play all three siblings and to convey the differing characters and emotions of each) and the cinematography is also good. Scenes where the same actress is interacting with herself as another character look seamless.
However, there are a couple of flaws in the plot:
1) As mentioned in another review, sometimes things happened or situations were resolved without any explanation of how; and
2) The main 'experiment' which forms the main plot reveal in episode 8 is never fully explained - what was the experiment seeking to achieve as its end goal?
That said, it was an enjoyable watch, and good to have a definitive conclusion to the story at the end of the series rather than being left hanging for series 2 to arrive.
Saiai (2021)
A decent series, but too long
I thought the overall premise and the main storyline for this series was decent, but it could easily have been told in 6 episodes rather than 10. Episodes 6-9 in particular seemed to drag a little bit, and in some parts the story seemed to be going around in circles.
The side storyline around the misappropriation of funds also seemed to be a little bit unnecessary when the main murder plot lines are the ones which will keep your interest the most.
The end of the series leaves a satisfactory conclusion with all of the storylines wrapped up, but it would have been good to have got there a little bit quicker!
La chica de nieve (2023)
Excellent series
An excellent series. A good length of just 6 x 45 minutes and very bingeable. I felt that the concept of devoting a whole episode to 'the reveal' as to what happened to the little girl as episode 5, before getting back to the main thrust of Miren's investigation into what happened to her, worked very well. The choices behind the characters actions in that particular episode were believable and well acted.
I'm writing this a couple of weeks after finishing the series, so can't recall if the ending sets it up for another series (I think it did) but I would definitely be happy if they did make another one.
Alfa (2020)
Promising start, confusing ending
I've watched dozens of similar style series on Walter Presents, Netflix etc so think I generally have a good idea of what to expect and find it easy to follow the plot, but I have to say that after a really promising first 4 episodes this series loses its way through episodes 5-8 with the ending being frankly incomprehensible to me.
A shame really, but perhaps the lack of a clear ending is down to the fact that they may be planning a second series.
Have to agree with an earlier comment which said that the main character (the trader brother, not the cop brother) makes some very stupid decisions throughout.
Lars Mikkelsson's character was underused as well.