8 Tage

I managed to spread this mini-series over two days but it was pretty compellingly viewing all the same. Quite nice to have a guilt-free apocalypse saga for a change. A huge ambivalent asteroid will crash to earth and a US attempt to obliterate it in space failed. Ho hum. No need therefore for all those ridiculous flag-filled 'Incident room' scenes with telemetry screens, telex printers, flashing LEDs, multi-starred generals thumping desks, a relentless hunt against the clock to find the antidote / expert nerd / brave hero who could save mankind etc etc. Instead a mesh of interconnected individuals surrounding a central family unit in a comfortable, suburban Berlin milieu fight to make sense of their imminent death/survival options against a backdrop of contorting societal breakdown. The heart of the story is delivered early on by the terminally ill character who has read and explains about the five psychological stages of death/bereavement. However, the diversity of character, back story and dramatic arcs within the series is exemplary in developing these themes. The acting is also very good. Each of the characters faces multiple challenges and painful setbacks and each, for the most part, continues to rally themselves in defiant hope of salvation (of one sort or another). Often this is achieved by the simple dramatic means of awakening on the floor from last night's drinking. There are areas of relief, sentiment and human insight to be found amongst the stress, carnage, hedonism and self-interest and I feel this helps to serve a broad audience well. I would also give final commendation for the naturalistic photography and economical editing throughout all 8 episodes.

The show started of well with a good plot, good character and character building, twists and turns and good camerawork. Very binge-worthy.

But... like "Lost" and "GoT", the ending is very, very disappointing. The whole show builds up to a massive letdown. Therefore I don't recommend spending time on it.

Also over the top sex scenes (sometime close to porn) that don't always add up to the story.

I loved this Series.

I read some destroying critics reviews that complained that the Storyline was played out and the show too stereotypical.I also found that most of them were based on only the first two episodes which were shown at Berlinale.

I couldn't disagree more. The plot is mostly believable and the characters are relatable.

While the main plot, as the title suggests, only covers 8 days, it is set up as an episodic film that uses flashbacks to drill deeper into the characters and their motivation as the show develops. It would be unfair to judge it after two episodes.

It is not a hero movie, you don't get to see an attempt to save the world, instead you see the different approaches some characters take in an attempt to save themselves, or make peace with the situation and their lives.

The whole question "What would you do?" constantly hangs in the air and you can't help but wonder if you would act similar in many moments.

It also shows how nobody is perfect. In a way, all the characters make or made mistakes and show bad behavior at points.Of course the impending 'end of the world' (Europe anyway) would bring out the worst in many.

That also lead to some interesting discussions with my wife, since she hated the character of my 'hero' (a person that I could relate to most, until the last episode anyway, because he did many bad things but with fundamentally good intentions).

Also it's great too see this play out in Europe and Germany in particular, because typically such stories happen in the US.

In a sense, even though it's very far away and not actually ever discussed, you even wonder about world politics as the Newsticker shows 'Russia stops giving asylum' and an apparent limited number of people manage to (be allowed to) get to the US.

The actors play their roles really well and you would believe their backgrounds and personal struggle. The scenery is spot on (even though one location is overused) and it's all very immersive and believable.

If I had any complaints, it would likely be that the surroundings get less chaotic and extreme than I would expect (would we still have gas, water and electricity one day before the end of the world? Would roads remain passable?) and some brief Scenes of Sex and Violence are a bit too hard (One scene of penetration which I thought would have to result in an 18+ Rating, perhaps going to get cut, and one scene of manslaughter played out like a slasher movie) but overall I could imagine a lot of it happening fashion that it was shown.

TLDR: It's the best Series I watched in a very long time and arguably the best German production ever.

Gets better from episode to episode. You just have to discuss or think about: would you do the same as the characters? Great classic music. And a lot of fun for people who know Berlin to see the empty burning streets and abandoned places. People who criticise overacting have to think about the most extreme situation of Armageddon.

Top plot, great storylines of the characters with unpredictable Twists. Thrilling to the end. Perfect cast. Nice one!