1899

The premise is fairly simple: numerous people from different countries board a ship to America in 1899 each with a history and story. When the ship is about half way to America, they receive a distress call from a ship that has been missing for four months and then embark on a mission to find said ship. Once they do, crazy and unreal stuff starts happening and people start questioning their reality. I have to say I really liked this show. It does remind me of such shows like Lost, Dark, and even a bit of Twilight Zone. I don't wanna give anything away, but you won't get many answers until the last few episodes, but leading up to that it's very entertaining and keeps ya guessing along the way. Not an annoying guessing like Lost. Yes, there are subtitles sometimes because there are many languages spoken.... English, German, Dutch, French, etc. But that doesn't bother me at all. Great story telling. Great acting. The one exception, and reason for missing a few stars, is the ending. Unlike other reviews, I am actually okay with the ending. But I wanted more. What happens next when we have all the answers? The question of what is happening is answered, but the why it's happening is not very clear. It needs more explanation and because it just ends, the ending feels flat. I don't think the ending ruins the entire show, but it definitely leaves you wanting more. The first 7 episodes are a solid 10, last episode maybe a six. Still worth a watch because it's great story telling. One of the best on Netflix as of late. Give it a try just don't expect an exploding ending.

I really thought 1899 was going to be just some regular period drama like a titanic, finishing with the typical ending, but was something completely different!

Just remember one thing, don't let the slow start fool you. With every episode, more details are added to put together the puzzle and you're left asking yourself questions and rooting for your favorite characters find out the answers as quick as possible!

They spends a lot of time exposing the backstory of the major characters. At first one thinks there is no connection, but through their "dreams" or is it their "reality", we began to see how each share a connection which brought them together on this voyage.

The cinematography and direction have been on point. The music in first few episodes where amazing, so appropriate to dark atmosphere, fear and curiosity.

I was mostly amazed by the diversity of the cast. The multicultural aspect led to a more authentic representation of life aboard an immigrant ship at the turn of the last century.

I hope to see a season 2 because the cast, producers and directors have really outdone yourselves.

I love mysteries. But this isn't a mystery. Watching the first season of 1899 is like someone gives you a puzzle and then just leaves. And then returns after eight hours and tells you how to solve it.

You're given clues here and there, but no context as to how these clues matter. And since you don't know what's going on and what is at stake, there's little to no tension. So you just watch characters talking and running around without knowing what it is they're really after and how any of this matters.

You keep watching in hope of some mind-boggling twists and reveals but they never come or are very unsatisfying.

This could and should have been the first two episodes of a well-written show. Instead, it's a long bloated first season whose real story kicks off in its last few minutes.

6.5/10

Let me explain what I mean by "Netlifx Disease", and why I'm so strongly opposed to what Netflix has become nowadays, because I truly believe they're ruining entertainment.

The primary goal of Netflix is NOT to provide good entertainment. Their primary goal is to provide entertainment for a LONG TIME, so you watch their platform for as long as possible and pay the subscription for as long as possible. For that reason, all of their exclusive movies and shows have been "slow burners", but in a bad way. A slow burner that requires intelligent thought, analysis, that's rewarding at the end, is fine. But 1899 is not that. The plot isn't particularly complex or hard to follow at all, yet, it's presented in such a stretched out way. Dark was not plagued by this as it was still made very much independently, but 1899 fully suffers from all the symptoms.

• 90% of the running time are filler scenes, scenes of no value whatsoever, usually filled with silence, pointless and badly written conversations, slow motion sequences, and just uncomfortably long, clearly overly stretched out scenes for no reason other than to make them longer. There's no artistic value or any other value in what they do, all they do is extend the running time. For that reason, every episode that's 1 hour long realistically has enough content for 20 minutes, and that's a stretch. This whole season of 8 hours could have been a 2 hour movie, and it would still feel too long. Dark didn't suffer from that. Dark was the complete opposite, every episode was so filled with content and complexity it was hard to follow it all at times. Every second of every episode was relevant and the viewers were given some piece of crucial information or relevant information. When it comes to 1899 you can skip 5 minute segments and not miss anything, and even if you do miss something, it's of no particular value.

• Literally needless sexual and gender politics being aggressively shoved into the viewers face. This is something that's become a norm with Netflix and American TV in general, it's like every movie and series is a political message.

• Every episode is literally made in the same exact pattern. The first 90% is completely stretched out and virtually nothing happens that couldn't be comfortably covered in 15 minutes with no atmosphere, context, depth, etc. Lost. Then the last 10% suddenly ramp up, so you're left with a cliffhanger that makes you wanna watch the next episode. What Netflix does with this is masterful mind-control and manipulation of the viewer. They make their episodes just long enough to make you start feeling bored, and just when you'd say "screw this" and turn it off, something interesting happens that intrigues you and keeps you watching. Sadly, this show isn't remotely the worst example of that.

• I like the fact that it's mainly a European cast and there's multiple langues being spoken, but it's so badly done, there's a scene after scene of totally unrealistic interactions between characters who apparently don't understand each other, yet they communicate as if they do. Clearly, the show has subtitles so we as viewers understand what's going on, but the characters in the show act as if they do as well. Point being, this is totally not how two people who can't speak the same language would interact.

• Finally I'm giving this a 6.5/10 because of a fairly interesting story and a concept, but I wish the makers of the show were not in such a tight grasp of Netflix. It's not their fault the show ended up being far worse than it could have been.

1899 is a strong contender for the best feel-bad show of the year, with its conniving characters, unrelenting suspense, and grim stakes. It's a case of atmospheric gloom overload, and it proves all the more frustrating considering that the show's aesthetics are otherwise effectively spooky.

Like Friese and bo Odar's previous streaming gem, this supernatural thriller is so knotted up that trying to untangle its mysteries is not simply challenging but borderline headache-inducing-generally, in the best way possible.

With its mystery and horror, 1899 manages to right the ship, even if it's sometimes confusing. The truth is, fantastic costuming, strong performances, dynamic set design, and a score of modern songs that somehow works in the period context keep the series worth watching.

A perfect 10/10 for me.