L'Affaire Asunta

The English dubbing in this is terrible, it does spoil the show a little but I managed to get through it all and score it a 7 because beyond the dubbing you can see that the actor/ess are good and the story is interesting and chilling.

An adopted Chinese girl who appears to be very loved by her adoptive parents goes missing and is found murdered shortly after. One arrogant judge is convinced the parents have done it while another lawyer is convinced they did not hence starts a point / counter point investigation that may, for a short time, leave you doubting who did it, the show will clear that up mid way through and then you will have to watch the rest to see if justice for the girl is carried out

Verdict. Watchable not gripping but interesting.

I'm Spaniard so I really wanted to watch this mini series based on a true crime case. I love to support everything coming from my country. The cast is great, the crime was outrageous but the execution of this series is just so, so. It's just a copy paste of the original documentary and does not add anything new.

First, there is a memorable acting masterclass coming from the mother, that's all. Nothing else. I mean, it could have been a masterpiece but it is not. Several good actors in, so why not to make shine all of them?....

Second, the execution is mostly poor. The camera work is far from other great productions coming from Netflix. Locations are just ok. Nothing remarkable.

Third, the storyline and some of the invented fictional characters are terrible. They try to imitate "Galician accent" and it is embarrassing. Why not to hire real people from Galicia? For example, the great Luis Zahera is one of the most talented and loved ones in Spain. A big letdown.

Last, there are other great series based on Spaniard true crimes like "El cuerpo en llamas", "Antidisturbios" and "Crims" from Carles Porta. Far superior all of them and more accurate, realistic and interesting than this copy paste.

I enjoyed the show, apparently based on a true story of which I had not heard.

The acting i thought was ok to good with lots of long drawn out scenes of staring, typical European style.

Trying to understand the police and legal investigations was very different to what happens in US or Australia, hard to get used to the heavy involvement in the investigations by the judge Malvar but that must be the Spanish system. Felt like it was a bit too drawn out though also.

But sadly the dubbing was dreadful, very American and the worst voices.... In particular the mother Charo's voice was really grating and almost off putting to be honest... whiny and childish voice.

Good acting. Everyone did good in acting their roles that I was almost convinced they were real people. Almost. The side stories of the lives of those involved in the investigation were added for the narrative flow but I think they weren't necessary at all. They didn't have anything to do with the case. Like Christina's fertility issue and the judge's father's situation. Those side stories, for me, were the reason why the documentary felt fictional. Because in real documentaries, no one shows the personal life of investigators involved in the case. I was quite hooked to the story but it was very upsetting in the end because I still feel like I wasted my time on an unresolved case. The parents were very suspicious, yes. But I still don't know what really happened and that is just so upsetting. I don't know if the kid was given justice or not.

Rosario and Alfonso report that their adopted Chinese daughter Asunta, 12, has vanished, a Police search begins, and her body is tragically found, her parents are suspected of conspiring in her death.

First off, I had no idea this was based on an actual case, it goes to some pretty dark and bleak places.

Let's be honest, this is a very, very watchable series, but please take my advice, watch it in its original, Spanish form, don't watch the English dubbed version, the voiceovers make it virtually unbearable, Rosario sounds as if she's in a constant state of surprise.

Once I switched it, it came to life, and I could truly appreciate the acting, especially the characterisation of Rosario, The Judge is such an interesting character, you'll wonder if he's right, or simply got an axe to grind, by episode 5, you'll have the answer.

Well paced and never dull, it doesn't lull at any point, one of those shows you'll want to binge watch over a night or two.

Episode five was the most surprising of all, I watched with my jaw open, it was the high point.

8/10.