The Rain

I got hooked on The Rain when season one came to Netflix. It was a unique take on a post-apocalyptic world in which survival becomes the primary focus of your existence. There is some diabolical mystery behind what's happened to the world and it drew me in trying to figure out just what will be the fate of humanity. There was an interesting cast of characters and intricate relationships.

Then season two launched and someone decided the show should be more about teenage angst and hoping someone some day will fall in love with you. Yeah, death and evil are all around you, but getting a good kiss is really the only reason to survive anymore. I could barely watch every episode, kept hoping it would get better, and rolled my eyes repeatedly. I was going to explode if one more character blamed him- or herself for the latest tragedy that befell them and launched into a dialogue about their feelings for someone else in the group.Plus the plot simply became a series of go there, come back, go there again, come back, go again...

Season one was good, gripping SciFi. Season two was a YA romantic wannabe. It ended on a definite teaser for season three, so I hope someone with some dramatic, adult sense can steer it back on course.

Rasmus? Rasmus?? Rasmus! RASMUS!! Rasmus. Rasmus?! RASMUS. Rasmus?!? RASMUS? RASMUS! Rasmus. RASMUS! Did I mention Rasmus, yet? Rasmus! Rasmus?? RASMUS!

I'm a couple of episodes in... And it's pretty good.

The first episode isn't very good but sets the scene alright. The few extras we see in the first couple of minutes seems to have been pulled straight from a school play. Their acting is cringy at best. But the two main characters does a good job with what they have. That is, the writing is terrible at times. In the first episode, "show, don't tell" is thrown completely out door. The female lead talks to herself (Disguised as talking to her missing father) and explains what is going on and how she feels. Something that is very easy to figure out for yourself without an explanation. Something terrible happens but doesn't seem to have any impact on the characters other than a short scene later on. Also, and I'm sure this isn't a big problem for people using subtitles, but at times they talk in a very proper way. Which is VERY strange for young people. Like any other language, Danish words have been spelled the same way for a long time... But the way words are pronounced change over time. It's feels forced, out of character and pulls you out of the moment.

Episode two and onwards gets a lot better though. It reminds me of the first season of The Walking Dead. With the two main characters trying to navigate this new world. With very different obstacles. The new group of diverse (If not a bit one dimensional) characters helps the story move along and makes for some interesting interactions. It would seem they could learn from each other. The main characters, how to survive in a new world. And many from the group, how to remain humane and not become full blown baddies.

All in all, I'll give it a 7/10. A rocky start but gets better. I'll be watching the few remaining episodes over the next couple of days.

Rasmus? Rasmus? Never have I seen a series where one name is half of the dialogue. A fast paced and enjoyable series though with some surprisingly good acting.

Still figuring out why I watched all 3 seasons of this. The plot has more holes in it than Swiss cheese. I found myself eagerly wanting it to end. Bad dialogue, irritating characters in terrible wardrobe, patchy acting, too much crying over one dimensional love interests, and a weird fixation with burial scenes throughout. Puzzling stuff.