Shadowplay

There's something about Berlin that seems to inspire writers, and this particular series reminds me of another( probably better) police series called Babylon Berlin, although it was set in another era.

The magic of this series lies in the unique way that postwar Berlin is presented. It is a fascinating mix of ruins and decrepitude, shown in stark relief by the way some inhabitants live, particularly the Americans.

Having said that, there are many plots and sub plots the main one being the terrible crimes committed daily on the streets by all nationalities. There is a bit too much going on, so following all the different threads is probably helped by using sub titles.

The brutal nature of the series is I think helped by the engaging leading man. Several people have been critical of him, but I think a really tough guy actor would have turned a lot of people off. Elsie is an engaging character, and Max's brother is a great study in psychopathic behaviour.

It's not an easy watch, but it is an interesting one if you like to see how Berlin became the important city it is today, then this series can only enhance that experience.

Ended up quite contrived and I think some of the actors got tired of their roles especially the star. Also had so many story lines I kind of lost track of what was happening. I'm assuming there will be more "Nazi Hunters go to Rome". I'll probably watch but it could have been so much better had the story been more focused.

I don't get the negative reviews here, yes it's far from perfect, but to say it's about white American saviours is a joke considering it's written by Germans. The show paints a good picture of immediate post war Berlin and the premise kept me glued right through the end.

This show is far from "woke" and it's characters for the most part are well written. I'd much rather see more historical shows with the occasional gaffe than the modern trash we have set in the present day.

It's also nice do have a mix of different languages, so do make sure you have subtitles since about 50% of it isn't in English.

The technical facets to this are excellent. The whole look and design is really full of dust and rubble and a vanquished nation. The actors too show their skill and across the various nationalities all hit their marks.

Where the series falters, and often, is the story and plot. The plot is the mechanism and the story is the overall narrative. It has everything thrown into it from fraternal love, psychological cracks, art theft, Cold War espionage,a bizarre female resistance etc . It is so cluttered as to be a mish-mash of of high drama and incredible, story telling.

It may succeed with some audiences but it seems a little desperate, as if they are not quite sure of what they have and have conceived all manner of subplots to keep this thing spinning so you don't notice that it's, well, a bit nonsensical.

In a way its like the dime novels that had a thrill every few pages to keep the reader hooked but when they finished the book they couldn't remember anything.

This is not bad, and no where a propaganda show. Not no where near the others we see today. ilya is obviously upset that Russian's are portrayed for the brutality that they displayed after the war. This is just truth, many of us saw this, even way after the war was over, me personally in West Berlin.

And let us be clear, "They" did not willingly share anything. History, is always told in the perspective of the winners and of whom is telling it. To see the real truth you have to lived it yourself or experienced some of it yourself.

I did. So far this has been decent show and worth the watch. You will need subtitles for it.