A huge responsibility and high expectations were all shattered on the Netflix screen because of the series “Berlin”, which a large segment of the audience has been waiting for a whole year and which was not shown until a few days ago. There is a difference between starting a dramatic series from scratch without prior expectations, and starting it big and turning around. All eyes are around to see what you will provide to satisfy them, which makes it imperative for you to give them work that meets their expectations or not provide it at all. This is the failure that the makers of “Berlin” did not take into account.
The work would have been more successful if it had been presented as a drama that showed a cross-section of the emotional side of the thieves (IMDB)
The Spanish series “Berlin” began airing on December 29, and since the work was derived from the most famous Spanish series “La Casa De Papel,” it enjoyed a wide audience and the possibility of prior viewing without effort.
The hero of the work is “Berlin”, the brother of “The Professor”, who died in the last episode of the first season of the “House of Money” series, but as a result of the viewers’ attachment to him and his remarkable performance, the Netflix platform gave him this great and wasted opportunity.
Business story
Just like “The House of Money,” the “Berlin” series belongs to the category of crime drama and suspense, specifically smart and exciting thefts. The events take place – years before the professor’s plan to rob the House of Money in Spain is implemented – this time in Paris. As a teenager, Berlin, along with another gang, aims to seize jewelry worth 44 million euros in one night.
The audience expects to become witnesses to a genius plan and very suspenseful events amidst a nerve-wracking dramatic escalation, especially since the work is written by Alex Pena and Esther Martinez Lobato, who are the creators of other successful Spanish experiences for Netflix, such as “La Casa de Babel” and the series “Vis a Vis.” , but unfortunately it is disappointing.
The film enjoyed a wide audience and the possibility of prior viewing without effort (IMDP)
Thieves but lovers
Perhaps the work would have achieved greater success if it had been presented as a drama that showed a cross-section of the emotional side of thieves, and how love can spoil everything, as for its sake, what is expensive becomes cheap, so that some people do not mind sacrificing the theft of a lifetime and millions for the sake of a person they have just met. Threatening the common good of the entire team and increasing the possibility of being caught by the police.
It all started with Berlin falling in love with his victim’s wife at first sight, and instead of the man we knew earlier who was accustomed to not paying attention to emotional matters or anything that would hinder plans, we find him following his heart like an attractive teenager running in the streets.
The episodes continue without us witnessing much suspense, just illogical or expected events, and even the operation that they promote as a very precise and amazingly planned theft, suddenly becomes on the sidelines and hides behind a drama that is only concerned with the feelings of the heroes and how they deal with love in light of a lot of melodrama about their emotional experiences. Previous.
This led to the distraction of the audience as a result of the many and chaotic sub-threads, especially since the hints that could have been exploited to create clever turns or truly exciting events, whether for suspense or curiosity, were wasted and replaced with naive and unjustified complications.
Late attempt at reform
Although the series “La Casa de Babel” had love stories that relied on duets between its heroes, the difference is that the matter here seemed more banal and expected, as if the authors were trying to emulate the reasons for the success of the previous experience and nothing else, before the work came out closer to a dull and worn-out version. There is no originality in it.
When the makers tried to remedy the issue, increase the dose of excitement in the last two episodes, and insert two female faces from the “Beit Al-Mal” series, namely the investigators Raquel (Itziar Itunio) and Alicia (Najwa Nimeiry), who were known for their great hostility, even though we saw them this time before the breakup. Either of them has a large or pivotal area, and what is worse is that they have become older than they were in the “House of Money” even though the events of “Berlin” take place in an earlier period of time.
However, the seventh and eighth episodes remain the most rated by the audience, as they were able to raise the viewer’s adrenaline level and force him to stay in his seat to find out what will happen.
The open end of the work suggested more thefts to come (IMDB)
Open ending and negative impressions
The work had an open ending that suggested more thefts to come, at least, until we reach a meeting point between the two main works, but at the same time the negative impressions that the series received from the audience or critics cannot be ignored, which makes renewing the work for a second season a bet. It is a worrying and risky risk that may be misplaced if Netflix takes it, unless the makers of “Berlin” rethink a new formula for success and regaining the audience they wasted in vain.
“Berlin” is a Spanish series whose first season, consisting of 8 episodes, was released, and therefore it is suitable for viewing by fans of short European dramas, provided that they do not set any advance expectations. The work stars a group with Pedro Alonso, Michelle Jenner, Tristan Ulloa, Begonia Vargas, Julio Peña Fernandez, and Joel Sanchez.
