The twenty-first TV show: #910 Les Revenants
This book is leading us from one nailbiting 'must see' to the next. After the relative dud of American Family, we watched all of Les Revenants (the Returned) in a week, two episodes a time (as it was originally broadcast), often four a day. As I'm writing this we're watching the final episode, which will answer some of the questions we have, but probably not all of them (there's a call for a third season as well). And that's fine. One of the entertaining parts of the series was that we had questions and things to debate, and that we discussed them constantly after, but also during the show. There are many layers to the mystery, and enough get resolved as others get added that both stay satisfactory - the things you find out and the things you want to find out about. The series is happy to let it be and explain it later when it's ready. There's a few places hwere it feels a bit off - where an earlier explanation might have made some other moments work better, but I guess it usually works for drama's sake.
There are a lot of good performances in there. There are a lot of layers to some of the characters, played with nuance and knowledge of what would happen. And there's always the feeling of the inevitable, of the world, the revenants, moving on. Things have to happen because that's the way things are, and the characters fight it where they can.
One of the most interesting things in this is how the different characters respond to the basic premise. How do you deal with dead relatives and loved ones suddenly returning? How do you respond? We see a lot of emotions and responses, all of which are explored in the 16 episodes. The story and consequences take it further, but the emotions are at the core of this thriller, as difficult as it might be to deal with the impossible.
There are heavy statements on loss and hope, on death, on sadness - a lot of things.
One of the most impressive television series that I think I have ever watched.