TV Show Review - Dark (Season 1)

Season: 1
Genre: Thriller/ Drama/ Mystery/ Crime
Number of episodes: 10
Year: 2017
Starring: Louis Hofmann, Karoline Eichhorn, Lisa Vicari, Maja Schöne, Stephan Kampwirth, Jördis Triebel, Andreas Pietschmann, Oliver Masucci, Paul Lux, Moritz Jahn, Christian Hutcherson, Peter Benedict, Gina Stiebitz, Debora Kaufmann, Daan Lennard Liebrenz

Description: A family saga with a supernatural twist, set in a German town, where the disappearance of two young children exposes the relationships among four families.

Review: An almost apocalyptic landscape dominated y a large nuclear power plant. The German town of Winden has all the characteristics of a potential ghost town. The population is emotionally and deeply touched by the disappearance of a young boy. When more young people start to disappear, the citizens of Winden realizes that this has happened before. Thirty-three years earlier. Is the possible perpetrator still active or is it a copycat? When a young child is found dead with strange facial wounds, it is clear that there is more going on. It becomes even stranger when it turns out that the dead boy is directly connected to the disappearance of thirty-three years earlier.
“Dark” is a gloomy and grim interplay of supernatural phenomena and mysterious characters. Jumping in time and the number of characters sometimes makes it difficult to follow, but when paying attention it is easy to follow. The setting and shot images add to the dark atmosphere.
One of the main character is Ulrich Nielsen. His marriage to wife Katherina isn’t like it used to be, it’s become a more routine life. He has an affair with Hannah. Her husband committed suicide. When Mikkel, Ulrich’s son, disappears, everything turns upside down.
“Dark” seems like a crime mystery at first, but eventually mixes these detective and drama elements with the supernatural. And it goes in a completely different direction, which I didn’t expect but loved about the show.
Looking into the past of the characters involved, we go back thirty-three years, where Ulrich’s brother also disappeared. And the circumstances are the same now as they were then: flickering lights, birds falling from the sky. Suddenly there appears to be a lot more going on in Winden and the mutual relationships turn out to be much more complex than initially thought.
Hannah’s  son, Jonas, is now looking for Ulrich’s son as well. Jonas feels guilty about the disappearances of Mikkel. His relationship with his best friend and girlfriend, with whom he has a brief fling, becomes increasingly complex as the revelations become larger. Central to everything seems to be a hooded man. Furthermore, there is a cave in the forest that runs under the nuclear power plant. A place full of strange phenomena, such as the unexpected flickering of flashlights.
The unexpected plots and unusual family relationships make the series a dark whole. The first season ends with a surprising twist, which makes you want to come back for season two. And I definitely will. “Dark” is an overlooked series on Netflix that is most definite worth your time.