This Netflix production has an unusual setting. It places a female Bogotá-based detective in the midst of lethal jungle conflicts between the Colombian indigenous tribes, forest workers, the corrupt and incompetent local police, and a bunch of evil white Nazis.
In this world, the shamans have actual magical powers, and the jungle actually communicates with them through plant medicine (i.e. Plants with psychoactive substances). The evil white villain is a sort of demon, sent by left-over Nazis to steal the secrets of magic from the pure-hearted forest people.
I really wanted to love this series. It contains many interesting elements that we're not used to seeing in modern criminal dramas. It had the potential to be incredibly interesting.
Unfortunately, the storytelling quickly proved too weak for the big topics. The plot uncovered in a confusing way, the timeline felt overburdened with slow and uninteresting subplots, and the tone quickly became very monotonous. If the eight episoded had been edited down to three or four that would focus only on the main story arc, I'm sure it would've been a much more rewarding viewing experience.
There's an attempt to make the Colombian jungle feel like James Cameron's Pandora, where there's a literal divine intelligence governing the forest and its people. But in this version, the jungle looks mostly grey, damp and dull. Even the indigenous people seem unhappy most of the time, as does every other character in this show. The entire series has a tone of gloom, poverty, corruption and depression that never changes. There are no bright spots to balance it up. Even the magical dimensions of the shamans seem dark, empty and depressing in this world.
Most of all, this series feels like a missed opportunity. I commend Neflix for taking on this type of production. We need more unusual series like this one. We just need them to be better.
In this world, the shamans have actual magical powers, and the jungle actually communicates with them through plant medicine (i.e. Plants with psychoactive substances). The evil white villain is a sort of demon, sent by left-over Nazis to steal the secrets of magic from the pure-hearted forest people.
I really wanted to love this series. It contains many interesting elements that we're not used to seeing in modern criminal dramas. It had the potential to be incredibly interesting.
Unfortunately, the storytelling quickly proved too weak for the big topics. The plot uncovered in a confusing way, the timeline felt overburdened with slow and uninteresting subplots, and the tone quickly became very monotonous. If the eight episoded had been edited down to three or four that would focus only on the main story arc, I'm sure it would've been a much more rewarding viewing experience.
There's an attempt to make the Colombian jungle feel like James Cameron's Pandora, where there's a literal divine intelligence governing the forest and its people. But in this version, the jungle looks mostly grey, damp and dull. Even the indigenous people seem unhappy most of the time, as does every other character in this show. The entire series has a tone of gloom, poverty, corruption and depression that never changes. There are no bright spots to balance it up. Even the magical dimensions of the shamans seem dark, empty and depressing in this world.
Most of all, this series feels like a missed opportunity. I commend Neflix for taking on this type of production. We need more unusual series like this one. We just need them to be better.