A Thrilling Mystery on the High Seas - 1899's Dark Secrets and Intriguing Characters

Hello everyone!

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I've been watching a lot of movies and TV shows lately, and I've found myself wondering whether I'll like a show or not. Usually, I can get a good sense of whether it's for me from the poster, genre, and a brief synopsis. But this time, I was pleasantly surprised - the show exceeded my expectations in every way. If you're a fan of psychological thrillers, this one's definitely for you.

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The Basics.

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Released in 2022.

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Directed by Baran bo Odar.

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Genre: Thriller, Science Fiction, Drama.

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Number of seasons: 1.

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Number of episodes: 8.

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Average episode length: 55 minutes.

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Main cast: Emily Beecham, Aneurin Barnard, Andreas Pietschmann, Miguel Bernardeau, José Pascual, Isabella Wei, Gabby Wong, Yanic Gellman, Matilda Lutz, Jonas Bloquet, Rosaline Caquelin, Maciej Musął, Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen, Clara Rosager, Finn Foley Edwards, Anton Lesser.

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The Plot.

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The show takes place in the late 19th century, and the title pretty much gives it away. From the very first scenes, we're dropped into 1899, where a massive ship is sailing from Europe to America, full of people hoping to start a new life. Of course, only a few of the characters are actually important to the story - the rest are just background extras.

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Ayk - the captain of the ship. He's been through a massive tragedy and lost his sense of purpose in life. His whole family, including his wife and three daughters, died in a fire. He's still trying to come to terms with the loss, blaming himself, and drowning his sorrows in booze - it's no secret to anyone around him. He continues to work as a captain, but it's more out of habit and loneliness than anything else.

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Mora - a young woman who's sailing to America to meet her brother, who's arranged to meet her there. Why? Their father, a pretty powerful guy, did something terrible, and their brother found out. Mora's a doctor who's interested in brain-related issues, but it's the 19th century, and a female doctor is basically science fiction. She's got a medical education, but nobody's going to let her practice, let alone do any real scientific work. She's strong, passionate, and complex, with some memory issues of her own, which makes her reflect a lot.

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Ling I and Yuk Dae - a mother-daughter duo from China who pose as Japanese women. Yuk Dae has spent years working as a prostitute in a Chinese brothel, and has kept her daughter away from the trade. When she found out that one of the girls in the brothel was offered a chance to move to America to become a geisha, Ling I decided to put her daughter to sleep and take her place. But instead of sleep, death ensued, and the mother-daughter duo had to flee the country to avoid being accused of murder. Now Ling I is pretending to be a geisha, but it's not bringing her much joy.

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Clementine and Lysiane - newlyweds who are supposed to be on their honeymoon. Clementine is wealthy, and Lysiane comes from an aristocratic family that's fallen on hard times. You could say it's a marriage of convenience. The wife is oblivious, but the trip to America wasn't chosen by chance - Lysiane suffers from epilepsy, which can't be treated in Europe, but there's a doctor in the New World who might be able to help him. A young, but not particularly happy couple.

Angel and Ramiro - brothers, but not just any brothers. One's a priest, the other's a bit of a rogue. And it's not just that they're different; they're actually lovers, hiding their true relationship under the guise of sibling affection. Ramiro's self-conscious about his own identity, while Angel's unapologetic about who he is and what he wants. And what he wants is a pretty active sex life, which only fuels Ramiro's jealousy. They're heading to America to escape the judgment, but their relationship feels like a master-slave dynamic.

Virginia - a wealthy woman in her 40s who loves traveling alone. She's not afraid to do what society says she shouldn't, like taking trips without a male companion. But what people don't know is that Virginia's a bit of a pimp, recruiting young women from different nationalities to work in the sex trade.

Krestor - this kid's got some serious baggage. He's traveling in steerage with his family and all these other poor souls. His family's got some secrets, and they're pretty ashamed of 'em. His mom's gotten all holy-roller on him, made his dad become a preacher, even though he doesn't believe in God. But he's doing it for love, you know? They're all about building a church in America, gathering a congregation, and living the dream. But there's more to it than that. This family's fleeing some serious trauma. Krestor's got a complicated past, and it's not all sunshine and rainbows. His family's been through some stuff.

And then there's this massive ship, packed with people, each with their own secrets, dreams, and disappointments. It's like a ticking time bomb, just waiting to happen. And, of course, the ship's got its own secrets too. The crew's getting these cryptic messages with coordinates. At first, it seems like no big deal, but then you realize that a ship from the same company disappeared in the same area just a few months ago. Poof, gone. No sign of it. It's like it vanished into thin air.

There's a nagging feeling that this could be a distress signal, and the ship just can't seem to find it, drifting aimlessly in these waters. The captain is dead set on changing course and sailing to the designated coordinates, even though the entire crew is against it and wants to report the situation to the shipyard so they can search for the missing vessel.

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However, the captain is resolute, and the ship quickly changes course to head towards the designated coordinates, where it eventually finds the Promethei, which went missing several months ago. A small expedition sent on board finds the ship abandoned, with no signs of life on board... but where could they have gone? Okay, they're not alive, but you'd expect to find some bodies. To make matters worse, the ship's telegraph is also damaged, so how could they have been sending messages in the first place?

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The crew, led by the captain, is already planning to leave the ship (since they can't do anything to help), but then they're drawn to a cabinet locked with a padlock. And it's not just the cabinet itself that catches their attention, but the sound coming from it... And a sense of dread washes over them.

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I have to say, the real star of the show is the kid. He's pale, quiet, and very much alive. The kid doesn't respond to any questions (which is probably just shock), but he's got this weird pyramid thing in his hands. It's clear they're taking the kid to the ship and sending a message to the shipyard about the find.

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At the same time, we've got this dark-skinned guy hiding in the coal bunker (not a deserted ship, thankfully). And he's hiding for a reason. Who is he, anyway?

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And then there's the guy who seems to be emerging from the water and settling into the room next to Mora's. His expression is totally wild. Who is this guy?

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Meanwhile, the kid is still silent (and uncooperative), and things start to go horribly wrong on the ship. The main issue is this terrifying, inexplicable sea: people are just dying left and right, with no apparent reason. Scary? You bet. Everyone starts blaming the kid for it, since that's when things started going wrong...

The plot thickens: the shipyard responds, and it's a real game-changer. The owner wants to scuttle the ship, but the captain is skeptical (I mean, it's a brand-new vessel). Instead of following orders, he decides to tow the ship back to Europe, essentially returning it to its original point of departure. This sparks confusion and outrage among the passengers...

But what really happens to the found ship? Where did all the people go? Who's that kid who survived? Why was he locked in a closet? What caused the outbreak on the ship? Is the child involved? Who are those two men who snuck onto the ship? What are their motives? Will they be able to tow the ship back, or will something go wrong? What about the passengers? What's going on here? And many more questions to come...

I'm only just getting started with the series, but I thought I'd share my initial thoughts. The first episode sets the tone, and the longer-than-usual first episodes are a great way to introduce us to the story. Each episode is a solid 55 minutes, which is a bit longer than I'm used to, but it feels fitting. I'm really enjoying the series so far, but I have to admit that I'm not binge-watching it - I'm taking it one episode at a time, and that's working for me.

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I'd say the pacing is well-balanced - it's not too fast or too slow. The story unfolds at a good clip, but nothing feels rushed or dragged out. Of course, some scenes do repeat themselves a few times, but that's just the nature of the narrative, and it doesn't bother me.

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The visuals are dark and moody, which suits the story perfectly. The fact that the ship is the main setting means that the lighting is often dim, and that works for me. The cinematography is top-notch, and the special effects are seamless - I never felt like I was watching a bunch of CGI nonsense.

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I've got to say, the sweeping shots of nature in this show are absolutely stunning. I'm not even sure if they're real or CGI, but they look incredible. It's like you're right there in the midst of it all, feeling the power and desperation at the same time. It's really effective in setting the tone for the rest of the series.

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I'm also loving the trend of taking opening credits seriously. Sometimes they're even better than the actual show. This series is no exception - the opening credits are top-notch. They're full of subtle hints and the atmosphere is just as bleak as the rest of the series. The color palette, imagery, and music all come together perfectly.

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One thing that struck me about the soundtrack is that it's a mix of background scores and real songs. The background music, in my opinion, is a bit generic - it's the kind of thing you'd hear in a horror movie or thriller. It's a one-note approach that's meant to create tension, but it doesn't quite do the job. I mean, if we're going to go all out with the 'apocalypse now' vibe, I'd expect to see some actual apocalyptic stuff on screen. Instead, it feels like a mismatch. On the other hand, the real songs that play during the credits are absolute winners. I've added most of them to my playlist and I still enjoy listening to them. At first, it seemed like they didn't quite fit the time period - we're talking 19th century, and then suddenly we're getting songs that sound like they're from the 70s or 80s. But as the story unfolds and we get closer to the truth, it all starts to make sense.

I watched the series without a full dub, where you can't hear the real voices of the actors. And I really love the partial dub, first of all, because it's interesting to hear the real voice of a foreign actor or actress; secondly, you get a sense of whether the voice of the dubbing actor is well-chosen? By the plot, people of different nationalities gathered on the ship, so they speak different languages. It's like the Tower of Babel, where no one understands anyone else. And hearing the real voices of the actors and actresses, you understand that they're speaking French, German, Polish, and so on. Of course, outside the set, they probably spoke English, but it's great that this element of authenticity has been preserved.

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There are scenes of gay love and one masturbation scene - let's talk about it. Honestly, I'm completely unbothered by sex scenes in any form on screen, it doesn't faze me, but here, I think, it would have been better to avoid it, especially considering the time period. We won't see a full act, but we'll see kisses and hugs up close. I watched it, and it seems the actors playing the gay characters aren't actually gay themselves, and I have to give them credit, they did a great job playing their parts. I didn't see any awkwardness, embarrassment, or discomfort. They aimed to show jealousy and passion, and the actresses did a great job with that.

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What makes a great show? Well, it's gotta be interesting, right? And this show is definitely interesting. It follows the classic formula: setup, escalation, and payoff. The creators billed it as a drama, thriller, and sci-fi, and all three genres are on full display. It's a drama because each of the main characters has their own story, and none of them are exactly laugh-out-loud funny. It's a thriller because there are plenty of tense moments that'll keep you on the edge of your seat, refusing to look away from the screen. And it's sci-fi because, at first, it seems like something supernatural's going on, but it turns out that's not the case - it's all just science fiction.

I'm a huge fan of shows like this, where the mystery unfolds layer by layer, and nothing's as it seems. It's like your brain is working overtime to piece everything together. I was hooked from the very first episode and couldn't look away until the very end. For me, there aren't any weak moments or parts that drag - everything's perfectly woven together. Sure, some things didn't quite work out (but that's probably intentional, given we don't get all the answers), but overall, this is a top-notch production. If you pay close attention, you'll get a sense of what's to come right from the start. I was able to get a handle on the main storyline pretty quickly, and each episode drops some clues that help you figure out the mystery. Even with all the hints, I still couldn't predict how it would all wrap up - that's what makes it so compelling. The show's got multiple layers, and solving one mystery doesn't necessarily lead to solving the whole thing. It's got some of the same vibe as 'Lost', some of the same twists as 'The X-Files', and even a bit of the surrealism of David Lynch. In this show, nothing's as it seems, and even the main villains are kind of trapped in their own situation - and the 19th century's not the main focus...

I've got to say, the acting in this show is top-notch. The cast is perfectly chosen, and I couldn't pick out anyone who didn't hold their own against the others. Let's talk about the ones who really stood out to me.

Emily Beecham - the lead actress, at first, I didn't even realize how crucial she was to the story. She played a woman from that time period who refused to accept the status quo, especially when it came to women's roles in society and the workplace. Beecham brought a great sense of detachment and impulsiveness to the role. She didn't do anything flashy, but I found myself drawn to her character. Plus, her looks were spot-on for the character.

Aneurin Barnard - in real life, he's a bit of a goofy-looking guy, but in the show, he played a really strong character. I won't give away who he is, but he's fighting for love and willing to do whatever it takes to get it, even if it means starting from scratch. There's something about his intense, almost manic gaze that draws you in, and you find yourself wondering if he's the main villain.

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Final verdict: I'd give this show a solid 5 stars, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. Why? Because the creators just don't respect their audience. And it's not just the creators - Netflix itself doesn't care about its viewers. Initially, the plan was to have a second season, but then Netflix changed its mind and canceled the project. Thanks a lot, especially considering the first season left me with a thousand unanswered questions. The story's still not wrapped up. Yeah, we got a general idea of where it's headed, but we're still in the dark about the details. And let's be honest, we're not going to find out anytime soon. There are so many plot threads and storylines that are just left hanging, with no explanation whatsoever. No matter how hard you think about it, you won't get a clear answer. It's like watching an amazing show, getting blown away by the plot twists, and then having it abruptly cut off, leaving you with a bitter aftertaste... I've experienced something similar with the show 'Raised by Wolves', which I loved, but was canceled after two seasons for no good reason. I'd still recommend checking it out, but be prepared for an unfinished project.

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That's it from me, folks. Catch you later, Natasha.

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Let's behave badly!

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Until next time, stay lucky!