On a strong recommendation, I got pulled into the "Dark" universe a couple of years ago. The third and final season of this one-of-a-kind German science fiction show wrapped up a couple of months ago, wrapping up on its trademark "what did I just watch?" note.
This Netflix show is set in the fictional town of Winden, Germany, which is haunted by a child's disappearance and a supernatural cave system. "Dark" uses four families to play out a time travel conspiracy that crosses many generations (that can admittedly be hard to keep straight).
Co-created by Baran ba Odar and Jantje Friese, "Dark" is certainly a show that makes you work for it. Early on, it drew comparisons to "Stranger Things," but "Dark" had a harder, more violent edge and a more existential bent.
Powered by an intricate plot and narrative, the show manages to keep emotion intact throughout and across time jumps. The irresistible Lisa Vicari (as Martha Nielsen) carries much of this emotion, and her character's dynamic with Jonas Kahnwald (Louis Hofmann) formed the backbone of the show.
The dubbing from German to English takes a bit to get used to, but the musical score spans all language, lending an essential and invaluable atmospheric tone. The confusion inherent in displaying the same character across multiple timeframes with disparate actors can be overwhelming, and headline actors could go several episodes without a significant appearance.
These challenges and others led Rotten Tomatoes to call the show "as thrilling as it is bewildering." I personally would've liked the final season to be extended beyond just eight episodes, but the 26 episodes that comprise "Dark" are just going to have to be enough.
Unless we can find a cave, a stunning German girl, a nuclear power plant -- and just go back in time to create more.
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