If you've never heard of this series before and skim the summary to decide whether to watch it, your first reaction is to probably guffaw and laugh it off. Norway turns away from fossil fuels, shuts down oil & gas production to promote thorium as an alternative energy source. The Green Party prime minister Berg is quite proud of his achievement until he is kidnapped by Russians in balaclavas and spirited away in a helicopter for a reality talk via Skype. He learns that his EU buddies have aligned with the Russians to use as their muscle to force Berg to resume oil production. Alternative energy is nice, but we must think about the economy, climate change be damned.
Berg decides to go along with all this to avert a war and publicly pretends to Norwegians that the Russian "guests" who've moved into the country to force the oil flow aren't occupiers and will leave in a few weeks. His cooperation doesn't go as planned, and almost immediately a resistance, first among the military then the people, is formed to fight the Russians and protect Norway's sovereignty.
This is no farce and the story as told instantly convinces you of its plausibility.Still, there are some aspects of the story that are a hoot. I'm told the Russians didn't like this series very much and complained about always being cast as the heavy in films and TV. The Americans, whom Berg believes are friends to Norway, come off badly...as usual. So much for the principles of sovereignty and commitment to solving climate change. Berg, as the cooperative prime minister, just loses it, decerebrating as the occupation becomes undeniable. He is chastised by his govt for undermining the party's original principles and therefore losing credibility. Credibility is very important to Norwegian politicians and the media. The woman who plays the Russian ambassador is magnificent! She knows how to play the game and push Berg and the other men around.
I'm eagerly awaiting Season 2.
Berg decides to go along with all this to avert a war and publicly pretends to Norwegians that the Russian "guests" who've moved into the country to force the oil flow aren't occupiers and will leave in a few weeks. His cooperation doesn't go as planned, and almost immediately a resistance, first among the military then the people, is formed to fight the Russians and protect Norway's sovereignty.
This is no farce and the story as told instantly convinces you of its plausibility.Still, there are some aspects of the story that are a hoot. I'm told the Russians didn't like this series very much and complained about always being cast as the heavy in films and TV. The Americans, whom Berg believes are friends to Norway, come off badly...as usual. So much for the principles of sovereignty and commitment to solving climate change. Berg, as the cooperative prime minister, just loses it, decerebrating as the occupation becomes undeniable. He is chastised by his govt for undermining the party's original principles and therefore losing credibility. Credibility is very important to Norwegian politicians and the media. The woman who plays the Russian ambassador is magnificent! She knows how to play the game and push Berg and the other men around.
I'm eagerly awaiting Season 2.