The eternal: this impressive post-apocalyptic drama is the one you should be seeing

The eternal
Netflix

To make a good art, you must be specific. Perhaps that is too swept, a statement, and quite contradictory, but it is a fundamental principle for which I live. It is not good to chase the lowest common denominator in the hope of attracting an audience. Be it a song, a painting or a poem, they are the specificities that we fell in love and fall in love.

This may be the reason, with hundreds of TV apocalypse, The eternal It is a fresh air breath. The new Netflix program adapts a classic comic series written by Héctor Germán Oesterheld that was published in 1957 and very worshiped at his home in Argentina.

It also includes issues of a reset of history in 1969 that reflected the increasingly anti -imperialist opinions of Oesterheld. It is a narrative full of violence and paranoia of the real world that marked the emergence of the military dictatorship in Argentina, and is not as well known worldwide as it should be.

On a suffocating summer night in Buenos Aires, Juan Salvo (Ricardo Darín) and his friends meet in a basement to play the Trick card game. The laughs are shared and the whiskey is drunk, until a mysterious snow wave covers the city. This is strange enough considering that it has only snowed in Buenos Aires three times in registered history, but the fall flakes kill all who touch almost instantly.

Trapped inside, Juan has no idea if his ex -wife Elena (Carla Peterson) and her daughter Clara (Mora Fisz) are alive. He puts on a waterproof suit and a gas mask, then takes to the streets. Those who left behind discuss whether to share increasingly diminished resources with other survivors, as their neighborhood finds more and more.

I have not read the original comic, since it is difficult to get it in the United Kingdom, so I cannot comment how faithfully it has adapted. What I can say is that the changes made to adjust well to a modern environment work well, such as the background of Juan as a soldier in the Falklands War between the United Kingdom and Argentina in 1982. His military experience makes him a natural leader for the survivors, but his unresolved trauma can feed with strange visions he experiences.

The plot of The eternal It may seem similar to those of many post-apocalyptic dramas; That is due in large part due to its enormous influence on this subgenre. But this Spanish series still feels fresh because it maintains its Argentine, instead of relocating the drama in the widely used streets of New York or London. It is all better to retain that specificity, from architecture to the political.

He knew how much little about the history of Argentina before starting the series, nor knew that Oesterheld and four of his daughters, two of which were pregnant, were disappeared by the country’s military dictatorship in 1977. The success of the new series has caused A renewed search For their missing grandchildren, they have probably been given to other families as babies. All this sad story is an adaptation beautifully in layers that feels richer than most of its contemporaries.

There are some defects in The eternal: The first three episodes are too slow, while female characters do not have much to do. But this is a convincing survival drama that becomes more complex in its second half. And here there is a final bonus: having been such a sleeping success for Netflix, has already been renewed for a second season.

Bethan also recommends …

The fog
Directed by Frank Darabont
When a fog falls on the city of Bridgton, residents must remain inside or face a mortal threat. This adaptation of Stephen King deviates from its source with a new final, and what end

I’m still here
Directed by Walter Salles
Eternal The comic writer, Héctor Germán Oesterheld, the widow of Elsa Sánchez, sought justice for deaths linked to the Military Board of Argentina. Its history is similar to that of Eunice Paiva, told in this impressive film, whose husband was killed by the dictatorship of Brazil.

Bethan Ackerley is a subeditor in New Scientist. He loves science fiction, situation comedies and anything spooky. Follow her at x @‌inkerley

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