Chernobyl (TV, 2019)

Creator: Craig Mazin
Stars: Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgard, Emily Watson

Synopsis: In April 1986, an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics becomes one of the world's worst man-made catastrophes.

Verdict: "Chernobyl" is an HBO miniseries depicting the 1986 disaster that resulted in the death of thousands of people and repercussions still felt to this day.

The very well shot historical drama does a great job at explaining how the catastrophe happened and the steps taken to limit the damages of the explosion. It also serves as a tribute to Valery Legasov, a Soviet scientist and unsung hero who played a huge role in minimizing the harm that disaster could've potentially resulted in. The topic of governments meddling with science projects was also an interesting one to look at. In other words, the show pretty much nailed its historical part and I'd recommend it for that alone.

The dramatic aspect, on the other hand, left me somewhat underwhelmed. The show was created and written by Craig Mazin, who doesn't have a great writing track record and developed projects such as "Identity Thief" or the "Hangover" sequels in the past. And while I wouldn't consider the script in that show as bad as his previous ones, I also wouldn't call it a very good one either. The cheesy dialogue and unnecessary dramatization of events, mixed with the odd decision of shooting the show in English (despite it containing some lines in Russian) and questionable character decisions made the narrative feel fake at times, which is a shame when telling a true story of that caliber.

In conclusion, the highest-rated show on IMDb (9.7/10 as of now!) was a great historical, not-so-great drama for me. I'd still recommend it for the interesting and educational story alone, but I personally found a lot of aspects in it underwhelming and definitely wouldn't call it the best thing to ever air on TV. 

FINAL GRADE: 7/10