Thursday Movie Picks: Television Edition: Foreign Language Series

a weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves

Happy Thanksgiving my American readers! By the way, how is this the last Thursday of the month?! It feels like November just started! I am kind of happy though because I can finally talk about some foreign TV series I love. And since Dell is hosting the Girl Week Blogathon this week and wasn't able to pick series about women, for each show I'm picking my favourite female character. So without further ado, here are some shows you should check out. 

Dark (2017-2000) - Language: German

This is a time-travel related series that revolves around the interconnected lives of four German families. I was completely blown away by it not only because I went in totally blind and was not expecting time travel to be an element, but because it's one of the best series ever made. It's very complex and I've heard many people complaining about how hard it is to follow the story and characters throughout the different time periods, but I love being challenged. And it's not that complicated to be honest. If you have Netflix and you haven't seen it, please check it out. 

Favourite female character: Charlotte Dopler (Karoline Eichhorn)

She is a devoted police detective who always does her best to remain calm even in the most chaotic situations, and she has one of the most complex and compelling family backgrounds of the series. 

Money Heist (2017- ) - Language: Spanish

This series follows a group of people led by a mysterious man known as "El Professor" (Álvaro Morte)  as they try to rob first the Royal Mint of Spain and then the Bank of Spain. It took me forever to start this but when I finally did, I binge-watched the first three seasons in a week so that I could see season 4 without spoilers. That's how good this is. This one is also on Netflix, and I highly recommend it, especially if you are a fan of heists. 

Favourite female character: Nairobi (Alba Flores) 

She is pretty much the only woman in the series that knows how to be a leader. She doesn't waste time mincing words as she is always direct and says what she wants to see. Almost every character loves her, and she is a badass. 

My Brilliant Friend (2018- ) - Language: Italian/Neapolitan

This series follows an elderly woman, Elena, as she tells the story of her lifelong friendship with Lila, a girl she met at primary school in Naples in the 1950s. Honestly, I was not planning on seeing it as I'm not a fan of Italian series and I missed the first two episodes where they aired. But then my mom wouldn't shut up about how good it was so I gave it a shot. And she was right. I've absolutely loved the first two seasons and I'm looking forward to season 3. At times it is as difficult to watch as was the life of a woman in 1950s Italy, but it's very compelling. This should be available on HBO. 

Favourite female character: Elena (Elisa Del Genio)

While Lila is arguably the most interesting character, Elena is my favourite because she is a character I can relate to. She is a smart young woman who doesn't belong in the rione and tries her best to get away from it. She doesn't have the best of relationships with her mother — mainly because she's jealous and doesn't want her daughter to have the opportunities she didn't have — and struggles with her sexually because she was sexually assaulted by a man she trusted.