Longtime fans of Frank Schätzing’s The Swarm (Der Schwarm) are doing back-flips because our public broadcaster ZDF has finally released a high quality production based on the book – not as a film, but as a series.
The critics apparently aren’t crazy about it, but most people I’ve talked to, who’ve actually READ the book are loving it. Just loving it.
So there are quite a few scandals surrounding the series, which we’ll get into. But first, kudos to ZDF for taking some real money out of the kitty to get it done well.
This series is stunning. From landscape shots, to underwater, to the production design (kudos Julian Wagner) and the costumes (big up Carlo Poggioli), set decoration (well done Melanie Raab) to name a few from the team!
The way almost every shot has the cool oceanic blues contrasting with various earth tones, really evokes the idea of water vs land.
I have to admit, it’s not an easy thing to show how science works. Or to have the scientific method become a character in a film. But that’s precisely what was done here: we see a problem and try to figure it out. But there’s a fine line between exciting and too science-y. And here we come to the first scandal: the author, Frank Schätzing didn’t like it and was very vocal about this.
A huge faux-pas, because his book has that exact problem: you have to get through 100-150 pages of Marine Biology super course before getting to the action. On the one hand, the latter half of his book reads like a movie, but in order to get into that cinema, you have to pay the steep price of wading through all of Schätzing’s “research notes”. He didn’t solve the “how much is too science-y?” problem, but expected the series runners to do it for him. Well, they did, but he apparently didn’t like how they did it. Partly by dialing down the horror, and turning up the human relationships between characters.
He also didn’t like how they modernized the story. He felt they could have done more. I had a good laugh about that, because the book was written in 2004. Does anyone remember what the Internet was like in 2004? In the series, there are smart phones, Zoom-meetings, travel easy quick and easy, and surprise surprise a heck of a lot more diversity in the scientific community being shown than in 2004. And guess what? It absolutely works.
Anyways, the series was launched and then pulled from the Berlinale’s new series competition, for various reasons, but the ordinary everyday folks in my acquaintance are watching. They don’t much care about what critics have to say. It’s exciting, each episode ends in a way that makes you want to know what happens next (some cliffhangers, but not always).
I’ll admit, I’m fascinated by how science is communicated. Whether in science fiction, murder mysteries, cop shows (remember Dexter?) or in the horror genre. Remember the first season of Stranger Things how painful it was to watch each person slowly trying to sort things out by themselves and how rewarding it was when the characters finally started sharing information and working together? That’s a strength of science, and showing that process is a real plus in the series.
So, sometimes the process is slow… either in observation, naming the problem, formulating a hypothesis, creating an experiment that actually measures what you want it to measure or pulling it all together for an analysis. Any one, any combination or all of those stages can take time. Or might not lead to conclusive results. But with others looking at the same problem or from a different perspective, it might help the scientist at each stage. And then the process speeds up, when scientists are collaborating.
We’re only 6 episodes in (out of 8 in total), so the suspense is building. I know how the story ends, so I’m enjoying the ride of getting there. One of my friends says it’s amazing watching it on a big screen with all the lights off, and no kids coming in randomly.
The knitwear in the show so far, are fairly utilitarian and minimalistic. So I decided to have a look on ravelry for some sea- and ocean-inspired pieces…
In fact, Monica Jakobsen Lunderøy’s Ocean Sweater (top row middle) reminds me of the practical, no-nonsense pullovers worn by a few of the characters.
Going anti-clockwise, Emalie Dam’s School of Tuna top drew me into the fascinating book-project R:E:D (Rescue Endangered by Design) book, with loads more lovely water-based patterns like Baleen Beauty, Odd Stripe, Ranger Danger, Tuna on Parade and Warm Embrace from various designers.
Sea Listening hat by Elizabeth Nihoniho (bottom left) reminds me of how oceanographers try to listen to life in the sea. Also has a matching pullover.
Sea Blouse by Anna Tanskanen (bottom right) reminds me of easy breezy days by the sea.
Ocean Pathways Pullover by Françoise Danoy (top right) also has a matching cowl. It reminds me both of oceanographic machine displays, but also iceworms. Go figure.
So, I’m looking forward to the final two episodes dropping next week, and hopping the public broadcaster ZDF Mediathek servers don’t crash from the streaming demand.
If sci-fi isn’t your jam, but you want to see lovely whales, I can also recommend Extraordinary Attorney Woo, a South Korean series where the main character Woo sees whales and feels the ocean breeze whenever she gets a good idea.
Take care.
The knitpurl dispatch 