Ragnarok is a Norwegian Fantasy series released in 2020, created by Adam Price. A teenager and his family get back to their hometown, where mysterious events might bring a new Ragnarok (A.K.A. the end of the World).
Hello, there! I’m dos Santos, and this is Ulven Reviews, with Movies and series from all over the world and all eras. Today we’ll talk about Ragnarok, beginning with a plot summary, through the review, and finishing with a symbolic Rating. Here we go!
Magne (played by David Alexander Sjøholt) together with his mother, Turid (played by Henriette Steenstrup), and brother Laurits (played by Jonas Strand Gravli), are moving back to the small town of Edda. They used to live there when the father was still alive.
Upon arrival, an old, one-eyed man (played by Bjørn Sundquist) is blocking the road with a scooter-slash-wheelchair. Magne gets out of the car to check on him, and the old man’s wife, Wenche (played by Eli Anne Linnestad), sees the boy’s kindness and does something mystical to him.
After resettling at their old house, the boys go for their first day of school. Among the people they meet, there’s Isolde (played by Ylva Bjørkås Thedin), an environmental activist who becomes Magne’s best friend and introduce him to the dynamics of the town.
The Jutul family is directly or indirectly responsible for most of the jobs in the city. Their wealth and influence allow their enterprises to pollute the surrounding nature with impunity. Vidar (played by Gísli Örn Garðarsson) takes care of the business, while his wife, Ran (played by Synnøve Macody Lund), is the principal of the local school.
They have a couple of children, Fjor (played by Herman Tømmeraas) and Saxa (played by Theresa Frostad Eggesbø), who are the most popular kids in the school.
When a tragedy that might be connected with the Jutul family happens, Magne decides to use the abilities he discovered since his encounter with Wenche to do something about it. However, his conflict with the powerful family might cause a cataclysm.
I really like it. It has an enjoyable plot that brings very present themes and worries of the current youth, like the urgency of climate change and the responsibility of the big corporations in it.
The Norse Mythology not only brings a fantastic element to the struggle but also gives a fighting chance for the common folk. The big corporations, who exert power and influence, are represented by the Jutuls, who are actually Jötunn, powerful, god-like entities.
The struggle of the common people against the powerful is a usual theme in movies and series. We already talked a little about it in other reviews here, for example, Leviathan and Ceddo. However, Ragnarok is the first time the little ones have a fighting chance.
The show is classified and marketed as a teen drama, and I have to confess that it made me reluctant to it in the beginning. But after the first episode, the bad feeling was already dissipated.
There are aspects of teen dramas, of course, like the High School tropes such as division of students by popularity, bullying, a love triangle involving the protagonist and an antagonist, so on. Some aspects of the love triangle annoyed me a little, but in general, the teen shit was alright.
Moving on. I liked Magne, he’s not my favorite character, but he makes a good and relatable protagonist. My two favorites are his brother and best friend, Laurits and Isolde, respectively.
Laurits is very bright, funny, and kind of a trickster. He’s an extraordinary touch to the series. Isolde is fascinating. She’s an altruistic fighter and the catalyst for the series, planting all the necessary seeds on Magne so he could become a worthy and proactive protagonist.
I also liked Isolde’s father and school teacher, Erik (played by Odd-Magnus Williamson), and Gry (played by Emma Bones). The widower has many enjoyable moments bringing several emotions. And the girl completes the love triangle with Magne and Fjor. I have my caveats about her, but nothing major. She’s a cute character and good enough.
Regarding the Jötunn, Vidar, like his adversary Magne, is not my favorite of the group, but it’s a decent antagonist. Ran is the one with the least shine, while Fjor is the dumbest and most annoying, so my favorite is Saxa.
She starts slow, and it seems she’s there only to look beautiful and demonstrate how the Jutul are perfect. But with time, she’s the one that captivated me the most among the villains. She’s strong in several ways, very witty, and in the end, I liked her more for her qualities than for the lack of it in her peers.
Theresa Frostad Eggesbø’s performance was marvelous in the role of Saxa. I really liked her, and I hope there’s an even more prominent role for her in the second season.
As usual in these very professional media, we can expect at least a very correct acting, and I can’t remember anyone subpar. I would like only to point out positively Odd-Magnus Williamson, with a very concise yet touching performance. It’s even more noticeable for me now since I saw him in other roles.
The visual of the series is absolutely flawless in every aspect. The location made me wanna live in the fictional city that has a comforting feeling to it, besides the destruction of the environment.
The cinematography is just gorgeous, taking full advantage of the natural surroundings. But there’s not only nature. The town is really appealing and believable, having well-created neighborhoods of several economic backgrounds.
The score is quite decent. I’m not crazy about it, there are the teen-sounding songs that I personally dislike, but I’m aware that it makes perfect sense for the series. In the original score, some worked better than others to my ears.
I really enjoyed this first season of Ragnarok, especially this little fictional world they created inside our own, with the same realities and struggles as ours. I’m very excited about the second season, which I’m guessing it will come out in the early months of 2021. For now, I’ll give Ragnarok (Season 1) 8 Moons.
That’s it for now. Thanks for watching. Give the video a like and subscribe to the channel. What about checking our other reviews?! Some suggested videos will appear on the screen in a bit, you might begin with those if you want.
See you in the next video.
Crítica dos Ratos 