OT: "Servant of the People" Season 1 on Netflix
FYI,
For those unaware, the current president of Ukraine (Volodymyr Zelensky) is a law school graduate who chose to pursue a comedy/acting career prior to entering Ukranian politics in 2018... and winning their national election not long afterwards. One of his largest roles (and helped propel him into politics) was the star of a short-lived Ukranian comedy series called "Servant of the People" - the first season of which was added to Netflix sometime shortly before the current war started.
I just finished watching the season (23 episodes with a runtime ~24min each) and would recommend it. This was filmed in 2015 (~1 year after the Maidan protests that sparked the pro-Russian rebellion in east Ukraine... and ultimately the present conflict). While not exactly "current events" any longer, the show does offer a fascinating (yet light-hearted) glimpse into aspects of Ukranian society & politics... as well as some insight into how current President Zelensky sees himself (he was the primary creative role behind the series and it was produced by a comedic group he founded). The premise is even similar to his own career: young, inexperienced political outsider suddenly becomes president of a country with numerous internal & foreign problems and struggles to juggle it all.
It was actually a very amusing show to watch and I was left wanting more by the time the season finale ended. Yet it was also sad in that it showed numerous scenes of the capital city, Kiev/Kyiv, that were very pleasant, if not breathtaking (beautiful waterfront area)... some of which may never fully recover.
It looks as though two further seasons were produced, but I have yet to find them. Regardless, it was worth a viewing (although almost all dialogue is in Russian, so either brush up or make sure the captions are on).
Enjoy!
Simpler and better times for President Zelenskyy who has gone from comedian to hero.
I appreciate your synopsis and recommendation, which were provided with sensitivity, but given current circumstances, I frankly cannot get myself to watch a show that is a comedy while Ukraine and Zelensky are facing such dire issues.
Perhaps in the future, but not now.
Thanks.
Understandable.
I decided to watch since I wanted to understand a bit more about Zelensky (and I could easily watch an episode or two over lunch). It was more humorous than expected and I might try to convince my wife to watch it.
April 10th, 2022 at 10:55 AM ^
I am trying to convince my wife to watch together also.
I understand and appreciate your reluctance. I would just say that the show actually delivers a pretty astute analysis of both Ukrainian politics and Ukraine's relationship with Russia. The scene in the last episode in which the president has an imagined enounter with Ivan the Terrible is so spot on it was almost uncanny in its prescience.
It's very funny and very good. 2 thumbs up!!
I just saw that scene earlier today (was late in the series). Well done.
I should have also mentioned in the OP that the show is often a bit profane.
But he's such a thug! (Sarcasm level 1 billion)
Good shout. I'd read something weeks back from a former "colleague" of some sort, of his and this person brought his role/former life of being in acting. Was a huge surprise to read considering at that point he had already become the planet's largest hero and unifier.
Everyday and every few hours since the night this war began I check in on the progress and news from over there and it breaks my heart. Some days more than others. I fucking hate it so much.
"But he's such a thug!"
No. Not a thug. A Nazi.
/s
/s
/s
Thanks for the heads up crg.
Some also may find interesting a good twitter feed : Julia Davis @JuliaDavisNews, who spends many hours each day watching Russian State TV and sharing clips. Just beyond horrific what has been going on in Ukraine and what is being reported in Moskow.
It really makes you aware of how powerful propaganda can be. Long before FB existed, I took a communications class in the Frieze Building with Prof. Richard Allen as an easy/fun elective. Turned out to be one of the most impactful, eye opening classes I took at UM, (which included many business and engineering courses).
One of the most disappointing but least surprising aspects of the Russian invasion is the extent to which the ends of the horseshoe - the lunatic fringe of the U.S. right and left - have been parroting Russian propoganda. Tucker Carlson and Jill Stein alike are both complicit agents of Putin and I wouldn't be surprised if they're on his payroll as opposed to being merely (useful) idiots
April 10th, 2022 at 12:37 AM ^
The difference is that Tucker is not the “lunatic fringe” of the right…whereas no one gives a shit what Stein thinks or says.
I know this is difficult concept to grasp for some of you, but both Tucker and Stein are entitled to form their own opinion on things. And given Tucker has a TV show he's likely to share those opinions. I know who Stein is, but I have no idea if she has a show or anything.
I don't think every single person who listens to Tucker automatically agrees with him on everything he says either. I also assume (as someone who doesn't listen to the whinebag) whatever you hear from the press about Tucker is blown out of proportion simply because it doesn't follow the NeoLib/NeoCon talking points.
So, yes, I think it's mostly fringe cases who support Russia in this war. There are very few "noble" wars, but this is one of them.
Every government deals in propaganda. Luckily, we have the media to sift through it and give us the truth.
Oh, my bad.
April 10th, 2022 at 12:33 AM ^
Kyiv will recover. Proud and cultured people have lived there for millenia.
April 10th, 2022 at 12:36 AM ^
I've been watching this show with my wife for several weeks, and really have enjoyed it. It is funny, it gives a great perspective on politicians, imhe, and it is bittersweet to see many scenes of Ukraine and how beautiful they are.
I concur, and heartily endorse watching this series.
Although it does feel a bit strange to watch this when there is now a war going on in Ukraine with the man who played the President in the show now in fact the President in the middle of a dire crisis, we did sit down to watch it a few weeks ago and we enjoyed Season 1 (the only one available, as mentioned) quite a bit. We were genuinely curious about Zelenskyy's work as a performer and it turns out, at least based on this, he is a highly talented man.
April 10th, 2022 at 10:30 AM ^
I started watching it when it came back on Netflix - agree it's fun and interesting on multiple levels. He's a lesson in leadership
“sparked the pro-Russian rebellion in east Ukraine...“
It has never been made clear to me how much of that was organic. I’m sure there were some Ukrainian separatists but there were also a lot of Russian “little green men”.
I agree - there is definitely a fair amount of pro-Russia support in Donbas, but from most accounts it seems that it was an overall minority opinion in those districts (weakened over the years as the people observed to poor quality of life present in Crimea after the occupation). However, it also appears that many (if not most) of the civilian population that wanted to remain with Ukraine has fled westward by now - out of Donbas.
I know a university history professor, who came from Ukraine to California about 20 years ago when he was 11, and has been here in the US ever since.
He indicated that there are Ukrainians and Russians throughout the entire country, but in the east they tend to be more pro-Russia, and in the west they tend to be more pro-Ukraine.
So he suggested that in the most recent elections of Zelensky, in Eastern Ukraine he maybe got 40% of the vote, while in Western Ukraine he probably got about 60% of the vote.
FWIW
Given the Russians can't even take Kharkiv, I suspect it's irrelevant who speaks what now. If Ukraine wasn't a country before 2014, is certainly is now. Defending your country from invaders and witnessing your own friends and family dying is the surest way to become a nationalist I know of.
To follow up on the FYI notes below. Ukrainian is closer to just being a dialect than a separate language, so I'm unsure how much that difference plays a role in people's loyalty. When I had some co-workers from Poland, Ukraine and Russia all at the same time, they would all default to Ukrainian when together as it was mutually intelligible to the others.