If you want to watch something a bit different and yet still 'familiar', this Chilean series (no news on a second season though) will satisfy for the most part. The acting is generally really very solid and the characters quite convincing, with believable relationships and interactions. The complex and yet fact-based scenarios behind the main story combine politics, the military, journalism, crime and personal issues in a unique format and way not seen before. The Pinochet era is presented as having no long-term and far-reaching consequences, which rings very true even and maybe especially today. Pinochet, Putin and Assad of Syria have much in common. Despite a few drawn-out episodes where the personal issues dominate (the son's sexuality, drug and alcohol abuse, infidelities, and absence of actual journalistic work by Mario), the pace and tension and hard-hitting dialogue keep your attention. It started to veer off a bit once Mario's self-abuse became apparent and the sympathy one had for him up until then evaporated, yet towards the end, he redeems himself and finds his humanity again. It's not a linear story and not always smooth in its execution, but it is an interesting production out of Chile and deals with the corruption both in society in general and the various institutions it highlights: the military and politics. There is worse being shown on the small (and large) screen.
