Conversations these days are largely dominated by whatever ‘hot new TV series’ it is we’re watching. This is also why we’re on constant high-alert when it comes to shows worth our time. In light of a Norwegian TV series by the name of Aber Bergen, set to screen exclusively Tuesday evenings on Rialto Channel, Francesca Rudkin provides three good reasons why it should be on your must-watch list in October. (Let’s face it, she had us at Ally McBeal.)
1. It’s a Legal Drama
When it comes to legal dramas, television series are generally either sexy (Suits), quirky (Boston Legal and Ally McBeal) or serious (Law and Order: Special Victims Unit). This character-driven Norwegian legal drama manages to be all three, and it’s an intoxicating mix. Like most legal dramas, there is one complex legal case that underpins the series, while a series of more quirky clients wander in and out of the law firm Aber Bergen run by two of Norway’s shrewdest lawyers, Erik Aber (Odd Magnus Williamson) and Elea Bergen (Ellen Dorrit Petersen).
2. Fabulously Flawed Characters
Tattoo-covered wild boy Erik and the beautiful and controlling Elea are beasts in the courtroom and a joy to watch as they go about their professional lives. However, the hook in this series is how badly they manage to separate the personal from the professional and it adds a nice twist. Once married and now uncomfortably separated, Erik and Elea attempt to run their law firm and raise their teenage son together – with mixed success. The cooling of their relationship and the will-they-or-won’t-they end up getting divorced narrative adds a layer of tension to this drama and immediately engages you on a personal level.
3. Norway
Erik is from Oslo, and Elea is from the city she shares her name with, Bergen. Their different personalities intentionally represent the different cities they are from; Erik is fiery and freewheeling, and Elea is cool and restrained. Setting the series in the mountain city of Bergen gives Aber Bergen a mysterious, dark quality. The cityscapes are familiar in a way – it rains in Norway as much as it does in Auckland and refreshingly Aber Bergen doesn’t shy away from showing it. The coastal setting and its surrounds are captured beautifully through a muted palate and crisp cinematography. If the hot lawyers aren’t enough motivation to dream of a Norwegian holiday, the scenery should do the trick.
Aber Bergen begins Tuesday 10th October 8.30pm on Rialto Channel.
This October, SKY customers can upgrade to Rialto Channel and get three months half price* Conditions apply. Available to SKY direct domestic customers with the Basic package. Learn more here.
