Let me start by mentioning that I have been very impressed with the content that Portugal has been putting out these past years, it all started when I saw the TV show "Sara" a mix of drama and comedy all the way until "Glória" made its debut as the first Portuguese show to come to Netflix - and "Glória" is in fact a good example of an amazing produced series based on a real life event even though it also took a lot of creative liberties to the actual story, I am afraid to say that it's not the same for "Rabo de Peixe".
The fact that is based on an insane real life event, it had all the potential to be a great story, but they went for a loosely based adaptation instead of a more factual one which although its not necessarily bad I feel its a missed opportunity to tackle some important issues that to this day affect what is one of the most poor communities in Portugal.
I don't want to talk for the people of the neighborhood they will have their own take but in all honesty I don't think this depiction made them any justice whatsoever.
For starters, I realize this would've been a hard task, the main characters have absolutely no accent and given that Açores is known for its thick accent (Rabo de Peixe in particular when depicted on Portuguese news, journalists actually add subtitles even for Portuguese audiences), so it automatically loses its authenticity there.
Of course this is not the main issue, one could look the other way but here's the major problem; this is a generic Hollywood drug related drama... there's nothing specific to the way its told that differentiates it from any other drug related story you see.
You have a conflicted likable protagonist that leaves in tough conditions and wants to improve their life so you insert the drug trafficking as a plot device, intense / over the top action sequences, predictable outcomes, party related scenes filmed frenetically.. and the list goes on.
Furthermore the plot is so fast to develop, you have a Mafia boss that arrives on the island and finds what he is looking for in record time and to wrap things up a lot of the acting is a bit strange given they tried to add a pinch of comedy to it so it just becomes strange in specific scenes.
Without getting into much more details its a boring, average action story, the characters are not charismatic enough to make it better (with the exception of the great Albano Jerónimo although his performance seems quite the contrast in comparison to everyone else) the only really amazing part are the outstanding landscapes of Açores given it probably has the most beautiful locations in Portugal.
You get the feeling that somehow they took (heavy) inspiration from Narcos but not in a good way, I am hoping to see more Portuguese content gaining relevance but I hope they don't extend this series too much, not worth it, they took the focus from the event and made it to this blend main protagonist.
The fact that is based on an insane real life event, it had all the potential to be a great story, but they went for a loosely based adaptation instead of a more factual one which although its not necessarily bad I feel its a missed opportunity to tackle some important issues that to this day affect what is one of the most poor communities in Portugal.
I don't want to talk for the people of the neighborhood they will have their own take but in all honesty I don't think this depiction made them any justice whatsoever.
For starters, I realize this would've been a hard task, the main characters have absolutely no accent and given that Açores is known for its thick accent (Rabo de Peixe in particular when depicted on Portuguese news, journalists actually add subtitles even for Portuguese audiences), so it automatically loses its authenticity there.
Of course this is not the main issue, one could look the other way but here's the major problem; this is a generic Hollywood drug related drama... there's nothing specific to the way its told that differentiates it from any other drug related story you see.
You have a conflicted likable protagonist that leaves in tough conditions and wants to improve their life so you insert the drug trafficking as a plot device, intense / over the top action sequences, predictable outcomes, party related scenes filmed frenetically.. and the list goes on.
Furthermore the plot is so fast to develop, you have a Mafia boss that arrives on the island and finds what he is looking for in record time and to wrap things up a lot of the acting is a bit strange given they tried to add a pinch of comedy to it so it just becomes strange in specific scenes.
Without getting into much more details its a boring, average action story, the characters are not charismatic enough to make it better (with the exception of the great Albano Jerónimo although his performance seems quite the contrast in comparison to everyone else) the only really amazing part are the outstanding landscapes of Açores given it probably has the most beautiful locations in Portugal.
You get the feeling that somehow they took (heavy) inspiration from Narcos but not in a good way, I am hoping to see more Portuguese content gaining relevance but I hope they don't extend this series too much, not worth it, they took the focus from the event and made it to this blend main protagonist.