One of Netflix ’s more interesting recentoriginal series , The Breakthrough , is a four - part miniseries free-base on diary keeper Anna Boden and genealogist Peter Sjölund ’s Word of God examining the second - largest criminal investigating in Swedish history . The show has already cracked Netflix ’s Top 10 list and has pull in a strong 77 % account on Rotten Tomatoes ’ Popmeter , the metric for audience reception .
However , it ’s run largely under the radar despite being a enceinte candidate for the next foreign crime drama to captivate American audience , a laThe KillingorBroadchurch . If you ’re a crime drama rooter , or just want a estimable show you may binge - watch in one night , here ’s why you should watchThe Breakthroughon Netflix .
The Breakthrough’s story is incredible … and (mostly) true
On October 19 , 2004 , an 8 - year - old boy and 56 - twelvemonth - quondam cleaning lady , both unrelated to one another , were hit in broad daylight in the small Swedish metropolis of Linköping . The only spectator was a local biker , but she could not discover the suspect before he fled . The unprecedented viciousness and brazenness of the offense shocked the quiet city , but with no real leads or knockout evidence , the case before long grew cold .
It stay on that way for 16 years until a genealogist ( here named Per Skogvist , take on by Mattias Nordkvist ) infix to the case ’s lead police detective ( here named John Sundin , act by Peter Eggers ) a pioneering young method of DNA psychoanalysis . This method help pass over down the Golden State Killer , subject of anothertrue law-breaking favorite , I’ll Be locomote In the Dark . While in that instance , police force leveraged the genealogy site 23andme to lick its crime , Swedish police in The Breakthrough ’s real - life pillow slip used DNA swabs from Tennessean to establish a linkup from DNA at the scene to the residential area at expectant . This practice soon raised serious honourable and sound questions .
The Breakthrough isn’t your usual true crime show
AlthoughThe Breakthroughhas a strong cast led by Eggers and Nordkvist , the actual protagonist is time itself . Often touch to in true crime podcasts and play , it ’s rare that the shock of time is so central to a story . The series wager out over 16 year as detective John Sundin ( Eggers ) finds it progressively inconceivable to grapple with the failure to figure out this display case , the folk ’s pain remaining unresolved , a diarist in earnest trying to facilitate without interfering , and the community of interests feel permanently haunt by the brat that anyone can be a victim of fierce criminal offense anywhere , even in suburban Sweden .
Even more intriguingly , The Breakthroughis largely uninterested in its villain . Believed to be a 15- to 30 - year - old male person with a psychiatrical disorder , as sentence passes and all leads go inhuman , that description becomes more and more irrelevant . rather , writer Oskar Söderlund and director Lisa Siwe focus on the personal toll the case takes on the investigators and the victims ’ kin . The show wield its victims , the residential area , and the various tec with pity and understanding , promoting the roles of solitaire and empathy when dealing with appall crimes .
The Breakthroughis loose of the ardour and native sulfur you often see in true crime . or else , it ’s complex and methodical , deliver racy , complicated character navigating heavy emotion and crusade the legal boundaries of law enforcement to seek justness take for long delinquent .
Netflix has a great record with true crime
Perhaps the good cause to watchThe Breakthroughis Netflix’sstrong record on on-key crime , both fiction and nonfiction . This is the teem service that serve up cultivation - capturing docuseries likeMaking a Murderer , The Keeper , American Nightmare , andThe Program .
On the fiction side , Netflix originals like Ozark , Mindhunter , and Bodies have set a high standard for crime dramas that dissent tropes and weave complex , chilling story that keep you on the border of your seat .
Moreover , The Breakthrough is a sizable four episodes , so it ’s a somewhat easy lookout man to get through in a weekend .
Netflix does not miss with foreign acquisitions
Finally , Netflix has a great trail record of importing alien play — especially provocative law-breaking play . Remember , Peaky Blinderswas a BBC show before Netflix involve it over . Netflix has done well repackaging the German thrillerDark , the U.K. dark comedyBaby Reindeer , and the French detective serialLupin , not to mention perhaps the braggart show of 2021 , South Korea’sSquid Game .
