KAOS: Fresh Mythology (Review)

Jeff Goldblum and the Olympian Gods torment humanity in this brutal and jubilant farce.

Zeus' name! Jeff Goldblum is in Olympic form in KAOS, the new series of Charlie Covell for Netflix. The brilliant creator of The end of the f***ing world (in 2017) juggles with Greek mythology and signs a stunning dramedy which simultaneously criticizes the cruelty of the all-powerful and the insignificance of humanity.

The main success of the series is to assume its first degree of fantasy: the story takes place in a modern world, where the Gods of Olympus really exist. Prometheus gave fire to Men. Hades is responsible for the Underworld. Poseidon protects the seas. Dionysus parties in nightclubs. And above the fray, the all-powerful Zeus leads with his wife, the intractable Hera.

A background in Greek mythology is not essential to appreciate KAOSbut without a doubt, the series will delight above all those who already know the legends transmitted by Hesiod and Homer. That of Orpheus who crosses the Styx to go and find Eurydice. That of the Moirai who weave and cut the threads of destiny. That of Minos and Daedalus who create the Minotaur. KAOS knows his classics by heart and has the good idea of ​​updating them. A modernization of myths that never collapses on itself, thanks to an omnipresent satirical tone that is quite jubilant. The Gods are brutal, perverse, selfish beings – which they already are in the original Greek mythology – who take a malicious pleasure in martyring Humanity, reduced here to a disconcerting insignificance.

With remarkable malice, Charlie Covell takes advantage of this fantastic setting to deliver a scathing critique of religion and devotion. KAOS is witty, almost punk, and can also be read as an allegory of the capricious and all-powerful billionaires who play with the world. It is there, in the sadistic and cruel farce, that it is the most successful (it loses its breath when it ventures into the drama from the point of view of Men).

Moreover, the Nectar of this series is essentially based on this joyful and odious family of Divinities which is tearing itself apart. Janet McTeer in Hera, David Thewlis in Hades, Cliff Curtis in Poseidon or Stephen Dillane in Prometheus are in great shape. The palm goes to the almighty disconnected, Jeff Goldbluma formidable Zeus, mad and angry, lunar and unpredictable. A performance that fits him like a glove. Exactly what was expected of him, it is true. Laziness or genius? One thing is sure, he is the perfect incarnation of the arrogant and pretentious nature of the king of the gods. Without a doubt his best role in a long time.

KAOS, season 1 in 8 episodes, to watch on Netflix from August 29, 2024