Biohackers: Netflix’s cool new German Scifi

Okay, the recap doesn’t make this series sound like a lot of fun, but I promise it is. DNA altering leads to glow in the dark marijuana and pills that allow you to breathe underwater. Biology in this series is a cool, underground activity filled with strange, interesting characters. I’m not into genetic modification, but if I were, this would be cool to watch. It makes something like biology seem as cool as being a private investigator.  

And, all of the tech the show discusses are a few steps from being reality. Genetic modification already exists, though not to the degree that it’s occurring in the show. Scientists can’t make weed glow, but they can make tomatoes bigger, and possibly marijuana along with it. It’s hard to know how much of it is fiction and how much of it is real, or will be real in the future. Biohackers gives you an unique look into a plausible future, instead of the sci-fi worlds of spaceships and laser guns that will likely never come to fruition.   

Thankfully, there’s a good plot as well. This series tells a riveting revenge tale. Suspense is never broken throughout the entire six episodes. Whenever Mia finds a piece of new information, very soon after the antagonist finds out she knows about the information. Mia responds to all of this in different ways. The mind games played serve as a compelling plot device, as characters rarely ever say what they want, and must trick other characters into giving it to them, which leads to some very engaging scenes. 

As far as the characters overall, there’s a lot of moral ambiguity. This is one of those narratives where the protagonist isn’t necessarily the best person. It’s hard to tell whether or not she’s trying to do what she does because she cares about what happened to those close to her in the past, or if she should just let the antagonist go about her actions for the greater good. It’s hard to tell at times, and that moral ambiguity allows for a lot of complicated feelings, and a very entertaining narrative. 

The characters were also all played by excellent actors. Especially given some of the actors are unheard of. For example, Luna Wedler, who plays Mia, is excellent in this series, despite only having a few credits to her name.  

I find it really interesting also that this series is German, especially given the other wonderful content that’s come out of Germany. In particular, Dark offered a really unique concept and plot. I hope we see more content from Germany in the future given the quality of what I’ve seen so far.