A dose of alternate history and science fiction

I am sure that all of us have a healthy love for watching good TV shows. There is hardly a gathering where my friends and I have not talked about the latest season of a series we had binge- watched the week before, and impatiently wait for the months to pass so we can watch the next instalment. 

But I have noticed that there is one particular show that has escaped the attention of everyone I have spoken to. At first I thought it was weird that people were not talking about, in my opinion, one of the most amazing series — until I realised they had no idea it existed. The show I’m talking about is none other than “The Man in the High Castle”.

Created by television writer and executive producer Frank Spotnitz for Amazon Prime, and loosely based on the legendary novel of the same name by the famed author Philip K. Dick, “The Man in the High Castle” takes you through the biggest what-if scenario in literary history.  

The story takes place in an alternate 1960s North America where Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan have won World War II, and now have divided what used to be the United States, and the rest of the world for that matter, between them. 

We follow characters like Juliana Crane, played by Alexa Davalos (“The Chronicles of Riddick”, “Clash of the Titans”), who discovers a mysterious film that has the potential of toppling the worlds tyrannical regimes, or Joe Blake, played by Luke Kleintank (“Pretty Little Liars”, “Bones”), a Nazi double agent working for US army officer turned senior SS officer John Smith, played by Rufus Sewell (“Gods of Egypt”, “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”).

“The Man in the High Castle” is a perfect blend of action and drama that will have you sitting at the edge of your seat, making you addicted within the first few episodes. And if you think all that was not enough, it also brings in a tasteful amount of science fiction by way of technological advances made by the Nazis and the possibility of travelling to alternate universes through psychic or mechanical means. 

Another important aspect of the show is its clear portrayal of the fact that the world is not just black and white, but has a large area of grey that most people live in and it is the choices we make that determine our destiny. 

It shows the human side to the characters as the episodes progress by making us witness the trials and tribulations of our protagonists, and the spiritual and moral conflicts within the members of the reigning regimes that make us, dare I say, sympathise with the characters. 

With the third season released in the autumn of last year and the fourth season already in production, it has already won multiple awards, including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and was nominated for dozens of other awards. It is a perfect new show to binge- watch that will leave you wanting more. The depth of the characters and the immense talent of the actors and actresses will amaze you.

You will see the enormous hard work put into bringing the world of “The Man in the High Castle” to life in every episode, whether it is Nazi propaganda and symbolism dominantly displayed all over an alternate occupied New York, or a Japanese imperial armada sailing through San Francisco Harbour. 

One thing is clear about this gem of a show, you will not be sorry to experience its amazing overall quality. So I suggest you start watching now because the journey the characters are embarking on is not over, the secrets of “The Man in the High Castle” have not yet been fully revealed and the resistance has only just begun.