'Young Wallander', A Netflix Show That May Or May Not Exist, Renewed For Season 2
Children, have you heard the tale of Young Wallander? Oh, he was so very young. A small, young Wallander he was. And then he got himself a TV show on Netflix. What's that? You've never heard of Young Wallander? Surely you jest! Everyone has heard of this youthful Wallander and his many childish exploits. I promise you I would not make something like this up. Young Wallander is on Netflix and it just got itself a second season. Or did it? We may never know.
Okay let me level with you: I have no f***ing idea what Young Wallander is. I have never heard of it before today, but it's apparently a real show on Netflix, and it just got itself a second season. Don't believe me? Well, I don't blame you. But here's a real poster for this very real show that may or may not exist.
That's right, folks. Every case leaves a mark! Here's a synopsis:
Based on the best selling Kurt Wallander novels by Henning Mankell, a modern reimagining of the legendary detective, Kurt Wallander, who must navigate the increasingly violent environment of present-day Sweden. When he is unable to save a teenager from a gruesome attack, Wallander must learn to cope with his guilt in order to solve the crime.
Not only is Young Wallander very real, he's also legendary. To be fair to Mr. Young Wallander, the character is popular in Sweden, which probably explains why he remains such a mystery to me, a dumb American. There are a whole slew of novels (11 of which have been translated to English), a Swedish film series (9 films total), and a completely different TV series – called Wallander – that ran for 32 episodes and featured Krister Henriksson in the title role. Then there was a British TV series starring Kenneth Branagh as the character. So I'm starting to feel like a real idiot for not knowing any of this.
Young Wallander is the latest incarnation, and while it focuses on the character in his youth – Adam Pålsson – it's also set in the present day. Some Wallander fans may take issue with that, but Pålsson defended the decision in an interview: "What Henning Mankell wanted to do with the Wallander books was to use the detective genre to make a social commentary and to reach the audience with that. So to set it in the 1970s would not have been true to the Wallander spirit."
Anyway, Young Wallander season 2 will arrive sometime in 2021. For now, you can watch Young Wallander season 1 on Netflix. Unless it's not a real show. I'm still not convinced.