When in doubt, fall back on the melodrama.Netflix’s latestMexican thriller dramaseries,The Accident,depends on its deep-rooted melodrama to save itselfwhen everything else points toward unending chaos. Doing justice by its title,Klych LópezandGracia Querejeta’s 10-episode Netflix series follows a group of characters who find themselves thrown into a game of vengeance, politics, lust, and hate (with a pinch of religion thrown in there) after a fateful accident befalls them. During a birthday party,three children meet an untimely deathafter a bouncy castle is thrown into the air by a strong gush of wind, thanks to the negligence of the father of the birthday boy, Emiliano (Sebastian Martínez). However, the series chooses not to give much time to the parents to grieve as a conspiracy starts building up around the identity of the real killer. Much to Emiliano’s bad luck, one of the fathers of the children who died, Charro (Alberto Guerra), seeks blood in return for blood. InThe Accident,what follows is a rollercoaster ride filled with melodrama and action, making the latest Mexican series on Netflix a must on your binge list for good and bad reasons.
The Characters Drive the Chaos in ‘The Accident’
Through the course ofThe Accident, a lot goes down, considering children die falling from bouncy houses, an amusement park deal takes place in the background, and even the “gringos” (a derogatory Mexican term for foreigners) make a brief appearance. Consequently,the series is filled with plot points and incidents that keep changingthe trajectory of the fate of the characters, ensuring there’s never a dull moment for the group of parents barely recovering from a tragedy.The Accidentfills its run-time with plenty of shocking moments, which are also borderline humorous. TheMexican series stretches its simple premise and adds a lot of complicated charactersat the core of its story to conjure the madness it puts forth. In essence, it is the Mexican Wild West, and the children jumping on a bouncy house moments before their death (no, this is not a spoiler) is only symbolical of the characters and the choices they make. To err on the side of error is the motto of this show —a reason why fans have loved it ever since its arrival on Netflix.
For instance, you might wonder how and when these characters found a reason to be together in the same place. Without taking names, the attendees of the birthday party include an aspiring businessman fixated on an amusement park, an opportunistic journalist, a criminally oriented guy with dubious qualities, a local cop, and a single father who’s the former partner of an aspiring actress, among others.The show picks the perfect lot of characters to increase the potential for chaosbecause there’s only so much it can do with its one-line premise of a birthday party gone wrong. As a result, bad choices by characters are to be expected at all times, but it must be understood that the characters are only being made to look stupid in the service of a show that takes itself very seriously (even though it shouldn’t). For example, much later in the show, one of the characters, played bySense8’sEréndira Ibarra,stages a murder inspired by the Evil Queen’smodus operandiof killing Snow Whitewith a poisoned apple. Thankfully, despite the obvious randomness of the story, there is some order to be found in the show’s world, credit to the incredible cast performances that make the chaos worth enduring.
Netflix’s ‘The Accident’ Goes Heavy on Its Melodrama
The Accidentis a Mexican series that shows how bonkers Mexicansoap opera-styleddramas can be enjoyed, both for their stories and stylistic elements. In the opening episode,the series heads into multiple flash-forwardsto add to the drama of an impending accident that has a ripple effect on everything to follow. Naturally, the show does not try to keep “the accident” as the big surprise here, given the title doesn’t leave anything for the imagination. But despite that, the way the event unfolds is a truly unique. In its first act,The Accidentmakes it clear that there’s nothing normal about this show, even the tragedy. The show goes the whole nine yards in trying to make the audience believe in the bizarre nature of the accident — which actually has its roots in a lot of real-life tragedies, according toABC. Above all, melodrama is the heart and soul of this series, and that is what makes the show so addictive.
There’s Plenty of Suspense Without Any Real Mystery in ‘The Accident’
Theseries follows anepisodic cliffhangerformatwhich adds to the thrill and suspense experienced while watching the series and consuming the journey undertaken by the characters. Clearly, by revealing the identity of the one responsible for the deaths of the children in the first episode, the show rids itself of the responsibility of rising up to the expectations of a tightly-wounded whodunit. But despite the lack of any significant mystery to push the story forward,The Accidentmanages tocreate suspense by keeping the fate of its characters in the shadows consistently. Emiliano keeps going in and out of jail, with the man’s fate never becoming clear. He then shares a turbulent love-hate relationship with his wife and daughter. The show briefly introduces an ex-lover of Emiliano’s wife, Daniella (Ana Claudia Talancón), to spice things up. Then there are drug-addicted teenage kids in the mix to add complications to the already complicated lives of the adults, who do not seem to find any respite in this show.
The best part about Netflix’sThe Accidentis that despite acting gritty and rough,the ten-episode series is remarkably humorous in its treatment, albeit unintentionally.Sometimes this is so exaggerated that it feels like a parody of a more serious show. Yet, all the characters are engrossing and you want to root for them. While ten-episode seasons are a rarity nowadays,The Accidenthas so much happening in it that it’s guaranteed to keep the audience engaged. For good or bad,The Accidentendson a promising note story-wise, leaving room for a potential return, if the stars align.
All episodes ofThe Accidentare available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
The Accident
After a tragic bouncy castle incident sends shockwaves through a community, three families are caught in a web of guilt, anger, and grief. The series examines how the event transforms their lives, revealing hidden secrets and testing their emotional resilience.
Watch on Netflix
