Tales From The Loop Episode One "Loop"

"Not everything in life makes sense"

This might be the best description I can come up with for episode one of Tales From the Loop on Amazon Prime. As you may know this is a series based on the paintings of Simon Stålenhag and early impressions are good. This first episode sets the stage for  an anthology series that explores the lives of ordinary people in an extraordinary town. The paintings depict a Sweden from the 1980's with a twist- a particle accelerator underground has changed things, so alongside 80's aesthetics you have robots and abandoned futuristic machinery littering the landscape. It's an amazingly fresh juxtaposition and it works somehow. Amazon has moved the setting to rural America but I am glad to see they have captured the look and feel of the paintings very well. 

This episode gives us the premise of a small town in Ohio where impossible things can happen. This is more of a show about ordinary people who encounter extraordinary things, and how it affects them. The emphasis though is strictly on the people, and I like that. At the same time, however, this is clearly Tales From the Loop- the visual references are everywhere.

I saw some of my favorite paintings in the first few minutes of the show brought to life. It was so gratifying to see that done so well.

Loretta is a young girl whose mom is a little strange. Their relationship is a little off, too- she calls her mom Alma rather than "mom"- for reasons we don't really find out, but Alma has a secret. She works underground at the Loop- the particle accelerator that dominates the town- and when she disappears Loretta is all alone. She soon meets a boy named Cole and together they try to discover what happened to Alma. If you're thinking the Loop has something to do with it- well, you're not wrong.

This episode hit some real emotional beats for me- it's powerful but understated, with a message that is both bleak and hopeful. I can tell already that not every episode may have a happy ending, perhaps bittersweet is the best to hope for, and yet at the same time I was satisfied and it felt right. Being young can be a bitch, frankly, and this is just eerie enough to satisfy the Stranger Things vibe without becoming mired in the science fiction elements.

Things I liked:

The robots and whatnot in the background. One of the elements of the paintings is that this stuff just exists seamlessly along with the other visual elements of 80's Sweden.

As I mentioned, some of my favorite images were brought to life. It's never explained what they are- they're just there.

It's never stated when this is set but I'm guessing this episode anyway as 70's or 80's. The old phones and just the aesthetic- everything has that quaint older feel to it.

I highly recommend this show for some enjoyable binging and a nice break from reality.

"Not everything in life makes sense"

Pretty appropriate for the times, right? 

SPOILERS

Young Loretta staring at the cooling towers to start the show off- so perfect. 

Loretta being Cole's mom (!) freaked me out!

No easy answers- Loretta tells younger Loretta that they spend years trying to find out what happened with Alma, but they never find out why.