“Remoted” – Workday 134 / Day 196 (Monday)

I’ve been watching Bordertown, a Finnish crime drama, partly to hear in conversation the language I’m learning with Duolingo. It seemed it would also nice to focus on some drama of the non-American political type. Except even in a Finnish crime drama there are politics and land deals and payoffs, and issues between the small town on the border and Russia. And just weird stuff. 

Sometimes I wonder ... 

For example, the main character is a police officer. The family left Helsinki for a small town so he could spend more time with his family. Of course, his job is with a special crimes unit, and now the small town is riddled with murders. One of the city officials even commented that he brought the crime with him. No, my Finnish isn’t that good, it’s the magic of subtitles.

The 16-year old daughter went to a party, someone drugged her drink and she ended up face down in the pool. The policeman father arrived on the scene in the nick of time and got her out, she was brought to the hospital and her stomach was pumped. Afterward, there no consequences at home. I kept waiting for a big lecture and a punishment, but life just resumed like nothing had happened. I guess parents in Finland are different, or at least these TV show parents.

Heck, in my teenage life in America, I was grounded one week for every five minutes past curfew – which was usually 11, but might be 12 for a super special event. Once, I was grounded for two weeks for being ten minutes late getting home from a dance where my date had left the headlights on and the car battery was dead when we got out. Then we hit every red light between St. Bernard’s High School and my house. I opened the door to Mom standing there glaring at her watch. The punishment was decreed, no explanations allowed and I was sent to my room. Thank goodness I had a job or I’d probably never have been allowed out of the house.

Another two-episode story arc waltzed right into unbelievable nonsense. The family is being held hostage in their home and the father is being forced to work on a missing person case for the home invaders. Another hostage (friend of the daughter who came to visit at the wrong time) is enlisted to translate documents because she knows Russian. By “enlisted,” I mean they cut her loose from the bedroom furniture she was duct taped to and she got to go to another room to look at papers. Then they let her leave.

In case that isn’t enough, guys from the field text him fresh crime scene photos from a case but one of the kidnappers has the phone. Then, the policeman sits there explaining what he sees in the photos and discussing the case with the kidnapper. Meanwhile, two different law enforcement agencies are just hanging around outside the house, periodically phoning to check on things. For two days. I mean, come on. Seriously? 

Each time I think it can’t get any weirder, it does and I'm left wondering when it will end. It’s presented like a drama, but parts of it just seem ridiculous and comical. Sort of like the real life stuff I was trying to escape.