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Watching Ozark

Finally finished watching Ozark, it had been on our list for the longest time but four seasons felt like a big commitment. Much has been written about the show and everyone has their own perspective. To me it was a story about putting family first. The operating definition of family must of course adapt because only so many people can be put "first". The fringes of the family unit will not experience the protections afforded by the "family first" doctrine. And so it happens that a ex-husband can get roughed up so he is more able to fall in line, a couple of uncles are electrocuted and a brother is left to be disposed off by a hit-man. There are many such family units in the show and they all follow the same guiding principles for the most part - do what is right for the family and the rest does not matter. 

Right is always relative and mileages vary a great deal. These stories and sub-plots unfold in view of modern society that is deeply cynical. There are no consequences for bad deeds if the person doing them is rich, powerful or well-connected - sometimes they may be all of that. And finally, we see the slow hardening of an average suburban family into a life of complete criminality. For some reason this show holds and universal appeal. I can't recount how many people have recommended it to me over time and how different they are from each other. Like them I enjoyed it too.


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