Netflix Review: ‘Kaos’ Brings Greek Mythology to the Present with Intriguing Results

Believing in a literal interpretation of biblical history can be challenging because the modern-day world just isn’t the same as the ancient one written about in books. The occurrence of miracles and the presence of deities in human life just doesn’t jive with a society populated by electric vehicles and flat-screen televisions. Imagining what classical mythologies might be like in the present is an interesting experiment, one that Netflix’s limited series Kaos tries with its re-envisioning of the story of the Greek gods.

In this show’s world, the gods are real and citizens worship them. Zeus (Jeff Goldblum) rules from on high but has a poor relationship with his many children, with only Dionysus (Nabhaan Rizwan) desperate for his approval. The appearance of a wrinkle on Zeus’ forehead coincides with a Trojan desecration meant to provoke him and his kind on a day typically honoring the deities. As Zeus begins to panic and to try to determine from his long-tormented prisoner Prometheus (Stephen Dillane) whether an ominous prophecy will soon come true, a mortal, Riddy (Aurora Perrineau), makes an irreversible choice that will have unexpected consequences.

This series, which comes from Charlie Covell, best known for writing another Netflix hit, The End of the F***ing World, is bursting with undeniable creativity. After explicitly stating that she defies the gods, Riddy swiftly finds her time on Earth ended and next appears in a black-and-white scene where she and many others are wearing life vests, making an intense sea crossing with announcements about Hades. Military ceremonies are put together to serve the gods, including human sacrifices and other traditions that feel totally out of touch with what audiences will expect to see in a twenty-first-century setting.

Casting Goldblum as Zeus is a stroke of genius since he oozes charisma the moment he first appears, and he also feels like the perfect person to play a god delirious with power who’s bothered by the fact that the people don’t love him as much as he’d like. It’s reminiscent in ways of Steve Buscemi in the first season of Miracle Workers, though Goldblum’s Zeus feels considerably less innocent and more prone to malicious vengeance. The zaniness he projects, seen recently in the final season of Search Party, is on full display and perfectly appropriate to the role.

Surrounding Goldblum is an overflowing ensemble of top-tier talent. Janet McTeer is a formidable match for her onscreen husband as the unforgiving Hera, and David Thewlis and Cliff Curtis are terrific as Hades and Poseidon, respectively. As a tortured narrator, Dillane’s Prometheus works well, and Rizwan completes the circle of deities with a far less polished and much more reckless take on a character whose chaotic spiral is very worthwhile to watch. Mourning the loss of his fiancée, Killian Scott enlivens the bruised musician Orpheus, and Perrineau is more than capable of holding her own against any of her costars as a defiant survivor.

The mix of tales told throughout the centuries and people living in a world not that unlike our own is indeed odd, and it feels at times like Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus or the alternate history drama Noughts + Crosses, close enough to our reality but different enough to be unnerving. While there is some comedy to the way that the gods act, it’s overshadowed at times by dark drama that probes very disturbing territory. The balance between those two tones isn’t always as delicate or effective as it could be, but overall the show is lively and inventive enough to sustain interest for the length of its eight hourlong episodes, a thought-provoking experiment that leaves much to ponder.

Series Rating: 7/10

Awards Buzz: This is solid entertainment but likely not awards fare. Even with his typical flair, Goldblum is rarely feted, and this show might also not fit nearly enough into any one genre for voters to get solidly behind it.