What if the end of the world foretold in Norse myth arrived not with trumpets but with unseasonal rain? Ragnarok, a fantasy drama series from 2020 credited to Adam Price, plants that old prophecy in a present-day Norwegian town where the weather has stopped behaving.
What is Ragnarok about?
The setting is a small community in Norway, the kind of place where everyone knows everyone and little is expected to change. Yet something clearly is changing. Winters that ought to be bitterly cold turn mild, and when the rain comes it comes in violent bursts that the town has never had to cope with before. Most residents shrug and carry on. A few begin to suspect that these are warning signs of something much larger, a slide toward the catastrophe the old stories called Ragnarök. The series follows the young people caught in the middle of this, at school and at home, as it becomes clear that the disaster is not inevitable. It can still be stopped, though only if somebody is willing to step forward and act before the chance is gone.
About the cast
The principal cast is made up of David Alexander Sjøholt, Jonas Strand Gravli, Theresa Frostad Eggesb, Herman Tømmeraas, Emma Bones and Tani Dibasey. Adam Price carries the directing credit in the catalogue. Much of the ensemble plays characters of school age, so the series depends on young performers to carry both its everyday drama and its larger, stranger moments.
Context & significance
Ragnarok belongs to two genres at once, drama and fantasy, and it keeps them in close balance. The fantastical side draws on Scandinavian mythology, in which Ragnarök names the final destruction of the world. The dramatic side is rooted in recognisable modern life: classrooms, family tensions, friendships and a town whose routines are being disturbed. Joining the two is the environment itself. Warm winters and extreme downpours are the first hint that anything is wrong, which gives the story a strong connection to present-day worries about climate without leaving its mythic frame. The catalogue lists the series as a production of Denmark, while the story unfolds in Norway. Episodes run about 45 minutes each, a length that suits both viewing one chapter at a time and watching several in a row. It should appeal to viewers who enjoy coming-of-age stories, Nordic settings and legends retold in contemporary dress.
Watching Ragnarok on Ktime
Ragnarok can be streamed on K-Time with a Persian dub or with Persian subtitles over the original audio, according to your preference. Anyone may read this page; watching episodes requires being signed in to a K-Time account. K-Time serves the Iranian diaspora with a Farsi-language interface throughout, from browsing to playback.