In Love with Tokyo and Nairobi

I wonder how many people will know from the title what I'm referring to here? It's certainly nothing to do with this photograph of John, taken after I'd already got my 'face' for the day. I didn't get any further than a short walk on the moor and with the weather being dull, the photography was rather dull too. John has a face that is far more interesting than yet another shot of the Hangingstone Pines.

With nothing flowing, and little energy in the bank, I decided to have a final binge watch of 'Money Heist' on Netflix. I'd been rationing my dose - with great discipline - to only one episode a night. A recommendation from Forrest, this is a Spanish language production and quite brilliantly written and acted. The direct translation of the title of the show should have been 'House of Paper'. I've no idea why they changed it to such a pedestrian alternative - unless they thought it was too close to the now tainted 'House of Cards'. Don't be put off. This is thrilling television. You should watch it if you have Netflix. I'm not going to give anything crucial away if you read on.

I chose my timing well in that I finished the first series just as the second series was released on Netflix, although, again, it's hard to know why they broke it up into two series at all. The original aired in Spain as a continuous run and is a complete story. I think it's fair to say that there won't be any further series. And that feels right. From my own writing, knowing when to end is vitally important. Finishing sooner rather than later is often better. It isn't necessary to tie up every loose end. It's almost essential that you don't.

As bank heists go, this one is near perfect, not least because nothing is truly ever stolen. Lines are blurred so that there are no good guys or bad guys. Every character is ambiguous. It's as much about love and loyalty as about a robbery. The plot is utterly preposterous, yet somehow, very cleverly, it always remains just about plausible nonsense rather than becoming the completely silly kind. The plot is heavy and hangs by a thread that twists and turns through every episode, threatening to collapse and fall apart but always staying suspended. Just. That's a cool trick to pull off. 

I did fall in love with both the female members of the gang - Tokyo, who narrates the story, and Nairobi - as much down to their feistiness as their fabulous looks. The leading men were great too: Berlin, Rio and Denver. I found it wonderful how perfectly matched they all became to the city names they adopted. They were all brilliantly characterised, as were the Professor - the mastermind behind the operation - and Raquel - the inspector in charge of the police operation.

I'm really writing about this to remind myself of these fabulously flawed characters. I never want to forget them - especially Tokyo and Nairobi!