HBO's 'Chernobyl' Is A Riveting Miniseries That Will Haunt You

A dark and eye opening revisit of this planet’s worst nuclear disaster.

Jamie Mah @grahammah

As the whole world debates the ups and downs of this final season of Game of Thrones, HBO, the sly network they are, “casually” decided to release a short five episode miniseries reenacting the tragic events of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster which struck northern Ukraine in late April 1986.

With the recent successes of My Brilliant Friend, Big Little Lies and The Night Of, HBO’s Chernobyl will no doubt stand alongside these three as another example of storytelling done right.

I was hooked from its opening as were led to watch Mad Men alum Jared Harris (he plays scientist Valery Legasov) struggle with life two years after the disaster. His guilt and subsequent action sets the stage for a horrifyingly sad tale of confusion, power and disorder, all of which eventually destroys a city and remakes a nation.

Created by Craig Mazin, directed by Johan Renck and starring Stellan Skarsgard, Emily Watson and the aforementioned Harris, the series follows the events of the explosion and its subsequent failures, as nearly all those involved show a lack of understanding and a much needed sense of urgency towards the disaster they’ve now created.

This absence of foresight is maddening to watch as the men who work at the plant try to explain what they’ve seen to their superiors, who as you’d never want to them to be, are beholden to an infallibility that nothing is wrong even when faced with the obvious truth that something is.

Even though this event happened only 33 years ago, you quickly witness the differences in technological ability as communication is broken down numerous times, resulting in missed opportunities to save many from harm. Instead of having cameras stationed all over the reactor as would be the case now, we see firsthand how men with limited protection are told to head into areas they know are dangerous and highly radioactive so as to appease their stubborn commanding officers and their orders. As is often the case with any horror movie, you find yourself screaming inside as those involved do the wrong thing over and over again.

Harris and Skarsgard lead the show as both men grapple with the situation they now must face, one in which Skarsgard quickly realizes is going to be a lot more difficult to solve than he’d originally expected. He plays real-life figure Borys Shcherbina, who, in the beginning is so reluctant to hearing Harris’ character out he threatens to throw him out of a helicopter if he were to be wrong about his analysis.

Eventually Skarsgard’s smugness subsides, as he sees firsthand the damage which has been done to reactor #4. The core has exploded. Death is imminent for many and it’s finally starting to set in.

The fate of thousands rests in the hands of the state and it’s in the way Mazin has written** their portrayal which hits the hardest. The state is steadfast in their denial of the accident. They try to cover it up and are willing to do whatever is necessary to prevent it from becoming global news.

As word begins to spread, their role in how this accident was handled is showcased with a ludicrous amount of toxic masculinity and a braggadocio often reserved for super villains. Skarsgard’s character is a shining example of this early on.

Luckily for all involved, it isn’t until Emily Watson’s character, scientist Ulyana Khomyuk, shows up with a startling revelation of excess water build up in the base of the reactor, which if left as it is, could potentially cause a massive explosion, that smarter heads begin to prevail. Yet, even in these early days, it becomes abundantly clear that for many, death is upon them as radiation exposure begins to take its toll on those of the town.

Evacuation is a must.

**Mazin took most of his inspiration from Andrew Leatherbarrow’s excellently researched 2016 book, “Chernobyl 01:23:40: The Incredible True Story of the World’s Worst Nuclear Disaster.”

With three episodes still to air, Chernobyl is a cautionary tale of how power, poor training and denial can come together to create a disaster the world has yet to see since.

I’m excited to continue watching. I am, however, haunted that this event ever happened in the first place.