Keeping Up With Netflix: '1670' (2023)

You know, I'm only halfway through the series, and I just HAVE to get on here and pimp the shit out of this show. If you have Netflix, check it out. It's absolutely hilarious and bizarre. Now I love Derry Girls and their frenetic, insane humor, but what I'm getting from 1670 is more MY preferred brand of humor. Deadpan, dry, and just absurd -- think Cunk on Earth but Polish and set in the 17th century with a narrative. 

I've seen viewers compare it to The Office in tone and approach (mockumentary), and so many things about this series tick all the right boxes for me. With humor, especially historical settings, anything that's modern and anachronistic adds a certain layer of ridiculousness that works perfectly within the show's context. 

For instance, there's a horse that's being back parked in its space (with a second person guiding the rider with commands, etc.). There's a 17th century version of the iPhone. The Erasmus Peasant Exchange Program between Poland and Lithuania. There's climate change. And several smaller, less obvious details that are better off being experienced as part of the whole than isolated and picked apart. It's glorious. 

I laughed watching Derry Girls, but it wasn't as hard and consistent as when I'm watching 1670. I'm talking loud, stomachache-inducing laughter. I honest to God hope there's a second season, but I'm not putting my money on it. The series itself looks pretty expensive to produce with the costumes and props and all that, and I'm grateful to have all eight episodes to come back to over and over again when the mood hits. 

I also tried to find a Netflix trailer in the original Polish language with English subtitles (which is how I'm watching the series), but I can only find the English dub version. This trailer, though, is from the Netflix Polish channel, so you'll have to click the CC button to see the subtitles in English. 

The series in a nutshell: "In this satirical comedy, a zany nobleman navigates through family feuds and clashes with peasants in his quest to become Poland's most famous figure." The spirit of dry, witty humor lives on with absurdity levels cranked to maximum, and I'm here for it. FOR ALL OF IT.