1899

A transatlantic passenger ship bound for New York in 1899 becomes the setting for a series of unsettling occurrences that force crewmembers and immigrants to question reality. As odd signals, unexplained events, and secretive behaviors pile up, a handful of travelers including a ship doctor, the captain, and assorted emigrants try to piece together what’s happening while their own pasts start to surface. Language differences, personal agendas, and strange coincidences deepen the mystery, and the voyage turns from a routine crossing into a sealed-off experiment in fear, memory, and inexplicable phenomena. The show keeps its surprises, so major twists and outcomes are left for viewers to discover.

Released on Netflix in 2022, the series was created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, the duo behind Dark. It’s presented as a multilingual, high-concept mystery drama with an international cast led by Emily Beecham and Andreas Pietschmann.

The series prompted a lot of online theorizing and discussion, especially around its cryptic imagery and puzzle-like structure. Fans compared its layered storytelling to other complex European genre shows, and dedicated communities formed to translate clues and share interpretations across languages.

Critics and viewers were split over its ambition and execution, reflected in a 7.505/10 average from 1,427 votes. Many praised the atmospheric production design, mood, and the show's willingness to take risks, while others found the plotting overly dense and occasionally slow. Recurring themes include migration, identity, grief, and the instability of perceived reality, all framed within a period setting that keeps emotional stakes close to the characters.

Although it attracted strong attention and a vocal fanbase, the show did not sweep major international awards, and its most notable legacy lies in the conversations it generated about serialized, multilingual mysteries on streaming platforms. Its visual approach and puzzle-centric storytelling have continued to influence how viewers expect prestige genre TV to challenge them.