REVIEW: Borgen – Power & Glory (2022)

‘Borgen – Power and Glory,’ the fourth season of ‘Borgen’ is available on DR in Denmark and on Netflix internationally. It consists of eight episodes.

A Danish political drama and international hit, Adam Price’s Borgen is a critically acclaimed television show that takes its viewers into the Danish political system by focusing both on politicians, their families, their spin doctors, and the media. It originally ran for three seasons from 2010 to 2013, but has now been revived by the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) and Netflix for a new season titled Borgen – Power and Glory (Borgen – Riget, Magten og Æren in Danish).

The show still consists of most of its original cast (with a few notable exceptions like Pilou Asbæk) with Sidse Babett Knudsen and Birgitte Hjort Sørensen still playing the two lead roles. In Power and Glory, Knudsen still plays Birgitte Nyborg Christensen, the Foreign Minister who was previously the first female Prime Minister, whereas Sørensen, who you almost definitely saw in Game of Thrones playing Karsi in the critically acclaimed episode ‘Hardhome,’ plays Katrine Fønsmark, a journalist and former news anchor who, in the fourth season, becomes the head of news at the news channel TV1.

This fourth season revolves around a sudden discovery of oil in Greenland that threatens to derail Birgitte Nyborg’s career, her family, and her party’s environmental politics. She, and the Danish government, has to navigate international interest, calls for independence in Greenland, as well as try to remain in government while taking potentially controversial stances on hot-button issues.

I consider myself to be a big fan of, especially, the first two seasons of the show, so I was excited to see the show be brought back. And, for the most part, I really enjoyed this season. I was impressed by how immediate and timely the show felt. There are events that transpire that are obviously inspired by real-life Danish politics (like the text messages or the Prime Minister’s SoMe focus, which is a not-so-subtle reference to real-life Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen) but also international events like sanctions against Russia and more. When it comes to the cast, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard (A Royal Affair; The Chestnut Man) is also a really nice addition to the show, and I think he was able to make up for some of the actors that I missed seeing more of this season, even though his romantic subplot sometimes felt a little bit soapy, to me.

In general, I think the Birgitte Nyborg section of the show worked really well. They’ve done a good job of communicating how she has to adapt to a new role in politics, communication, and at home, and the show has also showcased that she may lose sight of her own politics in the daily struggle to stay on top. I think most of it really works and is compelling. On the other side of the show, however, it didn’t always feel like Katrine Fønsmark’s arc, which is focused on her micro-managing her team at TV1, worked. More generally, I must also admit that I thought the concluding events in the season felt a little bit too easy, dishonest, or contrived. That said, it was still a solid season of political drama that I would recommend to fans of the genre, but I don’t think it is must-see TV.

B

– Review Written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen..