Without any Swedish ancestry - I still believe Allt for Sverige (AFS) to be television excellence. The format is nothing short of genius. It is a docu-soap that manages to avoid, almost, all the "nastyties" normally associated with the genre. In fact; whereas most docu-soaps focus on raising conflicts between the contestants, AFS is committed to draw out the best in people and only rarely loses its focus on positivity.
Allt for Sverige is centred around patriotism - not nationalism. The definition between the two has becomes blurred of late, so some explanation may be in order: Patriotism is founded on pride of place, pride of where you live. Patriotism does NOT exclude the possibility for others to be equally patriotic about another "culture, town, country or region" - nor does it exclude others from joining in.
So there you have it. AFS is a show that is intended to, not only make Swedes proud of their country but also to, invite others to feel welcome and "at home" in her culture and surroundings. Achieving the objective requires some, pretty blatant, bragging about Sweden as a whole... and that's fine.
A more harsh review may claim that: AFS is a feel good docu-soap that is grossly over-rhetorical. It may firther argue that there are no holds barred in creating the make believe; "everything in Sweden is utopian".
But that would be missing the point. AFS is, like any other show in the format, "rigged for effect". The difference here being that it is not "conflict" it is rigged to create. You are more likely to end up with a warm fuzzy feeling and, maybe, a more positive outlook on the world in general and Sweden in particular - and, surely, that has one up on irritation frustration and anger.
Of course it's a must see. Who doesn't need to see the world from a lighter more positive perspective - even if it is partly a fantasy?
