I never write reviews but the reviews from some UK viewers (mainly) were very "off" in my opinion.
I usually don't watch Swedish TV, the acting tends to be very stiff and construed most of the time. So, I was hesitant to watch this show at first, but if I get a recommendation I usually give it a try. After having lived in South East Asia for half a year I was also looking forward to get some nostalgia. Now, to the actual review.
When I afterwards talked to the person who recommended it to me I told her: "Fantastic show! I didn't like one single character!"
And this is not entirely true, some characters really grew on me (Glenn especially), while some were strong for the entire series (e.g. Oh). But in general, the main characters were not very sympathetic, not even Majlis who let her insecurities rule her into continuous irresponsible decisions. This is not a problem for me, in fact, I find it to be a nice change from all the American TV-shows where you like even the most annoying characters (very often even more so). "30 degrees in February" showed genuine characters, people that we have all met and that we can maybe even identify ourselves with. People are idiots, but people are also wonderful; there are no absolutes, and this series captured that beyond anything I have ever seen.
TV-shows that focus so much on character development often loses its tempo and direction, but in this series the character development was the show and it kept its own momentum. Living in Cambodia and traveling in Thailand I saw all these characters in different places, all of them looking for something; from the young girl escaping responsibilities to the woman redefining her life without her husband. I recognized all the struggles of the characters, and I think that the script writers and producers portrayed how the characters dealt with them very realistically, although fictionally of course.
In answer to some earlier reviewers: Maybe you should watch both seasons of the show?
I am not fond of the idea that something should be made less realistic in order to catch the attention of the viewers. In fact, that is the opposite of what I would want, and there is already plenty of shows like that (and of course, theater).
All in all, the show was beautiful and gave a realistic depiction of Swedes in Thailand, especially those going to these areas cramped with other Swedes. If you are Swedish you can definitely relate in some way, and if you are not, then this could be a crash course to how different Swedes can be. Because we are not all the same, and maybe you didn't meet these Swedes yet (normally you wouldn't because they only hang out with other Swedes), but I can promise you that they exist.
