CRYSTAL CUCKOO CAN'T STICK THE LANDING

The Crystal Cuckoo is Netflix's new limited series from Spain — a country that has steadily delivered some of the platform's most reliably gripping thrillers over the years.

- TATAT BUNNAG

A scene from The Crystal Cuckoo.

Consisting of six episodes, this crime drama keeps you guessing until the very end, or at least until the major reveal arrives. It’s dark, twisted and unsettling. The central crime is genuinely disturbing, and its depiction of violence against women will be difficult for many viewers to stomach. At times the narrative moves with a slow-burn rhythm, but at its core, the show presents a compelling mystery that draws you in.

I’ve never read the novel the series is adapted from, but I imagine fans of author Javier Castillo will be pleased with how this screen version unfolds.

The Crystal Cuckoo follows Clara Merlo, played by Catalina Sopelana, a first-year medical resident who suffers a sudden and massive heart attack.

Her subsequent transplant gives her a second chance at life — yet it also awakens an unshakeable instinct she cannot ignore. She needs to uncover the identity of her donor. This search leads Clara to a small, enigmatic town, where she eventually learns that the heart now beating inside her belonged to a young man whose death is tied to an unresolved tragedy. Her arrival triggers a chain of events that unravels a past many residents believed was buried forever.

The concept initially feels familiar. Stories about organ recipients seeking information about their donors have appeared in films and series before — sometimes even veering into supernatural territory with visions and premonitions guiding the protagonist. What I appreciated here is The Crystal Cuckoo avoids that angle.