Opinion | Ani Bundel: Forget 'Game of Thrones,' HBO's most gripping series this year is 'Chernobyl' - NBCNewsTHINK
, who takes his own life on the second anniversary of the accident, almost down to the minute. It then jumps back in time to the moment of the explosion two years ago, and the frightening denial, scapegoating and ignorance that permeated the crucial first hours after the explosion.
The second episode contains a priceless moment where a party official, presented with the truth about what is happening not far from his bureau by scientist Ulana Khomyuk , responds “I prefer my opinion to yours.” It is a line that sums up the attitude of everyone in charge at the plant. They would prefer to believe that the reactor is just fine, and anyone who comes in to say otherwise — even the ones who may literally be dying — must be wrong.
But the finale is the show’s crowning achievement. In it, the series jumps ahead to 1987 and the trial of the middle managers who ran the plant while simultaneously backtracking to the day before the explosion. The summation of events is damning. From falsified paperwork claiming previous tests were successful to petty power, the level of casual mendacity among the plant’s officials is astounding.
Clearly, there is a lesson here about those who rise to power because they know which boots to lick. But the series also serves as a broader indictment of the culture of secrecy that surrounds so much of governmental work. When lies are the currency of promotion, lies become the way of life.
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