In my opinion, and I say this without remorse, there is currently nothing better in domestic production.

We remember January 15 as an important date in recent Croatian history. Although it coincided by chance, that date could be symbolically important for Croatian television production as well. The third season of "Rest in Peace" starts at 9 pm on the First Program of the national television. This season once again pushes the boundaries of Croatian production and shows how it is possible, even within our framework, to make a valuable product. After the first season took journalist Lucija Car to Vukovšćak prison, where each episode dealt with the graves of former prisoners, the second set a more ambitious story in Istria, a new concept for Croatian production at the time: one season - one story. The third season can be seen as a combination of these two approaches, with additional production, acting, directing, and screenwriting progress that sets the bar high for future projects. For the benefit of all of us, I hope that "Rest in Peace" will not be left alone in its ambition, but that we will use the lesson they offer us. We could briefly reduce it to: "the best stories are around us".

After watching four episodes, we can find links to the current moment in the story. Some are obvious, and some are hidden and scattered throughout the plot as "Easter eggs" that we must find. I am glad to see that the series has overcome the constant pains of domestic productions in which characters do not develop, sometimes to the level of caricature. In "Rest in Peace" the familiar characters from previous seasons are present with a trace of what happened to them, and it's interesting to see how they cope with traumas. Because of this, it seems to me, the third season can be divided into two general levels: the trauma of the individual and the trauma of society. Lucija Car, as the central character of the story, fights the demons of the past while trying to find meaning in the present. I have to point out the dynamics of Nina Erak and Judita Franković who, as colleagues in the office, give the series a comic-relief that the story lacked in previous seasons, so it seemed gloomier than it should have been. Also, I must mention that there are more comic moments than in the previous two seasons, and they do not seem forced, so it is one of the elements why season three stands out in comparison to seasons one and two.

I am glad to notice the progress in the development of the character of Lucija's brother Goran (Ivan Ožegović). One of the main objections I pointed out after the first season was the characterization of her mother (Jasna Odorčić) and brother who did not have a clearly defined purpose and - especially in the case of Lucija's brother in a wheelchair - gave the impression of a caricature. In season three it has been corrected, so a person with a disability is no longer just a means of achieving empathy but acts as a full-blooded character who has function and meaning in the story. Moving people with disabilities from the level of clichés to the level of a character who has something to say is another important moment by which "Rest in Peace" moved the boundaries of what we have had the opportunity to see in our production so far. There is a clear need for the series to move barriers, and I mean both the technical ones and the expectations. "Rest in Peace" is a series that wants to communicate with the audience without hiding that it gambles with the question of whether the audience wants to communicate at all. The space of recognizing everyday life that opens the third season of "Rest in Peace" may be the main reason why you should turn on your TVs. It is important to point out that this series does not underestimate the audience, and that is a welcome refreshment for Croatian production, you will agree.

The willingness to take risks accompanies every project that has a desire to shake up what we are used to. Since 2011, Ring Produkcija has not come to terms with stubbornness and established procedures. Already in the first episode of the new season, through the interplay of Lucija Car and Mate Šušnjara (Dragan Despot), you will notice the complexity of the relationship in which it will not be clear whether Despot plays an antagonist here (which is undoubtedly the case in the first two seasons) or his character division. Despot and Franković complement each other as they start from completely different starting points to clarify the mystery through the story. The mystery, which I won't talk too much about, includes the "gray eminence" of society and the golden youth it produces. Can children be blamed for their parents’ actions, and is there a narrative in which they are morally superior to them? I like the use of "golden youth" as a catalyst for action. Intelligently connecting what we can read in the newspaper/watch in the news with the fictional world of the series leaves the impression that we recognize the elements of the series storyline when we open any portal. The script seems to portray in many things the media and society we deserve, instead of the ones we have. The self-referentiality that the series achieves in this way seems natural.

The last part I want to emphasize, although this is only the first text about the third season of several planned, is a supplement to the direction of Goran Rukavina, the photography by Darko Drinovac, and a repetitive song by Pips, Chips & Videoclips - "K1".

Is it possible to "be good in an evil world"? Check out on Monday, at 9 pm, on HRT 1, as well as on the HRTi multimedia service. In my opinion, and I say this without remorse, there is currently nothing better in domestic production.

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