The 5 proofs that Undercover is more fun than Penoza

All of the Netherlands is in an uproar about the newest (and first, by the way) Dutch Netflix series Undercover. And by all of the Netherlands, I also mean myself, as I have found myself multiple times lately at camping Zonnedauw. Virtually, that is. I must confess that I haven't camped much in recent years (or does Lowlands count?), and I thought it was still about walking with the toilet paper towards the toilets. That there the exciting conversations took place or during the collective dishwashing. But no, there are now just chalets at the campsite that are bigger than many (okay, including mine) apartments in Amsterdam. So just give me a one-way ticket to Zonnedauw, please. Nice and cozy. And a little less drug dealing, because I'm not really into that and I think I would be particularly bad at it. And I had that thought about Penoza too: I would really be a worthless criminal. But the criminals from the Penoza era are now passé and the Limbo's are taking over. And I'm fine with that. Because, I dare to say: Undercover is so much more fun than Penoza. Yes, really. Just read along for a moment, you will agree with me.

1. That accent. I read everywhere that people can't understand it, and yes, I also watched the first five minutes without subtitles and found myself in a complete state of confusion. Just flip it and reverse it with subtitles. And that Limburg, Belgian, French, whatever-it-may-be accent does have something, you know. A big ecstasy boss, pots of gel in that mat, nice PSV scarf on top... I already love our Dutch Pablo Escobar.

2. Daniëlle or Carmen? Daniëlle of course. A night out at Het Wokpaleis (I really hoped there was a restaurant that was actually called that), downing bottles of wine... You can have a fun evening with Daan, you know. Just chilling with Khaleesi on the couch. I've never seen Carmen have a carefree fun evening. Maybe that's also because Daan is a bit oblivious to Fer's criminal affairs, but hey, ignorance is bliss, of course. So just pour Daan and me another drink.

3. LUTHER. Yes, Penoza did that well, because I will never see him as anything other than Luther. But is a series about criminals in the Netherlands complete without Raymond Thiry? Of course not. And he can liquidate half the cast for my part, I still think he's such a nice guy. The most sympathetic murderer. And I don't know, but I always have the feeling that he protects you. With Luther, you are safe. Uh, sorry, John, in this case. The most ideal right-hand man there is.

4. Undercover is nice and straightforward. Maybe this is also partly because there is only one season of it, but I was completely lost at times with Penoza. ‘The Coach’, ‘Uncles’, ‘Speedy’, ‘The Moustache’... Completely lost. Who were all those people again? So here it's just nice and simple: Ferry is the drug lord. No fuss, no nickname. Just nice Fer and Daan at the campsite. In fact, Ferry found it suspicious that Bob/Peter would use a false name. That's how it is: real criminals just use their own name.

5. The humor. I have laughed (chuckled) here and there at Undercover. Especially Filip on his mobility scooter at the campsite. But there are many nice dry moments that keep it a bit lighter. With Penoza, it was all very heavy-hearted. As I mentioned earlier in point number 2: Carmen could occasionally relax a bit. Go to a sauna. Go on vacation. Open that bottle of wine. Drink your worries away for a moment. In almost all scenes with Daan (we can all just call him Daan now, right?) I had a smile on my face.

So yes, these are the main reasons why Undercover really wins over Penoza. I am willing to reconsider things after the upcoming Penoza movie , but I don't expect a different outcome. I do want to emphasize that we have learned two very important things from both series: all important criminals always wear a leather jacket and they always call their business ‘the shop’. So if you aspire to a career in the underworld: this is how to be a criminal 101.