¡García!

¡García!
Genre
Created by
  • Sara Antuña
  • Carlos de Pando
Based on¡García!
by Santiago García & Luis Bustos
Written by
  • Sara Antuña
  • Carlos de Pando
Directed byEugenio Mira
Starring
Country of originSpain
Original languageSpanish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
CinematographyUnax Mendia
Production companies
  • Zeta Studios
  • García La Serie, S.L.
Original release
NetworkHBO Max
Release28 October (2022-10-28) –
25 November 2022 (2022-11-25)

¡García! (or García!) is a Spanish television series based on the graphic novel by Santiago García and Luis Bustos. Created by Sara Antuña and Carlos de Pando for HBO Max, it stars Francisco Ortiz and Veki Velilla. Eugenio Mira directed the 6 episodes.

Premise

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Set in a version of current-day Spain on the verge of societal collapse, the fiction follows Antonia, a reporter who accidentally unravels a decades-old plot concerning a super-agent created in the 1950s by the Francoist secret services, García, who was subsequently cryogenized. The latter, defrosted by Antonia, finds himself dazed and confused in current-day Spain.[1][2][3][4][5]

Cast

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Production

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Created and written by Sara Antuña and Carlos de Pando (showrunners of The Neighbor), ¡García! is an adaptation of the eponymous graphic novel by Santiago García and Luis Bustos.[9] The series is produced by García La Serie, S.L. (an ad-hoc production company linked to Zeta Studios) for WarnerMedia Original Programming.[2]

The project, billed as a "satirical thriller with sci-fi elements",[3] was greenlighted in May 2021. Miguel Salvat, Steve Matthews and Antony Root are credited as executive producers,[2][11] whereas Eugenio Mira was charged with the direction of the 6 episodes comprising the season, set to feature a running time of around 60 minutes.[9][4] Unax Mendia [ca] is the cinematography director.[12] Shooting in Madrid had already begun on 7 May 2021.[13]

Still in production, the project was showcased together with other HBO Max originals (Todo lo otro, Venga Juan and Sin novedad) at the 69th San Sebastián International Film Festival in September 2021.[14][15] On 25 October 2021, HBO Max released a teaser video, announcing an intended release date for 2022.[8]

Release

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The first two episodes made their world premiere at the Fantastic Fest in September 2022.[16][17] They also screened at the 55th Sitges Film Festival.[18][19] HBO Max released the first two episodes in 4K along with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos on 28 October 2022.[20] A free-to-air release of the first episode on Spanish channel DMAX was also programmed for 28 October 2022.[21]

Reception

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Raquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas rated the show with 80 points ("very good"), praising its "agile storytelling, the committed cast, and its boundless aesthetic and musical ambition".[22]

Pere Solà Gimferrer of La Vanguardia highlighted "an impeccable execution that knows how to recreate the adventurous spirit of Indiana Jones and the sense of action of the classic James Bond without renouncing to have its own identity".[23]

In the United States, Decider's Johnny Loftus also wrote a positive review for the series, concluding: "Garcia! offers a gleeful riff on spy movies, and a grip of chase and fight scenes right out of the Indiana Jones adventure handbook. But it also has something to say about the shifting tides of contemporary politics, between democracy and fascism, and that push and pull isn’t exclusive to contemporary Spain."[10]

Accolades

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Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2023 28th Critics' Choice Awards Best Foreign Language Series Nominated [24]
10th Feroz Awards Best Drama Series Nominated [25]
Best Supporting Actor in a Series Emilio Gutiérrez Caba Nominated
31st Actors and Actresses Union Awards Best Television Actor in a Minor Role Luis Rallo Nominated [26]
Arturo Querejeta Nominated

References

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  1. ^ "'¡García!': HBO Max anuncia su primera serie española, a cargo de los creadores de 'El vecino'". Cinemanía. 20minutos.es. 7 May 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "HBO Max anuncia su primera serie original en España: '¡García!', con producción de Zeta Studios". Audiovisual451. 7 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b "HBO Max anuncia '¡García!', thriller satírico con elementos de ciencia-ficción basado en un cómic del creador de 'El vecino'". Xataka. 7 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "HBO Max anuncia que ya produce '¡García!', su nueva serie española con sorpresas en el reparto". Vertele!. eldiario.es. 7 May 2021.
  5. ^ Jones, Sam (25 October 2022). "HBO Max series ¡García! brings fictional Francoist spy to small screen". The Guardian.
  6. ^ Arias, María José (24 October 2022). "'¡García!' desembarca en HBO Max, más parecido a Indiana Jones que al Capitán América". Público.
  7. ^ a b c d Chamorro, Coral (2022). "¡García! Superagente 1961". Fotogramas. 76 (2149): 86–88. ISSN 1889-9706.
  8. ^ a b "Primeras imágenes y teaser de '¡GARCÍA!', la nueva serie original de HBO Max sobre el superagente franquista del cómic". Cinemanía (in Spanish). 20minutos.es. 25 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g Lang, Jamie (7 May 2021). "HBO Max Defrosts Spain's Answer to Captain America with Live Action 'García!' Adaptation". variety.com.
  10. ^ a b c Loftus, Johnny (3 November 2022). "Stream It Or Skip It: 'Garcia!' on HBO Max, Where An Unfrozen '60s Spy Finds A Contemporary Spain Full Of Its Own Troubles". decider.com. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  11. ^ Lodderhouse, Diana (7 May 2021). "'Doctor Who' Star David Tennant Joins 'The Amazing Maurice'; HBO Max Greenlights Spanish-Language Original 'García'; Channel 4 Axes 'The Circle' – Global Briefs". Deadline Hollywood.
  12. ^ "HBO MAX arranca la producción de su nueva serie original, ¡GARCÍA! creada por Sara Antuña y Carlos de Pando". Camera and Light Mag. 7 May 2021.
  13. ^ "Filtradas primeras imágenes del rodaje de ¡García!". msn.com. 7 May 2021.
  14. ^ Mantilla, Daniel (19 September 2021). "HBO Max enseña en el Festival de San Sebastián un avance de sus primeras series originales en España". El Español.
  15. ^ Aller, María (19 September 2021). "HBO presenta sus series originales en el festival de San Sebastián". Fotogramas.
  16. ^ Zilko, Christian (16 August 2022). "Fantastic Fest Headlined by 'Bones and All,' 'Triangle of Sadness,' and a Park Chan-wook Tribute". IndieWire. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  17. ^ Rull, Carles (27 September 2022). "Dos películas españolas, 'Cerdita' y 'La piedad', triunfan en el palmarés del Fantastic Fest de Texas". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
  18. ^ Bautista Palacios, Gabriela (21 October 2022). "'¡García!', el superhéroe de la actualidad". Hoy Magazine.
  19. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (17 August 2022). "HBO Max Reveals First Teaser for 'García!' – Global Bulletin". Variety.
  20. ^ Pozo, José Carlos (17 August 2022). "Nuevo avance de ¡García!, que llega al catálogo de HBO Max en octubre". HobbyConsolas.
  21. ^ "DMAX emitirá en abierto el primer episodio de '¡García!', la nueva serie de HBO Max". Vertele!. 21 October 2022 – via eldiario.es.
  22. ^ Hernández Luján, Raquel (24 October 2022). "Crítica de ¡García!, una serie única, arriesgada y que podrás ver en HBO Max". HobbyConsolas.
  23. ^ Solà Gimferrer, Pere (26 October 2022). "De Londres al Valle de los Caídos sin dejar de ver buenas series". La Vanguardia.
  24. ^ Zhan, Jennifer (6 December 2022). "Abbott Elementary Leads TV Nominees for the 2023 Critics Choice Awards". vulture.com.
  25. ^ "Premios Feroz 2023 | Palmarés completo: empatan 'As bestas' y 'Cinco lobitos' en cine y 'La ruta' y 'No me gusta conducir' en series". Cinemanía. 29 January 2023 – via 20minutos.es.
  26. ^ Aller, María (31 January 2023). "Premios Unión de Actores 2023: conoce a los nominados de la XXXI edición". Fotogramas.


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