What if we had lost World War II? What would life be like under Nazi and Imperial Japanese law?

If there is anything else besides the Apocalypse that humanity is obsessed about, it is the “what ifs” and alternative history. How better to predict and project alternative history than through books such as The Man in the High Castle by Phillip K. Dick, later adapted into a drama series streamed through Amazon Prime.

The Man in the High Castle predicts an alternative history taking place in 1962, 15 years after an alternative ending to World War II (which in this scenario lasted until 1947). The United States had lost, and the nation is divided into three sectors: The east coast stretching to the Rocky Mountains is under rule of the Nazis and is called the Great Nazi Reich. West of the Rocky Mountains is under Imperial Japan control and called the Japanese Pacific States. The Rocky Mountains serve as the third zone, a neutral zone and buffer between the two colonies.

This alternative history depicts a world where all American control has been eradicated and replaced with Fascism rule and a totalitarian government.

The show opens in a traditional way to hook audiences through in medias res. After the first episode, I was left wondering exactly what was going on and what happened to make the United States and its citizens live a harsh life where they could be executed in the streets for doing anything that the government perceived was wrong.

The pilot begins with a man accepting a mission from the American resistance. The resistance is discovered by the Nazis and almost everyone is shot or rounded up and executed. But a main character who accepted in the job was able to escape and drive off with the cargo he needs to ship to the neutral zone.

The other man character is a woman who witnesses her sister being executed in the street for some crime that is unknown to her. The sister (Trudy) is able to give Juliana her bag containing films that depict America winning the war, shortly before she is murdered.

These films seems to play a vital role in the show and are banned under the totalitarian and fascist laws, anyone possessing these films is found guilty of treason and executed in the streets.

For someone like me, this just seems to be your typical run of the mill drama and is nothing special. But like most television shows I’ve ever watched, not everything is revealed in the first episode. You have to watch the series / season as a whole. I would definitely give this series a shot and see if it has potential.

The Man in the High Castle is a show with a slow build but has the potential to be something phenomenal if approached and produced correctly.

If you are someone who is fascinated by alternative history and dystopian societies, or just a huge fan of Phillip K. Dick, then you probably will like this show.

Rating: 4/5 Slow build but has potential.