Netflix is no stranger to some of its original content being greeted with less than open arms by critics, but a hard-hitting drama based on a real-life disaster that threatened to forever shake the world as we know it to the very core doesn’t come across as one of the potential candidates. And yet, The Days hasn’t been particularly well-received.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the eight-episode Japanese drama only holds an approval rating of 33 percent, which indicates that those “Netflix does Chernobyl” headlines that hung around its neck on arrival were as hyperbolic as they were cynical. Nonetheless, it’s been performing where it really matters; by keeping subscribers glued to the edge of their seats.
Per FlixPatrol, The Days can currently be found residing on the Top 10 in 68 countries around the world, securing a status as the eighth most-watched TV project available to viewers around the world. That’s not a bad return at all given the tepid reactions from reviewers, but the central story itself is more than enough on its own to pique interest for a trip down an unwanted memory lane.
The Days focuses on government officials, employees of the Tokyo Electric Power Company, and those who worked at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Planet, and covers the fateful events caused by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The devastating natural disaster caused massive damage to the planet, directly causing the single most severe nuclear incident the world had experienced since the aforementioned Chernobyl.
It’s powerful stuff, and while not exactly widely-adored, it’s proving hugely popular among viewers.