Could Netflix's "Olympo" Be The Sleeper Hit of The Summer?

It often seems like the height of teen dramas is long over, but hidden gems like "Olympo" give me pause. "Olympo" is a Spanish Netflix series which attempts to follow in the footsteps of the cultural moment that was "Elite" with its queer storylines, messy interpersonal drama, ridiculously attractive stars, and a surprisingly inventive premise involving the heightened world of professional athletes in Europe. The first season dropped on Netflix on June 20 and we can easily see it becoming one of the next hit drama series.

"Olympo" follows an ensemble cast of professional athletes living and training at the Pyrenees High Performance Center (HPC) in Spain. It has all the forced proximity of a boarding school drama with characters that are early to mid-20s and under exponentially more pressure. The first episode begins with trackstar Zoe (Nira Oshaia) arriving at the HPC, which allows the viewer to be naturally introduced to the cast; they will spend the next eight episodes following through all kinds of insane situations. Swimmers Nuria (Maria Romanillos) and Amaia (Clara Galle) and rugby players Roque (Agustín Della Corte) and Cristian Delallave (Nuno Gallego) make up the core friend group, with runner Renata (Andy Duato) as Zoe’s reserved roommate. 

When a shocking event at the end of the series’ first episode sends shockwaves throughout the entire center, Amaia seeks to uncover the truth behind it and ends up stumbling her way into a conspiracy that runs throughout the HPC and is so much bigger than she ever could have imagined. While Amaia’s investigation provides the throughline of the series, it’s peppered with enough wild side plots and complicated drama to rival even the most chaotic of teen dramas -- Roque struggles with being out as a gay man on his rugby team, which is rife with homophobia; Zoe hides a dark secret as she is pushed to return to being the athlete she once was; and Cristian tries to find who he is separate from his family's legacy. All of this is further complicated by the arrival of three representatives of the titular clothing company Olympo, who promise to hand out four exclusive sponsorship deals which practically guarantee an athlete's life long success. As these representatives continue to meddle and apply pressure on the already strained athletes, they become more and more intertwined with the conspiracy Amaia seeks to uncover. 

With only 8 episodes, "Olympo" still has a lot of room to grow. That being said, it provides an ideal binge-watch with friends and manages to get you invested in the characters quickly enough that you’re eager to start the next episode. The actors are far from hard to look at, and it’s a refreshing change to see college-aged characters get into life-threatening dilemmas and steamy situations instead of 25-year-old actors playing 16-year-olds. 

"Olympo" is ultimately a show crafted to be not much more than pure entertainment, but the plotline with Amaia does add some stakes that move the series nicely along and adds some flavor beyond relationship dramas. Speaking of relationship dramas, Roque’s storyline and the broader queer representation within the show (which is surprisingly extensive) is incredibly interesting and grounded and led by a highlight performance from Agustín Della Corte. It’s always a joy to see a series so effortlessly integrate queerness while still acknowledging the hardships of being openly queer in a professional sports environment. 

All in all, "Olympo" accomplishes its singular goal: it’s a good time. Looking to this show for anything more may leave you disappointed, but as someone who entered the first episode with low expectations, I was pleasantly surprised by what I found.