Olympo Review
Director: Ibai Abad, Daniel Barone, Marçal Forés and Ana Vázquez
Date Created: 2025-06-20 20:45
2.5
Olympo Review: This Spanish teen drama on Netflix puts passion, jealousy and nasty secrets against the backdrop of high-performance sport. Directed by a team including Ibai Abad, Daniel Barone, Marçal Forés and Ana Vázquez, the show consists of 8 episodes that delve into the ruthless world of young sports stars. Featuring Clara Galle (of Through My Window) as Amaia Olaberria, a girl whose talent has already been talked about, but we also get to witness some top-notch performances by Nuno Gallego, Agustín Della Corte, Martí Cordero, María Romanillos and others. The series offers a shiny but dark interpretation of what it takes to actually be the best.
Set in Pirineos High Performance Centre in northern Spain, it’s a show about a team of Spain’s brightest young sporting hopefuls, training to be champions. The emotional heart of the show is Amaia, a focused, intense synchronised swimmer who dominates her team with a ferocious level of discipline. But then everything changes when her best friend and teammate, Nuria, somehow, overnight, is better than she’s ever been. It brings suspicion, jealousy, and some brutal realities to raise Netflix’s Olympo above the usual sporting series.
Olympo Review
Let’s begin with what I did like. The concept behind Olympo is intriguing. Mixing sports and teen drama, and mystery into one show isn’t easy, but that’s what the show’s creators have attempted to do. Some of the sports scenes, particularly synchronised swimming, are gorgeously shot. It is impressive how you see that choreography and think that’s what is happening to you when you feel you are constantly under pressure to perform. These moments sparkle and feel like you’re watching a real competition.
I also like the attempt to address major themes like doping, sponsorship pressure and mental health. The show is an attempt to ask: “How far will young athletes go to reach the top?” This is something many actual athletes get into, and the Olympo series should be applauded for fitting this into the plot.
But for all its promise, the Olympo series is one with too much drama and not enough substance. By the time Episode 4 concluded, I was getting a bit tired of the predictability of the show. Betrayals, secrets, love triangles — all of them were cranked up. Sometimes it seemed like the show was more interested in shocking viewers than in telling a story that was worth hearing.
Also, most of the characters are selfish and unlikeable. Even the ones who are designed to be victims are so in a manner that is difficult to sympathise with. The emotional investment of characters sometimes feels like it is being forced. I wanted to care about whatever their issues were, but, as a viewer, I just could not relate to most of them.
And while all the actors are handsome and beautiful, the show is too dependent on physical beauty. yes, there’s plenty of love and some hot scenes, too, but ultimately it just feels like that’s all the show is about. The intense sports-heaviness throughout its history is for nought, which is a shame because the concept seemed so intriguing.
Olympo on Netflix even includes LGBTQ+ themes, which is a step in the right direction, and representation. But I did notice that the show sometimes got a little too fixated on that idea, with nowhere near enough subtlety. Rather than approaching these dynamics with sensitivity, it so often felt like the show was manipulating them for dramatic effect. I am a fan of diversity in stories – in fact I love the diversity of the various stories authors tell. But it has to be in the service of the work and not take away from it.
There is also a subplot regarding homophobia here that will resonate with some viewers in a different way, but it didn’t quite hit its mark for me. It seemed antiquated and contrived, particularly for a tale set in contemporary Spain, which is considered liberal. It’s not that the problems cannot be addressed, but the manner in which Olympo does so is light-as-air and redundant.
The series Olympo is pleasing to the eye. There’s sharp, attractive cinematography from the swimming pool to the training fields. It’s a lush-looking, glossy production, which must be part of the appeal. But attractive pictures only take you so far if the story never reaches your heart.
Some of the side storylines, sponsorships, performance-enhancing would have given some substance to the show. But again, only briefly touched on the surface. The soap opera of “who is cheating” or “who deserves to win” could have been handled in a more mature way.
Netflix Olympo Review: Summing Up
Ultimately, Olympo is a show that works too hard and that can’t maintain its balance between the teen soap and the sport. If you enjoy television shows like Elite, you will likely enjoy this series for the romance, betrayal, and good-looking actors. But if you’re in the market for a gritty, emotional sports drama, this will not be your show.
Spanish series Olympo is now streaming on Netflix.
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