Nebo i zemlya

"Sky and Earth" (or "Nebo i Zemlya"), is one of the best Russian television-series out there, and is my favorite out of any that I have seen thus far. For those of you familiar with perhaps the most popular Russian series, "The Brigade" (or "Brigada"), "Sky and Earth" would be highly suitable for you and geared towards your interests. In fact, two of the stars from "The Brigade", Ekaterina Guseva and Vladimir Vdovichenkov are also portraying two of the main characters in "Sky and Earth".

The storyline for "Sky and Earth" takes place in the fictitious Russian city of "Surdyansk", and revolves around the lives of characters connected to the local airport, and specifically an airline-company, called "Aviakom". Some of the characters in this series either work at the airport or with "Aviakom" as security guards, pilots, stewardesses, or regular passengers, while others are locals that inhabit "Surdyansk" but who in one way or another have a connection to the goings-on at the airport. The series is an excellent story of how all of its characters lives revolve around the "Surdyansk" airport. This in itself is a great idea for a television-series. Choose any airport in the real World, and just imagine the different daily stories and adventures that occur amongst all the people that either work at the airport or pass through it; "Sky and Earth" chooses a fictitious airport, but is able to achieve very realistic results by imagining what the lives of the people at airports are really all about.

Though "Sky and Earth" is partially portrayed as being a romantic drama, it is much more of a thriller and a mystery than anything else, so don't be fooled by any taglines about its romantic features as a drama. Yes, there is romance present in this series, but it was quite enjoyable for me when I realized that it is much more filled with suspense than what I would have originally imagined from its taglines. If you are already familiar with "Brigada", consider to "Sky and Earth" to have less action in it than what "Brigada" has, but more of a thriller and mystery than the later.

As I mentioned earlier, "Sky and Earth" has become my favorite Russian television-series, and there are many good ones out there ("Brigada", "Red Square", "In the Service of My Country"), but I consider this one to be the best of them all. If you like other Russian television-serials, I'm certain you'll love "Sky and Earth". If you're looking for a good Russian series to get yourself more acquainted with Russian television, "Sky and Earth" would be a great one to start with.