Cadets web series review: Unintentionally hilarious military drama Is dead on arrival

A young boy looks out of the bus window with googly eyes and an open mouth like a golden retriever enjoying his first-ever car ride. He is amazed and quite impressed with the cantonment he is training at. He is particularly keen on Garuda Company—one of the four companies under the two army battalions. His friends exchange unfunny jokes and are then harangued by an army man who sounds more like a PT teacher. The scenes are unintentionally hilarious and frankly, cringeworthy.

Cadets Web Series: Plot

Based on Tanushree Poddar's novel Boots Belts Berets, the eight-episode series follows Manoj Mitra (the man who looks perpetually surprised, played by Tanay Chheda), Neeraj Tomar (Gautam Singh), Albert Marak (Tushar Shahi, the Led Zeppelin-worshipping, punk guy from Meghalaya), and Randhir Dhanua (Chayan Chopra). The four boys try to navigate inter-battalion rivalries, tough commando training all while pursuing romantic interests.

Cadets Web Series: Performances

The show doesn't really flesh out the characters beyond their statehood and one-dimensional quirks. The portrayal of military life is very surface-level. Boys rocking crew cuts, visiting cantonment canteen and undergoing commando training are some of the highlights of this military drama. Tanay as Manoj Mitra is, simply put, inadequate. Being the principal character, his bulging eyes and wide-mouthed look becomes overbearing after a while. Much of the heavy-lifting is done by the secondary cast.

Cadets Web Series: Writing And Direction

The show can barely manage friendships so expecting it to portray romantic relationships with maturity is too much to ask for. Personal rivalries add drama to this mix. Randhir pursues Koel (Ria Nalavde) and Albert tries to woo Suzie (Pooja Rawat). In Between training montages and unconvincing friendly interactions between the four friends, the show also finds time to offer some heavy-handed commentary and moralistic preachings on army life.

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Cadets Web Series: What Works, What Doesn't

What works for Cadets is its 90s-coded aesthetic. The vibe is very Hip-Hip Hurray (‘90s Zee TV show)-meets-Lakshaya. The show tries its best to show the camaraderie and brotherhood between its four principle characters but it isn't convincing at all. What irked this critic the most was the show's flawed notion of deshbhakti and how it uses punishment (Read: Frogmarching, army seniors bullying juniors) as some kind of a virtue which makes army Cadets better humans. ‘Cadets’ is a misfire. It tries to show friendship, camaraderie, and simple pleasures of military life but excels at none.

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Star rating: 2 / 5 stars

Cadets is now streaming on JioCinema.