These days, modern cinematography is the most dramatic way to be an armchair traveler. And while travel-specific shows like The Travel Channel are great, it’s even more fun to add literary elements and drama for storytelling. Foreign films with subtitles are also an excellent outlet for learning the language, culture, history, and politics of somewhere you’d love to travel to.

The Norwegian’s penchant for storytelling, stunning locations for filming, and competition that is driven by streaming services like Netflix are helping to make Norway the planet’s next Hollywood. Some of the best ones came along around the time of the global pandemic of 2020 when binge-watching became a way to cope during lockdowns.

Unexpected breaks between seasons caused delays in some cases. Others were lucky enough to finish filming before lockdown. Here are our favorite binge-worthy Norwegian TV shows.

Lykkeland (A State of Happiness)

Lykkeland is a dramatic series that tells the story of how the oil industry changed the lives and future of four young Norwegians. The setting is the small town of Stavanger in southwestern Norway. As the story opens in the summer of 1969, the town has been surviving on the fishing industry but is now in a crisis because the North Sea is emptying out.

For years, international oil companies have been test-drilling in Norway with no luck, and the companies are in the process of giving up and leaving. That all changes on Christmas Eve when, during a last-ditch effort, Philips Petroleum strikes oil after contracting to drill one final hole.

The Ocean Viking’s gas flare is lit after Phillips discovers the largest sub-sea oil basin in history. A whirlwind of opportunities awaits the main characters.

Lykkeland is a returning series. The first season features eight episodes and stars Pia Tjelta, Amund Harboe, Malene Wadel, and Bart Edwards. It’s available on Netflix, DVD, Amazon Prime, and Hulu.

Oljefondet (Oil Fund)

Oljefondet is a comedy-drama series centered around the Norwegian Pension Fund. The fund was established to invest a huge amount of revenue from taxing the Norwegian oil and gas industry. The funds support the socialist concept of free health care and other future costs of pensioners.

The storyline follows fictional investors who practice investing billions and billions while following Norwegian rules for ethical investments. The world of big business and following complex guidelines put in place by politicians creates hilarious complications.

Oljefondet features one season with 10 episodes. There are no plans for a second season, but the series could possibly be picked up by another network. Some of the main characters are played by Håkon T. Nielsen, Evelyn Rasmussen Osazuwa, Marit Andreassen, Thomas Gullestad, Kathrine Thorborg Johansen, and Elias Holmen Sørensen.

Atlantic Crossing

This work of fictional drama was inspired in part by the true story of a wartime friendship. The storyline is centered around Norway’s Crown Princess Martha, a courageous yet shy princess who flees her country for the United States after her country is invaded by Nazis.

After President Franklin D. Roosevelt takes her under his wing, she becomes a powerful advocate for her homeland. Set across eight episodes, Norwegian and American characters experience desire, diplomacy, and jealousy as they navigate a terrible war.

Atlantic Crossing was filmed in the Czech Republic and Norway. The World War II drama is a