We Were The Lucky Ones (S01E01) Review/ Recap | Series Premiere

Spoiler Alert: This post may contain spoilers. Additionally, some images and text may include affiliate links, meaning we may earn a commission or receive products if you make a purchase.

Plot Recap

1938 – Halina, Addy, Mila, Sol, Selim, Nechuma, Jakob, Bella, Genek

In Radom, Poland, the Kurc family lived well. Nechuma and Sol raised five kids, Genek, Jakob, Mila, Addy, and Halina, and nearly all of them are doing well. Genek is a lawyer, Addy, a musician with a quality education as an electrical engineer, and while he complains, Jakob is also on the road to becoming a lawyer.

As for the daughters, Mila is a good woman who is married to a man named Selim, a medical researcher. And Halina? Well, she is the youngest, so she just needs time to solidify her life a bit. In the worst-case scenario, she can work at the family store since none of the others may wish to inherit it.

1939 – Herta, Genek, Addy, Adam, Halina, Nechuma, Sol, Jakob

While the Nazis to the east were always a threat, Sol and Nechuma never had a desire to leave. They stayed in their home during World War I, so why leave now? They are Jewish – resilient people, and like all times of strife, this will pass. However, as Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, so came the realization this was different than the last war.

Genek finds himself demoted, which isn’t great since he is really into this woman named Herta, and while he hasn’t made an honest woman out of her yet, one could submit that the idea is definitely in his head. As for the rest? Halina’s new special friend, Adam, the boy next door, finds himself pushed to the front lines in Lvov, Jakob too finds himself pushed by inscription, and being that Mila is usually wound up, and now has a child to worry about, she is stressed to the point it is a surprise she isn’t picking out her hair.

As for Addy? Well, his home is in Paris but since Passover he has been going to the Polish Consulate to try to get home. Granted, Nechuma would wish he wouldn’t, for she sees how bad things are becoming, but she and Sol raised stubborn children, for better or worst.

However, by October of that year, as the Germans enter their neighborhood, it becomes clear that while Sol and Nechuma won’t leave, Halina might want to since it doesn’t seem they are anywhere near rock bottom.

1945 – Halina

In the beginning of the episode, it is revealed Halina survived the war. As for everyone else? We don’t know. But, at the Red Cross, she is given a note that leaves her overjoyed, so there is the potential that Halina still has at least one person she knew still alive out there. But we’ll have to work the remaining episodes to find out who.

Other Noteworthy Information

1. Based on work by Georgia Hunter
2. Developed by Erica Lipez

Collected Quote(s)

Held up or unwilling to be interrupted?
— Halina

Cast Guide

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
Halina	Joey King
Addy	Logan Lerman
Mila	Hadas Yaron
Sol	Lior Ashkenazi
Selim	Michael Aloni
Nechuma	Robin Weigert
Jakob	Amit Rahav
Bella	Eva Feiler
Genek	Henry Lloyd-Hughes
Herta	Moran Rosenblatt
Adam	Sam Woolf

New Character Description(s)

Halina

The youngest of the Kurc children, Halina is seemingly closest to Addy and is one of the scrappiest.

• The actor is also known for their role in “The Princess.”

Addy

Addy is a musician with a song on the radio, but he also has a backup career as an electrical engineer. Unlike the rest of his family, he doesn’t live in Poland but rather in Paris.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Indignation.”

Mila

Mila is the Kurc’s eldest daughter, and she is known for being a bit uptight. Halina writes this off as Mila spending her life focusing on becoming a wife and mom, and when neither comes easy to her, it causes her to have a bit of a breakdown.

Sol

Sol is the patriarch of the Kurc family and runs the family’s fabric shop.

Selim

Selim is Mila’s partner and the father of her daughter, Felicia. Selim is a medical researcher.

Nechuma

Nechuma is the matriarch of the Kurc family.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Tracker.”

Jakob

Jakob appears to be the middle son of the Kurc family. He is following in his older brother’s footsteps in becoming a lawyer. However, Jakob has very little enthusiasm for the law, which makes his studies challenging.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Unorthodox: Season 1.”

Bella

Bella is Jakob’s partner.

Genek

Genek is the eldest of the Kurc children and a notable lawyer at his firm.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Ragdoll: Season 1.”

Herta

Herta is Genek’s partner, who was raised in a German-speaking area, which makes things easier for her during the Nazi invasion since she can code-switch.

Adam

Adam is the Kurc’s neighbor who becomes Halena’s love interest.

• The actor is also known for their role in “Humans: Season 2/ Episode 1.”

Review

Notable Performances or Moments

Joey King

Taking away nothing from the other actors or even Joey King’s work in “The Act,” I feel that even with her proving her versatility, her role as Halena makes it clear that she can be consistent. Similar to Zendaya going from “Euphoria” to “The Greatest Showman,” among others, what King gives us in “We Were the Lucky Ones” is a showing of versatility.

As Halena, one of the survivors, we’re pushed to focus on her, for we know she will drive the narrative. She is the one who, from the start, gets us invested in this person and that person and makes us care to know who survived.

Now, getting someone invested in a story, never mind supporting characters is a talent. Especially since your investment in Halena’s family isn’t solely tied to empathy or sympathy because you are well aware of how they could have died, but rather because Halena is the middle person for you to see how they lived, and their importance to not only her, but others.

Highlights

The Push And Pull Between Leaving Or Staying

War is a subject matter that naturally drives strong opinions, especially against the aggressor. However, what also drives strong opinions is how to handle the people who are casualties of the war. Immigration was as much an issue in the 1940s as it is now, and as then and now, while certain types of immigrants could be seen or treated as favorable, others were not.

But what “We Were The Lucky Ones” touches upon isn’t people trying to leave but staying in their homes, waiting out the worst, and hoping for the best. It’s a story that isn’t commonly heard, for escaping is often treated as the best bet, and then we see people struggling to adapt to a different culture, and so on.

So, focusing on people who assumingly stayed, while we know part of the results, the depiction of how one family processes staying and maybe the regret of doing so despite the means to leave is likely going to be challenging to watch.

Background Information

Episode Title	Radom
Release Date	March 28, 2024
Network	Hulu
Director(s)	Thomas Kail
Writer(s)	Erica Lipez
Previous Episode	N/A
Series Page	We Were The Lucky Ones
Character Guide	Coming Soon