Dre Greene is ‘Crazy In Love’ (you’ll get the Beyonce reference later, trust me, it’s clever).
So first off, don’t confuse this with current German Sci-Fi series, The Swarm.
Swarm is a whole different beast; a distinctive blend of horror, psychological thriller, satire, and mystery. All of which is not to suggest it’s at all lofty; there’s as much Natural Born Killers in its DNA as there is Parasite (both of those feel like significant influences).
Created by Janine Nabers and Donald Glover (AKA Childish Gambino), Swarm debuted on Amazon Prime in March 2023, to overwhelmingly positive reviews, especially of series lead Dominique Fishback.
So, to the setup.
Meet Andrea ‘Dre’ Greene:
Dre is our dark protagonist, a very distinct sociopathic serial killer.
Like all the best sociopaths Dre doesn’t know she’s a sociopath.
And like all the best sociopaths, Dre has an obsession: popstar icon Ni’Jah (who is so blatantly based on Beyonce, there is even a sly reference to ‘Becky with the good hair’). Ni’Jah’s fervently devoted fans call themselves the Swarm, hence the title.
Dre considers herself a champion of the Swarm and she’s prepared to go to extreme lengths to prove it.
Dre is an atypical serial killer.
She’s not like Mick Tyler of Wolf Creek, Patrick Bateman of American Psycho, or even the old master, Norman Bates. Hell, Dre doesn’t go out looking to kill people; more like Mickey and Mallory of Natural Born Killers, murder just seems to come upon her.
And when it does, you’ll know it’s coming.
The camera lingers on her face as she descends into her murderous obsession, with a gradual buzzing sound signifying that the Swarm is about to strike.
So how do you avoid getting murdered by Dre?
Billy Eilish gets it. She makes a surprise acting debut in episode 4 as the leader of a women’s empowerment cult.
You don’t criticise Ni’jah.
Ever.
In any way.
And you definitely don’t mock her or suggest she’s not to be taken seriously.
Refreshingly, Swarm sticks to a tight seven-episode run (with a master twist in episode six). And showrunner Nabers has ruled out a second series, stating, ‘The story of Dre is over’.
So if you fancy a one-off walk on the wild side with Dre, you know where to find her.
Just don’t be saying nothin’ disrespectful about Ni’Jah, y’hear me?
Swarm is streaming now on Amazon Prime
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