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S1 • E1
Alex is moving with his pregnant girlfriend Anna from Stockholm City to his childhood home in Saltsjöbaden, a wealthy suburb at the sea. They are welcomed by Alex's childhood friend Fredde and his wife Mickan, who live in the most luxurious house in the area with their two children, Victor and Ebba. When Anna is entering her new home, she finds to her astonishment that her mother-in-law, the widow Margaretha, is still there, although she should have moved out by now. The problem is that Alex hasn't dared to tell his mother clearly that he and Anna want to live alone. Margaretha thinks that she can keep a bedroom of her own in their house. Fredde helps Alex to cut down a tree in the garden. The tree falls in the wrong direction, thereby scratching a boat in Tord Malmberg's garden. Alex hated Malmberg already as a child, and now he still has this pest close by.
S1 • E2
At an ultrasonic examination Alex and Anna are told that their baby will be delivered on August 4th. When Fredde tells Alex that 20 % of all fathers in Sweden aren't the real fathers of their children, Alex gets worried. He counts 40 weeks backwards from August 4th, and finds out that the baby must have been procreated in the end of November. But in that period Anna spent three weeks in Skåne, making a new movie. Alex finds out that the film contains erotic scenes between Anna and the actor Ola Rapace. Now he is quite sure that Ola Rapace is the real father of his baby. He confides this to Fredde, who cannot resist spreading the news to his wife Mickan. Anna is met with aversion, but cannot understand why. Some days later the midwife corrects herself, and says that the baby will be delivered on August 24th. Alex realizes his mistake, but Anna has hard to forgive him.
S1 • E3
Alex and Anna are discussing possible names for their unborn baby, and immediately find out that their opinions are contradictory. Alex finds Anna's names too peculiar, and she finds his too old-fashioned. Alex is unpacking a new high-pressure cleaner, when his neighbor Ove Sundberg turns up and wants to borrow it. Alex tries to say no in a polite, indirect way, but Ove quickly walks away with the new machine. Fredde warns Alex against lending anything to Ove, because it's very hard to get it back. The only strategy that works is to contra-borrow something of the same or higher value from Ove. He describes Ove as extremely avaricious, and Alex learns the truth of this, when he and Anna are invited to a naming ceremony for Ove's baby. Ove succeeds in getting the guests to contribute economically to the rent of the banquet hall. At last Alex presses Ove to lend him a log splitter, not knowing that Ove's wife Anette for a long time had tried to convince her husband to get rid of this machine.
S1 • E4
Alex and Anna have invited Fredde and Mickan to Sunday dinner. Alex has prepared a very special risotto, and worked hard on it, but Fredde dismisses the dish with ironic remarks. He finishes the ensuing discussion by inviting Alex and Anna to lunch the coming Wednesday. Alex is offended by Fredde's ironies, and understands the lunch invitation as a declaration of war. The Wednesday lunch is an artisanal extravagance, although Fredde declares that he prepared it in haste. What he doesn't tell Alex and Anna is that he actually hired a chef for the cooking. Alex is devastated by Fredde's success, and invites Fredde and Mickan to a new dinner, where he shall outmatch Fredde. Mickan invites Anna to follow her to a gym. Anna hates such activities, but is too polite to say no. At the gym she pretends to be an experienced visitor, although she doesn't know what the others are talking about.
S1 • E5
Alex hates Ove, and tries to avoid him. But Alex cannot speak out, so he often ends up in Ove's company nevertheless. In the middle of a quarrel between Alex and Anna the doorbell rings. When Alex opens the door and sees Ove, he gets furious, and shouts to Ove to go away. He screams that Ove is annoying and greedy, and slams the door. Alex's mother Margaretha tells Alex that she wants to become a member of the local golf club, but it will take 22 years, because the queue of applicants is very long. She asks Alex to influence some of his friends in the board to help her become a member immediately. When Fredde informs Alex that Ove is the president of the golf club, Alex realizes that he must reconcile himself with Ove first of all. Ove meets Alex with hostility, but Alex softens him up by inviting him and his wife Anette to dinner. During the dinner the two couples decide to celebrate both Midsummer Eve and New Year's Eve together, although Alex hates the prospect. When Ove is leaving, Alex asks him if he can help Margaretha become a member of the golf club. Ove explains that he cannot, because he is not the president anymore.
S1 • E6
Alex is shopping in a super market, when he bumps into a woman called Sofi, who he hasn't met since they left school. She was the most gorgeous girl in their class, but now Alex thinks she has lost almost all her beauty. On his way home Alex starts thinking if he also has become old and unattractive. He tries to convince his wife Anna that they should go to a disco, like they did when they were young, but she refuses. He asks Fredde to join him, but Fredde has to prepare the birthday party for his 5 year old son Victor the following day. Fredde is desperate, because the only thing Victor wants as a birthday present is a Labrador puppy, but you have to order that from a kennel several weeks in advance. The only option for Fredde this evening is to buy an 11 year old, limping Labrador from an immigrant. Alex succeeds to get Ove to accompany him to the disco. Sofi is there, but when Alex asks her for a dance, she says no, just as she did when they were young. Ten minutes later she dances with Ove.
S1 • E7
At an art gallery Anna bumps into her old friend Petra, who she hasn't met since they left theatre school eight years ago. Petra presents her boyfriend Rodney, literary critic at Dagens Nyheter. They have just moved to Saltsjöbaden, which prompts Anna and Alex to invite their new neighbors to dinner next Saturday. Alex's interest in culture is very low, but he thinks he must avoid exposing his lack of knowledge for their new highbrow friends. He finds an article on Orhan Pamuk, and tries to remember all facts and opinions about this Turkish author. The conversation during the dinner is constrained and stiff. Rodney and Petra quickly find out that Alex and Anna are silly ignorants, who they will avoid in the future. Meanwhile Fredde has got the brilliant idea that pretending to open a spa in his house could help him reducing his taxes. But the taxman is suspicious, and asks Fredde to show him a list of the customers. Fredde tries to convince all his friends to put their names on his list, but the only ones accepting this are Ove and Anette. They are now entitled to use the spa in Fredde's house a whole year.
S1 • E8
Fredde becomes jealous when Mickan spends too much time with another man. Meanwhile Alex and Anna get a visit from Pelle, the free-spirited brother of Anna.
S1 • E9
Alex and Anna join Fredde and Mickan in a countryside Midsommar celebration. Unfortunately Ove and Annette tag along as well. As does Pelle who turns out to be quite the ladies man.
S1 • E10
Alex and Anna have to rush to the hospital when it becomes clear the baby is on the way. Fredde is left in charge to manage a planned renovation project. At the hospital things don't exactly go smoothly.
Alex Löfström
Fredde Schiller
Mickan Schiller
Anna Svensson
Ove
Anette
Viktor
Wilma
Ludde
Lussan