History Series / CocaineCoast

* LegitimateBusinessmensSocialClub: The tobacco dons claim to be a fishing cooperative, but everyone knows the real source of their fortune.

* BoomerangBigot: Pilar and Esther insult the mothers of the Érguete foundation and tell them to StayInTheKitchen, the very same thing they hate to be told.

* IronicEcho: Pilar yells the mothers of the Érguete foundation to StayInTheKitchen after being given it by her family for the whole series.

** The mothers of the "Érguete" foundation decide to shame the dealers in order to make the Law act against them.

''Cocaine Coast'' (also known as ''Fariña: Cocaine Coast'' and by its original title ''Fariña''[[note]]Galician slang for cocaine, meaning "flour"[[/note]]) is a Spanish miniseries that chronicles the history of the drug trade in Galicia's Lower Rias during TheEighties, from its origins as a simple Portuguese tobacco smuggling operation to the involvement of violent [[GenericEthnicCrimeGang Moroccan and Colombian]] [[TheCartel drug cartels]] seeking an entry point into Europe, and the arrest of most local drug barons in the so-called ''Operación Nécora'' of 1990. The series is based on the nonfiction book ''Fariña: History and indiscretions of the drug trade in Galicia'' (2015) by Corunnan journalist Nacho Carretero, although it is not without licenses for legal and narrative reasons.

** The series doesn't capture the true scope of popular support that the smugglers enjoyed at their peak. Carlos Blanco (Oubiña) shared in an interview that at one point, a patrol boat was pelted by rocks by locals (not hired by the smugglers) and ''taken inland'', then abandoned on the town's church.

* VengefulWidow: [[spoiler:Braulio]]'s wife, Maruxa, does everything she can to get her husband's killers to justice.

[[caption-width-right:300:A [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters minuscle]] part of the cast.[[note]]From left to right: Javi Bustelo, Leticia Charlín, Sito Miñanco, [[FirstNameBasis Oli and Roque]].[[/note]]]]

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters: There are dons, their families, their associates, cops, judges, politicians, neighbors...

* AdultFear: Avendaño's son is a drug addict whose actions have been reduced to sleeping and looking to take his next dose. His mother says at one point that it would be better to know he was dead for certain than to keep wondering if he is suffering. He is sixteen.

* MissFanservice: Camila is a former model. She's fully nude in every other episode and wears a revealing dress when she's not.

* RaisedCatholic: Catholicism is the de-facto religion in the area, although no main character is particularly religious. The most we see is Charlín's wife keeping a home altar. Sito feels compelled to go to church when Roque's life is at stake, however.

* CoincidentalBroadcast: By [[ContrivedCoincidence sheer coincidence]], Padín is in a bar with one of the Charlíns [[OhCrap when his tell-it-all interview is broadcast]]. [[RealityIsUnrealistic This actually happened.]]

* NotSoDifferent: Miñanco invokes this on Castro, who [[DefiedTrope defies it]].

* YourCheatingHeart:
** Oubiña cheats on his wife with his secretary. Eventually, he divorces her and marries the latter.
** Miñanco cheats on Nieves with Camila. He also divorces and marries the latter (or did in real life but isn't as clear in the series).
** Camila sleeps with Tati when she is coked up and feeling ignored by Miñanco.

* AutoErotica: Paquito receives oral sex while driving out of a party. [[CaptainObvious It doesn't end well]].

** Miñanco [[spoiler: ''thinks'' of warning the others about ''Nécora'', but when Charlín bursts into his home yelling at Bustelo again, he gives up and [[CrowningMomentOfFunny leaves them all to be arrested]]. He warns Terito in the end, however.]]

** Castro is a Civil Guard sergeant instead of a police chief like his RealLife counterpart. This gives him jurisdiction in both urban and rural areas and keeps him in the right spot of the ladder to give orders bu also make field work. The show can as a result condensate the whole side of the Law in him.

** EightiesHair: All over the place, but good God, Esther Lago takes it to the next level. And [[TruthInTelevision she continued]] to use it in the 90s.

** Castro is a Civil Guard sergeant instead of a police chief like his RealLife counterpart. This gives him jurisdiction in both urban and rural areas and keeps him in the right spot of the ladder to give orders while also making field work. As a result, the show condensates the whole side of the Law in him.

** Miñanco actually fled to Panama, came back, and was then arrested.

** There was a heroin epidemic ''in addition'' to a cocaine epidemic, heroin being consumed mostly by poorer people and cocaine by richer people. The show only references cocaine.

* ALighterShadeOfBlack: [[TheCartel The Colombians]] makes their Old World counterparts look like beginners. The former have no qualms about committing murder, maiming and (implied) rape.

[[caption-width-right:300:A [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters minuscle]] part of the cast.]]

** The most notable events of "1990" happened in 1994. Other than the title, there is no implication in the episode that they have been moved.

** Early TV broadcasts are shown in black and white, even though TVE switched completely to color in 1977. There is also an on-site host at the 1985 New Year's Eve broadcast but it did not have one until 1990, and unlike its fictional counterpart the (offscreen) host didn't talk about Spain being due for EEC membership.
** Charlín's son didn't have a car accident after celebrating a successful delivery. However, a man working for the Charlíns did. The accident is used as a metaphor for cocaine's massive, indiscriminate damage to the younger generation.

** [[HollywoodHistory Despite popular belief]], Miñanco was never named "Honored Son" of Cambados. This rumor originated when the town hall gave a special award to the Cambados football team for its outstanding 1989 season and Miñanco, being the owner of the team, received it.

* BasedOnATrueStory[=/=]{{Biopic}}: Although it goes beyond that, the series is largely framed around the ascent and fall of Sito Miñanco as "[[TransatlanticEquivalent Spain]]'s [[{{Series/Narcos}} Pablo Escobar]]".
* BatmanGambit: After a hitman dies in a shootout, Castro says on TV that he survived and is going to talk. As predicted, a new hitman is sent to kill him, and Castro arrests and makes ''that one'' talk.

* BoomerangBigot: Pilar and Esther insult the mothers of the Érguete foundation and tell them to StayInTheKitchen, which is something they absolutely don't want for themselves.

** Manuel Charlín is a HairTriggerTemper JerkAss who is constantly disappointed by his never-do-well sons and nothing goes his way.
** Charlín's sons, in particular the eldest, Paquito, who are always failing in their plans to branch out, and get no respect from their father, [[CloserToEarth sister]], or associates.

* TheCartel: Miñanco makes deals to introduce cocaine in Galicia with Escobar's associates and later directly with the Medellín and Cali cartels.

* CatapultNightmare: Miñanco has one in "1986" when he [[spoiler:mistakes Camila for Braulio's corpse while being half awake.]]
* CatScare: Castro is scared by a non-threatening dog while hiding from smugglers.

* TheDogBitesBack: After a life being the ExtremeDoormat, Charlín's wife slaps him before his children when he refuses to apologize to the Colombians. She then claims that she can be the MamaBear if her children are threatened.

** The Galicians are strongly against murder and find the Colombians bloodlust disturbing.

** Claimed by Miñanco both times he tries to bribe Castro. He denies him both times.
** Colombo also claims this when he wants to bribe a councilman to get permision to build a casino against urban planning laws, but has to employ [[ShameIfSomethingHappened other methods]] when he still refuses.
* ExtremeDoormat: The older wives have a StayInTheKitchen mentality and want no involvement in their husbands' business. However, Charlín's breaks out of it when she fears for [[MamaBear her children's safety]].

* FlorenceNightingaleEffect: Downplayed by Paquito, who has sex with one of his rehabilitation nurses at the hospital.

** Colombo is a NoCelebritiesWereHarmed version of Marcial Dorado, who was the son of Terito's maid and was rumored to be his own son, and who was a personal friend of Alberto Núñez Feijóo, who later became president of the Galician regional government.

** Charlín ''also'' went to jail briefly and made an agreement with the Colombians while in there. This was probably omitted so it would be [[PragmaticAdaptation less repetitive]]. The reason he went to jail? He kidnapped a businessman who owed him money.

** Miñanco goes from a poor unlicensed fisherman to the most powerful drug lord in the country.

** When the series was to debut, a former mayor inhabilitated for his links to the drug trade and who is not depicted in the series sued the book's author for defamation, causing it to get pulled from Spanish stores despite having been sold freely for three years by that point. The ex-mayor nonchalantly admitted that he had never read it. Eventually, the suit was thrown, the ex-mayor paid expenses, and the book was returned to stores.

** ''Pentiti'' Padín and Portabales also sued the show for their depiction.
* TheFunnyGuy: Oubiña is the don that generates more laughs, but they are always involuntary on his part.

** While in Panama, Roque is free to take and do anything he wants on Matta-Ballesteros's credit... except leaving. He later gets beaten and almost dismembered alive when Miñanco almost fails the deadline.
** Leticia is sent to live with her uncle and threatened to go live with her aunt in Argentina in order to keep her from seeing Javi.
* GoldDigger: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] by Camila, who certainly latches to Miñanco and uses him to get money, but has a privileged background and knows how to work the drug trade herself.

* HappilyMarried: Every couple is quite happy with their spouse. The ones who don't divorce early on or reconcile.

** RealLife Miñanco weighted quite a few pounds more than Javier Rey.
** The real Esther Lago was shorter and had a very round face, giving her a bit of a CreepyChild vibe. While Eva Fernández is uglied for the series, she lacks those traits.
* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Every character is either historical or closely based on a real person.

* IAmNotMyFather: Castro's father was a DirtyCop who turned a blind eye to smugglers in exchange for a cut of their cargo. He doesn't like when the smugglers bring back his memory.

* InspectorJavert: Castro's insistence on bringing down the early tobacco smuggling operation comes across as this. Sure, the dons are committing fraud but they are also bringing money to an impoverished frontier region striken and nobody is being really hurt. In fact, for the first two episode tobacco smuggling doesn't even carry a jail sentence. Things take a far turn for the worse when the network is used to smuggle cocaine.

** Castro says that Miñanco going to jail will be "one less headache". Cue him using his jail stay to strike deals with even deadlier cartels.

** After the end of the series, Esther crashed her car on a Civil Guard building and Oubiña worked at a rehabilitation center for drug addicts.
* IronicEcho: After being the victim of this from her family for the whole series, Pilar yells the mothers of the Érguete foundation to StayInTheKitchen.

** Terito does it again in [[spoiler:"1990"]], after he realizes that his search warrant is [[OffOnATechnicality misspelled]].
* ItWillNeverCatchOn: Ventura claims that Rajoy is finished as a politician after Fraga sent him [[ReassignedToAntarctica to Madrid]].

** Petete and his pal shoot a random farm dog for making noise during a delivery.
* LadyLand: [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]], but subverted in "1985". While the smugglers are in Portugal, the women take over their operation, increase profits and find a way for the men to come back without going to jail. Even the theme song is sung by women in this intro. And yet, while the men are visibly pleased, they simply take over again without even acknowledging or complimenting them.
* LensFlare: To a very annoying degree. The flares in every night scene are massive.
* LegitimateBusinessmensSocialClub: The tobacco dons claim to be a fishing cooperative, but everyone knows the actual source of their fortune.

** The mothers of the "Érguete" foundation decide to shame the dealers in order to make the authorities act against them.

* TheMole: The dons have several in the police forces to tip them or obstruct investigations, including Montáñez, Valdano, [[spoiler:Romero]]... Castro strikes back by recruiting [[spoiler:Braulio and after he is killed, his widow]].

* NeverMyFault: The smugglers deny any fault for the damage caused by the drugs to the general population, claiming people are free to consume them and that they aren't even guilty of selling the drugs, just transporting them.

** Charlín had three daughters, not one. Pilar is based on the eldest, Josefa. His sons were named Manolito and Óscar rather than Paquito and Moncho.

** Colombo is based on Marcial Dorado.

** The pilot nicknamed Petete is based on another nicknamed Potoco.

* NotSoDifferent: Miñanco invokes this on Castro, who denies it.
* NoWomansLand: The dons don't see their women as being on the same level, even when they prove (repeatedly) to be ''better'' than them at their job.

* OffOnATechnicality: Terito's search warrant is misspelled as "Oterito", prompting him to claim that the cops are actually looking for [[RefugeInAudacity another guy with that nickname]]. Portabales is called to pick him from a lineup, but he fails... forcing them to release Terito for good.

* OohMeAccentsSlipping: Camila's Panamanian accent tends to become Spanish when she yells (actress Jana Pérez is actually from Barcelona).

** Castro is a Civil Guard sergeant instead of a police chief like his RealLife counterpart. This gives him jurisdiction in both urban and rural areas and keeps him in the right spot of the ladder to give orders and also to make field work. As a result, the show can condensate the whole role of the Law in him.

** Miñanco actually fled to Panama, came back, then was arrested.
** Matta-Ballesteros was Honduran in real life but he seems to be Colombian in the show.

** Roque and Oli leave Miñanco when they refuse to work again with Colombians. They return in the season finale, [[spoiler:but turn his offer down again.]]

* RecognitionFailure: Arriving in Panama, Sito and Roque comment that cocaine looks like "flour" and don't know who Pablo Escobar is.

* {{Retirony}}: Miñanco is arrested when trying to secure his passage to Panama with one last drug shipment.
* TheReveal: "1984" reveals that [[spoiler:Romero]] is also in Miñanco's pocket.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: The dons have the People's Alliance in their pocket, summon the Galician government to help them a couple of times, and have enough pull to remove Madrid-appointed judges and cops soetimes. The book goes deeper on this and Terito's personal friendship with AP leader Manuel Fraga in particular. It also claims that Vioque (real version of Ventura) ended financing not just AP/PP for support but also its rivals PSOE and BNG.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: How the connections are made, obviously. Miñanco tries to buy Castro into letting him go in "1984", but he replies that he can't buy everyone.

** Roque and Oli leave Miñanco when he makes deals with the Colombians and end giving up on smuggling altogether.

* SelfInflictedHell: Charlín's sons are a constant disappointment, but he keeps giving them authority because they are his sons. He refuses to do the same for Pilar despite her proving to be more capable. This hurts Charlín's business and sends him into his frequent rages.
* ShameIfSomethingHappened: Very common.

** Bustelo's son falls in love with Charlín's niece, fueling the [[FeudingFamilies feud]] between the two families.

** Silva is pursued by the Charlíns at the beginning for keeping smuggled money he thinks they owe him.
** When a transport ship rams and loses most of its cargo, Charlín tells his Colombian providers that the whole cargo was lost and sells the remaining himself.

* TakeThatCritics: In a very cheeky move, the WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue was expanded to include the FrivolousLawsuit that got the book removed from stores, and also the RealLife Oubiña talking about his dislike of the scenes with his wife.

* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] by Valdano. Everyone in the area is making a fortune with the illegal tobacco, so why not him?
* ThisMeansWar: In "1987", a patrolman dies while pursuing a smuggling vessel, then a smuggler dies while being pursued by the patrols. Both sides take this very badly. Some angry cops and Charlín call for "war" and blame the other side for it.

* TransatlanticEquivalent: An obvious one is ''{{Series/Narcos}}'', although the producers claim ''Series/RomanzoCriminale'' as their greatest influence.

** Miñanco brings both cocaine and the cartels to Galicia. He is not aware of how destructive each is until it is too late.

** Javi and Leticia cause several problems to their families due to their desire to be, and run away together.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: The dons pose as businessmen and breadwinners until the effects of cocaine begin to take their toll in the population.

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: The finale ends with a montage detailing the fate of the main characters. Unfortunately, it only tells you about the ones with their real names (other than Charlín's sons), so there isn't a hint of the "[[FreakierThanFiction adventures]]" the RealLife versions of Ventura, Leticia, Javi or Pilar got in during TheNineties and the 21st century.
** Miñanco went to jail, back into the business, and back into jail.
** Charlín and his sons were arrested and imprisoned for different charges.
** Esther Lago died when she crashed her car... on the building where the Civil Guard listened to her phone conversations.
** Oubiña was allowed to attend her funeral and completed the last part of his jail sentence by volunteering at a rehabilitation center for drug addicts.

** Miñanco actually fled to Panama, came back, and was then arrested.

** The Charlín children are reduced to three and the Bustelos (for Baúlo) to one.

** Miñanco actually fled to Panama, came back, and was ''then'' arrested.