Netflix Reboots Hogan’s Heroes

Netflix Reboots Hogan’s Heroes—Sets It in Gaza, Adds Drone Wi-Fi and Falafel-Based Espionage

Hogan’s Hostages - The Netflix Reboot

Byline: SpinTaxi Middle East Bureau
"We watch so you can scream-laugh later."
Streaming Giant Takes Hostage of History—and Comedy

In a move that critics are calling “either wildly courageous or diplomatically uninsurable,” Netflix announced its boldest reboot yet: Hogan’s Hostages, a dark war comedy set in modern-day Gaza, replacing Nazis with Hamas captors, bumbling German guards with TikTok-hungry militants, and World War II POWs with Mossad agents, rogue journalists, and a travel vlogger who thinks he’s still in Tulum.

The original Hogan’s Heroes charmed 1960s America with its laugh-track-laced POW hijinks. Now, Netflix aims to bring the same spirit of sabotage and slapstick to the world's most contentious real estate—by arming it with sardonic writers, crypto-based tunnels, and a goat named “Bibi.”

“We’re honoring the original by completely ignoring the Geneva Conventions, both creatively and geopolitically,” said showrunner Dahlia Feigenbaum, formerly of BoJack Horseman and one weekend in Mossad basic training.

A Plot So Unreal It Might Be Tomorrow’s Headline

Hogan’s Hostages follows a secret Mossad spy unit pretending to be a group of Western captives, who run a covert resistance and satire machine from inside a Hamas-run hostage facility—Camp Al-Nudge Nudge, somewhere between a flattened hospital and a U.N. warehouse with surprisingly good hummus.

Despite being “captured,” the hostages:

Build tunnels using repurposed Peloton bikes,

Stream subversive podcasts from beneath the goat shed,

Forge prisoner swap documents using Canva Pro,

And smuggle encrypted USB sticks inside baklava boxes.

“They’re not trying to escape,” says Feigenbaum. “They’re trying to boost viewership and destabilize authoritarianism using memes and grilled eggplant.”

Meet the Characters (and Their Psychological Operations)
Colonel Ronen “Hoganstein” Halberstam

Disguised as a clueless travel blogger looking for Gaza’s “hidden rooftop bars,” Ronen is actually Mossad’s most elite field agent—and least effective at pretending to be vegan.

“He fakes a food allergy to get alone time,” said the casting director. “Classic psy-ops.”

Commander Khalid “Klink” al-Klink

The Hamas camp overseer, Klink still believes he’s a strategic genius because his cousin once met Erdoğan. He falls for every trick in the hostages’ book—literally. They gave him a fake manual titled How to Host Hostages Without Looking Weak, which he reads aloud during lunch.

Sergeant Yusef “Schultzy” Abu Shmeara

Camp guard, snack hoarder, low-key Zionist sympathizer (but only for the Netflix password). Schultz has been bribed with everything from protein bars to framed headshots of Gal Gadot.

“I see nothing… unless it’s sugar-free,” he often shrugs.

Trish Newkirk

A BBC-accented CNN reporter with a trust fund and a PhD in “narrative reclamation.” She livestreams escape attempts under the banner of “performative journalism,” occasionally sponsored by Audible.

Yoni LeBeau

Israeli chef-saboteur whose hummus doubles as plastique. Once blew up a drone using a deconstructed baba ganoush and two bobby pins. Leads weekly cooking classes in “improvised insurgent cuisine.”

Kendrick “Kinch” Kinchloe Jr.

Ex–NSA contractor who now hacks Hamas servers while DJing lo-fi beats. Responsible for leaking every episode of The Mandalorian to Gaza. Still insists he’s just a "freedom data whisperer."

Episode Teasers That Scream “Classified… but Comedic”

Episode 1: “Hostages With Benefits”
Hoganstein arrives disguised as a YouTube influencer. He’s instantly put in charge of the compound’s social media, which doubles as an encrypted intel drop.
Quote: “Does the hostage wing have better lighting for interviews?”

Episode 3: “Shmear Tactics”
Yoni bakes a cheesecake that hacks the camp’s biometric lock. Klink eats it before it activates, blames Israel for lactose intolerance.

Episode 6: “Tunnel of Love”
A secret escape tunnel accidentally emerges inside a Hamas wedding tent. The bridal party refuses to evacuate unless the IDF sends catering.

Episode 9: “The Falafel Files”
Kinch hides launch codes in a falafel ball. Trish eats it, calls it “bold, nutty, and geopolitically irresponsible.”

Weaponized Comedy or Cultural Shrapnel? Depends Who You Ask

Reactions to the series have ranged from “satirical masterpiece” to “literal war crime” depending on viewers’ political affiliations, VPN provider, and hummus recipe preferences.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the show a four-star review, calling it “the only time I’ve laughed at a UN bunker,” while Hamas leadership condemned the series as “Zionist propaganda disguised as slapstick” and threatened to sue Netflix with the help of Turkish lawyers and an angry falcon.

“It’s not anti-Palestinian. It’s anti-absurdity,” said Feigenbaum. “If you’re running a hostage camp and accidentally give your prisoners drone privileges, you deserve satire.”

Comedian Reactions

The show has already drawn support from several comedy icons and intelligence agencies posing as film critics:

“I haven’t seen anything this politically dangerous since George Carlin hosted Sesame Street Middle East.” — Jon Stewart

“Finally, a show where the tunnels are real, but the accents are fake.” — Sarah Silverman

“I’d binge this harder than an IDF strike on an Iranian radar dome.” — Dave Chappelle (then immediately clarified he meant that ironically)

“Reminds me of my ex. Beautiful, complicated, and hiding three Mossad agents in the basement.” — Ali Wong

Marketing: “Hostagecore” Is the New Prestige TV

Netflix’s marketing campaign has leaned hard into the dark humor. Posters show the hostages sipping tea over blueprints, with the tagline:

“They captured us. We captured the Wi-Fi.”

Merchandise includes:

Hostage yoga mats with encrypted Hebrew embroidery

Limited-edition “Camp Al-Nudge” enamel pins

Scented candles called “Tunnel No. 5”

A leaked marketing memo described the show’s demographic as “ironic millennials with geopolitical fatigue, ex-intelligence personnel, and Middle East Studies majors trying to seem edgy on Hinge.”

Behind-the-Scenes Sabotage: Real Tensions on Set

Filming on location in a Moroccan desert re-creation of Gaza (with two Starbucks and zero ceasefires) came with its own complications.

Method actor playing Klink got too into character and started filing real complaints with the U.N.

Goat actor “Bibi” bit a boom mic operator who disrespected the Palestinian flag arrangement.

Three extras accidentally became real hostages when they wandered off set into an arms bazaar in Tunisia. Netflix paid ransom in Dogecoin.

Ethical Questions, Loud Answers

Human rights groups have raised eyebrows at the comedic setting, but Netflix insists the show punches up.

“We mock militants, not civilians. We humiliate ideologies, not identities. And yes, we wrote three drafts with a UN compliance officer and a vegan rabbi.”
— Executive Producer, Oren Goldstein

Episode disclaimers include:

“No real tunnels were used in the filming of this escape.”

“This falafel is fictional. Any resemblance to real chickpeas is purely coincidental.”

“If you're offended by this episode, congratulations—you still have a conscience.”

Funniest Leaks So Far

Leaked script page from Episode 8 includes a scene where Klink accidentally calls in a drone strike on his own office because Alexa misheard “Falafel” as “Fire All.”

One writer inserted a fake subplot about Mossad agents using Shakira lyrics as encrypted codes. Shakira has not commented, but Mossad “liked” the post on Instagram.

The goat, once thought to be comic relief, is revealed in Episode 10 to be running a rogue intelligence network via hoof taps and interpretive bleats.

Audience Polls

🗳 SpinTaxi ran a mock viewer survey. Results include:

“Which character would you trust to get you out of Gaza?”

Hoganstein – 42%

Yoni LeBeau – 26%

The Goat – 18%

Klink – 1%

“Can I stay? I like the Wi-Fi.” – 13%

“Is it ethical to make war comedy in a real conflict zone?”

“Yes, if it makes fun of everyone equally.” – 53%

“No, but I watched it twice.” – 37%

“Only if Jon Stewart narrates.” – 10%

Coming in Season 2

Netflix already greenlit Season 2, tentatively titled “Hogan’s Hostages: West Bank Wiretap”, featuring:

A crossover episode with the ghost of Edward Snowden

A romantic subplot between Trish and a Palestinian arms dealer who moonlights as a pottery instructor

A satirical musical episode featuring bomb-sniffing dogs choreographed to Klezmer trap beats

An episode filmed entirely in infrared drone footage and narrated by Grimes

Final Thoughts: Funny or Too Far?

Hogan’s Hostages walks a narrow path: turning the brutal absurdity of modern conflict into a searing, satirical sitcom where weapons are swapped for wit, and tunnels double as Wi-Fi stations.

It doesn't try to offer solutions.
It doesn't glorify either side.
It just points out the reality: when everyone is lying, laughing might be the only honest response left.

Auf Wiedersehen, Geneva Convention.
Shalom, slapstick sabotage.
As-salamu alaykum, weaponized punchlines.

Hogan’s Hostages is live. And in the words of the Goat:

“Baaa means resistance.”

Hogan’s Hostages - Image Gallery

Courtesy of Netflix
Main cast of Hogan’s Hostages assembled at Gaza compound gate in Netflix reboot pilot episode

“Hogan’s Hostages” – Netflix Reboot of Hogan's Heros
Prisoners playing poker with stolen UN rations in bunker beneath Gaza tunnel system in Hogan’s Hostages

Prisoners playing poker with stolen UN rations in bunker beneath Gaza tunnel system in Hogan’s Hostages

“Hogan’s Hostages” – Netflix Reboot of Hogan's Heros
Secret Hamas officer caught doing karaoke in hostage compound in Netflix’s Hogan’s Hostages

“Hogan’s Hostages” – Netflix Reboot of Hogan's Heros
Female engineer builds WiFi antenna out of spoons and spite in Hogan’s Hostages

“Hogan’s Hostages” – Netflix Reboot of Hogan's Heros (17)
Tunnel diggers pause for hummus and existential dread in gritty Netflix comedy Hogan’s Hostages