# Najbolje godine

Najbolje godine (English: The Best Years) was a Croatian drama television series that aired for two seasons on Nova TV, from 14 September 2009 to 3 June 2011. The series follows everyday conflicts between inhabitants of Dragošje, a small fictional village in Slavonia.

## Premise

Lorena (Katarina Radivojević), a modern city girl, is sent to the countryside after a sequence of unforeseen and tragic events. The sale of the family estate she inherited from her late mother in her will marks the start of her journey to Dragošje, a small village in Slavonia. She initially planned to sell the house, but she ends up staying in the village.

## Series overview

| Series | Episodes | Episodes | Originally aired | Originally aired |
| Series | Episodes | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
| 1 | 152 | 152 | 14 September 2009 (2009-09-14) | 3 June 2010 (2010-06-03) |
| 2 | 166 | 166 | 6 September 2010 (2010-09-06) | 3 June 2011 (2011-06-03) |

## Cast and characters

† indicates character dies during the series
| Actor | Character | Duration |
| Janko Popović Volarić | Ranko Hajduk | 2009–2011 |
| Katarina Radivojević | Lorena Levaj | 2009–2011 |
| Karlo Ferenčak | Marko Lovrić | 2009–2011 |
| Svjetlana Magdić | Zvjezdana "Zveki" Rakan | 2009–2011 |
| Amar Bukvić | Tomo Hajduk | 2009–2011 |
| Asja Jovanović | Danica Hajduk-Lehner | 2009–2011 |
| Velimir Čokljat | Đuka Lotar | 2009–2011 |
| Luka Juričić | Young Đuka Lotar | 2011 (1 episode) |
| Jasna Odorčić | Zlata Žunić | 2009–2011 |
| Robert Jozinović | Dr. Dražen Ricijaš | 2009–2011 |
| Duško Valentić | Don. Andrija Perkić | 2009–2011 |
| Mirta Zečević | Saška Jaklinac | 2009–2011 |
| Livia Drinovac | Ema Jaklinac | 2009–2011 |
| Marija Borić | Zrinka Lotar | 2009–2011 |
| Hrvoje Horvat | Sebastijan Lovrić | 2009–2011 |
| Petra Cicvarić | Korana Lotar | 2009–2011 |
| Žarko Potočnjak | Božo Hajduk | 2009–2011 |
| Leona Paraminski | Majda Botica | 2009; guest in 2010 |
| Ivana Bolanča | Jana Matišić | 2009–2010 |
| Barbara Rocco | Anka Lovrić | 2009–2010 |
| Biserka Ipša | Ruža Hajduk (u komi) | 2009–2010 |
| Mladen Čutura | Petar Lovrić | 2009–2010 |
| Mateja Kruhak | Mira Matišić | 2009–2010 |
| Stjepan Perić | Filip | 2009–2010 |
| Janko Rakoš | Damir Hajduk | 2009–2010; guest in 2011 |
| Ksenija Pajić | Suzana Gajs | 2010–2011 |
| Zrinka Kolak Fabijan | Spomenka Gajs | 2010; guest in 2011 |
| Mia Dejanović | Lena Gajs | 2010–2011 |
| Maša Dejanović | Tena Gajs | 2010–2011 |
| Ljubomir Kerekeš | Ante Lalić "Lale" | 2010–2011 |
| Ivica Pucar | Kruno Lalić | 2010 |
| Ljubica Jović | Jasenka Lovrić "Beba" | 2010 |
| Mira Furlan | Violeta | 2010 |
| Sonja Kovač | Dorotea | 2010 |
| Enes Vejzović | Antun "Tuna" Elezović | 2010–2011 |
| Iskra Jirsak | Marta Elezović | 2010–2011 |
| Tomislav Martić | Maks † | 2010–2011 |
| Lena Politeo | Katarina "Kata" Jurić † | 2010–2011 |
| Nikolina Pišek | Lucija Elezović | 2010–2011 |
| Jelena Perčin | Dunja Dizdar-Lehner | 2010–2011 |
| Ivan Herceg | Dino Popović | 2010–2011 |
| Ivan Pašalić | Goran "Gogo" Dizdar | 2010–2011 |
| Vesna Tominac Matačić | Dr. Melita Jurić | 2011 |
| Nebojša Borojević | Mišo Sekulić | 2011 |
| Antonio Franić | Don. Gabrijel Kos | 2011 |

## Production and broadcast

The filming of the first season began in July 2009. Due to its very high ratings, filming continued for a second season. The series had a main cast of 20 actors. The story takes place in a fictional village called Dragošje, located in the Slavonia region of Croatia. Sixty percent of filming was exterior, in Eko Selo, Žumberak, Croatia. Nova TV also constructed a village set near the town of Samobor.
The main directors of the series were Mladen Dizdar, Robert Orhel, Goran Rukavina and Kristijan Milić. The series' creative producer was Milivoj Puhlovski.
The series aired from Mondays to Thursdays in the prime time slot (from 8 to 9 pm). It also aired in Bosnia and Hercegovina on Program Plus (shared channel by Kanal ATV and NTV HAYAT), in Slovenia on POP TV, and in Serbia on TV B92.