Die Toten von Marnow

There are surprises around every corner in this series. The two protagonists are very competent cops and extremely troubled individuals, spectacularly played by Petra Schmidt-Schaller and Sascha Alexander Gersak. (Both were awarded well earned German TV Prizes.) Also standing out: Anne Schäfer and Jörg Schüttauf. No black and white, good against evil here. Unusual for a German production, the good guys are corrupt, take the law routinely into their own hands, try desperately to get away with it and to bring down the real villains for good measure. One memorable scene after the other: A crime victim taking revenge in a shocking way within minutes after the deed. The heroine telling how she lost her whole family. A stunning action sequence with the hero trying to save his own family. A second season would be very welcome.

It doesn't get any better than this. The script is superb and completely unpredictable and there was never a point where I felt like it was being 'filled' as I so often do with Netflix so the eight episode run seemed perfect. The dialogue is excellent and about the most natural I've heard. There's even a good few moments of humour in there and thanks to this show I've learned a few German swear words. The actors are superb, all of them, there was never a moment when I didn't believe any of them they were all absolutely convincing. Despite the leads being seriously flawed people and imperfect police officers they are very real and hugely likeable. The personal lives part is also perfectly balanced and almost always relevant to the story so it doesn't turn into a chore watching them at home with their significant others. I've never watched German TV before but I liked listening to the language. Even my wife who refuses to watch foreign TV with subtitles was hooked and we binged watched the show on C4 in two days.

If I had a gripe then I'd say that while it's a murder show and the very nature of murder is brutal I dislike graphic violence and some of the murders could be done without so much gore 'vielen dank' and while I'm at it that gore was always repeated during the 'last time' refresher at the start of each episode, poor Mr Dreyer. I also dislike 'next time' trailers at the end of each episode believing they spoil the experience so I had to grab the remote to stop them. They we unnecessary as I was already hooked and didn't need encouraged to watch the next episode. We'd watched entire episodes without realising or checking the running time once. All German TV can't be this good but based on this I'll be giving it another go. When something is this good it should be left alone for everyone to enjoy in its original form so no English speaking remakes please.

I'm all for the character-driven crime series from Scandanavia, but Germany delivers some of the best, more nuanced series in the genre. Marnow Murders (as titled/viewed in the US) has great, movie-quality characters, beautiful filmaking, quirky storyline and...two central figures that draw you into their individual worlds. Exceptional "tv."

As this German series, set in the city of Schwerin in the former East Germany, opens a man enters an apartment and discovers a body on the sofa... the body of somebody he intended to murder! He searches the apartment looking for a list of unspecified information. When the body is discovered by the police it is hanging in the bathroom with a message suggesting he was a paedophile carved into him. The case is investigated by Detectives Frank Elling and Lona Mendt. The soon have a second case when a man is found with his throat cut. The evidence suggests the same killer but there is no obvious connection between the victims beyond the fact that the first regularly stayed at a holiday site on the lake near where the second lived. The investigation will expose secrets dating back to the days of the communist DDR and place those investigating in danger; various personal issues don't help matters for them.

I really enjoyed this series. The central mystery was intriguing and had some good twists and turns before the truth is revealed. The opening scene immediately grabs the viewers' attention and get them hooked as we wonder just why two different people wanted this man dead. The main characters are interesting; normal police officers with various imperfections and problems. The actors all do a solid job. The setting adds to one's enjoyment; forests, lakes and some impressive old buildings... not everything east of the old Iron Curtain is grey concrete as those us who grew up before it fell imaged at the time. Overall I'd definitely recommend this to fans of Euro-drama.

These comments are based on watching the series in German with English subtitles.

The story was captivating from beginning to end.

German crime series are very different from US productions. Characters are more real, the story line is less contrived than US shows (yet still not wholly realistic) - but this is escapist TV.

The acting is good, the scenery beautiful, the cinematography excellent.

Overall, a highly recommend several hours of excellent entertainment.

The show should have you hooked after the first episode, otherwise it is not for you.

Note: I watched the original German so I cannot comment about dubbing nor translations/subtitles which I sadly have seen to often be terrible.