Inspector Beck - Season 6 - DVD

Film: Martin Beck (Peter Haber) has resigned from the police force and temporarily transferred the leadership of the team to Steinar Hovland (Kristofer Hivju). He immediately has to deal with the disappearance of a 17-year-old schoolgirl. But even Beck does not remain idle in his self-imposed retirement, when he is asked by the secret service to help in the investigation of a boy who has joined the IS. When the two cases are brought together by a tragic find, Beck is reunited with his team shortly after his retirement. But even though he's putting off retirement for a bit, he's not going back to his old job. As the new department head, he keeps a low profile and is concerned about finding a permanent replacement for the open position. Steinar shows interest, but in the short time they've worked together, he's been able to convince Beck that he's a good leader for the team. And while he waits for the decision, there are other cases to solve such as the murder of a hockey team coach and the death of a single mother.

Fans of Inspector Beck must be prepared for significant changes in the new episodes. Contrary to the German title, Beck is no longer a commissioner and actually only plays a supporting role in the series. Steinar, played by Kristofer Hivju, known among others from the series Game of Thrones, and the rest of the team will be even more prominent than before. This applies to both the investigation and their personal lives. Beck's appearances are reduced in particular to short conversations with his cranky neighbor or brief advice during team meetings. The fact that he himself is no longer really investigating is probably the most striking change this season.

Does that change the series much? A little, yes, but not in such a way that the new episodes really suffer. For one thing, the cases are as exciting and atmospheric as usual. On the other hand, the remaining characters, especially Steinar, are developed in an interesting way. And the series can even benefit a little from that. How Beck's new position changes the dynamics of the team and how certain personal relationships develop or change, makes the four episodes exciting even when they are not looking for murderers.

And therefore fans of Kommissar Beck can't get past this box set again, even if they don't like the really big change in the main character that has been made here. Solid crime entertainment with exciting cases and good actors - for this there can only be a worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: Everything remains the same here. Both the picture, as well as the sound quality of the individual episodes is on exactly the level that may be expected from a current TV production. The picture exhibits solid image sharpness, with slight weaknesses in overall sharpness and contrast matching here and there in the darker sequences. Coloration is atmospheric and no notable image distortions or even smudges can be discerned. The audio is primarily dominated by the dialogue, but the restrained music, ambient noise and a few minor sound effects also ensure that the surround channels are audibly used here and there. Good.

Extras: Unfortunately, the box set has no bonus material to offer.

Conclusion: Even if the titular Inspector Beck plays more of a supporting role in the new episodes, the team around Steinar aka Kristofer Hivju is strong enough to keep the series playing in the upper league. The new season again offers Nordic thrilling crime entertainment of a particularly entertaining kind. The double DVD presents the four episodes in good picture and sound quality. However, the viewers have to do without bonus material again this time. Nevertheless: alone because of the very emotional first episode of the box there is a clear: Recommendable!

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp