Ripper Street - Season 1 - DVD

Content: When Matthew Macfadyen visited Frankfurt last year to shoot scenes for his film Welcome to Karastan, he told a small press conference how much he was looking forward to start shooting the second season of his series Ripper Street soon. This series is very close to his heart and it is great fun to play the role of Detective Inspector Edmund Reid. None of the journalists present could quite share Macfadyen's enthusiasm, as Ripper Street was not yet available in Germany at the time, either on TV or on DVD. But the wait for the series has finally come to an end - and already after the first episode one is quite willing to agree with Macfadyen's praise for the series.

Ripper Street is set in 1889 in Whitechapel in London's East End. People here are still in shock from the gruesome murders of Jack the Ripper here six months ago. When the gruesome murders of prostitutes are committed again, suggesting a return of Jack the Ripper, Inspector Edmund Reid (Matthew Macfadyen) together with Sergeant Bennet Drake (Jerome Flynn) and the former US Army doctor Captain Homer Jackson (Adam Rothenberg) founds the special unit H Division to put an end to the Ripper once and for all. But the investigators quickly discover that there are many more dangers lurking in the dark streets of Whitechapel, which will not only put the team's cohesion to the test. Also, the lines between good and evil seem to blur more and more as the investigation progresses...

In some scenes, Ripper Street feels a bit like CSI in the late 19th century. Skillfully, the makers here mix set pieces of modern cop series with dark gothic elements and classic detective stories mixed and a pinch of historically tinged social drama spiced. The result is an extremely exciting and entertaining series, which already knows how to inspire visually. Whether you find yourself in the tunnels of the railway under construction, wandering through the narrow streets of Whitechapel, hanging out in whorehouses or prefer to stroll through noble parks, through the mixture of atmospheric sets, a successful decor and successful visual effects, the creators manage to pull the audience directly into this usually very dark world.

This is further supported by the good scripts and the very good actors. Matthew Macfadyen, Jerome Flynn and Adam Rothenberg make a really good team, with the tensions that exist between the two Brits and the somewhat dodgy American also making the relationship between the trio of investigators constantly unpredictable and interesting. Certainly, the wheel is not reinvented here. But the way in which the work of H Division is set in a historical context here, with fact and fiction constantly intermingling, is extremely engaging and highly entertaining.

If you like things a little darker and generally enjoy British crime dramas, then this first season is definitely not to be missed. Given the high quality of these episodes, it's all the more pleasing that Ripper Street, after the BBC had actually cancelled the series after the second season, is now allowed to go into a third round after all! Absolutely worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: The dark atmosphere of the series and the dirty look of Whitechapel come on the DVD well to advantage. The colours are very atmospheric and, together with the decent sharpness of the picture, ensure that the viewer is drawn deep into the world of H Division. In the numerous dark scenes there are a few small quality losses, especially in the detail representation, but overall an honestly positive overall impression prevails. The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix has some very atmospheric ambient sounds and decent sound effects (explosion, gunfire) to offer. But overall, the rather centrally mixed voices and restrained music set the tone. Good!

Extras: As a bonus, the third DVD features a brief behind-the-scenes look (approx. 12:29 min.). Not much, but for fans of the series definitely interesting and worth watching!

Conclusion:Ripper Street is a thrilling police series that skillfully blends historical fact with fiction to create an atmospheric and engaging whole. The gritty look, the good actors, the coherent set and of course the exciting stories make this thriller drama series a real treat for all viewers who appreciate British TV fare of the somewhat darker kind. The first season is presented on DVD in good picture and sound quality. The bonus material is a bit meager, but still worth watching. And therefore the bottom line for this box is a more than deserved: recommendable!

Matthew Macfadyen during his visit to the Frankfurt cinema Orfeo`s Erben. Image: Sebastian Betzold

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp