Unless a soothsayer tells you “Beware the Ides of March,” it’s likely you’re not in any danger, but you might want to stay home anyway for the premiere of the final season of The Bridge.
It’s bittersweet, knowing that Season 4 of The Bridge (Bron/Broen) is the last one ever while savoring every second of it.
Although it consists of fewer episodes than the previous seasons (eight instead of ten), the storyline — crafted by series creator and head writer Hans Rosenfeldt (Marcella, The Sandhamn Murders), co-head writer Camilla Ahlgren (The Sandhamn Murders), and writers Måns Mårlind (Midnight Sun), Nikolaj Scherfig (Heartless), and Björn Stein (Midnight Sun) — is as intricate and gripping as we’ve come to expect from one of the best Euro TV series ever.
And both Sofia Helin (The Same Sky, Arn: The Knight Templar) and Thure Lindhardt (Flame & Citron, The Spider) — to whom we must bid the fondest of farewells — deliver top-notch performances as Swedish detective Saga Norén and her Danish counterpart and friend Henrik Sabroe.
Season 4 opens nearly two years after the events in the Season 3 finale and finds Saga, behind bars for murder, having a hard time of it. Henrik’s visits provide some release (ahem), but they are small comfort compared to the freedom she hopes will come sooner instead of later. In Copenhagen, Henrik and colleague Jonas Mandrup (Mikael Birkkjær, Borgen, The Killing) investigate the killing of a government immigration official and turn up two leads, but the discovery of another victim, this one in Stockholm, complicates the case.
Following her release from prison, Saga joins their investigation and also picks up where she left off with her unofficial inquiry into the years-long disappearance of Henrik’s two daughters. Whether brought on by post-traumatic stress or something else, a frightening panic attack compels Saga to see a therapist, while Henrik attends NA meetings as part of his recovery from an addiction to pills.
Elsewhere in Copenhagen, the grieving husband (Thomas W. Gabrielsson, The Protectors) of the first murder victim returns to work and tries to help two homeless and thieving teen girls who, unbeknownst to them or the police, are linked to the killing of his wife. And from the capital city to points beyond, a violent stalker torments his abused wife and son, who find refuge with a kinder, gentler man. Or so it seems…
Meanwhile, Lillian (Sarah Boberg, 1864) is getting heat because someone from the Copenhagen Police is leaking information about the now-multiple murder investigation. Seeing a pattern, Saga deduces a key aspect of the killings, and soon thereafter Henrik figures out the connection between the victims. Now they must find the murderer before there’s another victim.
Except there’s a problem: Saga has unwittingly shattered her friendship with Henrik, and he wants nothing more to do with her, professionally or personally.
Each of the previous three seasons (available for streaming in the US on Hulu audcasinos.com and Amazon Video and in the UK on Amazon Video) is binge-worthy and this final one is no different — with its complex plot, tight storytelling, and moments of humor that allow you to exhale. (Without getting into actual spoilers, there is an appearance by a former cast member, too.) And the way Rosenfeldt and co bring The Bridge to a close is fitting and fabulous.
Bron wouldn’t be Broen without Rafael Pettersson (Arne Dahl), who reprises his role as John Lundqvist, the IT expert with the Malmö Police. Also returning for Season 4 are Gabriel Flores Jair (Wallander) as the police pathologist in Malmö, Maria Kulle (Crimes of Passion) as Linn Björkman, the Malmö Police Commissioner, and Julie Carlsen (The Killing) as Barbara, John’s counterpart at the Copenhagen Police.
The final season features Sandra Yi Sencindiver (2900 Hapiness), Anders Mossling (The Eagle), Fanny Bornedal (1864), Iris Mealor Olsen (Below the Surface), Erik Lönngren (The Sandhamn Murders), Lisa Linnertorp (The Fjällbacka Murders), Selma Modéer Wiking (Mysteriet på Greveholm – Grevens återkomst), Elliott Crosset Hove (Follow the Money), Leonard Terfelt (Wallander), and Lars Ranthe (Dicte).
A co-production of Sweden’s Filmlance International and Denmark’s Nimbus Film, The Bridge: Season 4 premieres in the US this Thursday, March 15, exclusively on Hulu. All episodes will be available at once for stateside viewers to binge-watch.
UK viewers can look forward to the final season of The Bridge later this year on BBC Two.
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