MHz Choice recently announced its upcoming slate of programs, which is filled with new series and returning favorites.
Without any further ado, here are overviews of the titles coming to MHz Choice between August 2018 and Janury 2019. (Descriptions for the July titles are here.) Premiere dates are at the end of this article.
Acquitted (Frikjent) (Norway)
Nicolai Cleve Broch (The Half Brother) stars in this crime drama series as Aksel Borgen, a successful businessman who has spent the last 20 years in Asia, following his acquittal for the murder of his high-school sweetheart.
When his hometown’s cornerstone business is threatened by bankruptcy, Aksel returns to save the place that once turned its back on him. However, the past has not been forgotten; his arrival tears old wounds apart and new conflicts arise as the man who pleaded not guilty is still being judged.
Costarring Lena Endre (Wallander), Tobias Santelmann (Borderliner), Synnøve Macody Lund (Black Widows), Ellen Dorrit Petersen (Borderliner), Fridtjov Såheim (Torpedo), and Øystein Røger (Struggle for Life), Season 1 of Acquitted premieres in November and Season 2 in December.
Agatha Christie’s Criminal Games (Les Petits Meurtres d’Agatha Christie) (France)
Seasons 2 and 3 of Agatha Christie’s Criminal Games — the colorful, French-ified adaptations of Agatha Christie‘s novels — are headed to telly in October and November. Set in the 1950s, they star Samuel Labarthe (The Forest) as classy Police Commissioner Swan Laurence, Blandine Bellavoir (Maison Close) as ambitious journalist Alice Avril, and Elodie Frenck (War and Peace) as Swan’s loyal secretary Marlène.
Beck (Sweden)
MHz Choice is giving us a gift like no other on Christmas day: new episodes of Beck — the classic and timeless Nordic noir mystery-crime drama series starring Peter Haber as the eponymous (now-former) detective with the Stockholm Police. As Steiner Hovland (Kristofer Hivju, Game of Thrones), the new lead for Beck’s team, says in the promo video (at the end of the page), “Beck is back.” So are Beck’s daughter and wacky neighbor.
Chefs (France)
This acclaimed drama centers on Romain (Hugo Becker, A Very Secret Service), a 25-year-old locksmith and convicted felon. Following his release from prison for fraud, his parole officer secures a job for him in the kitchen of a famous Parisian restaurant run by “the Chef” (César Award winner Clovis Cornillac, The Story of My Life) — a giant of French gastronomy who holds a place on his team for a young offender every year in memory of his own youthful indiscretions.
Both seasons of Chefs — which costar Anne Charrier (Maison Close), Nicolas Gob (The Chalet), Robin Renucci (A French Village), and Zinedine Soualem (Venus and Apollo) — will kick off the new year on MHz Choice.
Detectives (Détectives) (France)
The second and final season of this crime comedy-drama premieres this September. In Season 1, former French intelligence officer Nora Abadie (Sara Martins, Death in Paradise) helps Philippe Roche (Philippe Lefebvre, Killer by the Lake) save the family-run Roche and Son private detective agency from ruin. In Season 2, Philippe’s estranged wife, Anna (Laure Marsac, Blood of the Vine), returns to France after two years. Oh là là.
Homicide Unit Istanbul (Mordkommission Istanbul) (Germany)
August brings the third season of mystery-crime drama Homicide Unit Istanbul, which finds Inspector Mehmet Özakin (Erol Sander, Flemming), a married, nattily suited and booted by-the-book cop, and his single, maternally-challenged, trusty sidekick Mustafa Tombul (Oscar Ortega Sánchez, Commissario Brunetti), continuing to fight criminals amongst the 15-million-plus populace of Istanbual on one hand and still battling bureaucratic ineptitude on the other.
Inspector Coliandro (L’ispettore Coliandro) (Italy)
Giampaolo Morelli (Song of Napoli) returns as the handsome and lovable but not-so-swift Dirty Harry-wannabe detective for the third season of Inspector Coliandro — the crime comedy set in Bologna and based on the protagonist in the “Coliandro” novels, short stories, and comics by series creator and writer Carlo Lucarelli (Detective De Luca). Get ready for more of Coliandro’s comic misadventures in September!
Johan Falk (Sweden)
August brings the third and final season of crime thriller Johan Falk, whose five feature-length episodes find the eponymous special operations officer (played by Jakob Eklund) keeping tabs on gang leader Seth Rydell (Jens Hultén, Inspector Winter), investigating organized crime activity in and beyond Gothenburg, and trying to protect his family from the Eastern European mafia.
Lola Upside Down (Lola uppochner, aka Lola ylösalaisin) (Finland)
Based on the novel of the same name by Monika Fagerholm, this surreal, Twin Peaks-ish coming-of-age story centers on four young girls growing up in the small, coastal, and male-dominated town of Flatnäs, which welcomes “those who want to die” and shelters a quirky community of misfits.
MHz Choice premieres Lola Upside Down in December.
Luther and Me (Katharina Luther) (Germany)
One of two titles on this list that commemorates the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, this telefilm chronicles the life of Katharina von Bora (Karoline Schuch, Tatort), the strong woman behind legendary Reformer Martin Luther (Devid Striesow, The Counterfeiters).
After becoming acquainted with Luther’s writings, Katharina breaks her vows as a nun, flees the convent, and ultimately leads a self-determined life as the wife of Martin Luther, the mother of his six children, and a key and powerful figure in the Reformation in her own right.
The Mafia Only Kills in Summer (La mafia uccide solo d’estate) (Italy)
Inspired by the film of the same name, this quirky comedy-drama tells the story of the Giammaresi family, an ordinary one with both parents and two children, living in Palermo in the late 1970s against a backdrop of Mafia violence.
The narrative is in a style reminiscent of a mashup between The Wonder Years and Forrest Gump — mixing archival footage with live action from the point of view of the Giammaresis’ son, Salvatore, who is played as a young boy by Edoardo Buscetta and voiced-over as an adult by the multiple award-winning creator of the film and series, Pif.
Featuring Claudio Gioè (Anti-Mafia Sqaud), Anna Foglietta (La squadra), Francesco Scianna (Maltese: The Mafia Detective), Valentina D’Agostino (Borgia), Angela Curri (Mussolini’s Daughter), and Alessandro Piavani (Medici: Masters of Florence), The Mafia Only Kills in Summer premieres in August.
Mammon (Norway)
Jon Øigarden (The Half Brother), Ingjerd Egeberg (Eyewitness), Anna Bache-Wiig (Acquitted), and Nils Ole Oftebro (Black lake) return in November for this conspiracy thriller’s second season, which won the 2017 International Emmy® Award for Best Drama Series. It opens with the murder of a well-known commentator and journalist from Norway’s biggest newspaper, which fuels the flames of an already volatile conflict between Norwegian Prime Minister Michael Woll (Trond Espen Seim, Varg Veum) and Minister of Finance Erik Ulrichsen (Ingar Helge Gimle, Acquitted).
Mary Higgins Clark Mysteries (France)
Coming in September is the second season of this suspenseful mystery-crime thriller series based on select works by American novelist Mary Higgins Clark, aka is the Queen of Suspense and the all-time best-selling fiction author in France.
Murders at Barlume (I delitti del BarLume) (Italy)
Based on the novels by Italian writer Marco Malvaldi, this series from the producers of Detective Montalbano returns in October for its second season of quirky murder mysteries. Set in the (fictional) Tuscan town of Pineta, the series stars Filippo Timi (Vincere) as Massimo Viviani, the owner of Barlume, the local bar where four eccentric septuagenarians hang out, gossip, and help amateur sleuth Massimo solve the strange crimes that happen in their town.
The Octopus (La piovra) (Italy)
Arguably the most popular popular Italian television series in the world, this acclaimed Mafia drama is a classic, one that ran ten seasons between 1984 and 2001. Michele Placido (The Last Godfather) starred in the first four seasons as Corrado Cattani, the Chief Inspector of the police in Sicily who discovers just how far the Mafia’s tentacles extend into every echelon of society. The Octopus returns to our screens in September.
Reformation (Zwischen Himmel und Hölle) (Germany)
Also produced to mark the 500th anniversary of the Reformation is this historical drama starring Maximilian Brückner (Line of Separation, Tatort) as visionary reformer Martin Luther. The miniseries tracks Luther’s growing anger at the corruption and hypocrisy of the Catholic Church’s hierarchy in the early 16th century, which eventually turns him into a revolutionary who changes the beliefs of society.
Luther’s ex-communication, “there is a false church and a real church” speech, and infamous pinning of his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg contributed to his becoming one of the most important religious figures in history.
Reformation, which features Johannes Klaußner (Homicide Unit Istanbul), Jan Krauter (Deutschland 86), and Joachim Król (Commissario Brunetti), premieres in October.
The Sandhamn Murders (Morden i Sandhamn) (Sweden)
The first three seasons of this popular mystery-crime drama series had been available in the US until a couple of years ago. In a few months, MHz Choice will bring them and two new seasons to viewers on this side of the fjords.
Based on the novels by Swedish author Viveca Sten and set on an idyllic island in the Stockholm Archipelago, the series stars Alexandra Rapaport (The Team, Codename Hunter) as Nora Linde, a Sandhamn summer resident who gets involved in the murder inquiries conducted by Thomas Andreasson, an insomniac detective played by Jakob Cedergren (Those Who Kill, Arn: The Knight Templar).
Featureing Anki Lidén (Irene Huss), Sandra Andreis (Arne Dahl), Lotta Tejle (30 Degrees in February), and Ane Dahl Torp (Occupied), Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of The Sandhamn Murders will screen in November, followed by the premieres of Seasons 4 and 5 in December.
Those Who Kill (Den som dræber) (Denmark)
This is the original version of the crime drama that the American show of the same name is based on. The series follows Katrine Ries Jensen (Laura Bach, Rita, The Eagle) and Thomas Schaeffer (Jakob Cedergren, The Sandhamn Murders, The Spider) — two members of a (fictional) unit within the Copenhagen police that specializes in serial murders.
Costarring Lars Mikkelsen (The Team), Frederik Meldal Nørgaard (Kuppet), Lærke Winther Andersen (Dicte), and Iben Dorner (Borgen), Those Who Kill arrives in November.
Varg Veum (Norway)
Based on the novels by best-selling Norwegian author Gunnar Staalesen, this crime thriller series stars Trond Espen Seim (The Legacy, Acquitted, Mammom) as the eponymous private investigator.
Seasons 1 and 2 of Varg Veum premiere in October.
Here is the full MHz Choice schedule:
- 08/07/18 — Homicide Unit Istanbul: Season 3
- 08/14/18 — Mafia Only Kills in Summer
- 08/21/18 — Johan Falk: Season 3
- 09/04/18 — Detectives: Season 2
- 09/18/18 — Inspector Coliandro: Season 3
- 09/18/18 — The Octopus: Complete Series
- 09/25/18 — Mary Higgins Clark: Season 2
- 10/02/18 — Murders at Barlume: Season 2
- 10/09/18 — Varg Veum
- 10/16/18 — Agatha Christie’s Criminal Games: Season 2
- 10/23/18 — Varg Veum: Season 2
- 10/30/18 — Reformation
- 10/30/18 — Luther and Me
- 11/06/18 — Those Who Kill
- 11/13/18 — Sandhamn Murders: Season 1
- 11/20/18 — Acquitted
- 11/20/18 — Sandhamn Murders: Season 2
- 11/27/18 — Mammon: Season 2
- 11/27/18 — Agatha Christie’s Criminal Games: Season 3
- 11/27/18 — Sandhamn Murders: Season 3
- 12/04/18 — Lola Upside Down
- 12/04/18 — Sandhamn Murders: Season 4
- 12/11/18 — Sandhamn Murders: Season 5
- 12/18/18 — Acquitted: Season 2
- 12/25/18 — Beck: Season 6
- 01/01/19 — Chefs
- 01/15/19 — Chefs: Season 2
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