Mord mit Aussicht

I came across this gem of a tv series a number of years ago on "ARD Mediathek". Because I'm bilingual I've been able to watch things in German on places like "Das Erste" which produces this. The setting is a rural town called "Hengasch". It's a play on words...in German it almost sounds like "Hänge-arsch" which is a real concept. (Flabby/saggy bottom, basically). It's deliberate because the main character, Sophie, says "Hengasch" sometimes in a way where it really sounds like 'Hängearsch". The characters are all caricatures, but once in a while there are more serious moments as well. It can be a bit corny, but I think that's its charm in a way. It's pretty light viewing as far as murder mysteries go... Might be interesting to see if an English-language based streaming service might pick it up some day. Compared with Brit series, I'd say it's something like a cross between a little more cynical Vicar of Dibley and a more rural Midsomer Murders. Each episode is under 1 hour.

Ensemble cast of 4 lead by Sophie, Caroline, a bright star. Light hearted, enjoyable. Who knew Germans could do light comedy. I love her smile, like the cat who ate the canary. I enjoy her outfits and see each season they give her a new color palette. For someone forced to stay who wants to get back to Cologne, she is kind and assimilates well. Commitment Phobic or maybe she just hasn't met the right guy.

Barbel is cute & socially naive. Both are astute Detectives. They like each other. Sophie lights up when they have a murder I like that her Dad who in real life has died, is portrayed as living in Poland with his young girlfriend.

2 episodes kept seeing Owls, one on the lit Polizei sign. A bit Surrealistic. They don't play too much loud music during scenes.

Season 4, The new Mayor has a one night stand, &doesn't tell Sophie his intentions before. What a Cad. Maybe family in Cologne. I guess he can Troll in Cologne for casual sex.

I don't take it seriously as a crime drama. But not bad. I've seen worse taking themselves seriously. One review hated the characters. Me, I like them.

Only one question: why does Frau Haas not have any control over her sexual habits. This does not ad up with her confident demeanor. Its rather sad and not believable.

What's the perfect translation for the show's title? "Murder with a view"? Anyway, this TV show is funny, uplifting, entertaining, captivating and very enjoyable. Hengasch is a strange village with strange people and I absolutely love it! Sophie Haas is a typical mid-thirty woman from a big city and Caroline Peters is just amazing in her role. The other main characters are great as well. Dietmar is such a lovely idiot and Bärbel with her wide-eyed temper is simply adorable. I really enjoy these completely different characters and how they solve the murder cases in awesome Hengasch.

The humour might be not everyone's taste - but I love it. It's not overstated, it's rather understated, snappy and kind of silly and foolish. I love the mixture! The three seasons really hooked me and the concluding TV movie "A Murder With A View" is a very nice conclusion.

Unfortunately, season 3 isn't as brilliant as the first two seasons. I couldn't get over the feeling that the producers (maybe new directors and writers) wanted to put more comedy into this show. It didn't really work for me. Some episodes are just dull and, well, filled with overstated situations. It's such a pity!

Nonetheless, I will visit Hengasch via my TV more than once. It's an enjoyable, fresh and unconventional crime series! Go watch it, folks!

We are watching this on MHz using the English subtitles and thoroughly enjoying it . We love th characters .. Sofia has a very mobile face that communicates her constant bewilderment of life in the " sticks". If I wanted to bribe Dietmar to get out of a speeding ticket I think cookies would do the trick. Dietmar's wife is a scream, " bulldozer" is far too mild a term ...bold and obtuse. We are looking forward to the rest of the series . Our preference is to buy DVDs and watch them at our leisure but I am unable to find DVDs with subtitles .. MHz has stopped selling DVDs perhaps the takeover by Kino Lorber I'll change this .