Dogs of Berlin

This series deserves better than a 7.5. It down & dirty in the Gang/Underworld of Berlin. Probably not for every one, but the acting is superb. It has been my experience that many foreign shows don't get the credit they deserve.

This is the first German show I've watched on Netflix and I was hooked from the start. All the characters are flawed in some way, most at least partially redeem themselves by the end and some don't. Some of the many intertwining storylines are a bit OTT and a bit superfluous but the show was thoroughly enjoyable and it would be great to see a second series.

The only criticism is that the series takes too long time to introduce the characters. Yes, they have depth and complexity but more time could've spent on entertainment meaning action.

Other than that happy that I was able to binge watch it, good story, lots of twist and turns and excitement until the end. Worth to spend a rainy Sunday with it.

I gave it 9 stars, although it probably deserves more like 8, but I felt that I had to do my part to upgrade the rating a little.

Some parts of the story are absolutely ridiculous and farfetched, the computer generated scenes of the football matches were some of the worst I've seen in recent memory, however I was entertained the entire series and I definitely want to see the second season.

The two leads were both terrific and elevated the show beyond trashy camp. It feels a little bit like watching the over the top and absurd Boondock Saints at times crossed with a really good English serial... however the portrayal of the central characters somehow lend credibility to the proceedings even when the plot veers way off the rails.

As an American it's hard to tell where this series stands in comparison to other German television shows, and it's difficult to judge what aspects of Berlin life and culture even remotely resembled reality. I did find it fascinating, however and it made me want to try other German series.

I have visited Berlin several times, have read about its history and present day, including Muslim immigrants, but still - this series depicts a parallel realm, issues often directly associated with erroneous decisions in the past. Lots of segregation, exercise of power, wrong understanding of sense of community - and you find yourself in the middle of problems as shown in Dogs of Berlin.

For an outsider like me, everything seems realistic, including the characters, performances, environment, and the overall uneasiness is dominant throughout the season. The script included some nice twists, mainly related to the cop Grimmer; as for the cast, Fahri Yardim and Katrin Sass were more memorable, but, as mentioned above, they all did their good, yet difficult job.

Thus, another good German series, recommended to all them willing to know all faces of Berlin - one can easily do it via TV, visiting those places by yourself is often not a good idea...