Braquo

The first season of this classy French crime thriller was quite superb . Excellent story lines , first class acting and great cinematography. It all just felt so real with the dodgy cops trying desperately to keep one step ahead of everyone....crooks , internal affairs and fellow police officers.

Then came along Season 2 and everything changed . The story got quite unbelievable , the actors definitely looked as tho their hearts just weren't in it any more and the basic direction was very lacklustre. The soul had completely gone from Braquo . Its no surprise that the show has now been cancelled.

I loved the first episodes of the the series. Set in Paris, it features a french police brigade.It has some nudity, violence and action with a French accent and flavour. Nice and refreshing since most shows are about the American or English reality. Unfortunately, the crudeness that was interesting and refreshing in the first episodes goes on and on. It is as if the plot is always the same, a group of hard policemen and women that fight crime not really caring about the law. They kill the villain. Then comes another.... So, murder after murder and law violation after law violation, the cops always get away with it. It gets unbelievable.... It should have lasted one or two seasons and give it a good finale as a prize. Some characters manage to disappear from season to season without much explanation, probably the actors weren't available...

Giving Braquo a 9 because it's totally racist as is it's follow-up/ counter part Engranages. Apart from that excellent TV. not enough adjectives to describe the great acting, writing, makeup or lack there of & production. Shear gritty over the top violent beauty.. Episodes just continue to get better each time..As in life.. everyone is bad, but as the series show, plenty of us are very, very bad. You will have no time to feel empathy for any of the characters.. And there will be times when you'll be rooting for their demise..Especially the cops. If you're trying to learn French, forget about it.. These series are made for native French speakers.. The Subs are so so, sometimes pretty dreadful.. Since 2013, I believe Hollywood has seen the writing of it's own demise on the wall and have begun to collaborate with international actors and film companies from several European countries.. American Hegemony has been waining for sometime and thankfully it's also affecting the film business. It's not that international film has always been this good. It's just that American TV has always been very bad.

Can't believe anyone would pan season two of Braquo. You try putting together something as phenomenal as that show. Just be thankful that the world has crime and detection offerings from something beyond the technocracy filled serials originating in the US. Any human empathy in American serials is swallowed and drowned in the budding stage by the cacophonous technoRock background music. With European master film making we are given highly believable, living people situations with gut wrenching results. Focus on the use of music in Euro filming and compare it to the monster that has come into American stuff. It is sickening. Emotion is the creed with Euro filming not something on the "attempt to exploit" block. I am freaking to hear that Braquo isn't on board for 2014 presentation. It could only be that their writer died or went overboard, took a live round. The corollary serial 'Engranages' is doing well, what on earth could have tipped over Braquo other than the actors got paid and paid well and consequently OD'd in celebration (not acceptable). I think they should come back by popular demand. Their work is totally believable. Maybe the fatah had a hand in undermining the show. I think Braquo is an essential part of Europe's hope of preserving the culture of the continent and surviving the scourging flood of smuggled narcotic toxins.

This series is definitely one of the best cops/crime series ever, whatever country. It was strange how I completely forgot there were subtitles, it was like a seamless cross-over to French which I do not speak.

Acting by all is superb, especially Jean-Claude Anglade the charismatic head of 4 cops who get the bad guys seemingly through any means possible including the illegal. Interesting shots of a mostly depressing Paris which matches the mood of the numerous high level and low life criminals. Shows complicity of French politics with corrupt cops. Several stories happening at once so tension remains high even when one case is resolved. Creative and unpredictable moves on part of the police and criminal. Not like white-bread formulaic American cops and crime shows.

I watched all four seasons, binge style. I was sad when it was over, can't think of a way to have another season. Too bad, back to the mostly futile search through the scads of crap shows on TV or internet (except of course the truly excellent like Breaking Bad, Please call Saul, Six feet Under, Sopranos.... Renewed hope in me that great drama is not dead.