Heer & meester

I'm sad they aren't making more, although glad to see a movie in the works. Just noticed the comparison to The Saint - that makes sense, loved that show as a kid. The setup and characters are very good. The situations aren't too harsh or violent, which is my preference. The relationship of Valentijn and Leo is terrific. Give it a whirl!

I am sorry it has been decided to stop this programme, because it is rather good for a Dutch show of this kind. The characters are quite nicely defined and the stories are believable. To my mind a comparison could be made with the German TV-series "Ein Fall für Zwei". The 'hero' is not too much of a hero and the 'villains' could be any of your next door neighbours. And all this in recognisable Dutch settings, which is the icing on the cake for me...

Heer & Meester (the first series) is a contemporaneous Dutch tongue- in-cheek nod to the detective/spy series of the 60's. It mixes elements from The Avengers, The Saint, The Persuaders and others from those halcyon TV days.

Valentijn Rixtus Bentinck (Daan Schuurmans) was orphaned and left in the care of an Abbey in south Holland. Orphaned, but not poor, thanks to a mysterious and hefty trust fund financing an education that produced an urbane man of leisure with an eclectic mix of sword fighting and other skills. From his residential hotel suite in the Hague, attended by a butler reminiscent of Alfred, Valentijn sets out to correct wrongs in society that happen to drop onto his lap - wrongs often committed by old well-to-do acquaintances and school buddies gone seedy. While bringing old friends to justice, Valentijn also goes in search of his roots.

Schuurmans plays Bentinck with a great sense of dry, understated humour. But that is only half the show; his acting companion Sytske van der Ster delivers a wonderful performance as the Public Prosecutor Suze. Sytske deftly manages to avoid being the dumb blonde - well, Sytske's a redhead - by playing the able prosecutor who is nevertheless always one step behind Bentinck. A hint of something between Valentijn and Suze keeps the viewer guessing.

As an antidote to a heavy day at work, I found this series to be great entertainment. As of this writing, the second second season is being aired.

Why a 9 out of 10 and not 10? Subtitles. Other than that I wish there were quality fun rom-coms like this in the US. The acting is good to adequate and the camp is very entertaining. It is just serious enough to not be foppish, and light enough to give a good laugh each episode. Great date material (if you are sitting in bed with your wife) and great entertainment for the whole family. Kids get it and laugh - if they can read fast enough. Too bad they didn't dub it in English, or shoot a second shot with English. I'd like to see this on CW or some other US network, but not Pivot, not wide enough exposure. I recommend it to every lover of James Bond, with a light hearted laugh and bowl of popcorn.

This is just a fun, fun Dutch series that I highly recommend, especially to those individuals seeking Dutch language content. Filled with humor and with the stylized look and feel of a 1960's spy story, Heer & Meester gives both The Saint and James Bond vibes (although probably closer to The Saint). The character of Valentijn Rixtus Bentinck (Dan Schuurmans) first appears to the audience dressed to the 9's at a masked party in a luxurious mansion where he suavely kisses a stranger before slipping into a room where he opens a safe containing a large Faberge egg.

He is subsequently taken in for questioning by the lovely Suze Geleijnse (Sytske van der Ster) when a dead body shows up at the same crime scene. This begins an interesting cat and mouse between Valentijn and Suzie, where Valentijn escapes and then pops up in Suze's car for a little witty repartee that usually includes the sharing of information to the ends of finding the real murderer.

Each episode thereafter has a bit of a formula, it begins with a phone call from Suze interrupting Valentijn doing something dangerous and often expensive like scaling a high rise building, going into space, deep sea diving, and truffle hunting where he is facing off with a bear. Suze is usually asking Valentijn for help with her current case because of a particular skill, talent, or connection of Valentijn's. Then Valentijn joins Suze to help her solve her case, usually with some sabotage from her office mate and almost always with Valentijn hooking up with a lovely lady during the case...often using his signature line, "Every day is Valentijn's day".

Over the course of the series we learn that Valentijn is alone in the world, having been left as a baby at a church, not knowing his mother or father. He does have a somewhat mysterious (and bottomless) trust fund that he lives off of. Growing up in a fancy boarding school in Switzerland, but returning to The Hague to live and solve the mystery of his parentage. He lives in a nice hotel where he is assisted by a tireless hotel employee who acts like his personal butler named Leo.

Leo, often joined by his nephew for the computer needs, is another Jack of all trades but seems to have a questionable if not shady past. Lots of inside jokes pass between Leo and Valentijn...including that a "pick up from the airport" used to have a different meaning.

Most episodes include a clue or some advancement to solving the mystery of Valentijn's parentage.

The series is loaded with humor, great sets, beautiful costumes, beautiful women, fast cars, snappy dialogue and fun mysteries.

This is a strong recommendation from me. The show is infectious and addictive. I think cosy mystery fans will love it and fans of that 60' spy nostalgia. Be prepared to laugh, be jealous and fall in love with the Dutch city The Hague.