Spuren

This four part German series is inspired by real events that took place in southern Germany. As it opens a young woman goes out for a jog; she does not return and is reported missing. The police, many of whom know the local community well, start a major operation to find her. Eventually a body is found and suspicions about the identity of the killer are raised... then a second woman is murdered; the MO might be different but police fear they may be dealing with a serial killer.

I thought this was a solid drama. The pace might not be fast but that suits the story as it captures the fact that real investigations take time; often a long time. There are some events that defy genre conventions in an interesting way. The cast does a fine job and the setting is, as one has come to expect of the genre, quite scenic. I'd certainly recommend this to fans of Euro-crime.

These comments are based on watching the series in German with English subtitles.

This is not an action-packed police procedural thriller but nor is it a cozy 'Krimi' full of comic relief and overly laced with the characters' private lives. Based on real events but without becoming a docudrama, while it lacks the intrigues and cliffhangers of made-for-TV plots it still has enough suspense surrounding the meticulously pursued forensic trail to make it a worthwhile watch. For fans of police procedurals it's a down-to-earth window not only on the way the police work in rural Germany and collaborate with their European counterparts, but also an insight to German culture. Fluent speakers of German will enjoy the soft tones of the regional dialect, while for others, the subtitles leave nothing out. For fans of all types of the serious side of the genre it is well directed, well acted and it won't disappoint but if police procedurals are not one's thing, then best give it a miss rather than a poor review.

'Spuren' is rather different to a normal crime drama; it's closer to a reconstruction of an actual murder investigation. As someone who visited southern Germany a lot during the late 1990s, I can vouch for the accuracy of the aesthetics; and the story is also very believable: the investigation is slow and hard and characterised more by gradual shifts in direction rather than wild turns in the plot. The relationships we see between colleagues have a slightly hackneyed feel in places but are also believable. It's actually quite refreshing to watch a series where not every detail has obviously been placed to set something else up. The underlying tale is of course decidedly bleak; to see if they caught the perpetrator in the end, you'll just have to give it a watch.

I rarely ' binge watch ' , however I have just watched all four episodes of ' Spuren / The Black Forest Murders ' in a single evening / early morning ! Superbly acted and a thoroughly great watch with some great scenery. This TV drama highlighted for me the manpower, time, cost and challenges sometimes needed to eventually track down a killer. This is an addictive and gripping watch and highly recommended viewing. I do hope that this isn't just a one-off drama involving the actors in this police team, as I would love to watch them involved in other criminal cases/murders.

Well Done to everybody involved in this superb German TV drama.

This must be the most unexciting crime thriller I have ever had the misfortune to watch. Totally bland cinematography, numb acting, implausible dialogue, actions and reactions from every single character throughout. No suspense whatsoever, no leads for viewers to follow, hardly even any red herrings. Why anyone greenlighted this project is the only real mystery here.

These problems are shared with many "based on a true story" dramas, but rarely has less effort been made to create something worth watching.

Series like Heimat and many others have shown that even Germans can create great drama, but this is just a huge dissapointment.