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Walter Presents: ‘The Nordic Murders’ preview – it’ll have you guessing to the end

Anyone expecting Scandinavia to be the setting for a series with Nordic in the title might be in for a bit of a shock when they hear people speaking German (and occasionally Polish) in this crime drama. It’s set in the real-life island of Usedom off the north coast of Germany, right by the Polish border. Usedom is the second largest of the Pomeranian Islands, and whilst 80% of the island is German, the remaining 20% is Polish. However, in terms of population, more than half are Poles. It’s the sunniest part of both Germany and Poland (hence it’s nickname as the Sun island) and is a popular tourist spot.

If you want to avoid spoilers, stop reading now.

It’s also an interesting setting for a crime drama. I was reminded of the UK series Shetland, simply because of the isolation that an island location offers. Although the geography of Usedom and Shetland are very different, the small-town feel of both places – where everyone knows each other’s business – is not dissimilar.

Walter Presents: The Nordic Murders
Credit Walter Presents

‘The Nordic Murders’ (Der Usedom-Krimi in German) centres around three generations of women born and raised on the island. Karin (Katrin Sass) is a former district prosecutor who has just been released from prison having been incarcerated for killing her philandering husband. Her daughter, Julia (Lisa Maria Potthof), is a detective with the local police force. And Julia’s teenage daughter, Sophie (Emma Bading), is a headstrong environmentalist. The straight-laced Julia is having problems rebuilding a relationship with her murdering mother (Karin used her daughter’s gun to shoot her husband), and she’s further alarmed when her mother and her daughter (with whom she also has a difficult relationship) become firm friends.

Each 90 minute episode of the series features a different crime, but the common thread throughout the series is this complicated three-way relationship between these women.

In episode one, a young man who is confined to a wheelchair since a car accident is taken to the beach by his sister and his carer. They leave him on a jetty whilst they sneak of for a tryst in a nearby abandoned building. They return minutes later to an empty jetty. The police are summoned, and the body of the drowned man is recovered by divers.

Walter Presents: The Nordic Murders
Credit Walter Presents

Blame initially falls on the carer, with the assumption that he failed to secure the wheelchair’s brake properly. But soon, Julia realises that even if the brake had been released, there is no way the wheelchair could have fallen into the water accidentally. He was pushed into the freezing water and killed intentionally.

Suspicion falls on a number of different suspects – not least because the victim had been responsible for the death by dangerous driving of two women; he was severely disabled as a result of the crash, but whilst he recovered (albeit with live-changing injuries), others were less lucky. Eventually it’s Karin – from watching a wildlife video, of all things – who gets inspiration and realises who pushed him into the water.

It’s well-acted, nicely written and the plot had me guessing to the end. It’s slightly formulaic, perhaps – and whilst there are plenty of strong female characters, the male characters are less well developed. But if you enjoy the likes of Vera, you will have plenty to get your teeth into here, too.

Walter Presents: ‘The Nordic Murders’ will be broadcast on More4 at 9pm on 4th December 2020 with all episodes available immediately afterwards via All4

author avatar
Martin Howse
Martin is a wannabe Viking who enjoys all things Nordic (literature, film, TV, rock music - and cinnamon buns!). Skål!

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