The Bridge season 2

After being blown away by the first season of The Bridge, I turned to the American re-make but lasted for only six episodes. It was OK but it had a lot to live up to and I couldn't accept anyone other than Sofia Helin in the lead role. I did like the American/Mexican storyline and had I seen the show before the original Swedish/Danish series I might have liked it a lot more, but once you've seen Sofia Helin in those leather trousers then everything else pales to insignificance. I so I went straight to the second season of the Swedish/Danish original.

Incredibly season two was even better than the first season, even if the plot did meander into some pretty far fetched territory - in fact the plot, involving a group of eco terrorists, wouldn't be out of place in a James Bond movie. And its all the better for it - on the surface it looks like a grimy noir with realism triumphing over fancy, but wash away the surface sludge and a pretty fantastical plot is revealed. A plot that is twisty, turny and tantalising. There's not a lot of out and out humour to punctuate the misery (and there is plenty) but instead there is the subtle humour derived from Saga Noren and her interactions with the other characters. Her penchant  to openly talk about sex and the problems it entails is absolutely priceless - the reactions of her main sparring partner, Martin Rhode (Kim Bodnia) are highly nuanced and the pair are simply the best TV COP double-act since Regan and Carter.

That this season ends -BIG FAT SPOILERS AHEAD - with Martin being hauled off to prison, dobbed in by Saga herself, would seem to set up an intriguing premise for the third season. And that was the intentions of the show runners but Kim Bodnia decided he was quitting the show before starting work on the third season, forced their hands. The third season then doesn't feature Martin at all and I wonder if that will change the dynamic of the show. Sega Noren is an absolutely superb character, one of the most interesting in all of crime TV, but she could be somewhat deminished without the heart provided by her co-star.


WHY BODNIA QUITE THE BRIDGE

I'm immediately moving onto the third season now - I just can't get enough of this show. After that I may try the Anglo/French re-make, The Tunnel. OK, so I was dissapointed by the American version of the show but I'm going to give The Tunnel a try but what I'm really waiting for is a fourth season of the Swedish/Danish original. Though I'm getting ahead of myself and so I load up season 3, episode 1 and PLAY.