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Ferdinand Zanki (Ein Krimi aus Passau/Dark Rivers)

kevinburtonsmith

Created by Michael Vershinin

Not the star of the show, but the seemingly hapless private eye and security specialist FERDINAND ZANKI sure plays a pivotal part in the 2020 German TV mini-series Ein Krimi aus Passau, originally presented as a series of made-for-television movies, with the first four films subsequently aired in the U.K. and the U.S. as Dark Rivers.

Zanki’s the third side of an uneasy triangular alliance, the other two sides being a mother and daughter from Berlin who are in witness protection, hiding out in the picturesque Bavarian small town of Passau, where three rivers converge, almost 400 miles away from Berlin.

The show kicks off with plenty of oomph, as part-time private eye Zanki, working loss prevention in a grocery store, confronts a suspected shoplifter with disastrous results. Which is when a women shopper steps in and saves the blinded Zanki’s bacon, easily overwhelming the thief and leaving him hog-tied in the aisle before she flees the scene. This, Zandi figures,  is one shopper with a very specific skill set and no ordinary shopper.

Turns out she’s Frederike Bader (not her real name), a former detective and single mom from Berlin, who’s gone into witness protection along with her teenage daughter Mia (not her real name either), after she testified against Kadher Bahdari, a ruthless crimelord. Now all she wants is to stay under the radar, not attract any attention, and keep Mia and herself safe.

But Zanki knows nothing about any of this. He’s intrigued, though, and starts digging. Meanwhile, Frederick and the sullen, rebellious Mia are at odds, struggling with their new names and new lives. Frederike was a skilled and dedicated detective—she’s working a less than rewarding job as a quality inspector at a forge, and teenager Mia misses her friends and her life back in Berlin—she considers Passsau a bore.

But Zanki keeps digging, even as he works other cases, while Mia—against instructions—makes contact with an old friend, with disastrous results, inadvertently exposing their whereabouts.

And that’s just the first episode! Zanki soon figures out the Bader’s secret—or at least some of them. At first reluctantly, the three, all distrustful of the other two, form a fragile alliance, even as the noose draws tighter. Meanwhile, Zandi tries to work his other cases, hoping for and eventually receiving Frederick’s assistance. Though she’s not too happy about it, and not entirely impressed with his detective skills.

Some jaw-dropping, eyeball-rolling coincidences pop up (An ancient Roman burial site? Really?), and Mia in particular does some truly stupid things (Hey, she’s young!), but the wobbly plot weaves in and out to a satisfying conclusion after the four episodes I’ve seen (there are more to come), and there’s some genuine suspense along the way. The wild-haired, jeans-wearing Zanki initially comes off as a bit of a doofus, but it soon becomes apparent he’s more than he seems. Still, most of the dramatic heavy-lifting is by Frederike, who slides into the role of Zanki’s behind-the-scenes partner almost against her wishes.

But did anyone ever go get the dog?

TELEVISION

Respectfully submitted by Kevin Burton Smith.

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