The duo Eisner/Fellner is without a doubt one of the strongest teams in the German/Austrian/Swiss crime collaboration Tatort. This episode is, again, one of the strongest offerings.
The apparent serial murderer that the team is after soon leads them to suspect connections to one or more of the nebulous international intelligence services that Vienna is crawling with: East Europeans, Russians, even the CIA.
The investigation is happening against the backdrop of police reforms announced by the federal government and competition among several top investigators in the Vienna office to lead a newly created second homicide squad. Major Fellner tortures her partner Moritz Eisner constantly with the possibility that she, too, may apply for the job, merely to see if she, as a woman, has a chance to break that glass ceiling in the chauvinistic culture of the Austrian Federal Police.
The real strength behind the entire Vienna team's contribution to the Tatort franchise is depth of Eisner and Fellner's characters and their strong friendship. Fellner's sarcastic retorts to Eisner's grumpy demeanor are evidence of an intense respect and admiration for each other. Why Eisner doesn't want his partner to apply? "Then you are gone. Including from me," is his comment. Yet their boss informs her later that Eisner praised her to the sky in a reference for her. Is Bibi Fellner going to break that glass ceiling? Do they catch the serial killer - or is there even a serial killer?
Plenty of suspense and charm to rate this episode as among the best of European crime drama.
The apparent serial murderer that the team is after soon leads them to suspect connections to one or more of the nebulous international intelligence services that Vienna is crawling with: East Europeans, Russians, even the CIA.
The investigation is happening against the backdrop of police reforms announced by the federal government and competition among several top investigators in the Vienna office to lead a newly created second homicide squad. Major Fellner tortures her partner Moritz Eisner constantly with the possibility that she, too, may apply for the job, merely to see if she, as a woman, has a chance to break that glass ceiling in the chauvinistic culture of the Austrian Federal Police.
The real strength behind the entire Vienna team's contribution to the Tatort franchise is depth of Eisner and Fellner's characters and their strong friendship. Fellner's sarcastic retorts to Eisner's grumpy demeanor are evidence of an intense respect and admiration for each other. Why Eisner doesn't want his partner to apply? "Then you are gone. Including from me," is his comment. Yet their boss informs her later that Eisner praised her to the sky in a reference for her. Is Bibi Fellner going to break that glass ceiling? Do they catch the serial killer - or is there even a serial killer?
Plenty of suspense and charm to rate this episode as among the best of European crime drama.
