This episode completely destroyed me. Watching Martin's life be completely destroyed like that was painful. I was late to the party and knew Kim had left the show due to anti-Semitism he recieved whilst filming in Sweden, but had no idea he'd end up going out like THIS. I really wanted a happy ending where he'd end up with Mette, Jens gone from his mind etc, or at the very least end up with Pernille, but episode 9 made sure he'd not be with Mette, and this episode destroyed any chance of him ever being with Pernille. It was devastating to watch. Watching Viktoria die the way she did as-well was horrific, and watching Pernille having a choice between dying that way, or shooting herself in the head like she did, was also painful as-well. This episode hit me right where it hurts, and that is what good storytelling is all about. If it hits you emotionally, whether good or bad, you know it's good. I really wish Martin hadn't become a murderer, though. I really wish the ending to his story would've been at-least a tad bit more psoitive. I do appreciate the gritty realism of the outcome, though, even though it sucked to see it happen like that. :(
3 Reviews
S2: Engaging even if it doesn't totally make the many side characters work as it wanted to
bob the moo6 May 2014
When a boat runs aground on the bridge between Sweden and Denmark, it is found that the only people on board are some young people who had gone missing some days prior. Their presence on the boat is a mystery however they quickly start to show symptoms of a deadly disease and at the same time a group of what appears to be masked activists claim responsibility with the promise of more to follow. With Saga assigned the case in Sweden, she turns to the Danish force for assistance – in particular her former partner Martin, who she has not seen for a year and who is now assigned to soft duties.
The first season of The Bridge may not have lived up to the hype around it but it was engaging and satisfying for what it was. Although the second season came to the UK with lots of praise and talk, I didn't get too much of it on board and indeed found a season that again is flawed in key ways but still does the job. The meat and potatoes of the story this time is that we have a series of terrorist attacks with big impact and plenty of drama and, after a bit of crowbarring, we get the old team together to look into it. The build of the mystery is mostly well paced and engaging, but as with the previous season, the structure means that we have lots of characters floating around where it is not really clear how they fit into things. Although for the majority of them their significance will become clear, it does give the show a bit of an awkward feeling as they hang around almost waiting to do their part.
In addition to this we also have some other situations which do add some value but never totally fit in; Martin's meetings with Jens always felt like they were just happening for the sake of it (which they are, narratively, to a point), while other side issues and characters are okay but not key to the story. These side issues are not really engrained into the story so do feel a bit awkward in the season. It doesn't help that the story doesn't really build to a meaty conclusion – it sort of does, but at the same time things get too big and it struggles to keep things tight overall, it is thrilling in the specifics but when it comes to the bigger picture it is looser than it can bare. It does do some brave things along the way, but again they don't really feel deeply connected in the show and instead feel like things they did as opposed to just part of the writing.
The cast remain good though, even if they do not always have a huge amount to work with. Bodnia's Martin has some obvious issues which he lets grind on him pretty well, but he never totally sells his character to the point that the various plot developments needed him to. Helin is better because she does have a stronger character and is more convincing in what she does, often being very funny in her deadpan delivery. The various supporting characters are solid enough in their parts and memorable enough to help keep track of who is who.
The second season of The Bridge does enough to satisfy those that enjoyed the first season. It has its flaws in the writing and it doesn't cling together as smartly or tidily as it wants to, but generally it has good characters, good forward movement and enough happening in the broad strokes that perhaps weaknesses in the detail don't matter so much. Third season is promised for late 2015, we'll see what it can do with the questions it left hanging.
The first season of The Bridge may not have lived up to the hype around it but it was engaging and satisfying for what it was. Although the second season came to the UK with lots of praise and talk, I didn't get too much of it on board and indeed found a season that again is flawed in key ways but still does the job. The meat and potatoes of the story this time is that we have a series of terrorist attacks with big impact and plenty of drama and, after a bit of crowbarring, we get the old team together to look into it. The build of the mystery is mostly well paced and engaging, but as with the previous season, the structure means that we have lots of characters floating around where it is not really clear how they fit into things. Although for the majority of them their significance will become clear, it does give the show a bit of an awkward feeling as they hang around almost waiting to do their part.
In addition to this we also have some other situations which do add some value but never totally fit in; Martin's meetings with Jens always felt like they were just happening for the sake of it (which they are, narratively, to a point), while other side issues and characters are okay but not key to the story. These side issues are not really engrained into the story so do feel a bit awkward in the season. It doesn't help that the story doesn't really build to a meaty conclusion – it sort of does, but at the same time things get too big and it struggles to keep things tight overall, it is thrilling in the specifics but when it comes to the bigger picture it is looser than it can bare. It does do some brave things along the way, but again they don't really feel deeply connected in the show and instead feel like things they did as opposed to just part of the writing.
The cast remain good though, even if they do not always have a huge amount to work with. Bodnia's Martin has some obvious issues which he lets grind on him pretty well, but he never totally sells his character to the point that the various plot developments needed him to. Helin is better because she does have a stronger character and is more convincing in what she does, often being very funny in her deadpan delivery. The various supporting characters are solid enough in their parts and memorable enough to help keep track of who is who.
The second season of The Bridge does enough to satisfy those that enjoyed the first season. It has its flaws in the writing and it doesn't cling together as smartly or tidily as it wants to, but generally it has good characters, good forward movement and enough happening in the broad strokes that perhaps weaknesses in the detail don't matter so much. Third season is promised for late 2015, we'll see what it can do with the questions it left hanging.
Liked it until episode 9, not sure now
rubenvanbergen1 April 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Overall I must say I preferred the first season, but this second season did again have me gripped from the start. The crime story is a good one, and as before the show deftly weaves different side stories and characters together into a complex web. I especially appreciated the portrayal of Martin's trauma and inner conflict, and the resolution of all the different plot lines was a satisfying one.
Or at least, that's what I would have said, had the story ended halfway through episode 9, after Oliver's death and the "wrap party" at the police station. But this, it turned out, was not the end, for any of it. And then, in the space of little more than an hour, it all comes undone. We get a coda for the main plot that feels somewhat disjoint from the rest, even though it's a very gripping story. But in particular, we see Martin's life totally ruined. And that's what bothers me. I never expected or wanted him to get an easy fix; that would have felt more empty than anything. And he didn't, last season. He was left to mourn the death of his son, and to recover from a highly traumatic series of events. But at least he had his family back, and Jens ultimately didn't get his way. Things were going to be tough, and indeed they were for most of this season, but there was always a glimmer of hope. Things, at least, seemed to be getting better.
So why destroy this character by taking it all away at the very end? I simply fail to see how it was justified within the narrative. And what's more, it ruins the character for us morally. Martin used to be a cop that didn't always play strictly by the rules, was sometimes guided too much by emotion, and who was fundamentally fallible. But he was also a strong, caring man who acted as Saga's conscience and social compass a lot of the time. This mix is what made him likable. Having him kill Jens in the end just makes him weak. It's him giving up the fight. It's just so disappointing, and it retroactively makes him a worse character in the first season as well.
Maybe that was the point. Maybe it was supposed to be a dark, poignant ending. Maybe we were supposed to appreciate the realism in it. But to me it felt more like being robbed.
Or at least, that's what I would have said, had the story ended halfway through episode 9, after Oliver's death and the "wrap party" at the police station. But this, it turned out, was not the end, for any of it. And then, in the space of little more than an hour, it all comes undone. We get a coda for the main plot that feels somewhat disjoint from the rest, even though it's a very gripping story. But in particular, we see Martin's life totally ruined. And that's what bothers me. I never expected or wanted him to get an easy fix; that would have felt more empty than anything. And he didn't, last season. He was left to mourn the death of his son, and to recover from a highly traumatic series of events. But at least he had his family back, and Jens ultimately didn't get his way. Things were going to be tough, and indeed they were for most of this season, but there was always a glimmer of hope. Things, at least, seemed to be getting better.
So why destroy this character by taking it all away at the very end? I simply fail to see how it was justified within the narrative. And what's more, it ruins the character for us morally. Martin used to be a cop that didn't always play strictly by the rules, was sometimes guided too much by emotion, and who was fundamentally fallible. But he was also a strong, caring man who acted as Saga's conscience and social compass a lot of the time. This mix is what made him likable. Having him kill Jens in the end just makes him weak. It's him giving up the fight. It's just so disappointing, and it retroactively makes him a worse character in the first season as well.
Maybe that was the point. Maybe it was supposed to be a dark, poignant ending. Maybe we were supposed to appreciate the realism in it. But to me it felt more like being robbed.
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