Good detective shows focus themselves around a likeable character who always wins in the end. Police Chief Soneri may not be the best known detective on television, but Fog and Crimes: The Complete Third Season proves he deserves to be more recognised as one of the greats.
In the third and final season of the show based on the novels by Valerio Varesi we see changes in Soneri’s (Luca Barbareschi) life and his career. Still as stubborn as ever, in this final season the cases become much more personal, with both his past and present endeavours leading him into danger.
Fog and Crimes has always been four to six feature-length episodes which are nicely paced to be watched separately, and not in the “binge” style we do so often these days. In this final season we see four, with more of a focus on Soneri’s life. This is especially the case in the first episode, The Secret Room which features love interest Angela Cornelio (Natasha Stefanenko) in her final episode. Based around a conspiracy story it is by far the best and a very good start to the season and is one of the shows best episodes over all the seasons.
Once this episode closes the door on the past, then we are introducted to Immacolata (Celeste Cuppone) a young homeless girl who becomes important to the season, as does new love interest Chiara (Anna Valle). These two work as Soneri’s new companions and as is typical of the character, give him the impetus to work even harder to find the truth. It is Immaolata’s story though that creates the story arc for the whole season and while at first it is a slow burner, once we get to the final episode it reaches full speed leading to a fitting conclusion for our hero’s story.
What works out well with Fog and Crimes: The Complete Third Season is the refreshed feeling of it, especially when Soneri gets a new boss, Rosa Pianeta’s character Eliana works as a tough boss who knows Soneri from the past, and knows what to expect from the grumpy old detective. This may be why they work so well together as she knows exactly when to loosen his leach and let him get on with it.
All Detectives have that memorable trait about them, and with Soneri it is the fact that once he has bitten into the meat of the investigation he won’t let go until he is happy with the result. If something doesn’t fit, he won’t accept it and he’ll force the case to go on. The fact he won’t give up is the thing that annoys everybody who tries to work with him, but for the audience this is his charm. We watch him knowing that he will get to the truth and he will bring down the bad guys no matter how good they’ve hidden their tracks.
Fog and Crimes: The Complete Third Season may be the final one, but it also feels like the best. Luca Barbareschi really is at his best with this character, and Soneri is ever dependable. He is a character that has been built up through the two previous seasons and we know him well, both in his job and his personal life. The quality of the writing is shown in the way that there is never a weakness shown in Soneri, he never does anything that contradicts the man we already know.
If there is one negative thing about Fog and Crimes: The Complete Third Season it is the fact that this is the final one. The show ended on a high, and feels like it could have continued on if the makers chose to. Ending like this makes Fog and Crimes one of the best detective shows to come out of Europe, a hidden gem just waiting for people to discover.
***** 5/5
Fog and Crimes: The Complete Third Season is out now in the UK on DVD.
