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Braquo Season 4 begins with the long-awaited conclusion to Season 3… and that’s all I can say about that. I was waiting so long for the resolution that I’m not going to spoil it here!
NOTE THAT THIS REVIEW ASSUMES YOU HAVE SEEN ALL OF SEASONS ONE, TWO AND THREE.
Okay, it’s no surprise to say that they find Roxanne (Karole Rocher), since she’s on the cover and main menu for this release, and she’s in the cast list. Clearing up other loose ends from season 3, Walter’s (Joseph Malerba) understandably upset about his children being taken hostage so he threatens to kill Baba Aroudj (Gérald Papasian), “just like I killed your fucking son”, but as Eddy (Jean-Hugues Anglade) has to remind him, they’re cops and not vigilantes.
Stepping into the cast this time is Chief Superintendent Henri Brabant (Thierry René) from the IGPN is in town to investigate Caplan and all the cops there, even though Brabant, himself, comes from the same division that spawned Roland Vogel! (Geoffroy Thiébaut)
Before long, a meeting is set up with their contact, Charlie (Laurent Richard), in a shopping mall, because if they do take Aroudj down, the Turks will want revenge and it’s going to start a mafia war in Marseille. However, as things escalated, I realised that overall, Season 4 is not quite as good as Seasons 1-3, with a storyline that doesn’t quite match those previous seasons, since the plot quickly steps from one bad guy to the next one, and at times it does feel like it’s going a little ‘through the motions’, but you’ve still got to see it. However, for any drama to get to a fourth season and still be a must-watch is great going.
That said, along the way, Roxanne’s partnered with her boss, Michelle Bernardi (Isabelle Renault), the latter having been kicked out of her office by bolshy Brabant, while Eddy visits Nathan Ovazza (Boris Terral) – a man just about to be released following a 15-year stretch – in jail, for reasons that will soon become apparent. Two of my favourite recurring characters in this season were Marseille’s Inspector Frankeur (Pierre Laplace) – who looks like a fat David Soul, and baddie Redouane Buzoni (Assaad Bouab) – who reminds me of a young Freddie Mercury (both below).
Throughout season 4, Brabant wants Eddy’s head. Will he get it? Well everyone else who tried has already failed.
And since everyone loves coffee so much, why do they always drink it out of such tiny cups? Get a bigger cup for a bigger hit!
At the end of season 3, Jean-Hughes Anglade said that they’d make a fourth and then call it a day at that. So, will it end here, or will we still get a fifth season? Only time will tell. Like with Hollywood actors returning to a franchise, it depends if they all have a tax bill to pay.
Note: Most of the episodes are around 45-50 minutes long, with the finale clocking in at 61 minutes.
Also, if you post anything in the comments below, please – NO SEASON 4 SPOILERS!
Presented in the original 16:9 ratio, the picture perfectly captures the filthy-looking police station and the grim local streets of Paris, with the latter also being made to look stylish at times, given the direction.
The sound is in DTS 5.1 and features occasional ambience in the rear channels but nothing too extraordinary.
Sadly, as is always the case with Braquo, there are no extras on this release, so technically the overall score loses points for that, but realistically, you’ll see you are getting eight episodes of quality entertainment, so there’s no argument. Just buy it today!
Braquo is easily one of my all-time favourite dramas from overseas, alongside 24, The Bridge, Borgen and Dexter.
The menu features static links to the four episodes on each of two discs, with atmospheric music playing in the background.
Naturally, there are subtitles in English, and they are also optional, so if you are French and have bought this, you’ll can switch them off. Chapters are thin on the ground with just 6 per episode.
Annoying, there are trailers before the main menu which I can live without. These should be placed in an extras menu.
Braquo Season 4 is released on Monday, December 12th on Blu-ray and DVD. Also, click on the packshot for the full-size image.
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FILM CONTENT PICTURE QUALITY SOUND QUALITY EXTRAS |
8 10 8 0 |
| OVERALL | BUY IT! |
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 8 * 45-61 minutes
Year: 2016
Released: December 12th 2016
Cat no: FCD1419
Chapters: 6 per episode
Picture: 1080p High Definition
Sound: DTS 5.1
Languages: French
Subtitles: English
Widescreen: 16:9
Disc Format: 2*BD50
Director: Xavier Palud
Producers: Hervé Chabalier and Claude Chelli
Season writing credits: Abdel Raouf Dafri
Music: Erwann Kermorvant
Cast:
Eddy Caplan: Jean-Hugues Anglade
Walter Morlighem: Joseph Malerba
Roxane Delgado: Karole Rocher
Roland Vogel: Geoffroy Thiébaut
Baba Aroudj: Gérald Papasian
Guido Frankeur: Pierre Laplace
Henri Brabant: Thierry René
Wassin Alcala: Slimane Dazi
Redouane Buzoni: Assaad Bouab
Majid Aquati: Soufiane Guerrab
Serge Greiner: Philippe Résimont
Kasari: Doudou Masta
Michelle Bernandi: Isabelle Renauld
Nathan Ovazza: Boris Terral
Joseph-Marie Pietri: Michel Subor
Georges Mandeville: Renaud Rutten
Charlie: Laurent Richard
Jackie Greiner: Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.