--- Warning: contains spoilers from seasons 1 and 2. ---
It’s spring 1943. We’re out at sea, and Commander Swinburne, clutching the notice of his son’s death in a vice grip, is at the helm. In his avenging sights are the Germans who killed Daniel.
It’s a fiery start to season 3 of Das Boot. There is no escaping the brutality of the war. But what this series does so well is convey life’s grey areas – not all ‘baddies’ are ‘bad’, and not all ‘goodies’ are ‘good’; we always have a choice over how we behave. We’re moving from out at sea, to Dusseldorf and Kiel in Germany, Liverpool in England and Lisbon in Portugal to follow three storylines this season.
Here’s what to expect.
Germany
Hannie Lessing and her father Captain Wilhelm Hoffmann (Luise Wolfram and Ernst Stötzner). Source: Bavaria Fiction
Chief Engineer Robert Ehrenberg has been posted to land, overseeing preparations of the new U-949 for which new recruits are being trained, and quickly. Young ‘sewer rats’ Pauli and Harri (Alessandro Schuster and Aniol Kirberg) are pulled off the streets for a chance to join the crew, and befriend young Berndt (Yuri Völsch) in the process. The three will remain deeply connected.
Ehrenberg meets young Fanny, who is milling around his ship and living quarters since his home was bombed and wife and son killed. She’s determined to gain access aboard. Her mother Greta now runs the optical store in place of her father. The paths of these three are to cross throughout the season, providing welcome heartfelt moments.
We also meet Commanding Officer Buchner again, who’s put in charge of U-949. Buchner’s manner doesn’t exactly earn him the respect of the crew. He has an uphill battle to climb while Ehrenberg is assured of Buchner’s ineptitude, fattening his workload.
England
Commander Jack Swinburne (Ray Stevenson). Source: Bavaria Fiction
But for now, he’s returned home to wife Daisy (Jo Hartley), and neither can find a way to comfort the other in their grief. While Daisy finds a way to accept Daniel is gone and forge on, Jack is falling deeper into despair. How does he climb out of it?
He embraces his latest mission as a distraction: to captain HMS Perseverance and hunt down the U-949. He is even more remorseless in his approach than ever.
Portugal
Bettina Gruber (Anna Schudt) and Hagen Forster aka Werner Giese (Tom Wlaschiha) in ‘Das Boot’ season 3. Source: Bavaria Fiction
At times, you’d be forgiven for forgetting a war is going on, what with people revelling in general merriment. But its murky undercurrent is ever present.
At sea
With U-949 on a mission to pick up then drop off precious cargo to neutral waters in Portugal, and the HMS Perseverance in hot pursuit, things are as tense and precarious as ever. Inevitable tragedy befalls the crew on both sides, and remarkable feats are achieved too, in the face of the most extreme of challenges.
In this meticulously rendered drama, it’s the relationships at sea that are arguably the most compelling, especially when under fire, or in the aftermath of accidents or tragedy. How do the men interact before, during and after duress? Where do honour and conscience fit in, even when humanity is dissolving? How do relationships, new or established, fare when circumstances heighten to their most dire?
The ensemble cast – forgive the pun – is as watertight as ever. Their depiction of the extremes of human behaviour, the nuances, the opportunities presented to do better or worse, to betray another or stand up for them, is impressive to say the least.
We can only hope there is more to come, but for now, dive right into season 3.
Season 3 of Das Boot premieres at 11.20pm on SBS VICELAND on Tuesday 12 July. Stream all three seasons now . Dive straight into season 3:
Or start at season 1:
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