A German mystery thriller, Sleeping Dog, helmed by Christoph Darnstadt is a 6-episode-long breeze of anticipation and suspense. Brimming with several story arcs, characters and emotions, this Netflix series is a commendable thriller led by Max Riemelt as Mike Atlas. Right from the first episode, Sleeping Dog wastes no time captivating the audience with a sudden suicide. The wailing sirens blaze in the background as the characters start jumping in and the thrill becomes overly captivating.
An ex-KDD officer, Mike is hailed as a fearless and genius cop. However, his sleek sharp brain is slowing down and he is surrounded by accusations and criminals. On the other hand, a rookie lawyer, Jule Andergast (Luise Von Finckh) loses a battle and has to endure the whiplash from her senior, Coraina Steck (Melika Foroutan). Setbacks aside, Jule is relentlessly pursuing the suicide case of Mussa Basher. Little does she realize, what mess is she dragging herself into. Here is a quick recap and ending explanation of Sleeping Dog Season 1!
Sleeping Dog Season 1 Recap
After the news of Mussa’s suicide starts making headlines, his brother Abou starts chasing Mike who resides in a moving truck. Abou accuses Mike of being the reason his brother is dead and lights his truck on fire with him inside it. Mike slowly comes to consciousness and stumbles out of the truck just in time and saunters towards the lawyer who fought Mussa’s case eight months ago. Atlas provided evidence to the court that proved Mussa to be guilty but now, his memories are faded and he cannot remember anything.
On the other hand, Jule has started to investigate Mussa’s suicide and has discovered two prospects. According to her theory, Mussa’s suicide is triggered by two visitors–Idris Kouri and a private detective, Joachim Jurgens. Mussa, before his suicide carved a jargon right above his heart before committing suicide and that proves to trigger Jule’s investigation.
Tom Schlefski joins Steck’s firm and becomes Jule’s ally. Mike’s daughter, Tinka, is overwhelmed by her father’s constant push-and-pull. Mike’s wife, Lenni is getting close to his so-called best friend, Luka Zaric (Carlo Ljubek) and everything is now a complicated mess.
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Why Did Zaric Betray Mike?
As Jule’s investigation progresses, she discovers the meaning behind the Arabic words Mussa carved over his heart. It was his lover’s name and the said man turns out to be Idris who recently landed back in Berlin. Jurgens approaches Tinka and tries to lure her into revealing Mike’s residence–which she isn’t even aware of. The two of them, Mike and Jule, collide with each other and come to the conclusion that Mussa’s suicide is related to the alleged murder of Judge Herres.
As Mike takes refuge with a stranger–whose name is not revealed until the end–a prophecy hits him hard. The pills he was onto after he witnessed a strange murder were given to him by his then colleague and best friend, Zaric, who is now courting Mike’s ex-wife.
Why did he do it?
Sleeping Dog Season 1 doesn’t explore it till the very end and leaves another cliffhanger for us!
Sleeping Dog Season 1 Ending Explained: How Do Tom And Jule Discover The True Nature Of Their Boss?
After struggling to catch Jurgens, Jule seeks Atlas’s help and succeeds. However, before Joachim could reveal why he met Mussa right before his death, he is shot right in front of her. Tom discovers Jule as she tries to overcome the shock and panic and helps her dig deeper reluctantly. His reluctance doesn’t make sense initially and neither does Coraina’s emphasis on shutting Mussa’s case.
As Sleeping Dog Season 1 reaches the penultimate episode, the pieces of this overly complicated puzzle start to fall together. The series is centred around an underlying conspiracy that is being camouflaged by the suicide of Mussa and the murder of Herres. In this mess, Mike, Jule, Zaric, Tinka, Lenni and Coraina are entangled together. There’s hardly a way out but secrets, good grief, are a dime a dozen. One such secret is unveiled by Schlefski who has now fallen for Andergast–a secret about their boss, Coraina Steck.
Are The Russians Involved With Herres’ Murder?
According to Jule, the conspiracy is constructed by the Russians who aspire to own the town. She has drawn this conclusion after visiting Herres’ pretend wife, Chiara, and real wife. Not only has Jule established this whole theory in her head but she has also constructed a journal that Coraina discovers. She believed that Jule wasn’t as tough as her mother and now she is proven wrong.
Tom clarifies that it isn’t the Russians but the street criminals who are backed up by Steck. He transferred and joined Steck’s firm to dig for the truth she had been carefully hiding. However, they are yet to prove it. The Sleeping Dog Season 1 leaves us with a significant cliffhanger here!
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