Before Season 5: What Happened So Far in ‘Babylon Berlin’

The fifth and final season of ‘Babylon Berlin’ is being billed by its creators as the series’ high point. For viewers who do not want to binge-watch all 40 earlier episodes, roughly 30 hours of television, a few basics may help.

At the center is Gereon Rath, played by Volker Bruch. A traumatized, drug-dependent former World War I soldier, Rath arrives in Berlin from Cologne in 1929 to work as a police commissioner. He is repeatedly put through the wringer, yet he is also an enthusiastic dancer. Rath is no conventional winner, but women are drawn to him, and he ultimately brings the machinations of dark forces to light.

His cases have involved blackmail photographs with a sadomasochistic theme, criminals within the police, the arming of the banned Black Reichswehr, warfare between Berlin underworld gangs and a missing diamond that attracts an American mafioso. He also investigates fascist coup plans while working undercover as an SA man, as well as the White Hand, a secret organization in which right-wing judges carry out vigilante justice.

Charlotte Ritter, played by Liv Lisa Fries, is Rath’s female counterpart. With charm, intelligence and a distinctly Berlin manner, she tries to rise through the police ranks and escape the miserable conditions of Berlin-Moabit, where she grew up. She initially works as a prostitute and sometimes enters dance marathons to earn extra money. Her career as an investigator continues to advance, helped by Rath, while the two gradually grow closer amid the turmoil.

Lars Eidinger plays the manic-depressive industrialist Alfred Nyssen, a recurring figure in Rath’s path. Nyssen is linked to illegal arms deals, the transport of missing Tsarist gold to Germany and support for the Black Reichswehr. He also becomes the new lover of Helga, Rath’s great former love. Helga Rath, played by Hannah Herzsprung, is the woman Gereon desires in the first three seasons, although they grow increasingly distant. She is also the wife of his brother Anno, who disappeared during the war and was believed dead. The account ends by asking whether Anno may still be alive.