And if there was ever a twist I never saw coming in a MILLION YEARS, it was the one involving ROSE AND HARTMANN!

Are you kidding me?!

Forget about Martin's baby drama, I'm going to be riding that Rose and Hartmann wave for a long, long time.

As much as I was turned off by the whole Rose storyline (probably more along the lines that I wasn't getting how it all fit in), it all came together on Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 9 and Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 10 with that shocker.

Rose and Hartmann. I just can't get over it.

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Hartmann always came across as being somewhat western-minded especially when he presented his camping out night idea to the committee as a way to boost morale.

But how did he get connected with Rose? Could she have decided to use him to accomplish her goals after he showed her the equipment she'd be using for the mission?

I might have missed it, but he was showing her that stuff because, at that time, the South African mission was going to be funded by East Germany, right?

I didn't get the impression he was always working with Rose and Lenora independently. He never came across as that type of guy — which is one of the reasons why that reveal was so shocking!

I'm starting to believe that Rose and Hartmann were never working together until after Lenora's deal failed. 

Lenora was no longer useful to Rose, and she moved on.

Hartmann was an easy target, too, just for the fact that he was so open-minded.

Related: Get Walter Presents via Prime Video Channels for Original, Exclusive, Hit Series from Around the World!

I can only imagine that Rose used every ounce of her charm and more to convince him to help her.

It wasn't clear if she was able to get the weapons since the ship had turned back before the raid, but I'm guessing that she somehow got hold of the weapons when she was on the dock during all the melee.

Otherwise, why would she have been there? And why would Gary Banks have shown up? He knew something funky was going on, but Rose was way ahead of him.

Hartmann and Rose may be a thing now, but once Hartmann is no longer useful, he'll just become a memory in Rose's mind.

Poor Lenora thought she had found true love and maybe even a way out of the "life", but she was wrong. 

Her entire world has been turned upside down. Her only hope is that the BND will have mercy on her if she cooperates with their interrogation.

So much must be going through her head. She may have been worried about Rose, but it's probably starting to dawn on her that that dream was a little too good to be true.

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She's probably also figured out that Martin is behind her current predicament.

But she shouldn't be feeling too sorry for herself, but she's got a lot to atone for. She used her nephew then left him for dead.

It was all about to come back and bite her in the ass eventually.

At least she got to jam out to Def Leppard before it all came crashing down.

Martin's plans also came crashing down.

After realizing that ripping his son away from his mother wasn't the smartest idea, he came to the conclusion that what he did to Tina and her family was basically the same thing.

And he knew it was wrong.

Martin isn't a terrible person, even though what he did was pretty horrible, but the guy wasn't thinking straight.

He was only seeing things one way and not thinking things through because he was blinded by his mission. 

He never thought how he'd feel if he was ripped from his mother's arms until he saw how upset Max was. 

And of course, his mother provided some great insight, too, as mothers usually do.

He needed to make things right, and Martin being Martin, he figured out how he could solve two wrongs. 

I'm surprised that Annett even went along with his plans, but she knew if Martin took Max she'd never see him again.

And she also knew that her denial of Tobias' prisoner exchange deal was done purely out of spite.

She also got a small taste of what it felt like to be away from your child and not know if you'd ever see him again. 

Although she'd never admit it, that feeling helped move her to go along with Martin's plans.

While Martin never thought in a million years he'd ever end up back with Annett, he also realized that sometimes sacrifices have to be made.

He didn't want Max to grow up without a dad as he did so giving up Brigitte to stay in East Germany was an easy decision.

But if I was Martin, I'd be looking over my shoulder. I don't think Brigitte was kidding when she told Martin she'd kill him if he didn't run off with her.

Now that Frank has been killed, she really has nothing else to do with her life or her time. She gave everything up for Martin, and she's not going to just let him walk away, no matter his reasons.

Everything came together with Alex's storyline. While he might have been in the background most of the season, his speech at the AIDS rally helped shake the stilts East Germany is propped up on in a big way.

He always wanted to make an impact and now he has even if he doesn't realize it yet.

Dietrich: Thank God we don’t have gay men in this country.

_{🔗 permalink: Thank God we don’t have gay men in this country.}

Alex definitely made an impression on Tobias because he never would have came out as a gay man and shared his AIDS diagnosis at the rally.

The world is changing for many of our characters. 

Who's going to hop on the train and who's going to fall behind?

Deutschland89 can't come soon enough!

21 Mentors With Feet of Clay

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Over to you!

What did you think of the season finale of Deutschland86?

Hit the comments and share your thoughts. 

If you need to catch up, you can watch Deutschland86 online right here via TV Fanatic!

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 10 Review: Total Onslaught appeared first on TV Fanatic.

That's exactly what I wanted to do to Tina's interrogator on Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 8 because what she had to endure was absolutely outrageous.

But then again, I'm a liberal, and she's in an East German prison in the 80s — so there's a steep ideological difference of opinion here.

The most offensive of all his tactics was when he used her children against her to try to make her feel guilty for wanting to get out of crazyville into someplace normal.

If they were so concerned about her children, those girls wouldn't be sitting in an East German orphanage with headmistresses telling them their mother abandoned them and other blatant lies.

WTF is wrong with those people?

Related: Get Walter Presents via Prime Video Channels for Original, Exclusive, Hit Series from Around the World!

Despite all their attempts, Tina has balls of steel. It's difficult, but she's keeping it together for the most part, not even giving in when they took one of her teeth in order to get her to talk.

At least that's what I think they did to her.

Barbaric practices just so they could find out who was betraying their country.

You'd think that maybe if people felt so strongly about leaving, the East Germans would just let them go.

If some people are not willing to support the cause, why should the country support them?

But that's not the way the East Germans think, and the more I watch this show, the more my opinion has changed from one of tolerance of another country's ideology (see my Deutschland86 Season 1 Episode 1 review) to the thought that some countries are clearly out of their minds and need to be reformed.

What's surprising is that despite the horrific tactics they used against Tina, the condition of the prison seemed a little more tolerable than what we see in American prisons.

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They didn't even handcuff her as they moved her from place to place, just made her sit on her hands.

Still, her not being given any information on her daughters is excruciating and it's taking everything she has to not cave in to their demands.

She knows that if she comes clean about the people involved, she'd have to give up Ingrid and her brother. She's not ready to do that just yet.

Someone is going to come to her rescue. She's not going to be stuck there forever, that's for sure.

Tobias — surprisingly — tried to make a deal on behalf of the West Germans to release 13 East Germans in exchange for Martin and on his list was all of the Fischers.

Unfortunately, he had to present the list to Annett and she wasn't having any of it. She'd do the trade, but not for any of the Fischers.

Annett feels betrayed by Thomas, and I'm starting to think it's not because he rejected communism but that he left her and didn't include her in all his secret plans.

She might even be bitter that he wrote about it all in his book, but I think it has more to do with him leaving her.

Tina: When did money become more important to this country than human life?

_{🔗 permalink: When did money become more important to this country than human life?}

He gave her life. She loved Martin, but Thomas was so much more fun, and he was there for her when Martin was doing his spy thing.

And then there's the real possibility that Thomas is the father of Max, and that right there might be the real reason she's being such a bitch.

I don't understand Tobias. Whose side is he on? East Germany? West Germany? Or whoever fits with his beliefs of the day?

The same can be said for Mrs. Netz who is apparently Brigitte's boss.

Related: Get Britbox via Prime Video Channels for the biggest streaming collection of TV from BBC & ITV…ever.

Wasn't Netz taking pictures with a spy pen at one point? Is she a double agent, too?

It seems that no one can be trusted on either side of the Wall.

Martin just wants his son and is jumping through every hoop to make it happen, even agreeing to kidnap Lenora to prove his worth to the BND.

Of course, it wasn't going to happen (even though he tried really hard), but luckily Brigitte saved him from BND banishment.

I want to believe she really does love him, but I also believe she has an ulterior motive that I have yet to figure out.

Maybe she just sees him as her ticket out of the spy game, but she had him pegged the moment she met him.

Looking back, she had to have known who he was and endeared herself to him just so she could use him as an asset.

The minute she gets whatever she's after is the minute that relationship is history. Martin will never see her again.

Thomas wasn't the only one Tobias was trying to help out. He made an effort to visit Alex at the hospice and even kept him from being arrested at the pharmaceutical company.

Alex desperately wants his hospice patients to be part of Amend's AZT trials. 

While I do appreciate the AIDS storyline, it's starting to get lost in all the other drama happening in the series.

I understand the irony of the pharmaceutical company willing to test drugs on unknowing East Germans but refusing to use volunteer subjects to test AZT, but it feels like we're being cheated out of something that could be much more developed.

The AIDS storyline is connected but almost as an afterthought which is how I feel about Rose's Apartheid story as well.

It's true that a lot of important things happened in the 80s but trying to fit in everything in only 10 episodes is ambitious, but we'll see how it all fits together as the season winds down.

Only two episodes left to see how it all turns out!

21 Most Unlikeable Leads in TV History

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Over to you!

What did you think of "Vula"? 

Hit the comments and share your thoughts!

If you need to catch up, you can watch Deutschland86 online right here via TV Fanatic!

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 8 Review: Vula appeared first on TV Fanatic.

There's drama, romance, and adventure (and some pretty hot sex scenes if that's your thing!) You'll find people to love, and people to hate.

You'll find yourself rooting for Martin, rooting for Tina, and even rooting for East Germany to get its head out of the sand. But first, start with Tina because she needs a ton of support right about now!

Tina and her family were so close to getting out of East Germany on Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 7, but Martin's desire to get his son back essentially turned him into a traitor.

If anyone is to blame for the fiasco, it's Thomas' girlfriend who ruined the podcast tape and played Tina's instead which was the beginning of the end for Tina and her family.

The only reason Martin gave up the information about Tina's whereabouts was that (even though we didn't see or hear it), Annett made a clear threat to Martin that if he didn't give up the goods, he wasn't returning to East Germany.

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Getting his son has been his only priority since he left Angola, but he might have told Annett everything as a sort of payback to Thomas for having an affair with his girlfriend while he was in West Germany spying.

It was a horrible thing to do, but Martin wants his son, and, obviously, nothing is going to get in the way of his goal.

I can't imagine what's going to happen to Tina and her family, but it won't be good. She's going to be separated from her husband and daughters and who knows when she'll ever see them again.

My heart was pounding for their family from the moment they started to hide in the back of the van. At first, I thought Tina was giving her daughter some kind of poison because she didn't want to risk the very thing that ended up happening, but that didn't make any sense.

Unfortunately, the girl got fidgety and almost spoiled everything, especially after they got stopped by the East German police. 

But they almost got away until Annett finally got through, and, then, it was over.

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I can't believe the police shot the woman in the back. She had to have known she had no chance. Maybe she thought attempting to run was better than being put into an East German prison.

Maybe they even executed people for things like that. I don't know.

Still, it was shocking, sad, barbaric, and unnecessary.

The look on Tina's when she heard the gunshots was agonizing.

Tina and her husband had to put complete trust in a stranger to get them to the other side. It had to be one of the toughest decisions they ever made. 

Their lives were falling apart in East Germany, but now things just got a million times worse.

And all because of Thomas' stupid girlfriend.

Had the girl not gotten a phone call, she would've realized she put in the wrong tape. 

Tina's voice wasn't even disguised as she blabbed about all the goings-on at the hospital. What was even more shocking was that she straight out said she was leaving East Germany.

I had mistakenly thought in my Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 6 review that Tina was the anonymous insider from East Germany reporting on all the craziness happening in that country.

Related: Get Walter Presents via Prime Video Channels for Original, Exclusive, Hit Series from Around the World!

It could be that she was and that Thomas had disguised the voice, but I'm wondering if maybe that tape was just a voice letter meant for Thomas' ears only.

Tina isn't just going to be in trouble for trying to leave the country; she's going to face severe consequences for revealing so much about the hospital's drug testing.

There's not much Thomas is going to be able to do, and it's unclear if Martin had a plan in mind when he did what he did.

I want to believe Martin somehow figured out in his mind how he would get what he wanted regarding Max and still save Tina in the process.

Punishing Thomas' family doesn't seem like something out of Martin's playbook.

No, he's got something else up his sleeve — at least I hope he does.

Lenora struck out with Dietrich in getting money to help Rose and her cause, so she's going to come up with another plan.

She was shocked that Dietrich was all about money, but I'm shocked that Lenora is still living in a socialist dreamland.

After everything that has happened, why is she still flying the flag?

Even Rose sees that East Germany is messed up, and she's starting to question whether her deal with Lenora is even feasible anymore.

Seeing how things were in East Germany back then makes me appreciate the little things even more. For a grocery owner to have never heard of a sweet potato is incredulous.

But, on the other hand, I live in Chicago, and when you go outside of the area, some people never heard of giardiniera, either.

Still, a sweet potato is a staple food, not a local thing.

Lenora's world is about to come crashing down.

Tina's world just crashed.

And Martin? He's probably about to save everyone's world. Again.

13 Canceled Shows That Deserve a Proper Ending

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Over to you!

What did you think of "El Dorado Canyon"? 

Hit the comments and share your thoughts!

If you need to catch up, you can watch Deutschland86 online right here via TV Fanatic!

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 7 Review: El Dorado Canyon appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Valdez is apparently having an affair with Alex's friend or something is happening.

Fuchs shares blackmail photos of the ship plans. He wants to bring the ship around immediately. Dietrich says no.

Thomas has the same pics and he shares them with Tobias. Tina wants to know when her daughters will be free.

Winkelmann the pictures too. He's freaked out as Brigitte joins him. He wants to leave tonight, but she says no. Then she tells him it's over.

Martin is at Max's school. Martin follows him and Annett as they head home. Max gets close to Martin at one point, but Martin doesn't know what to do.

Ingrid opens a letter and learns that the Fischers did not arrive.

Martin tells Ingrid about the situation with Max and Annett. He tells her about Roberto.

Hartmann tells Walter they can't find Rose on board and that there was a call to West Berline from Fuchs room.

Fuchs accuses Lenora and Rose of making the phone call and sending the threats because of their denial of the ANC deal.

Fuchs tells her he ordered the ship back because of fear the weapons will be confiscated and that Rose has disappeared.

he also tells her he's putting her on leave and removing her permit to go into West Germany.

Lenora comes home drunk and tells Martin all her problems and worries about Rose and the deals and what happened with Fuchs. Martin is surprised she was going to sabotage the weapons deal for the ANC to intercept the weapons.

Martin tells her he can get her over the border if she helps him. With her help, he kidnaps Max.

Annett wakes up to find Max gone and Lenora sitting in her kitchen. Martin is with Max in the car. The boy wakes up and Martin tells him that he's his father.

Martin brings Max to Ingrid's house. The boy has been crying nonstop. 

Tobias is listening to Alex's AIDS speech at a rally.

Martin shows up at Annett's place to talk. In exchange for her seeing Max again, he wants Tina Fischer's daughters. They head to the orphanage.

Tobias outs himself at the AIDS rally and says he has AIDS. Walter and Hartmann are stunned.

Martin and Annett are at the orphanage to adopt kids, but the sisters they're looking for aren't there. Tina's kids have been adopted already.

Annett reveals that she's an HVA agent and force the woman to give them information about the Fischer girls. They convince her they need them for a mission. When they leave, the woman tries to call someone but Martin cut the line. They have the girls and they're off before someone can do anything.

Walter and Hartmann are at the US embassy for the Rocky Horror play that the Americans are putting on.

Brigitte is preparing a suitcase to take off with Martin.

Frank is drinking at the bar. he's miserable and very drunk. Nina shows up and Frank flirts with her like crazy.

Walter is at the performance and freaked out at what the Americans are doing and why they're all dressed up. All the East Germans are stiffs.

Hartmann is getting into it, but Walter is dumbfounded.

Lenora and the girls leave for the border as Martin stays behind for now. It's all a Def Leppard song. They cross the border with no issues.

Tina is reunited with her girls.

Brigitte is there to arrest Lenora and learns that Martin isn't coming. Brigitte is pissed.

Dietrich is running numbers abut the loss of revenue and the AIDS virus. He tries to comfort her.

Valdez can't find his keys and knocks on Walter's door. Valdez is all dressed up like a woman and wants Walter to get him keys to his place. 

Lenora is about to be interrogated. Frank Winkelmann is dead in a hotel bathroom.

Tandi is with her dad in West Germany.

Rose is in Cape Town and sends an encoded message to HARTMANN!!!!!!!! 

Thomas tells a talk show host he's writing a new book called Legend of Colibri.

Brigitte is all alone watching.

And Martin? He gave up his West German dreams to be with his son and that means being with Annett in East Germany.

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 10 Recap: Total Onslaught appeared first on TV Fanatic.

At the orphanage, the kids are being told lies about their parents and that socialism is the way to go.

Rose and Lenora talk about selling weapons when Ingrid comes into the kitchen. Lenora tells Ingrid that Martin is alive. She's relieved.

Brigitte gives Martin some film to use t convince the HVA that he's on their side. Then they talk about Max and Lenora. She tells him that after he gets Lenora, they're going to disappear.

Tina is taken somewhere where she's forced to change her clothes. She's just been transferred out of East Berlin. Martin walks by and notices her. He's going to East Berlin while she goes the opposite way where Walter is waiting for him.

Tina is apparently a free woman. S

She asks the guard about her family but he doesn't know anything. She's completely lost. She waits patiently for her husband and kids but they never come.

Thomas finally shows up to get her.

Annett is looking at Tina's file and those of her kids. She throws the files in a drawer then pulls out Martin's file. 

Walter brings Martin to the committee meeting where they give him a round of applause. He's not impressed. Annett comes into the room as Martin is giving his report.

Martin is being questioned by Annett. She asks about Brigitt and he sticks it to her telling her everything, even about their sexual liaisons.

Walter and Hartmann are there. Martin gives them the microfilm.

He tells her he wants to see Max. 

Thomas tells Tina what she found out about her family which is nothing.

She asks if Martin is involved with it all and tells him she saw Martin cross to the other side.

Walter brings Martin home. She's so happy to see him. She tells him about Rose and Lenora staying with her.

Rose and Lenora check into a hotel in East Germany. They get cozy in the hallway when Gary Banks shows up spying on them.

Frank tells Brigitte he's handing in his resignation so they can spend more time together. She's not thrilled.

Martin is looking at pictures of Max as Walter looks on. Walter tells Martin he didn't give Max the letter he sent.

Tina won't leave the bench. She's waiting for her family who will never come.

Thomas' girlfriend tells Tina what she knows. She finally leaves with them, but she's quite upset.

Rose is headed to her mission but she's going to meet up in Lenora in a week in Cape Town. In the meantime, they attend a party for the launch of the new cruise ship.

Martin is at the hotel and follows Fuchs as he's called away for some emergency. Fuchs learns that all the rooms on the ship are wired.

Martin goes into the control room to "look over" the guy's shoulder as the show begins.

Martin sees Lenora and Rose and they tune into what's going on in that room. Martin is suspicious.

Martin steals the guy's camera and leaves when he's not looking.

Rose sents a message to Sanjev to be ready as the ship sails tonight.

Martin breaks into Fuchs room while he's taking a bath with a woman. It might be Dietrich, but whoever she is, he's telling her lots of info. Meanwhile, Martin uses his phone to try to call Thomas but there's no answer.

The camera guy starts watching Fuchs room again but doesn't catch Martin.

Martin is at the dock taking pictures of the goings on — specifically the transfer of weapons to the boat.

Winkelman shows up at the dock to talk to Lenora. He threatens to go public unless she gives him money by the end of the week. Martin is taking pictures of everything.

He takes the film out of the camera but before he can get away, Gary Banks pulls a gun on him. He wants to know where Rose is and wants to prevent the transfer of the weapons to the ANC. Rose shoots him dead from behind and takes off.

Martin is able to ge away before he's caught. Lenora is frantically looking for Rose, but she's gone.

Thomas plays the message from Martin. He wants Thomas to take the film he took and get it to the press.

At the orphanage, parents come in to choose a couple of kids and they stop at Tina's and take a serious looksee. They're both terrified.

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 9 Recap: Chickenfeed appeared first on TV Fanatic.

He conducts an interview and they skew the facts regarding her daughters claiming she snatched the girls from their home. He's laying a serious guilt trip on her.

She confesses and he demands she gives up everyone on both sides involved with the plan.

Thomas is with Tobias talking about Tina's situation. Thomas believes Martin did it out of revenge for his affair with Annett. And Thomas reveals that he doesn't know if he's Max's father.

Tobias calls Annett to question her about Thomas and Tina.

Martin is with Brigitte pledging his allegiance to the BND so he can get to Max.

Hartmann has a radiation detector and finds radiation all over the place and is freaked out. He tells Walter but Walter changes the subject.

Martin and Brigitte show up at the BND offices. And who does she get introduced to first? Edel's old secretary – Mrs. Netz.

They have him look at a bunch of pictures to identify members of the East German intelligence. He knows Walter is his father.

The committee is meeting about the drug testing scandal and Walter gets to talk about Operation Love Boat until Lenora interrupts and  starts talking about South Africa.

Netz wants Martin to bring Lenora to the BND alive when she travels into West Berlin on a day pass.

Hartmann is still obsessed about the radiation. Fuchs isn't fazed.

Tina is called out of her cell again. This time to a dentist's chair. A form of torture?

Lenora and Rose arrive at someone's house. Brigitte and Martin are following. They're at a house of one of Rose's friends in West Berlin.

Martin breaks into the house. Rose asks the women for help getting her daughter to West Berlin.

Martin finds Lenora in the basement and is about to drug her when the maid comes in with three guys.

Martin hides in the closet and almost gets busted. Rose gets her 100 grand for the cause from the women.

Everyone leaves from the basement and the maid locks the closet door.

Tina is being interrogated again by the same guy. She looks worse for wear and like they removed one of her teeth.

Tobias visits Alex at the hospice and he gives Tobias a tour.

Alex tells him he's meeting with the pharmaceutical company to try to get AZT trials done at the hospice.

Rose meets with Tandi's father to tell him how to get Tandi out of South Africa.

Alex gets kicked out of the pharmaceutical company for breaking into Amend's office. Tobias is there when he comes out.

Tina learns the language of East German prisons and talks to her husband through the toilet telephone.

Her daughters are in an East German orphanage.

Martin and Brigitte are talking about the failed abduction of Lenora. They have a second chance because Lenora is meeting with Brigitte's husband.

Hartmann is confronted about his conspiracy theory. People from Dresden have come to tell him it's an American propaganda trick.

A woman comes running into the room and tells them there's been a meltdown in Chernobyl.

Amend meets Annett. Apparently they are having an affair.

It seems that Netz is Brigitte's boss.

Tobias meets with Annett in a restaurant. He gives Annett an offer to exchange Martin for 13 people in East Germany. She crosses all the Fischer's off.

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 8 Recap: Vula appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Valdez gets a call from his boss to come to the office immediately. Valdez leaves and so does Waler. They get on the elevator together. Reagan voiceover about an airstrike on Libya in response to the nightclub bombing.

Tina and her family leave the dog behind and leave for West Germany. Poor pup.

The pup is with Ingrid and she runs into Lenora and Rose's room.

Lenora turns on the news about the American attack.

Lenora and Rose aren't happy and Ingrid lets her feelings be known about Martin. She wants to know if he's alive and where he's at. Lenora tells her she doesn' know.

Thomas tells a friend and Martin that Tina and fam are coming to West Germany. He tells Martin he'll have to find somewhere else to stay.

Alex visits Tim and meets his mother. She's transferring Tim to another hospital and then back home to Michigan. She's upset especially when Alex takes Tim's hand and she kicks him out. 

Thomas visits Tobias with Martin. Tobias is planning a parallel protest against the US bombing. They want to borrow Tobias' car and he lets them.

There's a stuffed giraffe in Tobias' car. Tobias calls Annett and tells her about Martin. She's nervous now.

Lenora is in Fuchs office for a meeting. Fuchs talks about one of the missiles Lenora sold to the Libyans shooting down an American fighter jet. They all give her a round of applause. He also thanks Martin.

Someone comes in and drops a folder with Dietrich as Lenora speaks. All she cares about is the money they got from the Libyans.

Walter starts talking about Operation Love Boat but he's cut off by Annett who talks bout the drug trial.

Lenora goes into Walter's office after the meeting to ask about Martin.

She's relieved he's still alive.

Tina's kids are playing by a lake. They've stopped and are waiting for their ride. Tina gives her kids a shot glass of something to drink and hides them underneath the car. Tina hides too and so does her husband. What a scary thing to put their complete trust in a stranger.

Thomas is at the border crossing waiting for his sister. The woman is nervous.

Hartmann is giving Rose information about their translator software.

Lenora is talking to Dietrich about Rose and her mission. Dietrich doesn't want to give her money for her South Africa deal. Dietrich doesn't care about the fight against Apartheid. Lenora is upset and goes into the washroom. Annett is there and tells her Martin showed up at Tobias' place.

Martin arrives back and Tobias' place with his keys. He's basically turning himself in.

Tobias questions him about Brigitte. Martin lies. Tobias doesn't trust him.

Alex is at Tim's funeral to give a eulogy at a nightclub bombing memorial. He starts reading from a prepared speech and then decides to be honest and wing it. He turns it into an AIDS speech.

Tobias shows up in a silent protest with a group of people protesting the attack on Libya. Alex starts talking about Tim and Tobias' protesters put down their signs.

Afterwards, Tobias talks to Alex.

Thomas' girlfriend starts the podcast but the tape gets chewed up and ruined. The woman puts in Tina's tape by accident without disguise and Tina is just gabbing away about the testing at the hospital.

The hospital is getting all sorts of call and then Annett gets a call about the podcast. She listens after she gets a call from Mr. Amend. Tina said on the tape that she's leaving the country.

Annett makes some phone calls to get to the bottom of it.

As the woman gets closer to the border, the oldest girl starts freaking out and talking when she needs to be quiet. Their van is still being followed.

Martin starts nosing around Tobias' place. The phone rings and Martin picks i tup. It's Annett telling her all about Tina. Martin tells her it's him.She feeds him some lines of bullshit.

She asks him about Tina and he tells her he doesn't know. She threatens him.

Rose is at the store looking for peanuts which they don't have any. They have nothing she's looking for. They don't even know what sweet potatoes are.

Lenora is there and tells her the plan to finance the ANC.

Thomas is waiting for his sister while Annett is calling someone at the border. Martin is playing the piano.

The car that was following the van cuts off the woman. Two guys come out. The girls are getting anxious. It's border patrol. The oldest has to use the washroom. The other guy is checking out the back for any hidden panels. Annett is still trying to get through to someone but can't. 

The girl pees and the pee is dripping on the one guys foot but he doesn't notice.

Finally someone picks up Annett's call.  The guys leave but the woman is stopped again. Did Martin really tell on Thomas' sister? The guys are searching the back of the car looking for hidden panels. The woman gets out and starts running. Oh boy. The guys shoot her dead and the find the hidden family.

Thomas waits by the border but no one comes.

Martin shows up and sits with Thomas and then they leave.

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 7 Recap: El Dorado Canyon appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Is it any surprise?

But how could anyone blame Kolibri for the horrible bombing in West Germany?

I don't understand why everyone thinks Martin is the bad guy. Didn't anyone in the West realize that what he did back in 1983 was actually a good thing?

Had he not intervened, there's a strong possibility that the world as we know it wouldn't exist.

Yet, he can't seem to catch a break, and it was disheartening to hear the American general call him a weasel.

Even if Martin ends up being the one to stop further Libyan bombings, and we know he will, he's not going to receive the credit he deserves.

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It's not like he's asking for a million dollars, though it would be nice. All he wants is to stop running and hiding and live his life with Max.

But he's never going to be able to do that if he keeps being fingered as the bad guy, and him becoming a double agent isn't going to help his case — even if he's working for the "good" guys now.

Martin has become an expert in the spy game. He's learned so much in such a short amount of time.

He's able to move around West Germany with his many disguises and gets secret messages to Brigitte in the most clever ways.

It's still not clear what Brigitte's true intentions are. Is she really in love with him or is she just using him?

We'll see how far she's willing to go to find Max and whether she'll actually run away with him when they find the boy.

And now that he knows Max is really his son, he's dead serious about finding him even if she's not.

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The East Germans should be loving Martin by now and should be welcoming him home with open arms.

His alleged deal with the Libyans netted East Germany some serious bucks and some flowers.

It was alarming to Walter that Martin was being blamed by the Americans for the bombing.

So much so that he met with Valdez on the roof of his building to tell him the truth — and one little white lie that Martin was dead.

He's trying to protect Martin for Ingrid's sake, but he deserves credit for trying to clear his son's name.

But he hasn't thought about what Martin's going to do next.

When the Americans figure out that Martin is still alive after all, Walter is going to lose all credibility.

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He has to know this so him doing what he did proves that he is going to great efforts to wrong his rights.

His way of thinking is changing even if he doesn't realize it yet.

He needs to jump ship and become a full-blooded West German. He could take Ingrid with him, but she'll never leave Max behind and Annett won't give up Max — especially for something as heinous as crossing the border.

Tina wants nothing more than to get out of East Germany. 

I can't imagine having to live a life where letters need to be hidden in chocolate bar wrappings and delivered illegally by secret carriers, but that's the life Tina is living for now.

Her boss was right that she was being influenced by her activist brother. It turns out it was her on those tapes Thomas was broadcasting who was telling people in the outside world what life was really like in East Germany.

And I bet the recent tape she had delivered to him is about to expose the horrible medical experiment secrets going on at the hospital.

She needs to get out before that tape is aired because there will be no doubt as to who shared those secrets. 

Whether this new carrier is to be trusted is another matter. It's strange that the original carrier was sick, and although Ingrid seemed to trust her, it's hard to want to trust anyone in East Germany.

Hopefully, the woman isn't going to screw Tina over and will bring her and her family to West Germany and not to East German officials.

Over to you!

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What did you think of "Tjello"? 

Hit the comments and share your thoughts!

If you need to catch up, you can watch Deutschland86 online right here via TV Fanatic!

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 6 Review: Tjello appeared first on TV Fanatic.

There was something curious about Brigitte's interest in Martin, and now we know why.

Brigitte is a spy, too!

The shift focused this hour from the East Germans trying to sell weapons to everyone in the universe to make money to Brigitte, Martin, and even Walter (yes, Walter!) trying to stop another Libyan terrorist attack.

Martin couldn't take being cooped up in Brigitte's apartment anymore which isn't surprising considering he's a man of action. 

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He has no interest in the spy game anymore, either, which also isn't surprising, so him wanting to run off with Brigitte was expected. But she's got a job to do, and Martin is her greatest asset at the moment.

It's not clear if Martin knew Brigitte was a spy, but he figured it out pretty quick.

He was tired of being cooped up in Brigitte's apartment and even snuck out, but her taking him to her favorite bistro for a night out was only because she wanted to convince him to work for her agency.

Martin had no interest even if he did disguise himself in a fake mustache so he wouldn't be recognized. His primary goal after leaving Angola was to get to his son, but that goal keeps getting further and further away.

Martin thought he could slip away after doctoring an American passport he stole, and he probably would have left never to be seen again, if only his Arab friend Samira wouldn't have planted a bomb in West Berlin.

Although he had no idea Samira was behind the bombing, there's no way he can walk away now.

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It's just not in his nature. He must get it from his father.

Walter being a double agent was the biggest surprise of the hour.

For a guy who was so keen on starting a nuclear war with the U.S. on Deutschland83, passing on information to U.S. intelligence (through his mother, no less) was entirely unexpected.

I'm going to guess that being a double agent is something that came about after Walter got demoted with the East German agency.

Walter had hoped he would rise within that organization, but bad choices (like leaving out crucial information about what the Americans were really doing on that West German base) prevented that from happening.

It's possible that Walter has done some deep soul searching and realized that America isn't all that bad — after all, they are responsible for his ultimate love, The Love Boat.

Maybe he realized that almost being the man responsible for nuclear war wasn't the right thing to do, and perhaps was inspired by his son for bucking the system.

More than likely, Walter just saw it as another opportunity to feel better about himself and make an extra buck.

Still, he didn't have to pass the information along to the U.S., so you have to wonder what his true motives are.

The spy game is pretty messed up. Everyone is listening in on everyone else, and even the U.S. isn't safe from prying eyes.

General Edel's old secretary was busy taking pictures of everything she could with that nifty camera pen of hers. 

Walter was listening in with the old glass to the wall trick on his new American spy neighbors.

Tina tore her house apart, sure that the homes of her and her family were bugged, and sure enough, they were!

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Speaking about Tina, I loved the juxtaposition of her scenes with Nina's — Tina trying to find bugs while Nina was planting them!

But with all the bug planting and eavesdropping happening everywhere, none of it could stop Samira from planting her bomb — not even the American guy who was only being nice by bringing out her bag that he thought she accidentally left behind at the bar.

It's hard to understand the thought process of terrorists. 

That bomb was ticking down, but Samira showed not one ounce of fear that it would blow up while she was still holding it.

She was going to kill someone or die trying.

Alex happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time because Samira decided that if she couldn't bomb the original target, the disco club next door would work just as well.

Alex was in high spirits because his army boyfriend decided to come out of the closet by kissing Alex right in front of his army buddies.

It was a big risk, but in Alex's eyes it was progress.

It was possibly the same thought Samir had as she walked out of the club knowing what was about to happen.

Everyone has their own definition of progress.

If the lines were muddled before, they're even more muddled now, and the world is in an even bigger mess than we could ever imagine.

Over to you!

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What did you think of "Green Book'?

Were you surprised about Brigitte's profession? Did Walter's double life surprise you?

Is Alex alive?

If you need to catch up, you can watch Deutschland86 online right here via TV Fanatic.

The post Deutschland86 Season 2 Episode 5 Review: Green Book appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Alex is in the hospital after the bombing. He screams out for Tim. His girl friend finds him and they look for Tim. he's not in good shape.

Samira is at the embassy and says goodbye to her sister and brother in law.

Brigitte and the French guy are at the remains of the club. He tells the club wasn't the target. He thinks Martin is responsible for the attack because he confused Paris and Berlin.

Brigitte sees Martin and he leaves the picture of Samira for her.

At the American intelligence agency. The general is pissed and wants an attack on Libya.

Brigitte is in the meetings. So is Ebel's old secretary.

Brigitte shares the picture of Samira.

Fuchs shares Martin's passport with everyone. They too think he's involved in the bombing.

The CIA has a picture of Martin. The French guy tells everyone it's Martin and exposes Brigitte's relationship with Martin.

The French guy wants her to talk with a sketch artist to describe Martin.

Fuchs is in Walter's office. He has a tape of Walter's conversation with his mother. he denies he's working for anyone. Fuchs calls Walter's mom to see if he's lying.

Annett and Max shows up at Ingrid's unexpectedly. Ingrid tells her she's expecting Rose from South Africa at the request of Lenora.

Rose is in South Africa telling them of her plans to go to East Germany. Lenora is there too. Operation Vula.

Rose and Lenora enjoy a sunset before they go their separate ways.

Tina opens a package from Thomas with a hidden letter in a bar of chocolate. When she's along Tina records. She's the informant from the other side Thomas uses on his podcasts.

Ingrid gets a delivery of packages from a woman who is not the regular deliverer because Klaus is sick. Ingrid is suspicious.

Martin walks off with a punk rocker person.

The French guy sits with Brigitte in a hotel lobby. Apparently, they dated.

Brigitte gets a message from Martin and leaves. He finally figures out he's been duped, but she's already gone.

The same lady who dropped off the packages shows up at Tina's house with a story that her car is making strange noises. She asks his husband to look at it. Tina's husband gets the woman in the garage and asks her to take them over the border. She declines. tina gives her a tape for Thomas.

Martin meets Brigitte at the Aquarium. They can't keep their hands off each other. Martin suggests that Max might not be his. He's only willing to work for the BND until he gets Max. The French guy finds them and she tells Martin to run as the other guy pulls out a gun. 

There's a chase. The French guy goes down into the subway but can't find Martin who's in a full punk disguise and escapes.

Hartmann brings Walter decoded messages from Libya. They're worried they're going to get blamed for the bombing because of Martin.

Walter leaves.

The CIA wants to bring in Samira's sister and they kidnap her.

The delivery woman gives Thomas the tape from Tina.

Tim is in bad shape.

Walter waits at the bottom of his stairs for Valdez. They get into an elevator together. Walter convinces him to go on the roof to smoke a Cuban cigar with him.

Valdez knows Walter is in the Stasi. Walter gives him proof that it was the Libyans alone and that Martin isn't involved. He tells Valdez that Martin is dead.

Rose arrives at Ingrid's apartment with Lenora. Ingrid is being very cold to her.

Martin shows up at Thomas' place. He questions Thomas about his affair with Annett but Thomas tells him Annett was already pregnant.

The delivery woman rings Tina's house in the middle of the night to tell them she'll take them over the border.

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