Ein starkes Team is a German television series that has been around for two and a half decades already. It convinces with its authentic characters and settings in and around Berlin that show the capital's advantages and flaws authentically. Like so many other German crime series these days, this one also suffers from weak plots, slow pace and endless repetition.

Treibjagd is one of the better episodes however. It shows how a Russian crime syndicate tracks down the key witness of a double murder who is about to give his testimony. The movie convinces with a steadier pace than usual. The story has a few twists and turns that aren't particularly surprising but always entertaining. The body count in this episode is particularly high, including one suicide and the murder of a minor which are very rarely seen on German television. The main actors and actresses are solid as usual and even add a few humorous scenes to make the grim story easier to digest here and there.

This episode though suffers from a terrible plot. Without revealing too much, there are three characters working in important positions who are all suffering from a serious addiction to medication which feels more like a running joke than a serious issue at that point. Several characters act quite stupidly like the police officers who constantly put themselves in overtly dangerous situations and let the key witness escape in unintentionally amusing slapstick moments. The worst performance in this episode comes from Elisabeth Baulitz who plays the protagonist's wife who always reacts unexplainably slowly and stupidly. To only give one specific example, she asks her courageous son to hand a gun back to a criminal instead of attempting to flee or call the police.

In the end, Treibjagd is one of the better episodes of contemporary German crime series thanks to an entertaining story, steady pace and high body count. The plot still has mediocre elements and some characters act particularly strangely. Treibjagd offers ninety minutes of solid entertainment but fails to leave a deeper impression.

Swedish death metal veterans Unleashed released this extended play to promote its thirteenth studio record The Hunt for White Christ. The two most positive elements about this release are the imaginative cover artwork and the fact that this record came for free with an issue of acclaimed Legacy magazine.

The two new tracks are solid but nothing more. They don't overstay their welcome, are performed with gritty vocals and tight riffs and feature a few melodic guitar sections. While being performed tightly, they fail to leave a deeper impression. You will forget about one song as soon as the next one has begun.

The two live tracks were recorded almost a decade ago and sound like filler material. The band sounds energetic on stage but is missing the certain something to stand out among so many traditional death metal groups these days.

The two demo tracks are certainly nice gimmicks for collectors and fans of old date. The band shows some great chemistry, impressive musicianship and creative song writing but all this potential is buried under a most terrible production that can't be excused by calling it authentic or refering to an old school spirit. The songs sound as if they had been recorded through wet cardboard and I have listened to grim and frostbitten old school black metal records with better production values.

In the end, Unleashed's The Hunt for White Christ (EP & Rarities) is only interesting for faithful fans of this band and unconditional collectors of old school death metal records. I won't complain since I got this release for free along with an outstanding magazine but the record didn't motivate me to check out anything else this band has released. It might simply not be my cup of tea. The new studio songs are good, the live tracks are average and the demo tunes suffer from terrible production. Overall, this release is rather forgettable.

Final rating: 50%

Happy New Year 2019!

I wish you all the best for this new year. Stay healthy, keep an open mind and may all your dreams come true. I hope you like the two videos of popular television shows that are traditionally watched on New Year's Eve in Germany.