DVD Box Sets: Political Dramas

Several good television series with a political focus are now on DVD. Borgen is another of Scandinavia's successful exports, focusing on the first woman to become prime minister of Denmark. Her job isn't easy; her small political party is reliant on support from larger coalition partners, an old enemy controls an important newspaper, her husband chafes at the limitations on his career and her daughter suffers from depression. A more satirical view of politics is provided by The Thick of It, featuring a hapless government minister and a foul-mouthed spin doctor you wouldn't ever want as an enemy.  Many of the people involved in that series later worked on Veep, an HBO comedy about a vice president desperate to be relevant in a job which is largely powerless. Other political dramas from abroad include Those in Power from Sweden and the original BBC House of Cards, featuring Ian Richardson.

DVD Box Sets: International Mysteries

A number of internationally successful mystery series are now available in America on DVD. The Bridge features an unusual pair of detectives from different countries forced to cooperate when a dead body is found on a bridge connecting Sweden and Denmark, while Broadchurch spends multiple episodes on the efforts of English detectives to solve a murder in a small English town. Top of the Lake, directed by Jane Campion and starring Elisabeth Moss, is set in rural New Zealand, while Spiral reveals a side of Paris few tourists see or wish to see. The Fall, set in Belfast, stars Gillian Anderson, while Hinterland is a BBC series filmed in the valleys of Wales. Two good series are set in the 1950s; The Bletchley Circle, in which several women who worked as wartime codebreakers unofficially investigate unsolved cases, and The Hour, centering on early television journalists in the UK.

You can find additional suggestions in this posting as well.