Grand Hotel - Season 3 - DVD

Content: Events at the Grand Hotel come to a head. After Julio (Yon González) and Alicia Alarcón (Amaia Salamanca) find the secret room where the man who made the attempt on Andrés' (Llorenc González) life was located, they get closer and closer to the mystery surrounding the mysterious stranger. But as Alicia follows a hot lead, accompanied by the increasingly suspicious Don Diego (Pedro Alonso), he is critically injured in an attack. As a result, Julio's chances of finally winning Alicia's heart are once again significantly diminished. Delirious with fever, Don Diego hallucinates, giving Alicia important clues as to what actually happened to her father the night before he died. Slowly, Doña Teresa (Adriana Ozores) is running out of steam as well, especially since Alfredo (Fele Martinez) is now threatening to turn his back on the Alarcón family for good after finding out that Sofia (Luz Valenebro) has been lying to him all along. And the fact that the murderer has returned with the golden knife also poses a great threat to the hotel's reputation. But Doña Teresa once again knows how to scheme her way out of even the most dicey situation with aplomb. And so there still seems to be no justice behind the Grand Hotel's smart façade - and no chance for the love between Julio and Alicia either...

The third season of Grand Hotel consistently follows the concept of the Spanish series. The soap, which has a great cast, combines elements of the classic telenovela with romance, crime and humour in an entertaining way. In particular, the crime portion of the fourteen new episodes, which focus on the truth about the last days of Alicia's father, increases significantly compared to the earlier episodes. For not only is there the mysterious stranger who sought Andrés' life and who severely injures Don Diego. There are also several murders, not all of which are the work of the killer with the golden knives. His identity is revealed here in dramatic fashion, bringing one of the many plot threads to a satisfying conclusion.

In other moments, the series keeps going in circles to drag the action out even further. Whenever Julio and Alicia are one step closer to the hotel's big secret, a new event sets them back again. And even with Alfredo's attempts to break away from the Alarcón family, you can't really keep count anymore. At times, the twists and turns the authors have come up with almost border on unintentional comedy, and aren't always comprehensible either. The way Doña Teresa reacts to being excluded from a new exclusive community of first-class hotels, for example, is rather far-fetched and a bit silly.

This doesn't detract from the entertainment value of the series, however. Especially since the rather humorous aspects, which are primarily at the expense of chaos son Javier and the police duo, give the series a pleasantly self-deprecating touch whenever it threatens to take itself too seriously, which clearly pushes the fun factor up a notch. So if you got hooked on the first two seasons and love glossy soaps lots of heart, suspense and drama, you should definitely check out Grand Hotel for a third time. Worth seeing!

Picture + Sound: Compared to the first two seasons, nothing has changed here. The image of the DVD convinces in most scenes with a pleasantly high image sharpness and a powerful, very warm color scheme. Some small details sometimes appear a little washed out, but overall the overall impression is quite positive for a TV production. The sound, which is presented as a stereo mix, focuses primarily on the dialogue and music, but every now and then small sound effects and ambient noises provide some dynamics on the sound carpet. Good!

Extras: As a bonus, the DVD has only a few program tips to offer.

Conclusion:In the third season of Grand Hotel, events become increasingly dramatic. There is murder, intrigue, betrayal and deception. There are big revelations, disappointed loves and secret affairs. Spiced with a little bit of humor, some suspense and a lot of romance, the 14 new episodes are again beautifully filmed soap entertainment at its best. If you already liked the first two seasons, you won't miss this box set. Recommendable

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp