Hostages The Complete Season Two   Starring: Ayelet Zurer, Jonah Lotan and Dar Zuzovsky Distributor: Arrow Films RRP: £TBC FCD1346 Certificate: 12 Release Date: 08 May 2017

Having kidnapped a surgeon to kill the prime minister, a twist of fate reveals that the kidnapper requires him alive as he needs his bone marrow to save his wives' life…

Hostages (Hebrew: בני ערובה; Bnei Aruba 2013 - present) is an Israeli thriller, created by Rotem Shamir and Omri Givon. The show was remade by CBS for an American audience but only lasted for one season before being cancelled. The original series found a firm following both at home and in Europe and was recommissioned for a second season. Ayelet Zurer won two awards for her acting at the Awards of the Israeli Television Academy (2013) and the Monte-Carlo TV Festival (2014). The show stars Ayelet Zurer, Jonah Lotan and Dar Zuzovsky.

Much of the set up for this DVD set of season two (12 eps x 45 mins) is obviously covered in season one, but the show is well constructed and it was easy to get up to speed with what is happening. Obviously if you want the whole story of the potential murder of the prime minister I suggest you start with season one.

The show's main protagonist is Adam Rubin (Jonah Lotan) a counter-terrorist unit officer who discovers that his wife, Neta is dying of leukaemia. More than this he has discovered that she was fathered by the prime minister following a rape. He needs the minister's bone marrow to save his wife.

When season two opens the prime minister remains alive and not in the mood to become a voluntary donor. The first series built the tension around whether Adam would succeed in killing the prime minister thereby saving his wife. The second season continues with the nail biting by trapping Adam and the prime minister within a compound surrounded by the security service. Can Adam get away and can he still get the bone marrow, becomes the focus of the story.

This is a well-crafted show, lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. If you liked procedural shows like 24 then there is a lot here to like. The writing is good and the acting convincing, it’s a show which will draw you in and keep you riveted to the telly.

The second season has been released by Arrow Films as a four-disc DVD set. The show is presented in the original Israeli with burned in English subtitles.

8

Charles Packer