Van Der Valk Season 3 Episode 3 Review: Redemption in Amsterdam: Part One

This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the series being covered here wouldn’t exist.

On Van der Valk Season 3 Episode 3, “Redemption in Amsterdam: Part One,” we veer from the theft of ancient artifacts to a girl suspected of burning her own brothers to death to…a man who sleeps in a coffin?

Where the first installments of the third season did deep dives into the various words its guest characters inhabited, this section is thus far set on jumping between them. From people who hoard the artifacts of marginalized groups to our victim himself, there’s no shortage of gray areas.

It also feels like we’re starting off being presented with a series of red herrings. I hope the girl fighting for the restoration of artifacts is one, and anyone who watches TV drama knows the guy who looks like a living Tim Burton character must be.

The main red herring, though, is Yasmine. Once suspected of setting a fire that left her own brothers to burn to death, she has been released from prison for reasons that aren’t fully explained and now lives a quiet life with a husband and children.

There are interesting dynamics here. While the world has vilified her, she has ardent defenders in the people closest to her. Most importantly, it’s strongly implied that Piet doesn’t think she’s guilty despite having been directly involved in her conviction.

Of course, there’s a distinct possibility that the eventual twist will reveal this isn’t a red herring at all. Maybe Yasmine is guilty of all she’s accused of and is as evil as she’s believed to be. It would be an effective blow, but it’s just not the impression I get.

As you can imagine, with all of this going on, there again isn’t much time for us to focus on seeing our main characters together outside a purely professional capacity. There is one exception, and sadly, it leads to another death.

We only get to meet the old friend of both Piet and Julia a couple times. By the time we get to their third interaction, he’s dying on the ground after being pushed over a ledge—presumably by the same person committing the main murder of the episode.

Even this rings a bit hollow. Julia and Piet are clearly both affected by this loss, but we barely get enough time even with them to feel it for ourselves. I am curious about who he asks them to look after. Could that person become more relevant soon?

As with the first episode of the season, I hope so, because it’s these more poignant moments that give the series true depth. And since the last time we got an episode lacking in this department, it was followed by one that felt more balanced, I’m hopeful.

I do still appreciate the lack of personal drama here, at least of the soap opera variety. These are detectives who know how to work together to get things done. The emotions that do arise don’t feel like they’re there just for ratings, and they don’t get in the way of the fight for justice.

My best guess now is that we haven’t yet seen Rick’s true killer, though it’s just as likely they’ll turn out to be the one person we least suspect. In a case like this, I don’t know who that would potentially be, but even if red herrings are a trope, they’re used effectively here.

Van der Valk is adapted from the series by Nicolas Freeling and written by Chris Murray and Maria Ward. This episode was directed by Simone Van Dusseldorp.

 

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Van der Valk airs Sundays at 10/9c on PBS.

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