South of the Border: HPI S05E08

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel, “Supernova,” runtime 1:09:09
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The series concludes.

It’s the big day of Morgane’s oral exam to join the police, and after a shaky start it… doesn’t get better. Until she manages to interest the interview panel in a post-Bruges investigation: the death of physicist Manon Boutière– so into the recent past we go, narrated by Morgane…

Morgane and the brigade follow leads to coworkers at Manon’s science lab, and they flush out an undercover counterintelligence agent, who suspects the lab is a nest of spies— meaning Morgane couldn't be more thrilled to go spyhunting.

Audrey Fleurot takes a bow. With Feodor Atkine (2nd from L), Jean Luc Piraux (R), and Mehdi Aireche (2nd from R). 

This is a special episode, so I’ll end the plot description here. As Morgane would say, ‘hold onto your underwear,’ this episode is 69 minutes long.


MISC

Feodor Atkine (‘Prof Letellier’) has been acting for over 50 years. American audiences might know him best as ‘Major Ducos’ in Sean Bean’s Sharpe TV films.

Jean Luc Piraux (‘Zizou/Montcreuset’) has only a handful of movie credits, but has been a respected stage actor/director/playwright for decades.

NOTES

Scratch (2’38”) is Velcro.
      Diapers ça s'en file, ‘they’re a set,’ doesn’t align with the English meaning, so I’m putting ‘they’re fitted.’

5’25”: A bâton de colle is a glue stick, but I don’t know what a bâton qui colle (sticky stick) is exactly or why she would say it is carré (straight/square). A candy stick sweet at one end and sour at the other is a bâtonnet acidule; the ones I’ve seen are gummy-flexible though.

In Bruges: HPI S05E07

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel, “Il faut qu'on parle” (We Need to Talk), runtime: 58:58
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The penultimate episode opens with Morgane much relieved: not only does she get to move on to the oral section of the police exam, Judge Lefolet has closed the Laëtitia investigation. But she’s quietly opened a file on Karadec.

The squad is in the woods, and it’s not a metaphor, responding to a call about a drowning. They don’t want the case because the victim is lying on the border with Belgium, shades of The Bridge. As luck would have it the victim managed a luxury hotel in Bruges, so guess who gets to go ‘investigate’ it.

Morgane brings the hotel staff up to date

The episode ends with Karadec facing the consequences for his well-intentioned but unnecessary and premeditated actions to cover for Morgane. Will the series conclude with roles reversed, Morgane the cop and Karadec on the outside?


MISC

‘Justine’ is the terrific Carole Weyers from Double Je/Alter Ego. Automatic guest villain? Why no….


NOTES

Gilles mentions a family reunion at Phare Aventura, ‘Aventura Lighthouse’ (4’09”), which doesn’t seem to exist. I’m thinking it’s supposed to be Fuerteventura, which is one of the Canary Islands.

Posé un lapin, ‘posed a rabbit’ (6’32”), means to stand somebody up.

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel S05E06

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel, “Tequila Sunrise,” runtime 60:13
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A body is found in a park, and Celine’s son Matteo happens to be nearby and is arrested. Celine goes rogue to help him, enlisting Morgane. They are led to a possible witness to the crime who has her own skeletons in the closet. Matteo is not the stoner he appears to be and pushes Daphne’s insecurity button. Oddball Judge Lafolet is assigned to investigate what happened to Laëtitia– and her phone’s contents lead straight to Karadec and Morgane. Then Celine has the whole team over to her place to work on Matteo’s case, thinly disguised as a murder mystery party.

Morgane has a noir daydream

The romance everyone has wondered about

but no one asked for is put on the table.

Buckle up, this episode is a full 60 minutes.


NOTES

Morgane says either que/qui son erreur or fait son erreur (1’33”), which means ‘he/who made a mistake?’ or something like ‘how did he go wrong?’

2’28”: It sounds like Morgane says est pour fous foutre, literally ‘is for crazy fuck.’

Juriste en herbe, ‘budding lawyer’ (4’10”), works as a pun in both French and English.

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel S05E05

Haut Potentiel Intellectuel S05E05, “Crack, Pshiiit, Haaaa,” runtime 59:52
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The concluding season resumes.

Morgane has gone through with her impulse to live in Serge’s RV. She and Ludo and the kids are set up in a parking lot– shades of The Rockford Files. This week the squad starts out investigating the murder of a semi-pro e-sports player, which becomes the murder and attempted murder of an e-sports team.

The Morgane-Karadec chill eases a notch, in that she's talking to him. Celine tries to sell Morgane on a change in job description. Ludo makes a bid for his freedom. We learn who the Mysterious Woman from episode 4 is and what she wants, and we see her shocking exit.


NOTES

They’ve tapped into a pilon (pylon) to get power (1’10”), which means ‘stick’ but also ‘pole,’ I guess it’s a power pole with a transformer at the top.

Excuse me for a moment while I RANT AT TV SHOWS THAT EXPECT VIEWERS TO READ TEXT THIS SMALL (1’48”)!!!

2’00” c.f.: I’m calling it ‘Sound of’ shouting, barking, and gunshots because SPOILER they’re not real. None of the cops realized there were no actual flying bullets?

5'45":  I've got it— Gilles is Scooby-Doo.

Transmets (8’56”) of course means ‘transmit,’ but also ‘send,’ ‘convey,’ and ‘pass on.’