History Series / InspectorRex

''Kommissar Rex'', known as '''''Inspector Rex''''' in English-speaking countries, is an Austrian live-action police detective series. The title character, Rex, is a highly-trained German Shepherd dog who works with a team of homicide detectives in the Austrian Kriminalpolizei, initially led by detective Richard Moser (Tobias Moretti).

* MoodDissonance: It's got [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=853GbAuFX-k cheesy theme music], a cute dog acting human, chocolate-box Vienna locations: everything points to a fun family show. And then you realise you're watching a plot about kids being kidnapped from the fair and forced to make child porn... This changes in the Italian seasons, which begin with shots making the shape of a dog footprint and while the series still is a dramedy for a long time, the two later seasons of Terzani's tenure are serious.

* MoodDissonance: It's got cheesy theme music, a cute dog acting human, chocolate-box Vienna locations: everything points to a fun family show. And then you realise you're watching a plot about kids being kidnapped from the fair and forced to make child porn... This changes in the Italian seasons, which begin with shots making the shape of a dog footprint and while the series still is a dramedy for a long time, the two later seasons of Terzani's tenure are serious.

* IdenticalLookingAsians: This stereotype is present in the chapter "Ombre cinesi" (Chinese shadows). A bus driver who helped Shu Lin to escape from the villain tells Morini that all Chinese are similar, but the girl [Shu Lin] is beautiful. Fabbri is not content with that stereotype.

* BadassGrandpa: Filippo Gori is not very active, but has a good physical condition and is perfectly willing to engage in active work. He eventually gets a BigDamnHeroes moment.

* ConvertedFanboy: Gori becomes more accepting of dogs as the series pass.

* GondorCallsForAid: In "L'ultima partita" Kunz calls Lorenzo and Rex to Vienna because of the want of a dog.

* {{Leitmotif}}: Davide Rivera has the song "Angel on your shoulder", which was sung while he was befriending Rex.

* LongBusTrip: All characters that have departed from the teams haven't returned ever since, not even once.

* MySisterIsOffLimits: Rex often has a "My master is off-limits!" approach to his masters, especially Moser and Lorenzo. Rex has been willing to do anything to avoid the relationship. If this does not happen, Rex gets angry and destructive. In "Gelosia", Rex gets angry that Terzani had sex with Josephina and it is thought that it is just his protective attitude. [[spoiler:It turns out Josephina was helping his brother to escape, since he is the murderer.]]

* NonHumanSidekick: Although much of the time it's more like Rex has human sidekicks.

* OldHeroNewPals: Rex moves to Rome, so he had a new team. He and Lorenzo do a travel to Vienna and meet Kunz and Dr. Graf. It happens again when Rex and his master Marco Terzani are transferred; Monterosso goes with them and Gori does two visits to the new base, but Rex and Terzani have a new cast of colleages.

** After Rex is taken to Italy, Kunz and other Austrian characters stop appearing for obvious reasons. Kunz and Graf reappear for a special.
** Morini was secretly planning to transfer to Milan to send her mother to a delicate medical procedure that could only be done there.
** Katia no longer appears after Terzani is sent to another district.
* RememberTheNewGuy: Erika Hedl was not visible in the Austrian series, but she can talk about cases she solved alongside Richard Moser, the first comisar in the series.

* TakingTheBullet: To save Lorenzo from Barbara Loria, Rex jumps over him and receives the bullet. He gets better.

* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Ham rolls, for both Moser and Rex. Later, Davide Rivera is mostly seen chewing a liquorice stick.

%%Administrivia/ZeroContextExample * TheChewToy: Stockinger.

* ConfessInConfidence: "Priester in Gefahr". Doubles as KeepingSecretsSucks.

* DeadMansSwitch: [[spoiler:in "Gefährlicher Auftrag"]].

* FalseRapeAccusation: "Die Todesliste".

** Moser's final appearance is titled "[[spoiler:Moser's Death]]"

* TheChewToy: Stockinger.
* TheVamp: RichBitch Sandra Haller plays a textbook one in "Blinde Wut".

* WeNamedThisMonkeyJack: Morini named his goldfish Filippo after his boss [[DaChief Filippo Gori]]. He tries to hide it, but he is discovered calling his fish Filippo.

''Kommissar Rex'', known as '''''Inspector Rex''''' in English-speaking countries, is an Austrian live-action police detective series. The title character, Rex, is a highly-trained German Shepherd dog who works with a team of homicide detectives in the Austrian Kriminalpolizei, initially led by detective Richard Moser.

* RoleReprisal: After the hiatus, Martin Weinek and Gerhard Zemann return in the Italian series to reprise Fritz Kunz and Leo Graf respectively.

* ShaggySearchTechnique: In "Il Grigio", Bizarri finds a spying device when he falls over with the chair. That spying device was used to be ahead of the dectectives.

* DaChief: Averted in the Austrian seasons, but in the Italian seasons there is Filippo Gori, who often scolds his team, especially the main inspectors, and wants the cases to be deemed as closed as soon as possible even if the real murderer has not been discovered.

* DyingToBeReplaced: This happened to two of Rex's owners, namely [[spoiler:Richard Moser and Lorenzo Fabbri]]. . For the other owners, [[ChuckCunninghamSyndrome they just disappear as though they have never existed]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: The first time we see Alex, his colleagues are expressing mild annoyance at the fact that more junior officers are letting a piece of evidence drift away in a river. Before even introducing himself, Alex takes off his jacket and jumps into the river to retrieve the evidence, whereas Moser would probably have screamed at the agents until somebody took care of the issue. As you might have guessed, Alex is very dedicated, corageous, sporty and, most notably, lacks Moser's temper.
* EverybodyLaughsEnding: Happens quite often.

%%* KidnappedScientist

* RememberTheNewGuy: Erika Hedl was not visible in the Austrian series, but she can talk about cases she solved alongside Richard Moser.

The series originally ran from 1994 to 2004. In 2008 it was revived as an Italian co-production, with Rex being adopted by a visiting Italian policeman and going to live in Rome. Those Italian seasons lasted until 2015. It also produced a short-lived spinoff, ''Stockinger'', in which Richard Moser's first sidekick is transferred to Salzberg.

* TheBusCameBack: Kunz reappears alongside Dr. Graf in "L'ultima partita" after Rex's departure to Rome. When Rex alongside Terzani and Monterosso go to a new base, Filippo Gori returns to be a temporary DaChief to replace Fiori.

* CigarChomper: Dr. Graf, the main forensic doctor of the Kriminalpolizei has even been bribed by Moser to work harder with a cigar.

* LongRunnerCastTurnover: There have been a lot of changes on all the police teams on the series. The first one has been since Stockinger left to do his own series and was replaced by Christian Böck, who had ChuckCunninghamSyndrome to leave the slot to Niki Herzog. Peter Höllerer retires to care after his ailing mother and gets replaced by Fritz Kunz. [[spoiler:Moser dies,]] Brandtner disappears and it is unknown what happened to Hoffmann [[note]]it is rumored he died while fighting a drug cartel[[/note]]. Barring Rex, Leo Graf was the only RegularCharacter who was constant in the Austrian series. Then the series moves to Italy; Hoffmann's role in Vienna is taken by [[RememberTheNewGuy Erika Hedl]] and in Italy, the commissar is Lorenzo Fabbri. [[spoiler:The latter dies]] and is replaced by Davide Rivera, who disappeared without reason and is replaced again by Marco Terzani. Morini [[spoiler:moved to Milan in secret from Lorenzo]] and is replaced by Monterosso; Tommaso Bizzarri is almost exclusive to Davide Rivera's tenure. Rex goes to Merano to solve a cast with its own team and then he, Terzani and Monterosso work at a new base.

* RoleReprisal: After the hiatus, Martin Weinek and Gerhard Zemann return to the Italian series to reprise Fritz Kunz and Leo Graf respectively.

* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: In "Der Verlierer", Christian is very, very afraid of heights.

* TheVamp: RichBitch Sandra Haller plays a textbook one in "Blinde Wut". Also counts as [[spoiler:EvilIsSexy]].

* CigarChomper: Dr. Graf.

* AllMenArePerverts: the basis for the FrameUp in "Die Todesliste".

** Davide Rivera isn't seen dating any woman unlike the other Rex's owners. He had a romance with a woman, but they now are AmicableExes. Talking about that, it contrasts with Moser who had come from a far from amicable separation. Another difference is that he is much more poetic and more irascible than the other inspectors. His predecessors lack his OralFixation to liquorofficersice.