Main Characters
The show's main character and lead protagonist. Witse originally hails from the west of Flanders (as shown by the movie, W.), but has spent most of his adult life in Brussels working for the federal police. He's headstrong, stubborn, passionate and rebellious, with a strong aversion towards the rules and procedures imposed by his superiors. He also tends to get emotionally involved in the cases he's working on, determined to catch the killer no matter what.
Developments throughout the series:
Early seasons:
Witse started out as a DCI at the start of the show, but after catching his wife, Doris, cheating on him with his boss, he takes up the position of commissioner in Halle by the end of the pilot episode. There, he takes charge of the murder squat, which initially leads to quite a bit of tension between him and his co-workers. After his move to Halle, Witse initially has trouble settling into his new suburban life, but manages to befriend several of his neighbours (and his new partner, Dimi) by the end of first season. Throughout the first season, Witse struggles with his divorce, which eventually goes through at the end of the first season. Nevertheless, he also meets his new love interest, Annemie, with whom he starts a long-distance relationship in the season two episode "De eenzaat". Near the start of season three, Witse temporarily becomes depressed and even near-suicidal, after his partner, Dimi dies in his arms during a fatal shooting. His mood doesn't improve when he's partnered up with Billy Redant, an arrogant go-getter who trash-talks Dimi. After Witse catches Billy in bed with the murderer during the episode "Het Landjuweel", he gets Billy removed from the team through an ultimatum. Billy gets replaced by Sam, with whom Witse develops an excellent working relationship. Halfway season four, Witse has a brief fling with Dr. Veronique Maes, the team's coroner, which causes Annemie to temporarily break up with him. She takes him back, however, after Dr. Maes convinces Annemie that she, and not Witse, is to blame for the fling, as Witse never wanted to cheat on Annemie.Later seasons:
In season five, Witse has to deal with an internal affairs investigation against him, after his repeated insubordinations have all but soured his work relationship with chief commissioner Wytinckx, from which he's exonerated. Their relationship does improve throughout the following season, in particular after Witse exonerates Wytinckx for the murder of his wife. Throughout season seven, both Witse's private life and his health suffer, after he catches Annemie cheating on him with a friend of hers during the episode "Maskers". Witse breaks up with Annemie for good and moves to an apartment downtown at the start of season eight. Witse's personal life seems to only go downhill from there and he even gets a (minor) heart attack due to a poor diet and excessive alcohol consumption. Witse quickly recovers, however, and continues to focus on his work. Near the end of season eight, Witse gets a letter stating that his estranged father died in Africa. Witse, who resents his father for his actions, initially wants nothing to do with his burial, but eventually relents. Throughout season nine, the viewer finally learns more about Witse's past, including the fact that his father collaborated with the Nazis in World War II. This, and the fact that he abandoned them to save his own hide, is the main reason behind Witse's hate towards his father. At the end of season nine, Witse quits his job and goes into early retirement, after an especially gruesome case causes him to rethink his life.
Strict and by-the-book, van Deun is a former gendarmerie, who mainly serves as Witse's foil throughout most of the series. In contrast to Witse, he's (happily) married and has a daughter. While he initially often butts heads with Witse over regulations, he does eventually build a certain degree of (mutual) respect towards him. Van Deun is often partnered with Dams and sees him as either an underling or a protegé (depending on the situation). While he's initially a DCI, he passes the commissioner's exam in season six. He, nevertheless, passes up on a promotion to stay with the team.
Developments throughout the series:
While the character of van Deun doesn't see too much development throughout the series, the viewer does get a look into his personal life and past on occasion. The season one episode, "Een oude zaak", for example, shows that van Deun does tend to go outside the law occasionally, if he doesn't agree with the resolution of a case. This shows up once again in the season five two-parter "Soireé Privé", where it's revealed that van Deun perjured himself to protect his (former) partner and superintendent in the gendarmerie, a secret for which he almost payed with his life. Following his near-death experience, van Deun writes a novel during his recovery called "De zaak Wolters", which is picked up by a publisher (after some revisions). The near-death experience furthermore marks a (significant) shift in his work relation with Witse, as is shown by van Deun's favorable comments during Witse's internal affairs hearing.
Rudy Dams is a young, kind-hearted and meek DI, who, despite his cautious nature, ended up working for the murder squat. He's married (to his wife, Martje) with two kids and regularly mentions them (or his mundane home life) throughout the series. Dams tends to get along well with everyone, but has the strongest connection to van Deun (with whom he often partners up). He also becomes close friends with Sam, who occasionally takes advantage of his kindness to enlist his help on a case (or with paperwork). While Dams is rather bashful most of the time, he does occasionally assert himself, when the situation asks for it.
Developments throughout the series:
Like van Deun, Dams doesn't undergo a lot of development throughout the series. He does, however, go through several situations that show him the (potential) dangers of working for the murder squad. For example, in the season two episode "Burengerucht", Dams gets ambushed by a burglar, after he sees someone ransacking a sealed crime scene on his way home and decides to investigate. This earns him some grief from his wife, Martje, who considered him reckless for going in alone. In the second part of the season four two-parter "Soireé privé", Dams nearly dies protecting a key witness from the episode's killer, but he's saved in the nick of time by Witse and Sam. Several episodes later, in the episode "Terminaal", Dams witnesses a hit list victim getting run over with a car right in front of him. This traumatic experience haunts him and he decides to leave the murder squad in favor for the CCU. However, while he does participate in the entry exam to join computer crimes, he eventually decides not to go through with it and stays with the team after all. From that moment onwards, Dams more or less becomes the team's computer specialist (in addition to his other tasks).
Peter Wytinckx is the second chief commissioner to supervise the team and the replacement of chief commissioner van de Casteele, when she gets promoted to Europol. He has completed a master in bussiness management in the U.S. and (initially) plans to run his station like a company. Witse, however, doesn't agree with Wytinckx' vision and the two often butt heads over Witse's brazen approach towards most cases. Like van Deun, he's a stickler for the rules and he's far less lenient than van de Casteele, when it comes to Witse's (minor) transgressions. Furthermore, Wytinckx' is married and has one daughter, Renske.
Developments throughout the series:
Chief commissioner Wytinckx enters the team (and the series) as an outsider and isn't well-liked by his colleagues initially (who collectively call him "de Flipper", after the dolphin with the same name). Throughout the earlier seasons, he's mainly shown in his professional capability (as Witse's boss) and serves as a counterforce to Witse's Cowboy Cop tendencies. He becomes increasingly antagonistic throughout seasons four and five, however, up to the point where he initiates an internal affairs investigation against Witse for insubordination. After this fails, things seem to relax a bit between the two and Wytinckx becomes (somewhat) more lenient. While Wytinckx does have a family, they aren't introduced to the viewer until the season six two-parter "Bloedlijn". During the two-parter, Wytinckx' wife, Christina, is assassinated by the Italian Maffia (because she knew too much) and Wytinckx is framed for her murder. After Witse exposes the true culprit, Wytinckx is grateful to him for clearing his name and the two even start an (uneasy) friendship. After the death of his wife, Wytinckx home life becomes a much greater point of focus, as he now has to deal with his (traumatized and rebellious) teenage daughter on his own. This even seems to influence his work somewhat, as shown by the season 7 episode "Maskers". He furthermore becomes close with DI Tine Smets, after she breaks up with her partner, Mark, and the two get in a relationship at the start of season nine.
Tine Smets is Witse's third police partner, who joins the team at the start of season seven. She joined the police force relatively late in life and is already in her forties when she applies for the position of DI on Witse's team. Despite that, she's quite experienced (having worked the beat in some of the more dangerous areas of Brussels) and shows both spunk and confidence, which eventually convinced Witse to choose her over a younger officer. Tine is a calm and caring person, who studied psychology before joining the force. Furthermore, she's in a relationship with Mark and has two children, Jens (from her previous marriage) and Maaike (with Mark).
Development throughout the series:
Tine is introduced near the start of season seven as one of the potential applicants to replace Sam as DI. While she and Witse don't get off to a good start during the application process (as Witse doubts her commitment to the team, due to her (strenuous) family life), she nevertheless manages to convince Witse to choose her (by telling him exactly how wrong he is in his assessment). After their initial struggles, however, the two quickly form a close team. Throughout season eight, Witse and his team are introduced to Tine's partner, Mark, as well as to her two children. Not long after that, Witse discovers (by chance) that Mark is cheating on Tine with another woman. As Witse was the victim of adultery himself, he decides to tell Tine about the affair, which strains their partnership for a while. Nevertheless, Tine believes Witse and decides to end it with Mark. Mark, on the other hand, doesn't want to lose Tine and tries to win her back (in vain). The two officially separate by the start of season nine. Around the same time, Tine also starts a relationship with chief commissioner Wytinckx, who had been supportive towards her throughout the divorce procedure. This initially angers Witse, who sees Tine's relationship with Wytinckx as conspiring with the enemy. He, nevertheless, reluctantly accepts their relationship throughout season nine.
Samantha "Sam" Deconinck is Witse's second partner and Dimi's successor (after Witse's brief (and failed) partnership with Billy Redant). She's enthousiastic, energetic and a rookie when it comes to detective work. She's nevertheless perceptive, empathetic, hard working and eager to learn, which Witse sees as the key necessities to become a great detective. Sam grew up in a family of gearheads, with three brothers who (currently) run the family garage together.Hence, she knows quite a bit about cars and drives a Cool Car (a VW bus) as well. Sam also has the tendency to have brief flings with the guys she's dating, which leads to a Running Gag, where Witse would mistakingly refer to one of her previous boyfriends in conversation, as he couldn't keep up.
Development throughout the series:
Sam enters the series as an absolute rookie (almost fresh out of the police academy) and is rather prone to making mistakes near the beginning of her run. Nevertheless, she (almost immediately) shows Witse that she has what it takes to become a great detective. Hence, the two quickly hit it off and become a team to be reconned with. While Witse quickly takes a liking to her, she isn't as well-liked by van Deun, who finds her unorganized way of writing and filing reports a thorn in his side. She does find an ally in Dams, who occasionally helps her out with both police and paperwork. Initially, Sam still lived with her mother and her brothers, until she got kicked out of the house after the events of the season five episode "Familie". After that, she briefly lives with Witse, until Annemie arranges for her to take over the lease for a condo of one of Annemie's friends. At the end of season five, Sam manages to patch things up with her family, but nevertheless continues to live on her own. At the start of season six, Sam enrolls for an exchange project with a team from Rotterdam and, hence, disappears from view for a while. She returns several episodes later and promptly gets into a steady relationship with Paul, a firefighter. She ends up leaving the team after a near-death experience at the end of the two-parter "Bloedlijn". While she and Paul were initially planning on travelling around the globe together, this never came to pass, as Sam found out that she had gotten pregnant with Paul's child shortly before departure. Instead, Sam took up a position within the internal affairs department, which becomes evident during her cameo in the season seven episode "Maskers".
Dimi Tersago is Witse's first partner, after his move from Brussels to Halle. He's young, charming, idealistic and sharp-witted, which he tends to show off on occasions. Furthermore, he's a (highly) competent detective, who quickly adapts to Witse's unconvential work methods and doesn't mind doing most (if not all) of the paperwork. As Witse hates paperwork, he and Dimi become the best of friends almost immediately. Dimi's furthermore a fanatic pub quizzer, which occasionally surfaces throughout the seasons he's in.
Developments throughout the series:
Upon arrival in Halle, Witse gets Dimi assigned to him as his partner somewhat against his will, as he would rather prefer to work alone. However, while their cooperation is somewhat strenuous at first, Dimi quickly becomes Witse's first (and closest) friend in Halle. This friendship develops into something stronger over the course of the first two seasons and Dimi (almost) becomes the son Witse never had (while Witse becomes somewhat of a second father figure for Dimi). Nevertheless, they do occasionally fall out with on another, such as over Witse's overzealous focus on a single suspect during the season two episode "De groene jongen". Nevertheless, they always patch things up in the end, as their bond is too strong to be broken by petty squabble. Dimi furthermore becomes good friends with Witse's neighbours, who treat him as a (honorary) inhabitant of the Sijsjeslaan. In the season two episode "Veel liefs uit Rusland", it's furthermore revealed that Dimi used to be an undercover agent, before joining the murder squad. In the season two episode "Inch' Allah", Dimi meets Anke, a student at the police academy, who's doing an internship at the murder squad. The two hit it off right away and are dating by the end of the episode. From that point onwards, Anke regularly shows up as Dimi's girlfriend and the two announce that they're planning to get married at the start of season three. Dimi, furthermore, asks Witse to be his best man for the wedding, which he gratefully accepts. Then, disaster strikes, as Dimi gets shot in the chest in the episode "Kinderspel" and dies in Witse's arms. Witse is distraught by Dimi's death and falls into a (near-suicidal) depression during the subsequent episodes. Dimi funeral takes place at the start of the season three episode "Tegen de muur".
Chief commissioner van de Casteele is Witse's superior officer, after he takes up his position as commissioner in Halle. She's diplomatic, attractive and a bit of a career tiger, who tries to keep Witse on the straight and narrow (but often let's him make his own decisions regardless). Furthermore, as she's single, she occasionally becomes a bit flirtatious with Witse, although nothing came of it between them. She can occasionally be a bit frigid, however, and this is the reason why Witse calls her "Het ijskonijn" ("The ice queen") behind her back. She is, nevertheless, respected and well-liked by her team (even by Witse) and is far more lenient than her successor, chief commissioner Wytinckx.
Developments throughout the series:
Chief commissioner van de Casteele gets relatively little screen time (and development) in comparison to chief commissioner Wytinckx. The viewer, however, does occasionally get to see her softer side every once in a while. In the episode "Pancha Karma", for example, it was shown that she was a former member of the spa and massage center the victim worked at. She only visited the center once, however, as she wasn't really into the new age hippie stuff they were performing there. In the episode "Tweespoor", she invites Witse over for a heart-to-heart, after she announces her transfer to Europol. There, she reveals that she knew that he called her "ijskonijn", but that she takes it in good jest and bears no grudge over it. By the end of their chat, the two depart as friends. Her final appearance on the show is in the episode "Tegen de muur", where she attends Dimi's funeral and even puts a rose on his coffin.Witse's acquaintances from Brussels
Chief commissioner Keysers is Witse's former boss, back when he was a DCI in Brussels. He plays a prominent role during the pilot, where Witse discovers that he's having an affair with his wife, Doris. He and Witse were (formerly) good friends, but the affair left them on bad terms with one another. After Witse transfers to Halle in season one, Keysers still makes several appearances, such as throughout the episode "Bijklussen", where he (reluctantly) seeks Witse's aid in solving a policeman's murder and in the two-parter "De Tipgever", where Witse's investigation into a homocidal robbery seems to be connected to the death of a fence in Brussels. In both cases, he's painful reminder to Witse that his wife left him for another man. After the season two two-parter "De val", in which Keysers (and his commissioner Pouwels) are trying to convict Witse of a murder he didn't commit, chief commissioner Keysers disappears out of frame for quite some time. He returns one final time in the season six two-parter "Bloedlijn", where he temporarily takes over for chief commisioner Wytinckx, who isn't allowed to work the case, due to his wife's involvement.
Commissioner Leon Pouwels was one of Witse's former colleagues, as well as his arch-enemy back when he worked in Brussels. He's a bit arrogant and somewhat of a brown-noser, which Witse cannot stand. During the pilot, he's the main reason for Witse's transfer to Halle, as Witse got passed over for promotion in favor of Pouwels, meaning that he would've become his boss if Witse stayed. After his departure to Halle, Witse has several run-ins with Pouwels, most prominently during the two-parter "De val", where it was revealed that Pouwels was a Dirty Cop, who blackmailed district attorneys (as well as other high ranking officials) into letting his criminal buddies off the hook. After a blackmail scheme targeting Witse goes south (and Witse find out about his involvement), Pouwels tries to save his skin by knocking out Witse and calling his accomplice to finish him off. His accomplice, however, turns on him and murders him, in order to implicate (an incapacitated) Witse even more.
Doris is Witse's (ex-)wife, who's revealed to be having an affair with chief commissioner Keysers during the pilot episode. Witse and her had an unhappy marriage, ever since their only son died shortly after childbirth. After Witse's departure from Brussels, Doris occasionally makes an appearance (be it either in one of Witse's dreams, over the telephone or through the voice-over of a letter). Witse officially divorces her in the second part of the season one two-parter "De tipgever", after which she makes no further appearance.
Gilbert Smekens is a shady stripclub owner, who makes his first appearance as a witness during the episode "Inch' Allah". While he started out as a low-life thug (who got send to jail by Witse on several occasions), he seems to be doing rather well as of late. The reason for this is revealed in the two-parter "De val", where it's shown that he worked together with commissioner Pouwels to build his criminal empire. When Witse is falsely accused of murder during the two-parter, he visits Smekens once more in search for answers, only to be nearly beaten cripple by Smekens and his cronies. On one of his later visits, however, Witse returns the favor and breaks Smekens nose by pistol whipping him with a shotgun. At gunpoint, Smekens is the one who reveals the original plan behind Witse's predicament, which had gone terribly awry by this point. After this scene, Smekens is never seen again (presumably because he's in prison).
Witse's friends and neighbours
Annemie is Witse's love interest and first (real) romantic relationship, since his separation from his wife, Doris. She's also a pediatric psychiatrist, who occasionally aids Witse with his cases. Witse first meets her in the season one episode "Loesje", where they work together find the culprit of the murder of the week. As there's chemistry between them, they end up going on a date the next episode, only for Witse to get called away for a murder. They meet again in the season two episode "Burengerucht", where Annemie is called in as a psychiatrist for the children of the victims. They end up seeing eachother more often after that and share their first kiss in the episode "De eenzaat". From that moment onwards, Witse and Annemie have a LAT-relationship, which, over time, grows into more of a regular relationship. Throughout the following seasons, Annemie occasionally gets caught up in Witse's cases, most notably in the two-parter "De val", where she nearly becomes the victim of the killer (who tries to take revenge on Witse this way), as well as in the episodes "Het landjuweel" and "De therapeut". Yet, their relationship isn't all good tidings and Annemie even (briefly) breaks up with Witse, after he neglects to tell her about an (innocent) kiss with dr. Maes. The two make up shortly after and seem to be happy, until Witse discovers in season seven that Annemie is having romantic feelings for one of her colleagues, Louis. The two clear things out after a brief spat, but Witse is reluctant to (completely) trust Annemie again. His fears of adultery come to fruition, when he spots Annemie with Louis once more during the episode "Maskers". Witse breaks up with Annemie in the following episodes and moves out to find his own apartment in town. While Annemie attempts to reconcile with Witse throughout the rest of the season, she fails to do so and ends up leaving the series at the end of season seven, after accepting a position with Doctors Without Borders in Mali.
Walter is Witse's helpful, yet rather nosy, neighbour. He often swings by (uninvited) to help Witse with work around the house or to nag Witse about things that are awry in the neighbourhood (or, often, both). Walter is married to Bieke and a prominent member of the neighbourhood committee. While Walter is generally a good neighbour, misunderstandings between Witse and him do happen, such as in the episode "Bijklussen", where a white lie on Witse's side leads to Walter thinking that he's a hitman for a criminal gang (which he told half the neighbourhood by the end of the day). Another example occurs in the episode "Scherven", where he and Bieke get upset with Witse for not hearing them out about Annie being taken to the hospital (Witse was rather occupied with a murder at the time). Due to the sudden death of the actor portraying him, Walter disappears from the series (together with his wife, Bieke) somewhere midway through season five.
Bieke is one of Witse's neighbours and the wife of Walter. She often brings either leftovers or entire meals to Witse (whether he likes it or not). She's commonly seen in the company of Walter and can be as nosy as him (although she's far more level-headed). While she had a (somewhat) prominent role near the start of the show, she quietly vanishes from the series with her husband, Walter, halfway through season five
Annie is Witse's elderly neighbour, who lives across the street from him. She's kind, jovial and relatively straightforward, which Witse appreciates about her. The two, hence, quickly become good friends. Furthermore, Annie is a staunch enthousiast of "Kriek", a flemish beer made with sour cherries, which she introduces to Witse as well. Annie is also (somehow) always in the know about the case Witse is working on. In the season one two-parter "De tipgever", it's revealed that she secretly owns a (contraband) police radio, which explains this fact. In the season two episode "De lustige weduwe", Annie inadvertently becomes involved in one of Witse's cases, after she discovers a corpse at the chocolate factory of her friend, Aimeé. In the episode "De eenzaat", Witse gifts Annie a dog named Bobby (who belonged to a murder victim from Witse's case of the week), in order to make her feel less lonely. Bobby, subsequently, often makes an appearance alongside Annie, when she takes him out for a walk. While Annie is a rather lively woman, her health does fail her occasionally and she ends up in the hospital on more than one occasion. The most prominent example of this is during the (subsequent) episodes "Scherven" and "De bejaarde man", where Annie initially spends time at the hospital as a patient and subsequently as a visitor for Witse (who gets badly wounded at the end of the former episode). At the hospital, she also meets Witse's roommate, Wilfried, with whom she starts a (long-distance) relationship. Not long after this, Annie disappears from the series, only to return as one of the elderly murder victims in the season seven episode "Blufpoker". Throughout the episode, Witse finds out that Annie moved to a senior's flat, where she was pushed out of her (second-floor) window by a gambling-addicted caregiver, who killed her for her inheritance.
Rita is the police station's desk sergeant and the first friendly face people see when they enter the station. She often aids Witse and his team by informing them of any witnesses who are waiting near the front desk. Furthermore, she occasionally helps out during the witness interviews as well and even helped to crack a case once or twice. She's a kind and caring person, who helped both Witse and Sam to get their bearings when they were new at the station. She's married with two children (both of which were born throughout the first seasons of the series). After season three, Rita slowly fades away from view as the series shift its focus. Hence, she's barely seen anymore from season four onwards.
Dr. Maes is the team's coroner and a close friend / satelite love interest of Witse. She's first introduced in the season three episode "Het onbekende lijk" as the new coroner and quickly forms a tight bond with Witse, as she's going through a painful divorce as well. Dr. Maes, however, sees Witse as more than a friend and falls in love with him (despite his relationship with Annemie). The situation reaches a boiling point, when dr. Maes kisses Witse near the end of season four. While Witse rebutted the kiss, it was caught on camera by a private investigator hired by dr. Maes' (ex-)husband, who uses it as leverage in dr. Maes' divorce case. Through shear coincidence, Annemie finds out about the whole affair and promptly breaks up with Witse, only to reconcile with him, after dr. Maes convinces her that she alone held responsibility. In the following seasons, Witse and Dr. Maes remain friends (although not as close as before). Dr. Maes eventually leaves the team at the end of season six, after which she's replaced by dr. Stef Cooreman.
Kathleen Antonis is a nurse Witse had a brief fling with throughout season one. The two meet eachother in the season one episode "Het horloge", where she aids him with the post-mortem of a young junkie. The two end up going on a date the following episode, "Afscheid". However, when her name (and confidential dating profile) turn up during the case, Witse can't help but to check on her, which ends up driving a wedge between them. They stay good friends, nevertheless, and end up meeting eachother on several occasions during the following seasons (such as in the episodes "Het landjuweel" and "De pyromaan").
Billie is a Dutch detective who joins the team in season 6 through a foreign officer exchange program, where she temporarily replaces Sam (who joins a team in Rotterdam). She is rather direct and to-the-point, yet relatively inexperienced compared to Sam. Initially, she doesn't entirely hit it off with Witse, but the two become good friends after Witse finds out they share a similar disdain for the rules. One recurring element is that Billie is not allowed to visit crime scenes (as she's technically an intern), but always finds a creative way to do so with Witse's help. She also (accidentally) bothers van Deun on a regular basis, much to Witse's amusement. She returns to Rotterdam at the end of her exchange period and leaves the team again at the end of the episode "Babyblues".
