Overview
- ZDF premieres the 17th season on Thursday, 30 October, with seven new episodes slated for linear broadcast at 20:15.
- Two long-absent child characters return, with Lisa Junick now portraying Mia and Marinus Hohmann taking over as Leon.
- Head writer Christiane Rousseau resolves the earlier disappearance storyline by having Mia return from a Swiss boarding school.
- The premiere episode, Stille Wasser, introduces a lake recovery case and reunites Markus Kofler with police officer Alex in a tense collaboration.
- Fresh character arcs foreground teenage friction and personal choices, including Markus considering the sale of his farm.