Inspector Rex

After his handler is killed, police dog Rex teams up with recently-divorced inspector Richard Moser to investigate crimes and solve mysteries on the streets of Vienna. And they sometimes get help from their two-legged friend, Inspector Stockinger.

Inspector Rex (1994-2004) is an Austrian ORF 1 police procedural series created by Peter Moser and Peter Hajek. After his handler is killed, the German shepherd Rex is paired with recently divorced inspector Richard Moser (Tobias Moretti), and the two work the streets of Vienna together on cases that rarely stay simple. Alexander Brandtner (Gedeon Burkhard), Christian Böck (Heinz Weixelbraun) and Inspector Stockinger (Karl Markovics) round out the team, with Dr. Leo Graf (Gerhard Zemann) appearing in every episode. The engine is practical: a murder, a theft or a missing person, then a trail of witnesses, informants and dead ends that Rex follows by scent while Moser reads the human side of the case. Across ten seasons and 119 episodes, the show runs as a case-of-the-week format with light serial threads, so each episode stands on its own. The tone is warm and unhurried, with humor and an affectionate bond between man and dog cutting through the grime of urban crime. Fans of Columbo, Der Alte and Monk will find a similar mix of procedural puzzle and comfortable character chemistry, set in a Vienna that feels lived in and familiar.

Audiences rate the Austrian police procedural positively, valuing its warm dog-and-detective partnership and Vienna crime-of-the-week format.

• Columboshared procedural case-of-the-week crime format with a partnered detective duo
• Der Alteshared police procedural tone and a long-running European crime series structure
• Monkshared lighthearted crime procedural with an animal or odd-pair partnership at its center

Created by

Peter Moser, Peter Hajek

Release Date

1994-11-10

Episode runtime

45 min

Rating

7.2 / 10 (300)

What is Inspector Rex about?

A loyal police dog and a recently divorced Viennese inspector team up to solve crimes across the city.

What is Inspector Rex like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Inspector Rex as measured, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as simple.

Is Inspector Rex violent?

Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Inspector Rex as mild.

What did critics think of Inspector Rex?

Audiences rate the Austrian police procedural positively, valuing its warm dog-and-detective partnership and Vienna crime-of-the-week format.

Which shows are like Inspector Rex?

Shows with a similar feel include Columbo, Der Alte, and Monk.

How long is Inspector Rex?

Inspector Rex: 10 seasons, 119 episodes.

Is Inspector Rex still running?

No, Inspector Rex has ended.

Where can I watch Inspector Rex?

In United States, Inspector Rex streams on MZ Choice Amazon Channel, Mhz Choice.