Talk:Deutschland 83

Is it OK that the only reference for the claim that this is the "most popular foreign-language drama in the history of British television" comes from the company behind the series? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.254.51.244 (talk) 22:23, 3 February 2016 (UTC)

Error first paragraph-Martin does not work for the STASI

Hello, Martin is not a spy for the STASI. He is sent to the West as a an intelligence officer/agent. The STASI were effectively a "secret police" service tasked with maintaining internal security within the DDR (Deutches Demokratishe Republik~East Germany)the Western equivelents might have been the British MI5 (Security Service) or in the USA the FBI. Ofcourse there is no direct parallel, the STASI had wives spying on husbands and even made sure people met and had relationships with their agents. The end of the cold war and the opening of the STASI files was deeply traumatic and led to many tragic domestic rifts. Anyway-Martin is of course recruited to operate undercover in the West German Army in a signals unit working close to the tactical command and control structure for a significant joint German/US Army Group. He is therefore an agent of the Main Directorate for Reconnaissance (Hauptferwaltung Aufklaren or HVA)who even the KGB recognised as possibly the world's premier foreign intelligence service. The level of infiltration and activity protrayed in Deutschland 83 is quite possibly not even exagerated at all, they were EVERYWHERE!

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So please give the old HVA their screen credit-Martin is not a STASI agent95.149.33.221 (talk) 21:08, 15 February 2016 (UTC)(Redacted)

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The Main Directorate for Reconnaissance was an integral part of the Stasi, so this is not incorrect. --21lima (talk) 01:53, 16 February 2016 (UTC)

Potential Changes?

So, in response to the previous section, what does anyone propose we do to change the article in response? I myself am not entirely sure how to adjust the information about Martin Rauch working for the Stasi.

Also, if anyone knows (or knows where to get) the viewing numbers/statistics for the last few episodes for the UK, they need adding to the table in the "Episodes" table.

Many thanks in advance,

SolarHawk98 (talk) 20:06, 22 February 2016 (UTC)

What does the show state? I would have to go watch again. --21lima (talk) 01:59, 23 February 2016 (UTC)

+1 Definitely the HV A rather than the Stasi generally. Lenore as 'Cultural Attache' to the Ständige Vertretung in Bonn, and Schweppenstette who is in same department etc would clearly be part of HV A, (and it's mentioned a few times in the show - although I didn't notice whether this made it into the English language subtitles).

The HV A (note space between HV and A) was a department of the MfS, and the distinction is worth making because a) the HV A enjoyed almost complete independence, being answerable only to General Mielke and b) when people refer to the Stasi they generally mean the parts of the MfS that focused in internal GDR affairs, and the HV A was the foreign intelligence agency.

His actual position would be as Hauptamtlicher IM (HIM) according to this article: but this is speculation based on historical knowledge rather than the historically inaccurate show(!)

SUGGESTION: First sentence of introduction (currently: ...an undercover spy for the Stasi) be changed to ... an undercover spy for the HV A, the foreign intelligence agency of the Stasi. 216.66.22.38 (talk) 08:41, 23 February 2016 (UTC)

Stasi HQ - wrong location

Currently the article states:

"The show was shot in and around locations in Berlin, Germany. A suburb in east Berlin was used to portray period East Germany.[27] For the scenes where the Stasi headquarters (in German, the Ministerium für Staatssicherheit) was required as the location, the production was able to use the Stasi Museum, which is the actual site of the original headquarters.[11]"

The show was shot at the MfS HQ, but it's misleading to say that some scenes required this location. The operation would have been run by the HV A (see other discussions on this talk page), not the general Stasi, and they would have run the operation from their headquarters outside Berlin in Gosen. It would have been far more realistic to shoot the scenes where Op. RJAN was being prepared inside the Gosen communications bunker (for which purpose it had been built), and not at the Ruschestr. HQ.

I have found only one external source to say "the scenes were shot in the wrong place", but there are plenty of sources stating that the HV A base was in Gosen, and this article does point out that D83 has the location wrong: http://www.maxhertzberg.co.uk/frivolity/wittering/deutschland-83/ The author of that article has been quoted elsewhere on Wikipedia in Stasi related articles.

Suggest: change that sentence to read: "The show was shot in and around locations in Berlin, Germany. A suburb in east Berlin was used to portray period East Germany.[27] For some scenes the the Stasi headquarters (in German, the Ministerium für Staatssicherheit) was used as the location and the production was able to use the Stasi Museum, which is the actual site of the original headquarters.[11]"

Personally I'd also prefer to mention that the Stasi HQ was the wrong location, and that the HV A was based in Gosen - what do others think?

216.66.22.38 (talk) 08:54, 23 February 2016 (UTC)