The Money Heist prequel series featuring the character of Berlin have been a lot of fun, because they don’t take themselves at all seriously. The latest series, Berlin And The Lady With An Ermine, throws in a double-crossing twist, but at its heart it’s still a heist show that includes personal stories to explore.

BERLIN AND THE LADY WITH THE ERMINE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT? 

Opening Shot: A boat approaching the wealthy city of San Sebastián. On the boat is master thief Berlín (Pedro Alonso) and his right-hand man,Damián Vázquez (Tristán Ulloa).

The Gist: Berlín and Damián are in San Sebastián to find the next wealthy person they’re going to rob. Damián has been mulling over an idea to rob the contents of the thousands of safe-deposit boxes at a bank where various unsavory types are known to stash ill-gotten wads of cash. Berlín dismisses this “surprise boxes” plan for a number of reasons, not the least of which because it doesn’t feel grand enough.

The duo go to a soiree for the Nautical World Cup to mingle and find a mark. There, he’s enchanted by Genoveva Dante (Marta Nieto), the duchess of Málaga, whom he meets when her pearl necklace “drops” on the floor. She invites him to tour her castle in Seville. Excited to get a tour of his next conquest, Berlín shows up a couple of weeks later, only to be introduced to the duke, Álvaro Hermoso de Medina (José Luis García-Pérez), who knows exactly who Berlín is.

The duke has admired Berlín’s work so much, he wants Berlín to steal the Leonardo da Vinci painting The Lady With An Ermine, which is due to come to Seville for an exhibition. He wants to add it to his collection of priceless, stolen art.

Berlín is pissed that anyone would have the termerity to tell him what to steal, so he tells Damián what he really wants to do is steal the duke’s art collection. As they conteplate what to do Berlín meets Candela (Inma Cuesta), a beautiful woman who is causing a scene by throwing her boyfriend’s possessions out her apartment window. He’s not just impressed with her looks, though; she also steals his wallet when they talk, and he appreciates her light touch.

He tells Damián to get the crew together: Bruce (Paul Zinno) and Kelia (Michelle Jenner), who are now a couple, and Cameron (Begoña Vargas) and Roi (Julio Peña), who used to be a couple but somehow aren’t anymore. Berlín then has Roi help him break into Candela’s apartment; he wants his wallet back, but she recruits him to help her burn down her ex-boyfriend’s RV.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Created by Álex Pina and Esther Martínez Lobato, all of the Berlin series — Berlin (aka Berlin And The Jewels Of Paris) and Berlin And The Lady With An Ermine — are prequels to Money Heist.

Our Take: The Berlin franchise works because Pina and Lobato are not trying to do anything more than show how Berlín and his crew set up and execute a heist. In the case of Berlin And The Lady With An Ermine, there’s a bit of a complicating factor, in that Berlín is turning the tables on the person who wants him to steal something for him, simply because Berlín is insulted by the idea that anyone would think that he can be comissioned to steal something.

But the same pattern we saw in the other two Berlin series is there, especially the part where Berlín adds a new person to the crew because he sees something in their skills, he’s attracted to the person, or both. In this case, it’s Candela, whom he admires for her pickpocketing skills and her firey passion. It doesn’t hurt, though, that she’s also gorgeous.

This heist should have some fun twists, mainly because Berlín has to gain the duke’s trust while planning to rob him, while gambling that there is actually something worth stealing in the bunker where the duke’s collection is stored. But we’re here for the interpersonal stuff, with Bruce and Kelia trying to navigate trust in their relationship, and Roi and Cameron navigating the reasons why they broke up. Then there’s Damián, who has hooked himself to Berlín since his wife left him, and who is not fully on board with his boss’ plan to rob the duke. That dispute should be interesting to watch.

Performance Worth Watching: As always, Pedro Alonso is charming as all get out as Berlín, who would rather walk out of Candela’s place with blood stains on his shirt (long story) than put a t-shirt on.

Sex And Skin: None in the first episode.

Parting Shot: After Candele burns down her ex’s RV, she and Berlín hit a roadblock in the car Candela hot-wired. He decides that the should floor it and get out of there, but not before they very sensually switch seats first.

Sleeper Star: Inma Cuesta’s Candela might be the best romantic foil Berlín has encountered. And she can wield a shotgun like nobody’s business.

Most Pilot-y Line: Berlín talks about Roi and Cameron taking their bed outside to watch the Perseids meteor shower, as if that’s a super-romantic thing to do. To us, that seems like a lot of effort when they could have just used a blanket or sleeping bags.

Our Call: STREAM IT. Berlin And The Lady With An Ermine has lost none of the Berlin series’ charm or joie de vivre. It’s still a show that’s more fun than thought-provoking, which is exactly what it’s intended to be.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.