In the Christmas special, Lucki Maurer and Tim Mälzer as well as Tim Raue and Max Strohe take on the challenge of cooking Christmas dishes to perfection in strange places. While the Maurer and Mälzer team headed to the Jin restaurant in Munich, the Raue and Strohe team had a culinary task waiting for them in Mattinata in Apulia, Italy.

The Polish geologist Magdalena Nowak is found dead in a forest near the village of Fehlow on the edge of a former lignite mining area - apparently suffocated with a plastic bag. Chief inspector Adam Raczek (Lucas Gregorowicz) and inspector candidate Vincent Ross (André Kaczmarczyk) can initially rule out a sex crime. But why was the young woman alone in the forest in the middle of the night?

The barbaric Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem) manages to free himself from the Devil's Triangle. He swears merciless revenge and wants to kill all pirates who are still alive - above all Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp). The only way he can defeat Salazar is to get his hands on the trident of Poseidon, which gives him dominion over the seven seas. But to do this, he must join forces with his nemesis Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush).

Ebba (Eva-Maria Grein von Friedl) owns a bridal shop and rents out a holiday home. When the less than charming author Rasmus (Kai Schumann) moves in, who wants to finish his current novel in peace, she finds him unbearable. They then discover that they are both fans of Bianca Lund's romance novels and grow closer. After completing Rasmus's manuscript, they spend a romantic week together. But Rasmus has a secret that pushes itself between them.

Inspector Niémans (Olivier Marchal) and his colleague Camille (Erika Sainte) are investigating in Waimes, east of Liège, in Belgium. A double murder was committed near a pagan festival. In a burned down community hall they find the lifeless bodies of a young German couple, sewn together at the back. The pair wear striking ties at their wrists and necklaces with pendants made from small pieces of each other's skin.