In the old days it was called hypochrondria, or black melancholia. Now, apparently, it's termed the Asthenic Syndrome. Whatever it is, Nikolai, a teacher of epicly indifferent pupils, has got it, and it's not much fun.
It is 1920. After three years of the Russian Civil War, communist government is finally established in Odessa. Young Alyosha Patrikeyv, who dreams of being a detective like Sherlock Holmes, joins the newly forming Odessa Criminal Police. He is assigned to fight illegal booz production in a small village of Severinovka. When he goes on a chase after a horse thief Krasavchik, Alyosha finds himself up against Cherven - the most dangerous criminal in Odessa.
After WWII is over, a young officer Volodya Sharapov returns to Moscow to work in MUR - Moskovskiy Ugolovny Rozysk (Moscow Criminal Police). There he meets Gleb Zheglov who is a chief of a squad which fights organized crime. Their main task is to track down a gang "Chernaya Koshka" (Black Cat) which terrorizes the city. Also, they have to find out who murdered Larisa Gruzdeva. Zheglov believes it was her husband Ivan Gruzdev, but Sharapov has his doubts about it...
