MobLand Season 2 Review: Tom Hardy Returns for a Messy but Stylish Season

MobLand is Paramount+’s modern answer to something like Peaky Blinders, but never quite reaches the level of prestige television it aims for, even with Season 2 bringing in the big guns. The “hit” series returns fans to the Harrigan family, and once again, it isn’t clear at any point who is mad at whom.

The end of Season 1 left Conrad Harrigan (Pierce Brosnan) and his wife Maeve (Helen Mirren) briefly behind bars before the final moments of the season that teased Conrad’s release. Season 2 throws them right back into the thick of things. But it’s not enough to make the seemingly random mob-related conflicts feel like a cohesive story.

When it comes to mob-centric stories, a key part of making them work is keeping each new “beef” clear. The Sopranos could have Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) angry over a very small issue, but we always knew why he was ready to unleash hell on another family. MobLand seems to forget that. Or at least, it doesn’t make any of it clear enough for the general audience to follow.

The overarching storylines of MobLand still work, like Maeve dealing with Eddie (Anson Boon) and her feelings about the truth of his parentage. Harry Da Souza’s (Tom Hardy) trouble with his wife, Jan (Joanne Froggatt), and their daughter, Gina (Teddie Allen), also makes sense.

The family drama aspect of MobLand is far from the show’s biggest issue. In fact, if creator Ronan Bennett focused mostly on the interpersonal drama of his characters, the show would be a slam dunk. But with Brosnan still doing a comical Irish accent in Season 2 (yes, as an Irishman), the show feels almost like a repeat of the same issues Season 1 had.

There are only so many times an audience can watch Maeve attempt to ruin her husband’s life for cheating on her before they need something more. Hardy delivers a quiet, stoic energy to the show as Harry that feels drastically different from what fans know him for, That continues in the show’s sophomore season, even with his family life up in the air.

But the only real saving grace that makes Season 2 a bit more enjoyable than the first comes down to whatever Johnny Flynn is doing as Frankie, a.k.a. Beast.

A Fun Villain Does Change Things

Promotional still for MobLand Season 2 featuring Tom Hardy as Harry Da Souza — Still from MobLand Season 2 on Paramount+

Frankie brings chaos to the Harrigan family when he joins the fray in a coat straight out of the early 2000s. Flynn’s strange Beatles-like haircut and tracksuit put him in the same category of villain as Jack O’Connell’s Jimmy Crystal from 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple if Jimmy were fighting with the Irish mob.

He’s the kind of villain who doesn’t really buy into the “mob machismo” that the Harrigan family can have. Instead, he’ll jokingly call them out, mock them and torment them in a way that’s almost fun to watch.

One of the biggest moments of the season has him rolling in on a scooter, and it is objectively the most interesting thing any character has done yet on the show.

Again, when the show focuses on its characters and their drama, it really does pop. But there is a lot of side-quest action happening that makes bigger moments a bit harder to understand and follow.

Maybe it is because so much of the drama is Harry telling Conrad to let him handle it, only for chaos to erupt amid a few too many subplots. But Flynn’s Frankie does make this season a more thrilling watch than the previous season.

It Is a Good Show, It’s Just Kind of Boring

Tom Hardy as Harry Da Souza in MobLand Seaso 2 — Still from MobLand Season 2 on Paramount+

Part of the problem with MobLand is that it is an objectively good show. As you’re watching it, you’re interested in the story. The first four episodes sent to critics for review are captivating.

But the episodes where nothing “big” happens end up feeling like filler to reach a season end-goal and not really growth for the story at large or its characters. Even as Brosnan performs an angry monologue or Mirren is twisting the knife in the back of her family, you’re left wondering if the show earned either moment or if you’re watching brilliant actors act out a scene that could have happened in any other mob drama.

Maybe it is the slow build of it all, or the often confusing motives of Maeve, the police subplot, or whatever else the show is putting into this season. But there is so much happening that you sometimes can only respond with an “Oh? Sure” when plot points land.

The performances of MobLand carried Season 1, and it’s sad that Season 2 is more of the same, but with a fun villain mixed in. It’s still a worthwhile watch. It’s just incredibly slow to build and, because of that, not exactly the most fun to unpack.

MobLand Season 2 premieres Friday, Sept. 18, on Paramount+.