THE NIGHT MANAGER: SEASON 2

This season brings back Tom Hiddleston as Jonathan Pine with all the stiff restraint, moral fatigue and L-plate spy skills that made the first season an interesting watch. While the production and locations are big and full, the storytelling isn’t and at times it feels rinsed and repeated. One of the immediate gaps is the reduced presence of Olivia Colman’s character Angela Burr. Her absence creates a vacuum that never quite fills. The opening episode is thick with explanation and backstory, building an unsteady foundation for the shows mishaps to unfold. By the close out, we are reminded that spy stories don’t always aim for neat endings, but the uneven build-up makes that point harder to land. Rather than delivering a sense of completion or a suspenseful release, it leans into a “tad” moment of wizardry, which left me feeling more deflated than intrigued. Stylish, serious, and sometimes compelling this series still holds interest, but it asks for patience it doesn’t repay.