Guy Ritchie's "The Gentlemen" is back for a second season on Netflix, continuing its blend of dark humor, criminal enterprises, and aristocratic intrigue.
The series picks up with drug baron Bobby Glass, portrayed by Ray Winstone, serving a ten-year sentence for tax fraud. However, the narrative suggests his time in prison, HMP Leyhill, is far from arduous, featuring luxuries like a sauna and hot tub. The show hints that under current policies, his sentence might be significantly shortened, raising questions about his return to the outside world.
Meanwhile, Eddie, the 13th Duke of Halstead and marijuana kingpin played by Theo James, harbors ambitions to restore his family's ancestral estates. His plan involves cornering the European cannabis market and navigating a path to legitimacy, a venture he believes is worth a substantial sum.
Director Guy Ritchie employs on-screen captions and plot notes, often scrawled in yellow marker, to clarify backstory and introduce new characters. These notes provide context, such as an explanation of "kedgeree" as an Anglo-Indian dish. The season also introduces Hugh Bonneville as Lord Hawthorne, an aristocrat with a hidden, darker side, and Michele Morrone as Cico Maldini, a flamboyant Mafioso.
Kaya Scodelario returns as Susie Glass, Bobby's daughter and the operational mastermind behind the drug empire, bringing a significant dose of the show's darker elements. Her character is highlighted as one of the most formidable figures within the series' criminal underworld.
Ritchie's signature style, characterized by witty one-liners, puns, and slapstick that often contrasts with sudden bursts of ultra-violence, is present throughout the season. The show balances its more graphic moments with a satirical eye on class and the machinations of the wealthy and criminal elite, with a particular focus on how "shoots are never about the killing, they're always about the deal-making."
"The Gentlemen" season two promises a mix of capers, violence, and class satire, continuing its exploration of the criminal underworld intertwined with the British aristocracy.