Carnival Row: Season 2 (2023) Cre: René Echevarria & Travis Beacham
Instagram post:
I have been waiting for this new season to come out for over a year now, and it finally arrived on Amazon Prime, much to my excitement. Across this season's 10 episodes, the intensity is ramped up again and again, through a series of suspenseful and exciting events that left me eager to watch episode after episode.
One of the key strengths of this season was the consistent quality of cliffhangers at the end of each episode, and the overall arc that managed to keep me heavily invested in what happened next.
I cared about a wide array of the characters involved, including some of the lesser featured ones, and I think the show did very well to keep things unpredictable without it becoming nonsensical.
The only major weakness for me was the CGI for one of the creatures, which was rather lacking compared to the rest of the visual effects used, which were of a much higher quality.
Other than that, the cinematography was really decent, episode after episode. The storyline for the season widened the world in which the characters operate, and introduced a number of new key faces to invest in.
I was not sure where the story would end, but I think the writers did a really good job for the most part, especially with behind the scenes issues due to the pandemic. There were a few minor plot points I wasn't so keen on, but then, with so many great moments, it doesn't bother me all that much.
Orlando Bloom returns to star, with his troubled protagonist continuing his journey through the fantastical. I thought his performance was decent, although I must say, I think I preferred him in the first season, but that isn't to say he is bad in this subsequent one by any means.
Cara Delevingne was somehow even better than in the first season, with her emotional outbursts and deliveries providing some of the more powerful moments throughout the show. She had really solid chemistry with just about everyone, and I think she carried some episodes very nicely.
Tamzin Merchant got to show an entirely new side of her character this season, something she seemed to relish, as she performed her role with a commendable vigour and commitment.
David Gyasi continued to show his immense poise alongside Merchant, but doesn't necessarily show the same level of growth in performance as she does, although his character developments are less pronounced, it must be said.
Karla Crome grew and grew in her performance as the season progressed, and by the end of it, became one of my favourite characters. That said, her character's arc was a little haphazard at times and didn't quite go where I expected, not that it went badly by any means.
Simon McBurney quietly has one of the best performances of anyone in the show, and has an abundance of well-acted scenes that I enjoyed thoroughly.
Finally, I'll also mention a few of the many names that deserve credit for their appearances this season; Ariyon Bakare, Andrew Gower, Arty Froushan, Caroline Ford, Indira Varma, Jay Ali, Joanne Whaley, Jamie Harris, Andrew Buchan, Chloe Pirrie and George Georgiou.
Overall, I wish there was going to be a third season, such is my love for this show, however, I also really appreciate how the show ended and the effort everyone put into this to make it as exciting and imaginative as possible. This is certainly one I will return to down the line, and it's one I think many will come round to sooner than later.
Comments