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Ozark Season 2 picks up right where season 1 left off, as the Byrdes are dealing with the effects of a certain individual who’s now devoid of a head, and they’re considering moving to Australia, but before I saw any more I thought – how could this still be called Ozark if they were all the way over there? Then again, Taggart continued with that name after the lead actor died and a new cop character took over, so all bets are off.
NOTE: Beyond this point, I will assume you have seen all of Season 1.
Early on, the Byrdes’ reason to stay alive – and not find themselves in a shallow grave being dissolved by a questionable substance – is the plan to help facilitate the building of a casino in the next six months. It’ll bring in money and tourism to the location, but it’s never the most pressing business requirement in any town, so can they get the bill to be passed? Before I had that question answered for me, I thought that if they don’t, then the Byrdes might find themselves in the ground sooner rather than later, and it’s a plotline that’s full of politicking and is nothing we’ve not seen before.
However, in order to make it work, Marty needs to act fast, and if working with Del in season 1 was risky enough, this time, he might just have to get into bed with mafia boss Frank Cosgrove, but brooding tension develops when you see early on how he doesn’t take any prisoners, you’ve really gotta ‘hand’ it to him…
After a strong opening two episodes, the general events rather coasted along for the next two – as the FBI come along and want to rake over old details of season 1 rather than get cracking with this season’s plot, but episode 4 does see the welcome return of Kevin Johnson as former real estate agent Sam Dermody, who has a new job to keep him occupied…
As I reached episode 5, things were hotting up in relation to season 1’s events, and elements so far in season 2 which didn’t seem so relevant were now starting to play their part, although there were a number of storylines in this which took some way to start gelling together.
Jason Bateman puts on the perfect poker face in the face of adversity, and for a new face to the cast, Janet McTeer is wonderful as Helen Pierce, a lawyer where you’re never sure which side she’s on, but replacing Marty’s laundering for Del in Season 1 with the casino storyline in Season 2 just does not carry equal weight with the latter, and I was left waiting for things to happen.
For some reason, this series is set in 2021, as at one point, the year 2022 is mentioned, and it’s commented as being “next year”. Since Season 2 follows on directly from Season 1, and if it ends in 2021, does that mean that Netflix have a five-year plan for this series?
If you’re like me and haven’t re-watched season 1, then some of the basics are covered along the way in the first episode. However, I do wish I’d had the time to rewatch it all.
So, there were some dips along the way, but it picked back up a bit for its finale, and I’m curious to see where things go, but after the great first season, this does need a shot in the arm. Then again, it’s still a step up from the new Jack Ryan series from Amazon.
On the plus side, season 2 did have some great tense moments, but overall, the story wasn’t quite as good as the first season, and I was hoping for the scriptwriters to give more screen time to Sam Dermody in his new line of business, as there was certainly great scope there, but they didn’t give anywhere near the amount he deserved. More next time, please!
Scores:
Episode 1: 8/10
Episode 2: 8/10
Episode 3: 7/10
Episode 4: 7/10
Episode 5: 8/10
Episode 6: 8/10
Episode 7: 7.5/10
Episode 8: 7/10
Episode 9: 7.5/10
Episode 10: 8/10
Cert: 
Running time: 10 episodes – 57-66 minutes per episode
Studio: Netflix
Year: 2018
Format: 2.00:1
Released: August 31st 2018
Overall: 8/10
Series Directors: Jason Bateman, Andrew Bernstein, Ellen Kuras, Daniel Sackheim
Series Producer: Patrick Markey
Producers: Erin Mitchell and Matthew Spiegel
Writers/Creators: Bill Dubuque and Mark Williams
Music: Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans
Cast:
Marty Byrde: Jason Bateman
Wendy Byrde: Laura Linney
Charlotte Byrde: Sofia Hublitz
Jonah Byrde: Skylar Gaertner
Ruth Langmore: Julia Garner
Jacob Snell: Peter Mullan
Darlene Snell: Lisa Emery
Sam Dermody: Kevin Johnson
Cade Langmore: Trevor Long
Buddy: Harris Yulin
Roy Petty: Jason Butler Harner
Helen Pierce: Janet McTeer
Three: Carson Holmes
Agent Trevor Evans: McKinley Belcher III
Rose: Hannah Culwell
Harry: Lindsay Ayliffe
Brock Mercer: Jackson Beals
Nelson: Nelson Bonilla
Tuck: Evan George Vourazeris
Tony: Ian Gregg
Cheyenne: Mariana Novak
Previously on DVDfever:
July 29th:
Ozark Season 2 is just over a month away from airing on Netflix, and initially, I didn’t think we’d get the second season so soon, but the first one was so popular after word spread, and it took off like a rocket.
There’s the return of Jason Bateman, Laura Linney and Julia Garner, and this new trailer ramps up the tension with a cover of The Man Who Sold The World but when, halfway through, Kevin Johnson, as estate agent Sam Dermody, takes a full punch to the face from someone but… compared to what feels like most of the characters in season 1, he got off lightly! 😀
Ozark Season 2 airs in full on August 31st and we can’t wait for this!
Read our Season 1 review here.
Check out the new Season 2 Official Trailer below:
June 22nd:
Ozark Season 2 is just two months away, and I didn’t think we’d get the second season so soon, but the first one was so popular after word spread, and it took off like a rocket.
Ozark Season 1 had good guys and bad guys* (*and girls, too, in this age of equality), and it doesn’t matter which side of the law you’re on, if you thought this was a simple case of “good always triumphs over evil”, think again. It’s NEVER that clear cut, and that’s what keeps you hooked over all ten episodes…
Of course, I’m quite sure, that this time round, there’ll be no baddies, and everyone will get on fine and dandy, all sitting round campfires, singing songs and sipping beer till the sun comes up, and everyone’s jolly and there’s no bad feelings between them whatsoever…. NOT! It’s sure to be as dark and foreboding as before, and I can’t wait for it 🙂
Check out our Season 1 review here, and look forward to season 2, which again stars Jason Bateman, Laura Linney, Julia Garner and Kevin Johnson, and airs worldwide on August 31st on Netflix.
Check out the new Season 2 teaser below:
Previously on DVDfever:
August 15th 2017:
Ozark recommissioned for season 2? Less than a month after the first season aired in full, on July 21st? Yes! Woohoo!
Set in the Missouri Ozarks, it’s the not-so-happy family tale where husband to an angry wife, and father to two annoyed children, Marty Byrde (Jason Bateman, has to launder $8m for dodgy drug dealer Del Rio (Esai Morales) in a place where it will NOT be the least bit easy.
What starts of as tension being Marty and Del Rio leads to tension with him and his wife, Wendy (Laura Linney), Marty and his kids Jonah and Charlotte – in fact, Marty and just about everybody, including the redneck lawbreaker Langmore family, leads to things going from bad to worse for the Byrdes. And then to even worse to the point that you want to scream out loud with them!
Season 1 was superb, and features a great cast including Harris Yulin as Buddy – the old man the Byrdes sort-of try to buy a house from, Kevin Johnson as estate agent Sam Dermody, Marc Menchaca as fisherman and redneck Russ Langmore, Grandma‘s Julia Garner as Ruth Langmore plus Peter Mullan as redneck Jacob Snell, getting in on the money-making action, much to Marty’s chargrin.
I loved the first season and can’t wait for more, and I definitely think there’s plenty of legs in Sam’s tale to come!
Check out our Season 1 review.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.