A series of series
From "Nord Sud Ovest Est" to "Tulsa King", this week’s TV series range from 90s nostalgia to children leaving home and mafia bosses
Max Pezzali and Mauro Repetto are back in pursuit of the American dream, whilst the British track ‘Youth’ reflects on the passing of time and ‘Vigil’ takes the intrigue all the way to the Arctic. Meanwhile, Sylvester Stallone has no intention of giving up on Tulsa
NORTH SOUTH WEST EAST
By Sydney Sibilia, with Elia Nuzzolo and Matteo Oscar Giuggioli (on Sky and streaming on Now).
The legendary story of 883, chapter two. Following the huge success of the first season and their debut album featuring “Hanno ucciso l’Uomo Ragno”, we catch up with Max Pezzali and Mauro Repetto. We’re still in Pavia, where they used to live, and to stave off the boredom of those long days (it’s the 1990s – not so long ago, yet a world away), they made music. Now they are at the box-office charts, surrounded by fans, and every door seems to be opening. What to choose? Italy is starting to feel too small; there is the American dream. And the two young men are growing up: a transition that puts even the closest friendships to the test. Max and Mauro now look at the future differently. Away from Pavia, for a start.
YOUTH
By Sharon Horgan, starring Aran Murphy, Rupert Friend and Sharlene Whyte (eight episodes on HBO Max).
The children are leaving home. We cannot recall their score on the trauma scale – for the women, that is; the men barely notice, having already fled to set up another love nest with young children. Alex works as a literary agent; her son, who’s at university, is called Ruan. She also has elderly parents to look after – one has Alzheimer’s and the other has diabetes. We can’t even recall where ‘the passing of time’ ranks on the list – for women, of course. For men, it is all part of the charm. Sharon Horgan wrote the series (eight half-hour episodes so far) and stars in it, as she does in all her work. She started out with Stephen Fry – which is more than enough of a guarantee. Note: it is a British series, so expect plenty of laughs.
VIGIL – INVESTIGATION ON BOARD
By Tom Edge, starring Suranne Jones and Rose Leslie (season three from 18 October on Sky and streaming on Now)
This is quite something. We’re in a British series: a Scottish fishing boat goes missing. A body is found on board a nuclear submarine; the victim was a special forces soldier. The perfect victim to spark a conflict between the police, the navy and the British secret services. Chief Inspector Amy Silva and Sergeant Kirsten Longacre are investigating. The action shifts to a research station in the Arctic—a remote outpost at the centre of geopolitical tensions and international intrigues, to quote Alfred Hitchcock, with the series produced by the BBC, and these intrigues intertwine with personal relationships. It is not exactly like working in London at the legendary MI6 where James Bond once roamed between missions.
TULSA KING
By Taylor Sheridan, starring Sylvester Stallone, Garrett Hedlund and Jay Will (season four on Paramount+).
Rest assured, Sylvester Stallone aims to produce the series for six seasons. Here, he portrays mafia boss Dwight Manfredi, known as ‘The General’ (just to make it clear straight away that he’s no small-time criminal). In the first season, he had just finished serving his 25-year prison sentence; before that, he was a big shot in New York. He has now been dispatched to Tulsa, Oklahoma, to expand the local operation. This branch has, season by season, grown into a thriving enterprise within Tulsa’s bourbon market. However, it is not without enemies: a violent conflict erupts with a local family linked to the Dixie Mafia. He must now secure a licence to sell alcohol legally, but the federal authorities are corrupt.