Last Updated on 06/09/2024 by Arun jain
Two years ago, Season 1 of the ITV series trigger point Despite how silly the dialogue and plot was, Peacock debuted to good reviews, citing the large amount of tension the show provided to viewers. The second season – both seasons 1 and 2 are now showing on Britbox – is no different. But is all that tension still worth enjoying?
trigger point Season 2: Stream it or skip it?
Opening shot: Lana Washington (Vicki McClure) rides in the back of a taxi, a Heathrow-tagged bag at her side.
Summary: Lana is returning to London after a six-month break from her job in the Metropolitan Police’s explosive disposal unit. She’s in Estonia training Ukrainian soldiers in “expo” work, and she’s trying to get back into the right frame of mind after a traumatic year. His mentor also flew away, as did his brother, who became part of a terrorist cell. Lana doubted her ability to remain calm under the immense pressure of disarming the explosives.
But she is back and immediately goes to talk to a senior Metro Police official about the bombs used in the city in recent years, when a power plant explodes a few miles away. Even though she’s not officially on duty yet, she and her partner Danny (Eric Shango) are closer to the scene than Hasan Rahim (Nabil Elohabi), the expo team’s interim lead during Lana’s absence, so off they go.
Also on the scene are DCI Thom Youngblood (Mark Stanley), Lana’s ex-boyfriend, and her new partner DS Helen Morgan (Natalie Simpson). A new commander, John Francis (Julian Ovenden), also arrives, and questions Rahim if Lana is right to lead the operation.
Lana spots two connected devices behind a fence that the fire department needs to pass to protect whoever is inside (including the person who turned off the detection system). There is certainly tension around some faulty equipment, but the equipment goes down in time. At the same time, drone footage of the bombing is posted online.
But when Matt follows leads to where the police drone was launched from, an abandoned parking garage, Lana, Thom, Helen and fellow expo John Hudson (Chris Hitchens) find out the hard way that they’ve been led into a trap.
What show does it remind you of? trigger point reminds us Line of dutyIt also starred McClure.
Our Tech: Creator Daniel Brierley set such a frenetic pace during the first season of trigger pointIt was hard to imagine the show being able to maintain the tension in the second season. But during the first episode of the new season, Lana spares three devices in seconds, and saves a colleague from being blown to bits. But, as we saw in the first season, Brierley and his writers aren’t afraid to blow up someone else on the team who was (or at least was supposed to be) a big part of the story.
We won’t say who exploded, but it was someone Lana didn’t trust back in Season 1, and was surprised to see back on the Expo team. The possibility that they would have to learn to work together would have been a juicy story to explore, but that’s not to be. However, there are so many other complicating factors in Lana’s life that proper wire clipping on a device can kill what feels like a leisurely activity by comparison.
For instance, Thom seems to have moved on from Lana romantically, but decides to look to the Matt Police for a companion again. There is a scene, though, that shows that the two of them have never really addressed their feelings for each other, so it’s going to be a complicated issue. Lana still has to deal with the aftermath of her brother’s death. And, oh by the way, a terrorist ring is coming after the Matt Police and showing people like Lana in public drone videos on the internet. So, there is no pressure.
Sex and Skin: None in the first episode.
Farewell Shot: We see Lana walking into the elevator, more shocked as Thom embraces Helen, than she was just minutes before she was defused by the IED.
Sleeper Star: Eric Shango’s Danny seems to be the steadying influence Lana needs in her life, especially after her mentor Joel was blown to bits last year.
The most pilot-y line: It was almost comical how many times Commander Francis entered a parking garage scene, only to be told it wasn’t safe for him to go any further.
Our call: Stream it. up to episodes of trigger pointAs season two continues to show Lana and the rest of the Expo team escaping one tense situation after another — and occasionally failing — the show will continue to be entertaining, even if the overall terrorist plot is just meh.
Joel Keller (@JoelKeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon. RollingStone.com, VanityFair.comFast Company and elsewhere.
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