As soon as it was announced, EPIX's Batman prequel television series Pennyworth sounded unnecessary, and during its first season, it proved to be exactly that. The series offered little to no connection to the larger DC Universe and, save for a few nods and several recognizable names, Pennyworth could have easily been a standalone, '60s-set spy series.
Now, after a somewhat baffling first season finale, Pennyworth is back for a second season, and if the premiere is anything to go by, the series hasn't learned from its past mistakes.
Pennyworth explores the origins of the title character Alfred Pennyworth (Jack Bannon), a young soldier who, after coming home from the war, started his own private security firm with a few of his war buddies. Alfred's missions got him tied up in a battle between the No Name League and the Raven Society, with the fate of London hanging in the balance. Now, in Season 2, things have gotten progressively worse: London is in the midst of a civil war between the English League and the Raven Union -- and the latter is near total victory.
As for Alfred, well, he's now the manager of a burlesque nightclub and he's playing both sides of the war just so he can earn enough money to get himself and his mother out of the country before all hell breaks loose.
While the premise is intriguing (plunging the United Kingdom in a fictitious civil war in the '60s is a promising concept), Pennyworth basically skips over the entire conflict. As Season 2 begins, most of the country has fallen, and London is the only remaining stronghold of the English League. This is a missed opportunity as the progressive fall of the country could have made for a horrifying and shocking backdrop to a full season.
Instead, we are left with a premiere that makes for a disjointed starting point and barely pays off the end of the first season. Season 2 simply jumps ahead too rapidly and too much happens during the short amount of time skipped. Essentially, viewers are meant to accept that the Raven Society, which was nearly defeated at the end of the first season, rose to such heights of power that it was able to take over the entire country in a single year.
The time jump also fails to pay off the surprising Season 1 cliffhanger in which Thomas Wayne (Ben Aldridge) was shot by an unseen assailant, leaving his fate in question. When Season 2 begins a year later, Thomas is all healed up and just now traveling back to London. His injury is brushed to the side, and there isn't even a mention of the mystery shooter or their motive.
On top of that, Pennyworth's identity crisis continues in Season 2. This is a show that doesn't exactly know what it wants to be. Alternately a period piece, a spy series and some sort of superhero drama, Pennyworth continues to fail to establish its identity. The mix of all three genres could work given the right approach, but the EPIX series doesn't juggle them effectively. Plus, it doesn't help that Pennyworth confuses being edgy with being adult-oriented. It takes more than characters sipping scotch, shouting expletives and an unnecessary sex scene to be a mature drama, it takes substance and care.
Despite these misgivings, Pennyworth remains a beautifully designed show. The set design, the costumes and the cinematography continue to be one of the series' strong suits, while the performances of the cast, led by Bannon, Aldridge and Emma Paetz, continue to be a highlight. Sure, they don't the best material to work with, but they make the most of what they're given.
Unfortunately, the same problems that were on display in the first season of Pennyworth continue to plague it in the Season 2 premiere. If fans were hoping for the series to renew itself and its focus, they will have to continue to wait.
Developed by former Gotham collaborators Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon, Pennyworth stars Jack Bannon as Alfred Pennyworth, Ben Aldridge as Thomas Wayne, Jason Flemyng as Lord Harwood, Paloma Faith as Bet Sykes, Ryan Fletcher as Dave Boy, Hainsley Lloyd Bennett as Bazza, Jessica Ellerby as the Queen and Simon Manyonda as Lucius Fox. Season 2 premieres Dec. 13 on EPIX.
