Season 2
Season two follows rival Chinatown tongs, the Hop Wei and the Long Zii, as they fight for dominance amidst the growing anti-Chinese racism that threatens to destroy them all.
Learn to Endure, or Hire a Bodyguard
Back with the Hop Wei, Ah Sahm spends his nights at the Barbary Coast fight pit, confronting a new anti-Chinese group, Teddy’s Boys. While Ah Toy accuses him of just looking for another fight, an empowered Mai Ling worries about her brother’s next steps. Meanwhile, Bill finds it hard to break out of his role as enforcer for Zing; Penny is determined to continue running Mercer Steel, much to Blake’s dismay; and Chao offers Ah Sahm some advice for his future with Young Jun.
The Chinese Connection
Ah Sahm and Young Jun search for a discreet place to hide their product after striking a deal with a new opium supplier. As Lee becomes increasingly dependent on laudanum, he and Bill continue to investigate the swordsman murders. Mai Ling sends Li Yong and Zing to deliver a message to a rival tong. Penny asks for Ah Sahm’s help in protecting her factory. Sophie continues to pique Leary’s interest. Ah Toy receives a visit from Nellie Davenport, a wealthy widow committed to ending the exploitation of Chinese women.
Not How We Do Business
With their new enterprise going well, Young Jun shares his worries with Ah Sahm about the new men Father Jun has brought over from China, and later, the partners are impressed by Hong, an enthusiastic recruit with a secret. Meanwhile, Chao goes to Mai Ling for help keeping Zing away from his business, Sophie grows closer to Leary, Nellie’s politics raise questions from her peers, and things take a deadly turn at Bill’s home.
If You Don't See Blood, You Didn't Come to Play
As the police prepare for retribution, Chao comes to Bill with a mutually beneficial proposal. A sympathetic Sophie offers Leary a new plan. Ah Sahm and Penny have a moment when he confides his plans for the future. Buckley urges Blake to take a stand against the Chinese, Lee seeks to ease his pain, Mai Ling invests in a legitimate business, and Nellie urges Ah Toy to imagine a different kind of life for her sex workers.
Not for a Drink, a F*ck, or a G**damn Prayer
A guilty Mai Ling tries to make things right with Ah Sahm, who’s more intent than ever on seeking revenge. Penny finds her business in trouble and learns that Ah Sahm has been using her. Leary gets a warning and offers one of his own. Ah Toy pays an emotional visit to Nellie’s Sonoma winery. Bill and Chao put their plot against the Fung Hai into action.
To a Man with a Hammer, Everything Looks Like a Nail
Ah Sahm, Young Jun, and Hong travel with Vega to Rooker’s Mill, a U.S.-Mexico border town owned by Elijah Rooker, the wealthy host of a lucrative fight tournament that Ah Sahm is determined to win. As he learns more about Vega, Ah Sahm draws the attention of another fighter, Dolph, and later, Rooker himself.
If You Wait by the River Long Enough
Change is afoot for the Hop Wei after Father Jun, Ah Sahm, and Young Jun face off. Ah Toy decides that Nellie may be the answer to her problems and takes matters at a sadistic rival brothel into her own hands. Leary is urged by both Buckley and Sophie to utilize his political influence. Just as his heroics are trumpeted, Bill is faced with another swordsman murder. A fatal clash unfolds at the Blake household.
All Enemies, Foreign and Domestic
The police shut down Chinatown in their hunt for a killer, just as the Hop Wei make a move that puts Mai Ling on edge. Buckley steps into a new role and considers a proposition from Leary, who faces questions from the Irish workingmen. Ah Toy fights for her life, while Chao faces a major dilemma.
Enter the Dragon
After Bill and his men are confronted by an angry mob, Chinatown erupts into chaos, forcing the tongs to work together to protect their streets. As Chao and Mai Ling seek shelter, Mai Ling tends to an ailing Ah Toy. Sophie opens her eyes to Leary's world. Lee decides which side he's on.
Man on the Wall
Young Jun faces a crucial decision after Mai Ling tries to drive a wedge between him and Ah Sahm, who has emerged as a hero in Chinatown and takes the opportunity to go on the offensive against Leary. Determined to take Buckley down, Penny goes to the press. Bill reckons with what he's become, and Lee seeks out a familiar face. Mai Ling finally plays her hand against the Hop Wei.
Avis de la communauté (2)
This is a high quality TV series with intricate storylines, great characters with depth, and great action. While the first season was building the setting, the second season goes all guns blazing. Every episode of this season is better than the last and each one has surprise moments, something which was missing from the first season. I found "Warrior" through Joe Taslim (he was an excellent Sub-Zero from latest "Mortal Kombat" movie), but found a great show, which combines aspects of "Black Sails" with ideas (writings) from Bruce Lee himself and ends up as a great history lesson about racism, the charm of the Chinese gangs in Chinatown/San Francisco in the late 1800s and the glue between them all are the cool characters. If you liked the first season, the second season will blow you away.
The first season was more enjoyable. I think that had a lot to do with the aspect of novelty. The first season was the beginning of the show, the beginning of a new show. And another reason why I enjoyed the first season more was probably since I watched it when it was airing and then watched it a second time before I started watching this season. Despite that, this season still had its highlights. The most noticeable one was the cinematography. It was so much better than it was in the first season. A lot of the shots also had this blue tint. Probably from the "moonlight." And I put that in quotes because I'm not sure whether it was actual moonlight or if the cinematographers used some technique to mimic the effect of actual moonlight. Still, that blue tint to most of the cinematography in this season looked great. In general, the cinematography as a whole looked better in quality, and the sixth episode had the best setting for great shots in the entire show; and the greatest cinematography in the entire show. There were also new locations in San Francisco shown, and new locations outside of San Francisco that were refreshing to see; the cinematography of them still being good, too. One of the other highlights that I liked had to do with Wang Chao. He's one of the best characters in the entire show, and I thought he was massively underutilized in the first season; well, to be fair, I may have thought that because I liked him so much and because I wanted there to be more of him. But I do think it's because he was, indeed, underutilized, too. And he was more prominent in this season and was a more important part than in the first season, which I really liked. I think Hoon Lee's acting and performance of the character is one of the appealing aspects of Wang Chao. And the choreography of the fight sequences remained just as good as in the first season, too. Now, this may be an unpopular opinion. But I think the fight sequences in the first season were better. Don't get me wrong, the fight sequences in this season weren't bad by any means. The choreography was still good. It's that I think the fight sequences themselves were better in the first season. Or at least the fight sequences in the first season were more memorable. The only one in this season that stood out was the one in the finale: you know which one I'm talking about. And while that one was arguably super great and all, choreography-wise, it was underwhelming for other reasons. And before you call me out for not mentioning the fight sequence in the fifth episode between two 'you-know-who' characters, that one didn't stand out as much to me. The sound effects didn't sound that good at the beginning of the fight, and the way it was choreographed and directed was plain goofy at times. The cuts to another scene and then back to the fight didn't help, either. But, and let me reiterate this: the fight sequences in this season weren't bad. Neither was the choreography. I prefer the ones in the first season, for the most part; that's all. The addition of the four new characters was refreshing. We've already been introduced and grown accustomed to all the other characters because of the first season, so introducing some new ones was the right call. The only character that I liked right off the bat was Hong. I was immediately indifferent towards Nellie Davenport, which didn't really change by the end of the season. It was the same with Sophie Mercer but on a lesser scale. But unlike Nellie, she had more of an important role. Even so, I remained pretty much indifferent towards her as well. Rosalita Vega was the only other new character that I liked. In her case, I ended up liking her by the sixth episode. I was indifferent towards her, too, at first. Maria-Elena Laas' acting came across as weak, but after thinking about it, a huge part of that was probably that she didn't have much dialogue; or a significant enough role until the sixth episode. Overall, there were disappointing and underwhelming moments that really dampened the enjoyment of this season for me. I think the two main ones were the writing and what happened at the end of the seventh episode. I like Buckley, and I'm glad he's getting more of a focus. But what happened at the end of that episode was very disappointing, and looking back on it, I think it left a pretty effective hole in the season, which will probably remain in the third season if HBO Max decides to renew this show. I think the writing, too, was slightly disappointing or uninteresting. The main thing in that regard is probably that I'm really not that interested in the setting of this show - its story, its main plot threads, and the subplots. I truly believe those aspects are the weakest parts of the show. The strengths are some of the characters, the fight sequences, their choreography - and the cinematography. Those aspects carry the show. As I said at the beginning, I enjoyed the first season more than I enjoyed this season. But there were improvements in this season compared to the first one. The main one was the cinematography. The increase in quality was very noticeable. I wouldn't say that the new characters were an improvement, but they were an aspect that helped elevate this season and its enjoyment for me. It was the same thing with this being a new season. I think the novelty aspect was definitely not an improvement; because, with every new season of a show, it'll always be present, but I did appreciate it. Ultimately, this season provided entertainment, and that's what matters the most.