Black Doves Season 2 Loses Depth as It Aims for James Bond and John Wick

A bigger spy world

Sam Young and the “psychotic girl gang” are also drawn into the attack, as shown in the season 2 trailer. The new episodes widen the show’s spy world, introducing rival groups and tracing the Black Doves’ history back to the Cold War.

Less room for Helen

Season 1 balanced espionage and action with an intimate story about love, friendship, guilt, depression and Christmas. Helen’s work, her feelings for Wallace, her grief, her children and her history with Sam all contributed to its emotional tension.

In season 2, the expanded focus on the agency comes at the expense of Helen’s story. Her search for Reed and uncertainty about Wallace’s love take center stage, while the review describes the character’s new arc as less layered than before.

Action over nuance

The review compares the first season’s inventive approach to the spy genre with Casino Royale, and sees season 2 as closer to Spectre: bigger in scale, but less nuanced. It says the show trades character work and a grounded plot based on spycraft for spectacle and surface-level emotion.

The season also borrows from John Wick, with elaborate action sequences and a secret world of spies and assassins. But the review says the fight choreography, gunplay and visual effects do not match that franchise’s strengths; gunfights can feel stiff, and CGI and VFX do little to improve them.

Consequences feel distant

The review also questions the show’s treatment of violence. Characters build up enormous body counts without apparent consequences, making secrecy seem less meaningful in a spy thriller. Even so, the new season remains entertaining, though it does not reach the level of season 1. Its shift toward action and a larger mythology leaves less space for the personal stakes that once helped set the series apart.