Narcos | #WhoKilledPablo Trailer [HD] - Season 2 Available September 2 | Netflix
Photo Wagner Moura in Narcos. Credit Juan Pablo Gutierrez/Netflix Season 2, Episode 1: Free at Last
O.K., here we go again.
With that piece of narration, Narcos opens its second season with the same jaundiced tone, anticipating another series of events that will continue the cycle of violence and peel away more layers of corruption. Theres a weariness to the tone that defines the D.E.A. agent Steve Murphy, who has seen enough during his time in Colombia to not be surprised by any of it. Murphy, picking up right where the first season left off, lays out the details of a military operation to snare Pablo Escobar, who has just escaped confinement at his luxury prison complex, La Catedral. He has 4,000 soldiers (including a 250-man elite force team), tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition, seven dogs, four helicopters inadequate for the job.
The perfunctory quality of the shows opening line also indicates that Narcos isnt going to make any significant adjustments from last season. This seasons first episode may as well be the 11th episode of Season 1, stressing the idea that the series is telling one big story with the same ground-level, docudrama style, with its emphasis on straightforward chronology and historical fidelity. As I wrote many times in recapping last season, this is no small achievement: Given the complexity of Escobars operation, the extent of his influence and the compromised efforts to bring him to justice, just telling the Escobar story coherently is accomplishment enough. The meat-and-potatoes quality of the show is, at a minimum, a sensible approach.
After Murphy hears news of Escobars impossible-yet-predictable escape, a key bit of voice-over kicks in: You know what? I was happy about it. The fox was out of the cage and the hunt was on. From this point forward, the chase to find Escobar will lead the authorities into morally dubious terrain, as chronicled superbly in Mark Bowdens book Killing Pablo: The Hunt for the Worlds Greatest Outlaw. Murphy had warned us from the start that he wouldnt be following the letter of the law and therein lies the promise of this second and final half, which will expose the consequences of the single-minded quest to capture Escobar. In winning the battle, theyll lose the drug war.
The major problem with Narcos, however, is that Murphy is more compelling as a narrative device than a human being, and that stands to be the shows most significant obstacle this season. It makes sense to tell the story through him, rather than Escobar, because he has the clearest perspective on Escobars business and the official and unofficial efforts to stop it. Yet theres never been a time when his own personal sacrifices have registered that strongly. And that continues in Free at Last: Who cares that his marriage is in trouble? Who cares that his wife and child have fled to Miami to find safety? Who cares that hes so incensed by two white businessmen snorting cocaine in the bathroom that he beats one of them mercilessly? There doesnt seem to be much hope that Murphy will transcend cop-on-the-edge stereotypes.
Escobar, however, is endlessly fascinating. Free at Last picks up with Escobar reasserting the near-mythical power that had partially evaporated during his time in La Catedral. While he was away, various factions within the Medelln cartel, including operations run by Judy Moncada, Ricardo Prisco and the Galln brothers, had thrived in his absence and werent eager for him to return. Moncada, especially, had not forgotten that Escobar killed her husband and is waiting, along with her brother Jaime and Don Burna, her head of security, for payback. Their assumption is that Escobar had escaped one lavishly appointed prison for another, since a heavy police presence will restrict his movements in Medelln.
Or so they assumed. The episode sharply emphasizes Escobars toughness and ingenuity, as well as the carefully cultivated Robin Hood image that earned him loyalty on the streets. Escobar slips through the city in the trunk of a taxicab, as he reorganizes his business, picks up available cash and identifies the enemies who have been siphoning money while hes been gone. But the most telling moment finds him emerging in broad daylight to the throngs of supporters who revere him. As he peels off bills for the masses, he couldnt look more comfortable out in the open, no matter the extraordinary manhunt thats currently bearing down on him.
This is his town. These are his people. And no scoundrels or lawmen or government leaders are going to change that.
Parting Shots
The show suggests that Escobar avoided capture during the manhunt simply because the rank-and-file soldiers did not want to face the consequences of arresting him. At this point, the myth is bigger than the man. All Escobar has to say is a polite Excuse me and hes on his way to freedom.
Murphys narration makes mention of the Galln brothers, who were responsible for killing Andrs Escobar, the soccer defender whose own goal against the United States led to Colombias ouster in the 1994 World Cup and his subsequent murder outside a bar in Medelln. For more on that fascinating story, its worth seeking out the first-rate 30 for 30 documentary, The Two Escobars.
Wagner Mouras performance as Escobar continues to be a marvel. His eyes when accessing a situation reminded me of Werner Herzogs description of a bear in Grizzly Man, with its half-bored interest in food. Mouras Escobar regards humanity likewise.
Continue reading the main storySource: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/02/arts/television/narcos-netflix-season-2-premiere-recap.html
