Netflix has brought back a spy series for season 2 this week, one that has been off the air a while, but according to critics, who have given it a 92% Rotten Tomatoes score, it hasn’t missed a beat.
The show is Black Doves, and as it stands, that 92% Rotten Tomatoes score matches the 92% of season 1 exactly, albeit with fewer reviews in. Audiences were less on board with a 65% score for season 1, and season 2 scores are not in yet, as it only arrived yesterday, Nov. 5.
The spy series is led by Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw, where this is Knightley’s highest-profile role in a long while, given Black Doves’ popularity on the widest-reaching streaming service in the world. You may recognize Ben Whishaw from a few different roles, but he had a recurring part in the Daniel Craig James Bond movies as Q. Here’s the synopsis of Black Doves season 2:
“In Season 2, Helen (Knightley) is still betraying her nation’s secrets to the covert organization she serves, the Black Doves. But after the misadventures of last Christmas, and with her husband, Wallace (Andrew Buchan), preparing to become prime minister, she’s walking a more treacherous line than ever.”
It’s too early to know howBlack Doves will perform in season 2, but it has arrived on the US Top 10 list in 10th place, which is certainly a bit worrisome. You may guess what a likely culprit is: the fact that it has been just under two years since season 1 in December 2024. Two-year breaks are rough for any show in terms of retaining an audience, but especially for a show that may not be some wild smash hit. Black Dovesis good, but hardly one of the most high-profile Netflix series, and it takes more than Netflix just going “hey Black Doves is back!” on its release date. We will see if it moves up the list in time, and I do think it will.
As for the reasons for the gap, Black Doveswriter Joe Barton spoke about iton Twitter this morning:
“Valid gripe but no programme maker wants a large gap between seasons. Changing that model would require recommissioning shows much earlier than most broadcasters are currently comfortable with. Frustrating for us when it becomes the focus of the conversation but what can you do.”
He goes on to say that in order to have a theoreticalBlack Doves season 3 release a year from now in November 2027, writing on that season would have ideally started while filming season 2, and that it would have had to be renewed (recommissioned) a year ago. It would need to be filming as we speak, and it is not.
We’ll see how it performs, but even if it does well enough to be granted a third season, it’s already clear it would be another lengthy wait for it to arrive.
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This article was originally published onForbes.com
