Carnival Row - Season 2

Carnival Row returns with its second and final season and it's once again accomplished and brutal fantasy that's properly dark and raw. The fantasy genre itself is quite rare and usually comes out in pg-13 rating, but the R-rating adds to the revving up and that's what I enjoyed most about the series. The big asset is again the setting, filmed in Prague, the cast (Orlando Bloom is great, Cara Delevingne however annoyed me a bit with her indecisiveness), the supporting characters are fun too, I enjoy the segregation of all sorts, the politicking and interesting musings. There's plenty of action too, there's something going on in every episode, you don't wait much for guts and the monster that shows up in the 5th episode rivals Alien (a really beautiful and original creature!). I felt that the Faunus and Werewolf races were slightly neglected, though, the series focuses a lot on fairies, humans and a new race, but it doesn't matter that much. There are two story-lines, one takes place in the Row, which is the most interesting, the other is in New Dawn, which is more like a concentration camp, but I didn't mind it. The best episode is #5, which had quite a few interesting twists and turns, as well as the introduction of the main villain, whose entrance was properly epic. Then of course the finale, with a decent carnage on the streets of the Row. It just couldn't have been done without the battle Satisfaction for me. From the costumes, to the makeup, to the brutality, to the politicking and the action itself, Carnival Row is definitely a success in this regard. (04/02/2023)