Gangs of London Seasons 1 & 2 Boxset [DVD]

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I think there were two reasons, they had interesting characters who I cared about, this did not, together with engaging storylines, this did not. Gangs of London stars Joe Cole, Lucian Msamati, Sope Dirisu, Michelle Fairley, Brian Vernel and Waleed Zuaiter.

Season two sees the return of most of the gangs from season one and with a new antagonist in town the audience’s stand-in has switched. In season one it was Elliot, the undercover cop who was infiltrating this world just as we were. In season two it’s Luan. Elliot (Sope Dirisu) is clearly going to get into plenty more trouble working for The Investors. (Image credit: Sky Atlantic )

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Selected items are only available for delivery via the Royal Mail 48® service and other items are available for delivery using this service for a charge. With horror maven Corin Hardy now lead director on the show it is perhaps no surprise that the levels of gore and violence are ramped up. Eyes are gouged, limbs are severed, it’s a show ideally watched with your own gang so you can share in the communal gasps and flinches. Really it’s a show that would benefit from the big screen. Like season one, Gangs of London season two is the closest you’ll get to cinema from a TV show. The whole thing looks stunning, the cityscapes are gothic and strange, while looking ultra modern at the same time, and the cinematography is gorgeous, with this season leaning into occasional slow mo for certain stand out ‘money shots’.

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The story once more immerses the viewer in the violent world of London’s criminal underbelly. Events of the season one finale, and the death of Sean Wallace, have left a power vacuum that all factions are keen to fill. Leading the charge is the menacing new character, Koba (Waleed Zuaiter). At the start of the series he and his henchmen have London in an iron grip and his proclivity for violence is immediately demonstrated. If you thought this show peaked at season one, then strap in as the second season is even more traumatic. Ahead of the UK release date, Sky released a new red band trailer teasing some of the brutal action sequences and establishing the new way that things have changed in London.

Sean, with his last few gasping breaths attempts to manipulate Elliot by telling him that his father would be proud and it kind of works.Joining Hardy behind the camera this time around are Marcela Said and Nima Nourizadeh. Both inject some freshness to the show with Said’s episode four easily being one of the most distressing hours you’ll spend in front of the television this year. Said continually teases the viewer, leaving them guessing the fate of a particularly cruel Koba punishment. Nourizadeh’s episode six is equally memorable as viewers are finally treated to a showdown between two of the series’ most bitter enemies. The pay-off is well worth the wait and has one Hell of a gut-punch conclusion. Before Elliot gets a chance to pull the trigger though, Billy stabs him with a screwdriver, the one that Billy went to great pains early on to secretly obtain from Elliot's glove compartment.

You wouldn’t want to be a henchperson of any denomination in Gangs of London, and season two ups the bodycount while maintaining the palpable tension and twisty plot audiences will be expecting. And don’t assume your favorite returning characters are safe either. Koba (Waleed Zuaiter) is a brutal ruler who wants complete control of London's drug trade. (Image credit: Christopher Raphael / Sky / AMC) Gangs of London was described as having elements of Peaky Blinders and Game of Thrones, and I can see that, so why was it I enjoyed those series but not this? Billy’s got one arm, Sean is in prison, having been left hanging, perched on a car tire by Elliot. It’s not clear what he’s in for – his crimes are many, but what he’ll have admitted to is another matter. He certainly poisoned Koba whose body is there at the scene. So for now, Sean’s out of the running, but he’s such a huge part of the show we can’t imagine him not having a big part to play in season 3. Will he wheedle his way out? Will he form a new faction in prison? Or will he find that he suddenly has to grow humility from behind bars where he’s no longer the big man?Doubt it… The Allegiances Let me begin by saying it was extremely well produced, and the atmospheric opening shot of a dark London and the truly dramatic beginning promised great things. The first problem was that much of the action continued to take place in the dark. I realise many crime series often do, but it does make for hard going at times.

His presence naturally invites challenge, even from behind bars, and there's no greater rivalry to finish season two on than the one between Sean and Elliot. I am afraid, contrary to majority opinion, I didn’t rate this series. Even before the end of the feature length opener, my enthusiasm had been dimmed. And by the fourth episode I really wasn’t enjoying it. I did struggle through to the end though, and as I did so I tried to analyse my feelings and what was wrong with it for me. Now we come to the second of the problems for me. I have never been a lover of action movies - there are only so many car chases, squealing tyres, noisy shoot outs, plane crashes, explosions, fires, etc until they all become the same as far as I am concerned. Give me tense character driven stuff any day.