‘The Night Manager’ season 2 episodes 1-3 exceed expectations in intentionality

By Danielle Cherry 

Originally made for the screen as a book adaptation, “The Night Manager” follows hotel night-shift concierge, Jonathan Pine, in his whirlwind entry into the world of espionage. 

Season one shows us the mess Pine (Tom Hiddleston) got himself into – choosing to save a hotel guest’s life from Richard Roper, a crime boss fronting as a philanthropist. In turn, Pine is sought out by British Intelligence to go undercover as Andrew Birch and infiltrate Roper’s inner circle. 

As Pine swindles Roper, their lives become intermingled. Pine begins to lose who he really is, making MI6 concerned of Pine’s true loyalties. Throughout the season, we watch as Pine wrestles with what is right in the eyes of society and the government, ultimately leading to the capture of Roper. 

Now 10 years later, Pine graces our screens once more as a real operative in MI6 – heading a specialized surveillance team known as The Night Owls. The effects of Roper’s hold on Pine never seem to leave, with Pine plagued by nightmares and images of the horrors he saw while with Roper. In an effort to keep Pine’s knowledge of Roper quiet, MI6 gives him a new alias to live under: Alex Goodwin.

As Pine does his job, he begins to recognize people who worked for Roper. On edge, Pine seeks out what all this means- pursuing a suspicious man at a hotel, viewers are left with the eerie sense that this has happened before. 

There are numerous plot parallels to the first season, the first episode almost being a bit too similar. Yet, I can’t help but feel that choice was intentional on the writer’s part. We see the parallels as a viewer, cluing us into where Pine is mentally. 

Pine’s hotel escapades lead him to Teddy Santos – a self-proclaimed disciple of Roper. The title is all Pine needs to grab a new alias as Matthew Ellis and infiltrate an inner circle once more. 

It feels like no time has passed between where the first season left off and the second season started up. Season one was originally a completed story with everything being wrapped up very nicely. As sad as I was for season one to be over, I felt closure. 

But excellent writing brought season two naturally into the series. Despite the writers having no more original source material to draw from, the story progresses with zero hiccups. Viewers are eased right back into Pine’s life, beginning where we last saw him with Roper, then time jumping six years later. 

For a show that hasn’t been on air for 10 years, the writers were incredibly bold in assuming viewers would remember all the plot points of the first season. They throw everyone right into the action and emotion from the very first scene – and it works. 

Pine’s character is really a testament to Tom Hiddleston’s excellent acting abilities. Pine is always forced to play someone else, and Hiddleston masks himself with such talent that the viewer only sees Pine acting – Hiddleston is nowhere to be found. 

Each one of Pine’s many aliases has a theme… trees. Now I’m not a tree expert but Pine, Birch, Goodwin and Ellis are all types of trees, and I can’t help but feel there is specificity on which tree type was given to each of Jonathan’s aliases. Each of them gives us insight into the character Jonathan has to play. 

But Jonathan’s last name being Pine is intentional. The strongest of the four trees, a pine tree is able to endure all seasons with little to no change. That is the best statement on who Jonathan is as a character, being able to keep hold of his identity despite all of the personas he takes on. 

This is one of those shows where you feel every stress Pine feels. Tension is incredibly high and sweat will be pouring down your face as you watch, wait and wish Pine would just catch a break. 

So much has already happened in three episodes and the plot twists are twisting. While weekly Sunday releases feel far too long, at least the show has sparked a new hobby: looking up trees to see what characteristics align with Pine.  

“The Night Manager” season 2 episodes 1-3 are currently streaming on Prime Video with episodes set to release weekly on Sunday. 

Danielle Cherry is a sophomore communication major and writer for Cedars A&E and Sports. She is a Missionary Kid from Germany and loves to travel, play volleyball and is suddenly very fascinated by trees. 

Images courtesy of The Ink Factory