Inside Edge 2 Review: The first season of Inside Edge was a mixed bag of affairs. It had pulpy fun elements, the performances were good and the finale was edge-of-the-seat kind of exciting. But the season harped a bit too much towards shock value and Vivek Oberoi's nearly caricaturish antagonist didn't really fit in well with the scheme of things. Overall, though, the first season, directed by Karan Anshuman, was still an engaging watch and it deserved a sequel, especially the way things ended. Inside Edge 2: Before You Binge Watch This Angad Bedi, Richa Chadda, Vivek Oberoi’s Amazon Show, Here’s a Quick Recap of Season 1.

Thankfully, the second season of Inside Edge seems to have learnt from the previous flaws, worked on them and brought out a more restrained narrative this time, without compromising on the thrills.

The Powerplay League and the Mumbai Mavericks are back and the team finds itself getting into a bigger mess, courtesy more dirty politics and power-games. And this time, the saga is crossing the borders, getting to South Africa.

Unlike, last time, though, the focus is not just on the Mavericks. There is Haryana Hurricanes, owned by the dubious Handa (Manu Rishi) who finds a new captain in Arvind Vashisht (Angad Bedi), Mavericks' former skipper. The honest Arvind is still troubled by the death of his coach Suri (Sanjay Suri) and also in the manner, he was deposed before the final of the previous tournament. With his former team-mates as his new opponents and some suspicious happenings in his own fledgeling team, Arvind finds himself at crossroads with his principles.

Meanwhile, at Mavericks, Bollywood actress Zarina (Richa Chadha) continues to be the face of the team. This time, she is enjoying the tutelage of Bhaisaab (Aamir Bashir), the powerful chief of the Cricket Board. While he was an unseen presence in the first season, Bhaisaab decides to keep his personal interest in Mavericks closer to his heart by coming out in the open.

The team is now headed by the hot-headed Vayu Raghavan (Tanuj Virwani) who is at loggerheads with his sister and their team's analyst, Rohini (Sayani Gupta) over their former coach (Makarand Deshpande). He is also having the hots for his new team co-owner, Mantra (Sapna Pabbi), who happens to be Bhaisaab's daughter.

Meanwhile, Prashant Kanojia (Siddhant Chaturvedi), Mavericks' pacer, is haunted by the guilt of shooting his former teammate Devender (Amit Sial). That guilt which takes the form of Devender's taunting spirit has affected Prashant's form and his mental state. Will a budding romance with a cheerleader (Elli Avram) improve things for him? Tanuj Virwani Talks Inside Edge 2, His Mother Rati Agnihotri's Reaction To His Stardom.

Last but not the least, Vikrant Dhawan (Vivek Oberoi) is also around; out of the game, but not out of the match. Having fallen out of favour with Bhaisaab, Vikrant is trying to outplay his former boss with some very devious scheming.

All in all, yet another eventful season for PPL.

So getting back to how things are better in the second edition, Inside Edge takes up all the aspects that worked for them in the previous season and puts in more murkiness that we have read about the real-life cricket league in the papers. At the same time, the rampant sexualisation has been toned down, though I cannot say the same about Zarina's costumes.

Aakash Bhatia, who takes the directorial reins from the showrunner Karan Anshuman (who might have been busy with Mirzapur 2), has done a slick job with presenting things. The cricket matches, that could have been the least interesting part in a series in a series about BTS politics, have been nicely shot. Nearly every one of them has this edge of the seat feel and you are almost fooled every time thinking they would end in a particular way. Like the first season, even the new one uses a crucial finale match to amp up things. The results may be as expected, but you are hooked as to which direction it will veer. But kudos to the writers for not using the usual tropes to make these matches predictable. Like having the hero do a 'Bhuvan'!

'Hero' is still a contentious term to be used for the second season of Inside Edge as well, though Angad Bedi's Arvind comes close to being the most positive character. I liked the portions where the season looked into the tactics behind the player auctions, and when it delved more into betting and match-fixing. Of course, some of the incidents shown feel ludicrous - like how Inside Edge refers to the Padmaavat controversy - but hey, that's what makes Inside Edge so fun to watch!

The new season revels in forging new bonds, changing inter-personal connections and have these moments between characters that change the way you perceive them. Like (SPOILERS AHEAD) this conversation between Devendar and Prashant in a South African cell about racism, after the former was nearly sexually assaulted by a gang of white racists. One of the best moments on the show, with a fine performance from Amit Sial.

Some of the lead characters take intriguing turns with respect to where we saw them last season. Zarina, who was caught in Dhawan's web, tries to take his place this time, and becomes more morally corrupt in the process. Vayu may have controlled his wild-boy behaviour, but the series explores another darker facet from his past, challenging his relationship with his sister. Prashant's journey into darkness and his ascent out of it also makes for a fascinating watch, though his change of attitude, in the end, feels a little rushed. The second season also smartly uses Vivek Oberoi's character, a weak link in the first season, in brief, but effective spurts.

Watch The Trailer of Inside Edge 2:

Among the new entrants, Bhaisaab is a really fascinating one. When he was unseen in the first season, he seemed all-powerful and untouchable. When we get to see him physically in the second season, he is still powerful and cunning and manipulative. But we are also allowed to see the chinks in his armour, dissolving some of the aura around the man, making him somewhat fallible. However, the character of his daughter Mantra, doesn't evolve out of being a supportive girlfriend and whose naivete stands out like a sore thumb here.

That said, there are a couple of strands that aren't properly explained or addressed. Like explaining the return of certain characters who you thought were indisposed. For example, why did Bhaisaab think the ousted Dhawan would never be a threat for him? It is never discussed, and the same goes for the return of Devender. If he was alive and Rohini knew about it, then why wasn't Prashant told so, instead of allowing him to wallow in guilt?

The performances continue to be uniformly good. Richa Chadha shows enough range in her character, exploring the many greys in it. Angad Bedi puts in a dignified performance as the upfront captain of the Hurricanes, letting his simmering silences talk a lot. The kind of dignity he brings to the role makes me hate what The Zoya Factor did to the actor. Tanuj Virwani, the MVP of the show and also the Mavericks, is once again terrific. Sayani Gupta is wonderful.

Vivek Oberoi underplays his performance this time, that works well with how his character has turned out. Aamir Bashir is first-rate as the amoral ICB boss, whose claims that he loves the game don't really match the corruption that he brought in.

Siddhant Chaturvedi, who had turned an overnight sensation this year with Gully Boy, is really good as the troubled player, convincingly portraying the mixture of guilt and low esteem in his performance. The rest of the cast, including Sapna Pabbi, Amit Sial, Gaurav Sharma, Manu Rishi, Flora Saini, Makarand Deshpande, Elli Avram, do well in their roles.

Yay!

- The Twisty Narrative

- The Direction

- The Execution of the Cricket Matches

- Technically Sound

- The Performances

Nay!

- Some of the Real-Life Parallels Feel Spoof-Like

- A Couple of PlotHoles Aren't Properly Solved (Like How Certain Indisposed Characters' Return Are Never Properly Explained)

- A Couple of Tracks Feel Rushed or Under-Written

Final Thoughts

Inside Edge 2 is restrained than the first season, and it works in its favour, as the new season focuses more on the thrills and further character development, than shock value. It is well-enacted, slickly directed and has enough twists and turns. Perhaps, we can thank that International Emmy nomination for inspiring the makers to maintain a better focus in the new season. Inside Edge 2 is streaming on Amazon Prime.

Rating:3.5

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 06, 2019 06:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).