Your Honor

So far a clear contender for series of the year. Literally breathtaking. Your Honor has an excellent story about a respected judge (Bryan Cranston in top form!) whose son accidentally hits a young motorcyclist during an asthma attack, and the motorcyclist dies on the spot. The son panics and flees the scene. Upon discovering that the deceased motorcyclist was the son of the biggest mob boss in New Orleans, Jimmy Baxter, Bryan is willing to do anything to protect his son, even beyond the boundaries of the law. A perfect duel between the esteemed Judge and the formidable Jimmy Baxter (Michael Stuhlbarg is excellent and takes the best from Mickey Cohen). The series has a great pace, delivering one murderous twist after another. It is masterfully directed and acted. I held my breath for the entire nine hours, the atmosphere is stifling and constantly unpleasant. All the characters have dense personalities, the plot surprises at every moment and takes unexpected directions. Fans of gangster stories, legal dramas, crime, and tense thrillers will all find something to enjoy. In the final episode, I received such a blow between the eyes that I am still recovering from it. Emotions to the core. The only downside is that there was no proper gang war in the streets, but I'll forgive that because I drooled like I haven't in a long time. I loved it, Your Honor. 9/10. (28.03.2021)

The second season of the solid Your Honor series returns, pitting respected judge Bryan Cranston against respected gangster Jimmy Baxter. The first season was a pleasant surprise, mixing courtroom drama, crime, family drama and gangsters and it all worked well together. The second is unfortunately a bit weaker as it strays from the original theme and felt a bit redundant as well, but it's still decent craftsmanship with fine actors, plenty of suspense and decent pacing. Bryan Cranston is coming out of prison and is a bit of a train wreck (it kind of sucks that he's not a judge anymore, so the court battles are missing). He wants to start a new life, but the FBI is after him and wants him to help take down Baxter's criminal organization. Again there's a lot of corruption between politicians and cops, and the two rival gangs are probably the best thing about season 2. Jimmy Baxter still has charisma to spare, and I enjoyed his acting and his lines a lot. I also enjoyed the other black drug gang, Desire. It's nicely tense, but unfortunately the gang war doesn't happen again (what I hoped for in the first season didn't come here either), so we don’t get much action. Occasionally someone gets shot or beaten up, but that's the end of it. I found the first half of the season a bit slower, but in the second half, once the cards are dealt, it's solid. Especially the final two episodes that deal with the trial are among the highlights. There was emotion, tension and density in the air. However, I could do without a third season, the creators have already pulled the best aces out of their sleeves and have little else to surprise. If you like crime dramas with gangsters, the second season will not be wasted time. 7/10. (29.03.2023)