Vigil (Season 2)

Available on BBC iPlayer

This second series of Tom Edge’s police procedural is most noticeable for its drastic change in setting, with the unique premise of its predecessor - which saw Suranne Jones’ resourceful inspector investigate a murder while aboard a nuclear submarine - replaced with more familiar fare. While this is not entirely to its detriment, it would be remiss of me not to admit that Vigil feels far less engrossing without the cabin-fever paranoia that characterised its first outing.

Nonetheless, when one adjusts to that change in direction you are undoubtedly rewarded with a solid conspiratorial thriller that is once again amplified by the stellar work of Jones and her co-lead Rose Leslie. Joining them for this season are Romola Garai and Dougray Scott, the latter of which makes for especially devilish fun as a senior military officer that is suspiciously keen to sweep a murderous incident involving a compromised combat drone under the carpet.

As was the case with its first season, and indeed other genre bedfellows, Vigil’s narrative touches on contemporary political issues - in this case, the UK’s ongoing sale of arms to Gulf countries - without ever really exploring them in depth. While its fictional setting of the Kingdom of Wudyan could be interpreted as being inspired by one of Britain’s many morally grey allies, Edge’s steadfast commitment to storytelling convention ensures that such parallels never overwhelm the espionage action that is on display.

The result is an at times difficult second album, but one that delivers enough of what we liked first time around to keep most viewers satisfied.