A Gang War Erupts in 'Sherwood' Season 2 as Nottingham Tries to Heal

It's time to return to Nottingham for the second season of Sherwood, which picks up in 2024, twenty years after the gruesome murders and investigation of the first season. There's a new Sheriff of Nottingham, Lisa Waters (Ria Zmitrowicz), determined to do good for the community and create a better tomorrow for her wife and their newborn baby daughter. Ian St. Clair (David Morrisey) has left the force and is focusing on violence prevention programs for the local youth. He's doing newspaper op-eds and dabbing the teens at the local gym (that's not a joke; he really does it). Even Julie (Lesley Manville) is doing her best to move on. The house is up for sale, and she's trying to figure out her next chapter.

It's hard for anyone to move on when the past seems determined to repeat itself. On a macro level, the Tories are vying to put in a new mining pit in Nottingham. The locals are staunchly against the idea, as the mining strikes of the '80s and the depression that followed after the mine closed are still fresh in the minds of many. Lisa argues for the government to invest in cleaner energy and tech rather than trying to force the community back into fossil fuels.

Samuel (Robert Emms) and Franklin Warner (Robert Lindsay) represent the capitalist interest in returning Nottingham to its mining roots. You can tell that Franklin is evil because he bullies his way into a ceremony for the reopening of Nottingham Castle by pointing out that his name is on the banquet room door and then has the nerve to compare himself to Robin Hood in his toast to the castle. When Lisa points out he wouldn't have had to donate to reopen the castle if his corporation had paid their fair share in taxes, he argues there'd be more growth for middle-class citizens to pay taxes if corporations didn't have to. The lack of self-awareness boggles the mind.