To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video
The spy thriller that hooked viewers when it aired nearly two years ago is back for a second instalment, with all episodes now available to stream.
Starring Michael Fassbender, this Paramount+ series gripped viewers when it premiered for season 1 in 2024.
Now, it’s back for 10 more episodes of high-intensity espionage action, with the X-Men star returning as CIA agent Martian.
The Agency, inspired by the French drama The Bureau, came back to the streamer over the weekend.
Although Paramount insists you don’t need to have watched the first season to enjoy the second, it’s worth knowing the basics of what went down.
Fassbender plays an undercover operative who has been working on a long-term project abroad before he’s pulled to London for a new mission.
While back in Britain, he’s reunited with former lover Samia, played by Jodie Turner-Smith, which complicates his priorities and leads to dangerous situations for his loved ones.
According to the platform, season two ‘hits the ground harder’. Paramount said: ‘Where season one established the series’ emotional framework, slowly introducing its world and characters, season two is now ready to push tensions into far more dangerous territory, with fewer places for anyone to hide and higher stakes attached to every choice Martian makes.’
The show brought in 5.1million cross-platform viewers globally in the first weekend, and received a score of 78 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter.
Fans like Jerald B called it ‘spellbinding and intense, drawing you in immediately’.
Others, like Alan B noted that it was a ‘stunning show with impeccable acting, and a beautifully crafted tight plot that is all too rarely seen in the TV industry.’
Despite this, it was less well received by critics, hitting 66 per cent on the Tomatometer.
Although Neil Armstrong for iNews.co.uk called it ‘utterly engrossing’, others like Thelma Adams for Boston Globe claimed it was ‘good but not great’. She argued: ‘The script is smart, if not exactly sharp.’
The trailer for season two sees Fassbender mentally grappling with the ruthless decisions and impossible scenarios he found himself in, but ultimately concluding that if he had to do it all again, he ‘wouldn’t hesitate’.
Action-packed, this series sees the return of Tony winner Jeffrey Wright as Henry, Golden Globe nominee Richard Gere as Bosko, Jodie as Samia and Katherine Waterston as Naomi.
It also features new names like Christian Ochoa Lavernia from Silo, Medalion Rahimi from Hacks, and Raza Jaffrey from Homeland.
The Agency is available to watch on Paramount+.