Who knew this neo-noir drama would be getting a second season this year? Not me. Only when I went to queue up the first episode of Sugar was I informed that a new season was coming this June.
As a longtime lover of Colin Farrell’s career, I knew I wanted to check this show out. Though I mistakenly thought this was a comedy based on the very brief interactions I had with the premise. No, this definitely had the neo-noir genre wrapped up in a pretty bow, and usually with that comes drama and mystery, as well. We got those, too! Farrell plays the titular John Sugar, a private investigator who specializes in finding people. In fact, it sounds like he’s never failed at the task. We meet him at the end of one of his missions in Japan, where he has to resort to violence to finally find a missing child. In a voiceover, Sugar claims he never likes to use violence, and that he’s not a violent person. In my opinion, these situations kind of call for it, so I found nothing strange about his behavior.
In the next breath, he’s called back to LA, and after meeting with his handler, Ruby, agrees to take on a case involving the missing granddaughter of a famed director. It’s here that we learn that John is both a big fan of movies, but also is a big fan of languages, seemingly able to speak many fluently (jealous!). Though initially Ruby seems to be on John’s side, it’s clear that she’s uncomfortable with his taking this case. Later in the season we see that she may be in on the action, but not in a good way. As John researches further into Olivia’s disappearance, he learns that most of Olivia’s family are serious scumbags. Her brother for instance, is a disgusting abuser, able to make it based on his father and grandfather’s successes in Hollywood.
The only person who seems to really be on John’s side is Oliva’s stepmother, Melanie Matthews, a once famous singer. While she’s actually eagar to help, it’s clear that John is shielding her from the bigger picture. Or at least the bigger picture of who he really is. As he gets closer to the truth, there is plenty of misdirection, but also a great deal of danger. Once again, John is pushed to the point of deadly violence, and that really scares Melanie. But it does finally get John to reveal the truth about who he is. Turns out he’s an alien. I will say, I did not see that one coming. I thought he was just kind of having hallucinations for most of the season, so that reveal was kind of a bummer. Unique, yes, but not really my taste.
We learn that him and several others had come to earth a long time ago to observe, but it’s clear that the longer they’re here, the more they are changing. John’s violent tendencies are a crystal clear sign of that. One of his fellow aliens, Henry, is a clear and present danger, declaring he is not going back home with the rest of their group. And because of that, John determines he must stay, too. Henry is after all, a danger to people. I would assume much of the second season is going to be John trying to find Henry. I am interested in their dynamic, though. This by far is not one of my favorite shows, but with the new season so close, I don’t mind giving it another chance.