Twisted Metal’s second season laps the first in every department as it shifts into the perfect gear for more hyperbolized and hilarious vehicular violence.
“You’ll be going up against the most dangerous drivers in the country.”
“Baby, I’m the most dangerous driver in the country.”
Twisted Metal gradually learned during its first season that it’s at its best when it goes for broke and simply has fun with its source material and however it decides to interpret and remix it. Michael Jonathan Smith clearly has a lot of love for this video game property, but he doesn’t approach it like it’s some sacred text that can’t be changed. At the end of the day, these are lunatics who are locked in a deadly demolition derby to be granted a magical wish. It’s not a series to get lost in over logic. Twisted Metal wants you to breathe in the exhaust fumes, stare into the blinding headlights, and escape into its high-octane insanity, which is exactly what it accomplishes. It’s turn-your-brain-off-petal-to-the-metal madness that’s still full of surprises.
It’s hard to consider a show like Twisted Metal ever having restraint, but its unique approach to its first season means that season two gets to go all-in on the titular tournament. It’s a season of prolonged payoff after a year of table-setting; entertaining table-setting, but table-setting all the same. It’s like the first season was eating its vegetables and season two is 12 episodes of dessert. There are even extra empty calories for fans of the games as Twisted Metal gleefully indulges in more of its classic video game characters. Some of these individuals may have seemed too ridiculous for the show’s inaugural year, but they’re the perfect fit during this more confident and challenging sophomore season.
Twisted Metal is full of such radical, hyperbolized characters where everyone has Main Character Energy and operates like they’re working through their own single-player Twisted Metal playthrough. This isn’t the type of series that’s going to win its actors any Emmys, but there are phenomenal performances from Anthony Mackie, Stephanie Beatriz, and Mike Mitchell, with all of the new cast absolutely killing it; particularly Anthony Carrigan as Calypso who is clearly having too much fun in this role. It’s more perfect casting from the series. Beyond these strong performances, this season also separates Mackie’s John Doe and Beatriz’s Quiet for a large stretch of the season. This helps Twisted Metal forge even stronger relationships, get further out of its comfort zone, and it guarantees that there’s always electricity whenever John and Quiet do share time together.
Not enough can be said about how effortless Mackie is in this role. It’s really the sort of mode that he needs to be in more often because he taps into a sublime wavelength for this cartoonish universe. Alternatively, there’s a tender scene that involves John Doe’s amnesia and a cathartic homecoming that features some of the best work from Mackie’s career. Mackie was entertaining in season one, but he really builds upon this performance in season two with some surprisingly muted moments that really soar. Twisted Metal’s second season offers better character development all-around. There are well-seeded flashbacks that never attempt to be Lost, but they still improve upon the first season’s formula and learn from some of its past misgivings and criticisms. The ongoing evolution of Mike Mitchell’s Stu is especially satisfying.
Twisted Metal’s second season also puts extra focus on family values – both when it comes to the biological ties that bind and the idea of the found families that we choose for ourselves. It’s rewarding material to explore in a season of television that revolves around a bunch of maniacs who are selfishly fighting over a wish. Twisted Metal actually builds to some sweet emotional moments that stick the landing and feel earned, which isn’t easy in a fantasy like this where so few things are actually precious. Outside of the major players’ personal epiphanies, there’s a brilliant bombshell that completely recontextualizes the whole tournament and the people behind it.
Twisted Metal is propelled forward by a frenetic energy that’s present in every element – whether it’s the story’s pacing, the editing, or its action sequences. There are atmospheric and evocative sequences that commit to the bit so that the emotions are always as potent and raw as possible. There’s an excellent slasher-esque setpiece that’s set in an abandoned drive-in lot as a predator mows his way through empty cars. That being said, some of the show’s dialogue gets a little too ridiculous. It fails to take itself seriously in favor of outrageous wordplay and easy gags, but it’s hard to get too bent out of shape over this in a series where there are killer clowns, soul-stealing grim reapers, and an extremely disturbing man-and-motor vehicle hybrid that would make David Cronenberg blush. Twisted Metal knows that it can get away with these guilty pleasure gags, even if they’re completely asinine. The first season occasionally felt like it was aping Death Race 2000, but season two laps its predecessor and becomes something that’s closer to Mad Max meets Fast and the Furious.
Twisted Metal continues to use inspired needle drops to amplify its action and maximize the mayhem. It throws together such an unpredictable pop culture potpourri that plays as fast and loose with its storytelling and reality as it does with its clashing genre sensibilities. The series transforms from farcical comedy to white-knuckle action thriller to impressionist horror at breakneck speed. There are absurdist moments that fully acknowledge the video game series while others seemingly indicate that the series is the story that inspired the games. This dissonance in the universe’s lore almost seems like it intentionally wants to embrace chaos and throw caution to the wind and, honestly, it’s a vibe that works for it.
Twisted Metal delivers a stronger second season that’s easy, breezy, mindless fun. It’s not high art, but it’s also not trying to be. The explosions are big, the destruction is extreme, and that’s enough. It’s glorious grindhouse B-movie madness that blazes past the speed limit, cuts the brakes, and never slows down. Twisted Metal is finely-tuned mayhem that accomplishes exactly what it wants and has a blast the whole time. The season also comes to a close on a maddening note that heightens the danger and teases an even more extreme third season if one gets greenlit. If the show’s future gets cut short and it ends up in the junkyard, at least it never stopped being its insane self and putting the pedal to the metal in every conceivable way.
Twisted Metal’s 12-episode second season premieres July 31, 2025 on Peacock, with two episodes airing each week.
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