Apple has quietly assembled one of the most impressive television libraries in the business. HBO still has the advantage of decades of prestige programming, but considering Apple TV+ has only been around for a handful of years, the quality of its lineup is remarkable. Even beyond the awards magnets like Severance and Slow Horses, there are shows such as For All Mankind that have built fiercely loyal fan bases without the Emmys showering them with trophies every year. Then there’s Trying, which recently returned to my absolute delight. Somewhere in the middle of that lineup sits Criminal Record, a British crime drama that may not be the flashiest title on the service, but continues to quietly justify its place.
If you don’t remember every detail of the first season, don’t worry, neither did I. Fortunately, season two doesn’t require you to have memorized every twist. The central relationship between Detective Sergeant June Lenker, played by Cush Jumbo, and Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Hegarty, played by Peter Capaldi, remains the heart of the series. Their uneasy professional respect survives the fallout from season one, but their vastly different approaches to policing continue to create friction. June still believes in following the rules whenever possible, while Hegarty is perfectly willing to color outside the lines if he believes the end result is worth it. That tension continues to be far more interesting than a simple good cop versus bad cop dynamic.
This season begins with the murder of a young man at a political rally before expanding into something much larger. The investigation leads toward Cosmo Thompson, a charismatic online personality who has built a following by spreading anti-immigrant rhetoric and flirting with white nationalist ideology while carefully avoiding directly incriminating himself. He presents everything as free speech and social commentary, scoffing at any attempt to connect him to the violent extremists gathering around him. As the evidence begins pointing toward a planned terrorist attack, the police launch an undercover operation by convincing Billy Fielding, a criminal looking for a second chance, to infiltrate Cosmo’s inner circle after staging what appears to be his escape from prison. It’s a risky operation that constantly feels one mistake away from collapsing.
There are certainly stretches where Criminal Record feels like it’s just going through the motions, but when it decides to crank up the tension, it becomes incredibly effective. The standout episode takes the undercover operation into the woods for what is supposed to be a meeting with a bomb maker. Naturally, absolutely nothing goes according to plan, and the suspense is some of the best the series has delivered. Then, toward the end of the season, one act of revenge ends up hitting the wrong target, creating consequences that feel like they’ll continue to ripple well beyond this finale. I would honestly be surprised if Apple didn’t order a third season because the story leaves more than enough on the table to continue.
Cush Jumbo continues to anchor the series well. June isn’t always easy to like, but she remains easy to invest in because she’s constantly forced to question her own moral boundaries. Peter Capaldi, meanwhile, is exactly what you’d expect. He has that wonderful ability to make every conversation feel like a negotiation, whether he’s mentoring someone, manipulating a suspect, or simply walking into a room. The chemistry between Jumbo and Capaldi remains the show’s biggest strength, and the supporting cast is equally strong.
One thing I especially appreciated was how intelligent the antagonists are. Too many crime dramas make their villains reckless or incompetent simply to keep the plot moving. Here, Cosmo understands exactly how close to the legal line he can operate. He weaponizes public opinion, social media, and plausible deniability in ways that feel disturbingly believable. That makes the investigation much more satisfying because the police aren’t chasing cartoon villains. They’re chasing people who understand the system almost as well as they do.
For fans of audio description, Apple continues to deliver. Criminal Record features another excellent track that consistently keeps up with the action without overwhelming the dialogue. It’s especially valuable during the undercover sequences, where subtle looks, body language, and shifting loyalties matter just as much as what’s actually being said. As usual, Apple remains one of the industry’s most reliable streaming services when it comes to high-quality human narrated accessibility.
If you’re someone who enjoys procedurals that wrap everything up neatly every episode, Criminal Record probably isn’t your show. This is a serialized crime drama where every hour builds directly into the next, rewarding patience instead of immediate gratification. The performances are consistently strong, the mystery steadily evolves, and the moral compromises become increasingly messy as the season progresses. It isn’t trying to reinvent the genre, but it executes it with confidence.
The funny thing is that Criminal Record still isn’t a show that immediately jumps into my head when I think about my favorite Apple originals. I really enjoyed the first season, and I enjoyed this one too, but it’s one of those series that slowly fades into the background between seasons. Then a new season arrives, I start watching again, and within an episode or two I remember exactly why I liked it. Maybe that’s just the downside of living in an era with far too much television and increasingly long waits between seasons.
Hopefully Apple doesn’t leave another lengthy gap before season three. Compared to something effects-heavy like For All Mankind, this doesn’t seem like the kind of production that should disappear for years at a time, especially when Apple manages to turn around Slow Horses at such an impressive pace. Criminal Record may never become Apple’s signature series, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s another smart, well-acted, consistently entertaining crime drama that strengthens one of the deepest streaming libraries out there.
Fresh: 7.4/10
