Starring Jeff Bridges, John Lithgow, and Alia Shawkat, the hit espionage drama thriller “The Old Man” finally returns for a second season. Originally conceived of as a miniseries before being extended to two seasons (Bridges’ diagnosis of lymphoma and his cancer treatment might have been a motivating factor), the production for season 2 started in February 2022 before being halted in May 2023 due to the WGA strikes before finally resuming after the strikes had been lifted. Now season 2 returns, and while in reality and narratively, time has passed, the show itself hasn’t lost much of a beat. On the contrary, it might have tightened its focus slightly.
The Old Man (Season 2) Episode 1 – VIII – Recap:
How much time has passed between the first two seasons?
The episode opens with Dan Chase (Jeff Bridges) and Harold Harper (John Lithgow) being smuggled into Afghanistan on the back of a truck. The relationship between the two grizzled vets has cooled considerably, with their bickering sounding more like a married couple.
The last we saw them, they were off to rescue Chase’s daughter and Harold’s protege, FBI Agent Angela Adams, AKA Emily Chase. Only when she had been abducted by Afghan warlord Faraz Hamzad’s sister Khadija do we learn another astonishing truth, which had been on the cards since season 1 entered the weeds of its plot: Angela is Parwana Hamzad, daughter of Faraz and Belour, who escapes with Dan Chase to America, with—we later learn—her daughter as well.
As the truck enters Afghanistan, in Taliban-controlled territory, three weeks have passed already. The two men would spend the entirety of the trip bickering about their effectiveness, each other’s capability as field agents, and their differing memories of working together. But of course, there is history there, with the baggage of both Harper and Chase’s relationship with Angela, who also shares a fatherly bond with Harper. Considering that she is currently with Hamzad, this relationship, at its most optimistic, will get very complicated.
Why is Hamzad important to the US and Taliban?
Chase, taking into account progress occurring even slower than usual in Afghanistan, knows enough about the usual haunts to locate the rendezvous point, only to be held at gunpoint by the local militia upon seeing two white men. Omar would barely rescue them, ostensibly a guide sent by their point of contact. Considering that he knows both of their names and that he talks in fluent English, they have no choice but to trust him, though I would be reticent in believing the two of the grizzled agents not suspecting the man from the start.
It is fascinating, though, how much of the relationship between Emily and her father is getting more of a dimension as the show, in its eighth episode overall, is still cagey with its reveals. I do have to admire that for an opener for this season, the show, from an emotional and narrative standpoint, is jam-packed with reveals.
On the one hand, we know why Hamzad is currently one of the more important people in the geopolitical landscape in Afghanistan, to the extent that the Taliban are in a shaky alliance with him—he has control over the largest lithium deposit and thus supports from the United States as a result as well. In contrast, that alliance built on the foundation of profits does ensure that Hamzad’s community remains secure.
On the other hand, we also learn through a flashback that Chase recalls—the pivotal diner scene between Abbey and Chase in the pilot episode—now revealing young Parwana/Emily already sleeping in her mother’s lap. In this crucial moment, Abbey decides not to reveal her true heritage to Emily for fear of retribution from Hamzad, who is and would be searching for them with a vengeance. Abbey instructs Chase to be the only father that Emily would know and never to let her daughter come into proximity with Hamzad. Considering the current situation they find themselves in, Chase believes he has failed her.
Who is Omar actually working for?
The final revelation is also the most telegraphed, but it also re-introduces viewers to Chase’s capabilities as a field agent. As Omar talks about the tale of the secretive and dangerous American soldier on Hamzad’s side, who would disappear and who would be known as a monster around these parts, we are inevitably preparing ourselves for the other shoe to drop. As it turns out, multiple shoes drop.
Firstly, they find the rendezvous point has become a graveyard, with all the forces at the camp being killed. This finally convinces Harper to call “her” Marion, a government operative with whom Harper is conducting a seemingly off-the-books rescue mission. But as he contacts through the satellite phone under his possession, his suspicions in full swing, he gets the shock of his life when he learns that Omar isn’t the point man they had been supposed to meet.
Back at the encampment, Omar’s curiosity about the woman being kidnapped finally morphs into statements revealing that he knows about an FBI agent being brought into the country by Hamzad, but considering that the US forces haven’t retaliated in full swing has made him even more curious. That curiosity is transplanted to Chase, who finally asks Omar about his identity, leading to a drag-out, knuckle-bruising fight.
To the show’s credit, Chase managing to throw around a man almost half his age is choreographed quite realistically. Still, as he is overpowered by Omar, who inserts a knife into Chase’s shoulder blades, he remarks that he wants the honor of knowing Hamzad’s true intentions. Chase barely manages to push Omar off by biting off his face and then gallops away on Harper’s horse, with Taliban intelligence after them on their motorcycles.
Where do Chase and Harper finally escape?
They are unable to catch them because the two octogenarian agents ditch their steed and gingerly climb up the rocky slope of the mountain to a cave that Chase recognizes as the one Abbey would come to hide. Chase had kept supplies, like first aid, locked inside a lockbox buried for decades. As Chase recuperates from the fire, he urges Harper to call his wife and request Marion an extract for Harper, which Harper refuses, reminding him that he isn’t as weak as Chase suspects he is.
Chase then takes a different emotional tack, stating that Emily is dead as he recalls the conversation they had in the car regarding her first soccer match. At that moment, Chase thinks of Emily’s strong-willed determination when she insists on playing soccer. This, in turn, reminds him that there was always a part of Hamzad within Emily—a part he could never fully reach. He is worried that Emily could talk back or make a fatal decision that would have cost her life, but Harper urges him not to give up and to trust his daughter. He walks out of the cave to call his wife, only to learn that she has already been informed about Harper being deeply involved in some off-the-books mission by Marion (who is Harper’s ex-wife), and now he has no idea when he will be back.
Back in the cave, as Chase recovers, he is visited by the ghost of Hamzad’s younger self, who taunts him by stating that maybe Chase likes being the monster, that rescuing his daughter is perhaps an excuse, and if that is the case, he is home. As Chase wakes up from his dream, he suddenly realizes that the real-life Hmazad is standing near the mouth of the cave. With groggy eyes, Hamzad walks towards him before pointing the gun at his hand as the camera cuts away to a shot of the mountains, and a gunshot is heard.
The Old Man (Season 2) Episode 2 – IX – Recap:
What does Emily learn about her father and mother?
The perspective shifts in this second episode, where we follow Emily being brought into Hamzad’s compound by Khadija, Hamzad’s sister and advisor. As Emily is brought into a single room, she is asked about her identity before Hadija reveals that, unlike Emily’s prior knowledge, Hamzad is more than a warlord or her enemy. Hmazad is her father, and her real name is Parwana. She had been stolen from her father by her mother and the American who worked as his mercenary.
To hammer home the knowledge, Khadija would send an old home video device (interrupting Emily’s attempts at escape). Skeptical, Emily would turn the machine on, revealing an old recording of Hamzad playing with Parwana and singing a lullaby to her. That voice must have unlocked something in her, perhaps a long-forgotten memory, which finally triggers a flood of emotions within her.
The following day, she is finally allowed to meet with Faraz Hamzad, and their interactions are expectedly awkward. While Hamzad begins their conversations with a discussion of a family tree of freedom fighters and warriors, Emily brings back the conversation to Balour, Hamzad’s ex-wife and Emily’s mother. Emily’s impassioned plea to find something tangible about her mother that could explain the lack of affection shown towards her. Her father refuses to answer Emily’s plea because she has been a “manipulative” person.
How does Emily’s kidnapping affect Hamzad?
As it turns out, Hamzad kidnapping Emily was a domino not even Khalidja could have predicted. The fallout comes in the form of Omar (not injured by Chase mauling his face, so taking place earlier in the timeline). Omar’s conversation with Hamzad reveals not only that he is aware that the woman kidnapped is an FBI agent but that the truce Hamzad has with the Taliban is on shaky ground because he hasn’t paid his tribute. His problems, however, could be solved if Emily is handed over to him and, by extension, the Taliban.
 Hamzad is experienced enough to rebuff Omar’s threats by reminding him that he is also aware of Omar’s state of service within the Taliban intelligence, that his uncle had chosen over him for a promotion, and that this meeting is essentially a leverage play for Omar. Omar walks away, licking his wounds and revealing to Hamzad about two Americans looking for the kidnapped woman. However, once Omar leaves, a frazzled Hamzad asks about the late payments to Khadija, which she emphatically states he is responsible for because he pursues Emily, which has weakened his position between both parties. This impulsive move by him is going to cost him hard.
As it turns out, it is costing both Hamzad and Emily their emotional sanity. That night, Hamzad goes to Emily’s room to ostensibly kill her due to her manipulative nature reminding him of his ex-wife, and she reacts in the exact manner that Chase had feared—using her training to get in Hamzad’s face and threaten him to either make a move or accept he is a coward. The result is a physical altercation between father and daughter that is both sickening and sad, and that ends with Hamzad finally stopping himself from choking out Emily and killing her, instead breaking down.
Does Emily settle in Hamzad’s camp?
Ironically, though, Emily’s pushback might have helped her gain newfound respect from her father because she is shifted to better quarters under the care of her cousin. This begins a journey for Emily to try to understand through morsels of conversation about her mother, either from Khadija or Faruza, her cousin. Khadija, shocked upon learning that Emily’s mother is dead (she was shown to have passed away due to Huntington’s disease in the pilot of the show), states that none of the questions being asked by Emily are the right questions. She would be deemed to have answers once she was ready with the right questions.
But Emily’s time passes in a somewhat pleasant fashion overall. She learns from Farouza that after her husband died fighting the Taliban when they came back into power, it had been Hamzad who had protected them. Emily grows closer to Farouza’s son, Farouk, who teaches her the Dari language and shows her his hidden stash of toys buried in a tree trunk. From Farouza and Emily’s predilection for knitting, she starts to slowly understand her mother’s apparent hatred towards this, which might have been her only source of connection to her homeland.
How does Omar and the Taliban push back against Hamzad?
The timeline catches up to the present timeline (or the timeline of the first episode), where we see Omar, now wearing an eye patch, meeting with Taliban intelligence and informing him that Hamzad hadn’t been entirely honest with them. While the details of the lies aren’t apparent, their existence is.
Omar’s superior agrees to a reevaluation with Hamzad, which leads to the Taliban directly attacking and seizing control of the lithium deposit and its operations. When Khadija notices that, she calls her contact (presumably within the US), informing him about their assurances to provide Hamzad and their operations with immunity. The fact that someone blatantly breaks the rules signifies something horrific is about to happen.
Omar moves with his group towards Hamzad’s village, where he is met by Khadija and surrounded by Hamzad’s men at gunpoint. Angry at being rebuffed and disagreeing with Khadija’s claims that Hamzad’s bribery could have helped Omar gain a stronger hold amidst the Taliban, Omar promises to conscript every man in the village to their cause instead of just being satisfied at having captured Hamzad.
The Old Man (Season 2) Episode 2 – IX – Ending Explained:
Who was in the cave?
Unbeknownst to Omar, Hamzad would escape with Emily on horseback, taking her to a cave system he had informed his wife about as a place to hide when enemies attacked. As they make the walk up the rocky slope, the show frames their conversation as Hamzad finally conversing with the child Parwana rather than the adult Emily, whereby he apologizes to her before remarking that he doesn’t have a logical reason for bringing her here beyond an urge to see her and bade goodbye to her for the first and last time.
It’s an intense heart-to-heart between a father and daughter of a broken family that further proves that “The Old Man” is a family melodrama in the garb of an espionage thriller. In return, when Emily asks what he thinks of her, Hamzad doesn’t answer her directly. Instead, he chooses to answer his impressions about Emily’s mother, informing her that life with Baldour had taught Hamzad one thing: you can either love someone or you can trust them. This dissociation is something Hamzad has learned the hard way, and he wishes for Emily to learn it as quickly as possible before life chooses to teach it to her in its own unforgivable fashion.
All of a sudden, they hear sounds from the cave, and Hamzad sneaks into the cave while Emily waits outside. It’s only when she hears a gunshot that she creeps in, gun outstretched, presumably at the cave system where Hamzad locates Dan Chase at the end of episode 1, with this episode ending at Emily’s shocked face.
