This article contains spoilers from the second episode of “Special Ops: Lioness,” available on Paramount+.
The second episode of “Special Ops: Lioness” dropped Sunday on Paramount+, and it was far more intense than anything that’s been on television for quite some time.
Multiple brutal beatings, a dying child, torture and revenge could all define the latest episode of Taylor Sheridan’s already hit-series “Special Ops: Lioness.” While some of us might be used to brutality, having watched all of Sheridan’s other shows and movies, none of them could have prepared viewers for the plot throughout “The Beating.”
After a gripping start to the series, the second episode follows Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira) as she returns to the U.S. to continue her training. But Joe (Zoe Saldana) has extreme ideas over what that’ll entail.
Have you seen ‘Special Ops: Lioness’ yet?https://t.co/CTfBQ8Ranx
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After being kidnapped by fellow military personnel, Cruz is beaten to the point where she’s spitting out her own teeth, and put through horrific torture. She’s eventually released, and returns to Fort Bragg to recover with her unit.
This is where things started to get funny for me. Sheridan’s entire scripting around the lads (and ladies) of Fort Bragg reminded me so much of my Special Ops friends that I was cackling throughout the entire sequence. (RELATED: The ‘Special Ops: Lioness’ Trailer Will Make Your Heart Pound Like Nothing Else)
Whether it’s brutal fights that go way too far at the pub, or just being animals around the house, there is always something darkly funny about the men and women who volunteer their lives in service to our protection. But if the first episode of “Special Ops: Lioness” was designed to make you want to join the military, episode two might make you think twice.