A new season premiere of a show is the most important episode of a program. It establishes the tone of the season, but it also determines if viewers will continue watching, binge-watch it after the show concludes, or not continue at all. Anyone who tuned in to the Mayor of Kingstown season 4 premiere will be watching weekly.
Everything after the season 3 finale was addressed and updated, among them was the death of Kareem. Without a warden in place, someone had to fill the void. The question many people had was who it would be.
That was answered in the arrival of the new Anchor Bay Prison Warden, Nina Hobbs (played by the phenomenal Edie Falco). She instantly makes her presence felt by telling her employees that she’s here to clean up a system that everyone knows is a mess.
“As the chosen representative of the D.O.C., I am who pays you, and who controls anything you do inside these walls. And now, outside. Get my subtext?” Nina says in the premiere.
Nina establishing herself was the most important thing for her character. Telling Carney that she won’t accept his help and immediately informing Jackson that she knows that he has outside influences is one thing. Telling Mike McLusky that she doesn’t need or want his help is another.
It shows that she isn’t corrupt and isn’t afraid of the things she’s learned. However, this is only episode 1. Things could change as the season continues.
New dangers in Mayor of Kingstown season 4
Mayor of Kingstown is known for having dangerous organized crime with the most competent leaders on TV. This season begins with a reminder of this with an intense scene of a few Russian gangsters being brutally decapitated by a train. It looked like something a 1900s cartoon villain would do. The explanation may be silly, but the scene was far from it, as is the boss who set things in motion by a mysterious man named Frank (played by the great Lennie James).
“This? This is a Devil we don’t know," Mike McLucky says.
This is how you make an entrance. We (the viewers) don’t know who this guy is, or who he’s working with. What’s certain is that he’s mysterious and has a commanding presence. What’s even better is that he didn’t stay long, adding to the mystique of the character. He’s the most dangerous kind of antagonist. A person who isn’t seen, but still causes damage.
Nina has her own plans
As Kyle is getting set to serve his sentence, Mike meets with the new warden, Nina. He assumes that things will be as they were. Unfortunately for him, Nina isn’t with him. She says that she will run things on the up and up, and that she will protect her brother like she does all the other inmates. Mike hears this and gives her a less-than-subtle warning that if anything happens to his brother, “there will be consequences.”
Whether Nina is on the side of good or not, she and Mike weren’t going to get along at the start. If she’s crooked, she clearly has her own agenda that doesn't benefit Mike. If she’s not, the same things apply. The funny thing is, if Nina is on the side of angels, you’d think he’d try and help. But viewers know that’s never going to happen.
New character: Cindy Stephens
Cindy is a new character (played by Laura Benanti) who is completely out of her depth. She’s come into the Anchor Bay Prison and gets hit with the reality of how appalling things will be. Then, as if her job couldn’t get any worse, she witnesses a brutal beat down of Mike’s brother, Kyle. Something that will come back to bite her sooner rather than later.
Pay close attention to Cindy. She has more to lose than anyone on this show, and she doesn’t seem to have the toughness to handle what’s coming. I don’t mean physically. Her reaction to the violence and the information that she could be hurt at any moment seemed like a shock. Plus, she has kids at home. As corrupt as this town is, you can believe that she will be blackmailed into doing something awful.
Watch new episodes of Mayor of Kingstown season 4 on Sundays on Paramount+.