‘Ludwig’ Season 2: David Mitchell pulls off something few mysteries can in hit BritBox show

0The mix of humour, mystery and complex family dynamics has never been better than what we get from Ludwig, with Season 2 on BritBox in Canada and the U.S., starring the incredible David Mitchell. The six-episode season, also featuring Anna Maxwell Martin, Dylan Hughes, Dipo Ola, Ben Ashenden, Mark Bonnar and Rumi Sutton, shows that the series remains a welcome homage to cozy British detective stories while maintaining its own approach to the beloved genre, with plenty of standout comedic moments.

That originality begins with the story's foundation, as introverted puzzle creator John "Ludwig" Taylor (Mitchell) responds to his sister-in-law, Lucy Betts-Taylor (Martin), who calls on him to pretend to be his twin brother, police detective James, after his disappearance. That search for James continues in Season 2, but now John is a crime scene consultant.

"The key to him is he's a very shy person and doesn't seek a huge amount of interaction with other people, but puzzles are his escape. They were his escape when his father left in the middle of his childhood, and the innocence of his early childhood is sort of gone at that moment, and he disappeared into a world of puzzles for comfort," Mitchell told Yahoo Canada. "The thing that happens in this crime-solving period of his life is the very thing that he's worried about, which is going out into the world and having to deal with people, [and it's] immediately assuaged when his mind's on the puzzle."

"So while solving the puzzle, he's quite happy to hold the room and take, in the case of Episode 1, literally centre stage and explain what's going on. But as soon as the puzzle's gone, so is all that confidence. And while he's dealing with the weird and sinister mystery of his brother's disappearance and the things that he was investigating, … he finds the puzzle of any particular murder he's trying to solve a quite relaxing distraction from the more frightening and more difficult bigger puzzle of what's happening in the town."

The new season of Ludwig is a valuable and exciting continuation of a story that fans fell in love with when the show premiered, particularly it's tonal mix that's unlike any other story. For Mitchell, seeing how well the show resonated and found its audience was the "most exciting" element for him.

"You never know when you're making a TV show whether it will go down well, and it really found an audience very quickly, and that was thrilling," Mitchell said. "What we really wanted the second season to do was continue the excitement and the mystery, but also the feeling of escapism and an enjoyment and entertainment that I hope the first series had."

"Making the second series was so much more fun because we were much less worried. Because the first time, we thought the scripts were really good, …but you worry whether it will sink without trace. … And also, you worry a lot about the tone because it's a challenge in a show like this. … There's a lot of comedy in it, but it's not primarily a comedy. People have to care about the story and the characters and follow the plot, and the revelation of what's going on has to be significant to them. And if the comedy is too high in the mix, that can't happen. It can't become a spoof murder mystery. … And having got that recipe right, we could move with more confidence in the second series."

Particular highlights in Ludwig include the expansion of John's relationship with his sister-in-law, which also bleeds into the smaller details, like the fact that he can't drive so Lucy is chauffeuring him everywhere. While it's funny, it also becomes a unique way for them to share information and check in on how they feel about James' disappearance.

"I can't drive either, and so, in the first series, John is represented as a very bad driver, but all of the bad driving he does was in fact done by someone else, because I can't even drive to that bad extent," Mitchell shared. "But it's … clever of [creator Mark Brotherhood]. It creates opportunities for John and Lucy to talk, and it points out their character differences."

"John is ultimately someone who, while he's a good guy fundamentally, and … he's risked a lot to help Lucy, he is someone who kind of expects things to be done for him. And Lucy is someone who tries to sort things out. … If there's a problem, [she will] push herself forward to solve it. And John unthinkingly exploits that and is very happy to be driven around."

There are similarities with DCI Russell Carter (Dipo Ola) as well, with John also expecting Russell to drive him around.

"He's got that … almost slightly regal approach where he is a helpless person expecting to be looked after so that he can solve his puzzles, and it's a nice recurring bit of comedy that comes from character," Mitchell said.

While we won't spoil all the surprises, it's been revealed that there are some exciting additions to the series, including another brilliant comedy icon, Stephen Merchant, making an appearance in Season 2.

"I've known him for years, and he's a really lovely man and very good company, and very funny," Mitchell said. "It was a huge coup for the show that he was going to be in it."

"It was just a joy having him around and chatting to him, and it was one of the things that made the second series a lot of fun to shoot."

What's impressive about Ludwig is how Mark Brotherhood keeps the mystery alive. For example, in Season 2, John and Lucy talk about the possibility that James doesn't want to be found and doesn't want them investigating the circumstances of his disappearance. It maintains this strong intrigue and emotional connection to the core characters.

"[Mark Brotherhood] manages to keep that mystery alive, to keep giving small extra pieces of information, undermining our certainty and some of the things we think we knew," Mitchell said. "And yes, the show starts with James Taylor … disappearing in order to solve a terrible crime. And as time goes on, we re-evaluate whether it was entirely selfless, whether abandoning his family was justified, and whether he's getting anywhere in his supposed aims."

"We still don't know whether those doubts are justified, but it's absolutely the way people's minds are bound to move in the absence of any evidence for what James is achieving, … [or if] James is caring about his abandoned wife and son. … It's really important to stand alongside the comedy of a man, a fish out of water, and the cozy conundrums of a weekly crime, and I think being able to mix those elements is a very clever aspect of Mark's writing."

While Mitchell is an incredible talent, establishing a unique comedy voice throughout his career, he was tasked with leaning into the more emotional moments of Ludwig as well.

"Coming from a comedy background, I'm very grateful to the to the directors I've worked with and to Mark for understanding the importance of that emotional dynamic and making sure it's there in the mix," he said. "I have a tendency to be sarcastic and flippant, and to dismiss the emotional, but the show has been very well guided by the various creative forces. … Because an audience … needs that emotional connection to the characters, as well as the intrigue of the puzzles and the comedy of absurd things happening to them."

"I'm grateful to everyone for making sure that's there and encouraging me to say no, play this moment, play the pain of a life you've not necessarily used as well as you might have done."

Ludwig Season 2 premieres Oct. 13 on BritBox in Canada and the U.S., with weekly episodes until Nov. 17.