The 2nd season of The Missing begins in Eckhausen, Germany. We see young Matthew (Oaklee Pendergast) speak with his unruly sister, Alice (Maddi Linnard). Alice has a new tattoo and her brother insists her parents will be livid. Nonetheless, Alice doesn’t care. She takes off and trudges through the nearby trees. We simultaneously see a young Alice and older Alice (Abigail Hardingham) travel along their respective paths. The older Alice makes her way into town and collapses, while the young Alice is abducted by someone in a yellow van. The townsfolk check on Alice and make sure she is transported to the local hospital. During the commute, a paramedic (Sura Dohnke) asks the woman her name. A very weak Alice mumbles the name Sophie Giroux.

 

Next, Gemma (Keeley Hawes) gives a lecture to her class. She tells them that enslaved people often feel like they’re free, despite their current circumstances. As she speaks, several people approach her classroom. Sergeant Eve Stone (Laura Fraser) introduces herself. Police officer Jorn Lenhart (Florian Bartholomai) does the same. Eve explains that a young woman walked into town, collapsed and was transported to Hanover Hospital. Jorn reveals that the woman claims her name is Alice Webster, which would make her Gemma’s missing daughter. Gemma and Jorn pick up Gemma’s husband, Sam (David Morrissey), and head for the hospital. Matthew (Jake Davies) joins them. In France, we see Julien Baptiste (Tcheky Karyo) destroy his bee house with the intention of using the wood as firewood. He heads inside where his daughter, Sara (Camille Schotte), is seen watching a documentary about his exploits.

 

Julien becomes upset with the documentary. When he leaves, Celia (Anastasia Hille) tells her daughter Julien believes it is his obituary. Moments later, Gemma and Sam are allowed to see their daughter. They quickly notice the tattoo on her arm, before Alice calls for her father. Alice complains about the brightness of the room, while Gemma expresses her disbelief of the current situation. Gemma speaks about the tattoo and admits they were angry, but the following week Alice has disappeared. Matthew says very little, before the family is escorted outside. That night, Eve places a call to Julien Baptiste and asks him to look into his files on Sophie. Eve is visibly pregnant and she also places a picture of the sonogram on her refrigerator. Next, we jump forward to the present day. Julien arrives at the Erbil International Airport with his head shaved.

 

Julien meets with his driver and is told the area is not safe for tourists. We jump over to Alice’s parents. They awake for the morning, while Gemma discusses her plans to visit Alice that afternoon. Sam agrees everyone should be there as a family. Sam watches as Matthew leaves the home with his hoodlum friends. Gemma tells him he should speak with his son. Sam heads to his shrink’s office, but has very little to say. Julien meets up with Stefan Andersen (Olafur Darri Olafsson). Julien is escorted inside, where he tells Stefan about two girls being held captive in a basement. He insists he needs to find a man and speak with him about the girls. Julien explains he needs assistance getting to Azwai. Stefan admits he travels there frequently, but doesn’t want to be responsible for Julien should anything bad happen.

 

Before Julien can leave, Stefan provides him with a name, Aram Askari. The man will supposedly be able to help him cross into Iraq. Julien calls his wife back home on his way to see Aram. Inside the travel agency, Julien speaks with Aram’s brother, Yardil. He is told he will need 5,000 dollars. Since he only has dinars, he is forced to exchange the money. He hurries towards the nearby bank. Meanwhile, Matthew smokes crack with his skinhead friends. They wait for the arrival of their drug dealer, when Matthew spots someone exiting the nearby grocery store. The woman leaves her goods and escapes, while Matthew’s friends steal her groceries. Matthew receives call from his mother, but doesn’t answer it. She leaves a message reminding him of their visit to Alice that afternoon.

Gemma jumps on her computer and scours through images of her family at a theme park. We jump back to 2014 and listen to Alice relive her own kidnapping. He confirms the man put a bag over her hit and promised to return her home, if she was obedient. She also reveals that she was raped shortly after being taken. Sam heads for the nearby bathroom and bashes the wall. Eve tries to squeeze information about Sophie from Alice. She learns that Sophie was very weak, since the man wouldn’t feed her. Meanwhile, Julien arrives in Germany with his casefiles. He spots a yellow van in an old newspaper clipping. He heads into the hospital and tries to obtain Alice’s room number. Unfortunately, he is told nobody by that name is at the hospital.

 

Meanwhile, Jorn introduces the family to Karla Becker (Isabelle Barth), who will be providing her counseling services to Alice and the others. They also learn that Alice has most likely given birth, while she has been away. Next, we see a young man, Daniel Reed (Daniel Ezra), enter his home with a few bags. He is stopped in his tracks when he discovers dried blood on the floor. The bags are dropped and he quickly works to clean up the evidence. Outside of the hospital, Julien introduces himself to Eve. She is not happy to see him. Nonetheless, Julien insists he needs to speak with Alice. Julien learns that Alice confirmed she was held captive with Sophie. Eve also reveals that the pair were moved around frequently. Julien asks about the yellow van, but does not receive an answer.

 

Despite Julien’s offer to help, Eve tries to convince him to return home. Back in the present, Julien obtains the 5,000 he needs and exits the bank. He feels he is being followed and quickly prepares to defend himself. Meanwhile, Gemma continues looking through her old photographs. Matthew enters and interrupts. Matthew convinces his mother to visit Alice without their father, since he has failed to return. We quickly find out why. Sam is having an affair with Eve. After they finish up, Sam jumps in the shower and Eve heads downstairs. She finds the sonogram picture on the ground and hides it away in her dresser. Matthew and Gemma arrive at their destination. Everything changes when we see Alice’s gravestone.

 

Meanwhile, Julien returns to the travel agency and gives the man a piece of his mind. He accuses the guy of planning to rob him for his money. Julien is told to take his money and leave. He does just that. Sam arrives at the cemetery and speaks with his wife briefly. Gemma steps aside when she receives a call from Julien. Gemma confirms she has been looking at the photos as instructed, but has been unable to find anything of interest. She also admits she has kept it a secret, since she didn’t want her family to think she had lost her mind. Gemma tells Julien she believes her family is slipping away from her. He replies that everyone feels that way, because they wish to hold their family so close. The call ends and Matthew reminds himself of the promise he made to Alice.

Julien runs into Stefan once again. This time, Stefan agrees to help. Stefan admits it will take him a few weeks to put it together. Julien quickly interjects and reveals he doesn’t have that much time. He tells Stefan he has a brain tumor and is dying. Julien shows him a picture of Daniel Reed and confirms he is the man he needs to see. We jump back to 2014 and witness the funeral of Reed’s father. Very little happens at the funeral besides a strange blonde woman making eye contact with Daniel. Back at the hospital, it is revealed that Alice will need an appendix operation. Nonetheless, Alice is eager to return home. Meanwhile, Adrian Stone (Roger Allam) spares with the police director, while making plans to search for Sophie. Outside Adrian speaks with his daughter and her current situation. She admits she is fine.

 

Meanwhile, the search team spreads out and begins looking for Sophie. During this time, Alice returns home with her parents and brother. Alice is led to her old room, which hasn’t been changed. Alice denies the baby rumors. Gemma gives her Christmas letters they have been keeping for her. Sam receives a hug from his daughter, before she is left alone. During this time, Julien speaks with Stefan about being free. He insists Alice was never free, despite escaping her captor. He also reveals he doesn’t believe the girl, who returned, was Alice Webster.

 

The Missing Review

The first episode of The Missing’s second season was full of twists and turns. It took time to adjust to the time jumps, but they started feeling natural as I got deeper into the episode. The season has all of the potential in the world. Julien Baptiste is on a mission to uncover the truth, before he succumbs to his brain tumor. Laura Fraser is perfect as Eve Stone. The fact that Alice or whoever returned is dead makes the season even more enthralling.

I am very eager to watch the puzzle pieces come together. Unfortunately, there was only one thing that felt out of place during the series premiere and that was David Morrissey. He didn’t feel natural or comfortable in the least. At times, he felt stiff and seemed to be trying a little too hard. Suffice to say, he is no James Nesbitt. Nonetheless, the opener was good. An 8 out of 10 is deserved.