Quick LinksMobLand Has No Shortage of Talent, Both On and Off ScreenMobLand Was Originally a Ray Donovan Prequel, And It ShowsIs MobLand on Paramount+ Worth Watching?

The Paramount+ series MobLand is brilliant on paper -- and not so much in execution. The latest in a long line of gangster series boasts a murderers' row of talent, led by Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren. But there's just as much genius behind the camera, including series creator Ronan Bennett, who gave audiences the phenomenal The Day of the Jackal TV series in November. Unfortunately, MobLand never reaches Day of the Jackal's narrative heights, because it's stifled by its own artistry.

MobLand -- which also could've benefited from a better title -- tells the story of two warring crime families in London. The man in the middle is fixer Harry Da Souza, played with a cynical calmness by Venom star Hardy,...