Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 Episode 1 Review: A Brother's Burden Takes Center Stage

Critic’s Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

4.5

The Mayor of Kingstown is back, and it’s better than ever. 

The final episode of Season 3 ended on a tragic note for many reasons, and there’s no doubt that Mike is feeling a little anxious, wondering if he’s done everything he could to change things.

Even after steering through the chaos and overcoming challenges in Mayor of Kingstown Season 3 Episode 10, Mike still found himself more exposed and in a more precarious position than ever before. 

His brother has been arrested, Iris is dead, and even though Callahan seems to be powerless now, he has to face the cold truth that sometimes, even he can’t save the people he cares about most. 

But when I thought the show couldn’t get any more thrilling, I was proved utterly wrong. Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 Episode 1 proved it still has plenty of devastating punches left to deliver.

The premiere opened with emotions running high as Mike tried everything to keep his brother, Kyle, out of prison. 

Of course, he is, as Mike knows that everyone inside the Anchor Bay Prison would want to have a piece of Kyle because he’s a cop. He is prison royalty, and killing a cop inside those confined walls would make the inmate a legend. 

Luckily, Kyle has found a way out, and even though he is going to prison, he won’t be spending a lot of time in a stinking cell. He has struck a deal with the DA, and if he behaves like a good boy, the former cop will be out in just six months.

Easy right? Well, things are never that easy in Kingstown, and Mike knows that better than anyone. 

Mike’s life has been a roller coaster, but I have never seen him this desperate before, and there are several reasons for that. But the biggest reason is his brother going to jail, and all of it happened because of a mess created by someone else.

This entire situation is clearly a desperate maneuver. We all know that Kyle isn’t going to prison to save Robert; he is doing it to ensure Robert doesn’t open his mouth, because if he does, he’ll take a lot of people with him — and that’s the last thing Mike would want. 

The decision speaks volumes about the lengths a person will go to for self-preservation. It’s clear why Kyle didn’t open his mouth after the events of Mayor of Kingstown Season 3 Episode 10. 

He wanted to save his colleagues, but even that act of loyalty has led him straight into the lion’s den.

That’s not the only thing Mike needs to be worried about. We already know that Mike had an agreement with Kareem, and he wanted to establish a similar relationship with Nina Hobbs, the new warden of Anchor Bay Prison.

She is one character that I am really excited to know more about. Kareem was Mike’s go-to guy to keep things peaceful inside the prison, but his tragic death in the Season 3 finale changed everything.

Mike believed that he would just talk to the new warden and let her know who “actually” runs this prison. However, she is a strong-headed woman and has already made it clear that Mike would have to play by her rules, not the other way around.

This immediate clash of wills is why I’m already invested in her arc. Hobbs doesn’t seem like just a replacement for Kareen; she feels like a tectonic shift in the entire Kingstown power structure.

She goes by the books, and her strict adherence to that rulebook makes me realize that she could become one of the biggest obstacles for Mike this time around.

Hobbs is not playing Mike’s game, and that promises an incredibly exciting, high-stakes collision.

An Emergence of a New Threat in Kingstown

In Mayor of Kingstown Season 3, Mike was dealing with a lot of problems: the Russians, Callahan, and Iris.

The finale might have eliminated a lot of enemies, but that means a new threat might knock on the door, and the premiere didn’t take much time in letting us know that the war for Kingstown is far from over.

Mike has barely finished cleaning up the last war when the next one is already encroaching, and I feel like this new nemesis is less a formal challenger and more of a creeping, deadly infection. 

The episode does a phenomenal job of introducing us to the new antagonist, Frank Moses. And frankly, I am already convinced that he poses a more unsettling threat than any villain Mike has faced before.

His arrival, marked by the brutal train tracks beheading, immediately sets a terrifying new bar for violence. 

Unlike methodical or politically driven kills we have seen from the Russians or the systemic brutality of the prison gangs, this act is pure, visual savagery. 

It’s a horrific yet powerful display of brute force that reveals a complete lack of humanity, making it all the more frightening. In all honesty, the sheer gruesomeness of the execution surpasses some of the coldest of Milo’s hits.

This chilling spectacle makes Moses instantly menacing, positioning him as a dangerous wildcard in Mike’s already volatile life.

What’s more worrying is that this new danger is unseen, and Mike has no idea who the true puppet master is, making this ruthless new nemesis a force to be reckoned with.

It suggests that the protagonist might finally be facing a fight where his trademark grit and heavy hand won’t be enough — a bold and welcome evolution for the narrative.

A Brother’s Burden

Despite the introduction of formidable new characters, the true tragedy in the premiere lies with the siblings.

A deal might have been struck with the DA’s office, but it itself is a stark admission of failure. Kyle wants to leave Kingstown, a sentiment that clearly reflects the toll this life has taken on him. 

He didn’t even think twice before putting himself on the line and saving his friends. So, it’s no surprise that Mike feels he failed as a brother. 

Why? He basically runs the entire town, and, unable to save his own brother, he realizes that some things are even beyond his control. 

Kyle knows the gravity of the threat — the unspoken law that mandates his suffering —but he walks toward it for a freedom that may never truly come. It’s not just fear in his eyes; it’s the bitter realization that he has traded one cage for a colder, more lethal one.

But the larger picture is more tragic. Mike and Kyle are the only surviving members of their family, having already lost so much to this violent, unforgiving city.

They are like the last standing pillars of a kingdom built on blood and sacrifice. It’s tough for Mike to see all of it crashing down, and with Kyle behind bars, the city has found a way to steal him, too.

Mike feels lost, and the emotional core of his isolation can be seen in his devastating exchange with Evelyn, where he makes it clear that she is dead to him. 

This is one of the most pivotal moments of his story, and it would be interesting to see whether he genuinely means what he says or just said it because of his brother’s current predicament.

It also solidifies his role as an emotionally isolated figure, someone who didn’t shy away from sacrificing every meaningful relationship for a city that keeps demanding more. 

However, things are not going to settle down anytime soon, and the attack on Kyle in the prison will be the final breaking point.

The premiere has laid a strong foundation for the new season; it’s setting up something apocalyptic. I felt it like a reminder that in Kingstown, every debt must be paid in blood, and freedom might be the hardest thing to attain here.

Meanwhile, the additions of Edie Falco and Lennie James as Hobbs and Moses are more than just star power; they go hand in hand with the show’s dark structure. 

Falco’s involvement instantly escalates the prison’s power struggle with a chilling authority. She has always been known for portraying anti-hero characters, and this might turn out to be something more substantial than her previous roles.

On the other hand, James, who excels at playing morally ambiguous characters, is a formidable threat from the outside world. 

They both bring a pedigree of anchoring gritty dramas, making sure that their personalities carry immense weight that complements the high stakes of the Mayor of Kingstown. Regardless of what’s to come, the season is off to a good start.

Do you think Mike will now go head-to-head with Hobbs and retaliate for his brother’s attack? And how is Moses going to fit into the town’s ecosystem?
 
Let’s hear your thoughts about the season premiere of Mayor of Kingstown Season 4 in the comments below.