Sylvester Stallone's Tulsa King season 2 just doubled down on one of the weirdest changes it has made to Armand Truisi's (Max Casella) character after the finale of season 1. Every cast member of Tulsa King season 2 has become an important part of the crime show, and Armand Truisi is no different. After a relatively small role in Tulsa King season 1, he got significantly more screen time, and he has a much bigger effect on the show. Unfortunately, the effect he has isn't positive, and it went against the character development he had in Tulsa King season 1.
Armand has been on a downward spiral for a while, and Tulsa King season 2, episode 8 only made that trend worse. He began working for Cal Thresher (Neal McDonough) as a mole in Dwight's organization, which directly led to the fight at the wind farm and may even make Armand one of the people to blame for Tulsa King's gang war. Right now, Armand is at his lowest: he lost his family, his job, both of his illegal revenue streams, and most of his friends. That, coupled with how he robbed the Bred2Buck, has completely changed the Armand from Tulsa King season 1.
Armand’s Decision To Rob Dwight Goes Against What He Said In Tulsa King Season 1’s Finale
Armand Was Done Running From His Problems, Yet That's All He's Done In Tulsa King Season 2
Armand's decision to rob Dwight and the Bred2Buck comes as quite a surprise, considering what he said at the end of Tulsa King season 1. In the season finale, Armand had a talk with Dwight about how he was tired of running away from his problems, as he did when he originally ran away from New York, and declared that he was "never laying low again." That moment was fairly significant for Armand, as it served as the culmination of his character development, yet Tulsa King season 2 completely undid it.
A lot happened in Tulsa King season 1, but there are 10 things that will be especially important to remember before Tulsa King season 2 comes out.
Throughout Tulsa King season 1, Armand was trying to learn how to face his past instead of running away from it. Armand's decision to stand with Dwight and face Chickie was a way to show that he had finally learned to deal with his problems on his own terms. The ending of Tulsa King season 2, episode 8 and Armand's decision to rob the Bred2Buck, however, completely undid that. Armand had been facing several challenges all season, but instead of directly addressing them, he made a series of bad decisions that culminated in him running away, both metaphorically and literally.
Tulsa King Set Up Armand’s Change, But That Doesn’t Make It Better
Even Though Armand Is Going Through A Lot, His Backslide Is Regrettable
Tulsa King has gone to great lengths to show why Armand is back to running from his problems and why it undid all of his character development. He's faced so many overwhelming problems this season, from his divorce from Clara (Stephanie Kurtzuba) and the child support payments, his ongoing debt to Dwight, the mess he got into with Cal Thresher, and his drinking problem. Even though it makes sense that Armand would want to run away from his problems again, that doesn't change the fact that undoing his development from Tulsa King season 1 was a disappointing choice.
Tulsa King Season 2 Release Schedule
Episode #
Date
Title
1
September 15
"Back in the Saddle"
2
September 22
"Kansas City Blues"
3
September 29
"Oklahoma v. Manfredi"
4
October 6
"Heroes and Villains"
5
October 13
"Tilting at Windmills"
6
October 20
"Navigator"
7
October 27
"Life Support"
8
November 3
"Under New Management"
9
November 10
TBA
10
November 17
TBA
Armand worked very hard in Tulsa King season 1 to get to a point where he didn't have to run away from his problems anymore. He conquered his fear and anxiety and summoned the courage to meet with Chickie, even though he had been fearing for his life for decades at that point. It's a shame that after so much effort, Tulsa King season 2 immediately undid all of Armand's growth. His challenges in Tulsa King season 2 make sense from a narrative standpoint, but it is sad to see a character who had already grown so much turn into a side villain.
Armand's challenges in Tulsa King season 2 make sense from a narrative standpoint, but it is sad to see a character who had already grown so much turn into a side villain.
Not only has Tulsa King season 2 undone Armand's character development, it has also taken away all the potential he had for the season. Armand could have been a really important and valuable part of Dwight's gang: since he lived in New York and Tulsa, he has the same mafia knowledge as someone like Goodie (Chris Caldovino), mixed with the local knowledge that someone like Mitch Keller (Garrett Hedlund) brought. Instead of making Armand a key player in the gang, however, Tulsa King season 2 essentially made him do the same thing he did in season 1 - run from his problems.
Tulsa King Could Have Used Another Character To Fill Armand’s Role, & It Would Have Worked So Much Better
Goodie Could Have Been The Source Of Tulsa King Season 2's Betrayal Instead
What makes Armand's regression even worse is the fact that Tulsa King could have had its cake and eaten it too without ruining Armand. If Tulsa King season 2 was set on having a core member of Dwight's gang betray him, Goodie would have been a much better choice than Armand. Goodie is one of the newest members of the gang, and he only joined Dwight because he didn't like Chickie that much. He had almost no allegiance, almost no character development in Tulsa King season 1, and he had already betrayed one mob boss.
Sylvester Stallone's time as an Oklahoma gangster is set to continue in Tulsa King season 2, and the new season is set to begin in September.
Using Goodie as the turncoat of Tulsa King season 2 would have not only preserved Armand's character development, it could have worked much better. Armand's betrayal has been signposted since the first episode of the season, and while Goodie's betrayal wouldn't have been very surprising, it couldn't have been less surprising than Armand's. Plus, Goodie could have made New York much more intimidating by confirming a Tulsa King theory about Chickie that said he had planted Goodie as a mole in Dwight's operation. Basically, Goodie would have been the perfect person to betray Dwight, and Armand paid the price for that missed opportunity.
What’s Going To Happen To Armand In Tulsa King Season 2?
Armand Might Not Get Out Of Tulsa King Season 2 Alive
While it isn't ideal that Armand was the one to betray Dwight, that is where the end of Tulsa King season 2 is going with his story. Now that he's robbed the Bred2Buck, Armand is quickly running out of options, and Goodie's threat that Dwight would skin him alive is looking to be more of a certainty. Armand will probably have to double down on running away from his problems, as nowhere near Tulsa will be safe for him anymore. The only advantage he has is that Dwight has bigger fish to fry in his war with Bill Bevilaqua and his revenge against Jackie Ming.
Armand will probably have to double down on running away from his problems, as nowhere near Tulsa will be safe for him anymore.
Armand will probably use that advantage to get as far away from Oklahoma as possible, perhaps to Mexico. There is, however, another possibility: Armand could finally stop running from his problems and decide to face Dwight and accept the responsibility for his actions. He could give Clara and his children the money and surrender to Dwight, hoping that it would be worth enough to keep them safe. If he goes that route, Armand could recreate the character development Tulsa King season 2 undid.
Tulsa King is a Paramount+ original TV series starring Sylvester Stallone as Dwight "The General" Manfredi. After being released from prison for murder, The General is sent to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he quickly sets up a new criminal empire. Tulsa King marks Stallone's first leading role in a TV show.
English (US) ·