Netflix has an early holiday gift for subscribers, especially those who feel a bit sick from all the sweet holiday television treats networks lavish on us this time of year.
Season 3 of Netflix’s original series “Lilyhammer” is ready for customers to put into their streaming queues right now. And it’s a delightful return to Lillehammer, Norway — complete with gorgeous photography that showcases the site of the 1994 Winter Olympics and the 2016 Winter Youth Olympics.
Don’t be confused when you tune into the first episode. You won’t see star-writer-executive producer Steven Van Zandt (who most people know as guitarist Little Steven from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band) in the first few minutes.
Instead, the scene shows a raucous party scene in Brazil in which Mr. Van Zandt’s TV sidekick Torgeir (Norwegian actor Trond Fausa) is dancing — as the saying goes “like no one is watching” — among a bevy of beautiful women. Unless you catch Torgeir’s constantly worn mesh black-and white baseball cap with “I heart girls” lettered just above the dirt stain on the front, you may not know it’s him.
Fear not. Mr. Van Zandt’s alter ego — former gangster Frank “The Fixer” Tagliano, who lives in Lillehammer, Norway, courtesy of the Federal Witness Protection Program — soon turns everyone’s lives upside down after he confronts a man he sees punching and choking a woman.
Anyone familiar with Mr. Van Zandt’s portrayal of mobster and strip club owner Silvio Dante in the award-winning HBO series “The Sopranos” has a good idea of his character in “Lilyhammer.”
“Van Zandt’s new role is so close to his old one, it’s almost as if Dante woke from his coma, turned government informant and decamped for Lillehammer to escape from the Mafia he betrayed,” wrote Variety’s Andrew Wallenstein.
But Mr. Van Zandt maintains that the two characters are wholly separate and distinct.
Whichever perspective a viewer chooses, it’s difficult not to enjoy the sometimes comical antics of Mr. Van Zandt’s gangster-turned-defender of the underdog who also corrupts almost crime-free Norway in strangely odd ways.
We don’t want to spoil your “Lilyhammer” experience, so we’re not going to tell you much about the plot except to say that you’ll see the return of a few characters you thought were gone for good.
At the same time, you may wonder if Torgeir’s brother Roar (Norwegian actor Steinar Sagen) may reach the end of his life in his quest for love that took him to Brazil.
One of the bonuses of Mr. Van Zandt’s creative direction on the show is the incredible music in each episode. This episode is no exception. A guest performance by Gary U.S. Bonds and music by others, including Curtis Mayfield and Jeff Beck, add to the fun.
Unwrap the new season of “Lilyhammer,” and you’ll agree it is one fine holiday treat.
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