There’s a moment during the Season 2 premiere of Going Dutch when the Stroopsdorf base camp — led by Denis Leary’s magnetic curmudgeon Colonel Patrick Quinn — undergoes a training exercise to evaluate the soldiers’ field combat abilities. This “team-building” activity is supposed to be harmless, educational, and most of all, fun. After all, it’s just laser tag (but also, the kind that stuns you down to the ground). Yet for a workout that its squad shouldn’t be taking too seriously, that blend makes it hilariously messy in the best way for its band of merry characters. Moving between funny and slightly awkward, the moment is also kind of revealing if you’re paying close attention. It’s a beat that lands harder than you think when you consider this one character’s very spirited choice, which is a clear indicator of what we might expect this season. As a sitcom that is still very much character-driven while poking at emotional bruises with humor, the sophomore entry doesn’t explode out of the gate like its debut. But its first three episodes made available for review prove Going Dutch settles into a rhythm of steady laughs alongside a deeper understanding of its ensemble and familiarity.
What Is Season 2 of ‘Going Dutch’ About?

Going Dutch picks up right where things left off, which matters more than usual when it comes to the show’s new love triangle between Maggie (Taylor Misiak), Shah (Danny Pudi), and his estranged wife, Celeste (Milana Vayntrub), which is the underlying focus, though none of it plays out like a daytime soap opera. Instead, Celeste’s introduction changes the emotional temperature at Stroopsdorf, as Maggie previously hoped for something to transpire between her and Shah. But that is all now under the rug as Celeste and Shah “kiss-jog” (it’s definitely a thing…) while proving they’re very much together. Maggie isn’t melting down or spiraling, but she is trying to act as normal as she can, even if her dad, Colonel Quinn, notices something. While this gives Maggie a slightly different kind of emotional conflict this season, her relationship with Quinn is still Going Dutch’s core engine, especially as they connect more. But for Quinn, he’s also dealing with his ex, Katja (Catherine Tate), who doesn’t make it easy for him — at least at first. The fallout from their breakup in Season 1 doesn’t just go away, but gets folded into the background hum of Stroopsdorf. As Katja re-enters the picture as an active agent of chaos, she creates conflict that also turns into something more public and disruptive, altering the way the U.S. base relates to the town around it. However, it is still the least threatening military posting in the world. Quinn is relentlessly trying to force the old-world order here, but the emotional wellness days with tulips popping up everywhere and making people happy alongside cheese breaks really put a dent in his plans. Of course, external challenges shake things up enough to make things exciting, but the stakes are intentionally modest. At best, these are situational headaches mixed with petty power struggles (most times, through archaic masculinity norms embedded in the U.S. military’s MO) that feel enormous to the people living inside them.
‘Going Dutch’s Cast Is Confident and Settled In

After a very funny first season, Going Dutch has fully settled into its rhythms. Leary’s Quinn is still pretty brash, opinionated, and fundamentally allergic to any sort of introspection, but the performance feels less about trying to establish who this angry boomer is and more about pausing for some air. Leary brings a little more control to Quinn this time around as he lives in some of the character’s more silent moments. The funniest winks in his performance aren’t always the blow-ups, but in the way he visibly tries to be reasonable for half a second, realizes he hates every single bit of that, and snaps right back into his signature gruffness. That same “settled in” kind of confidence is seen with the rest of the cast. Misiak creates a tighter, more reflective Maggie where you see her swallowing reactions and forcing herself back into professionalism. It’s the moments where her jealousy or frustration slips out that make the show feel sharper (and more human) instead of sitcom-y. Meanwhile, Pudi’s Shah remains Quinn and Maggie’s pressure valve, playing the role with deadpan precision and a side-eye that does more than a monologue. There’s a great sight gag in the third episode, “There’s No PX Like Home” that sums up Pudi’s spunky energy perfectly: Shah is caught between two competing orders, and you can watch him physically “compute” what to do in real time, selling the joke with nothing but good timing, microscopic facial shifts, and one perfectly dry line that earns a hearty chuckle. While the show’s three leads offer striking comedic relief and weight to the series, its delightful ensemble continues to round out the world without overcrowding, like Corporal Papadakis (Hal Cumpston) or Master Sergeant Dana Conway (Laci Mosley). The two each come into their own this season, while Jan (Arnmundur Ernst Björnsson) remains one of Going Dutch’s funniest secret weapons, strictly for his sharp delivery and blunt contrast with Quinn and Shah, helping to create some of the most amusing moments. Katja is also back to her usual self, with Tate giving us gumption and charm while creating a bit of a hellscape for Leary’s character (at least, at first). And of course, Vayntrub adds a slightly chaotic warmth to the series that changes the vibe just by being there, since Celeste is a bit of a simpleton, but also eager to make it work with her estranged husband.
‘Going Dutch’s Writing Chooses Consistency Over Flash

Image via FOX

One of the best things about Season 2’s writing is how rarely it grabs the obvious sitcom crutch. Plenty of network comedies turn their lowest points into a big speech or lesson, but Going Dutch never flattens its characters or their nuanced emotions into a checklist. So much of its comedy comes from choices that feel irritatingly human, like a perfectly “reasonable” plan that falls apart the second someone’s ego enters the room, or a well-meaning gesture that lands like an insult because nobody bothered to think it through. But the show’s especially good and quick at those reversals, too — where the conversation starts sincere, then one person can’t resist making it personal, and suddenly everyone’s acting like they’re 12.

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With Leary leading the pack and setting the tone, it helps that the writing from showrunners Joel Church-Cooper and Hilary Winston trusts the cast’s reactions in a show that has clearly found its lane. The jokes are never screamed or “loud,” so to speak. There are still sight gags and characters that live in the awkward spaces for some solid laughs. All that being said, Season 2 isn’t trying to conquer new territory across the network TV comedy landscape. It’s just doubling down on its strengths with characters that feel real enough and delivering a reliably good half hour of TV with enough heart to keep you enlisted as it remains one of the best comedies on TV.

Going Dutch Season 2 airs Thursday on Fox.

Release Date

January 2, 2025

Network

FOX

Directors

Jason Winer, Trent O’Donnell, Declan Lowney, Maurice Marable

Writers

Rene Gube, Joel Church-Cooper, Laura Moran, Jason Belleville, Gian-Paul Bergeron

Parker Young

Special Agent Rick Silver

Pros & Cons

The show is still reliably funny, and it never has to shout to get a laugh.
Denis Leary nails the pauses and reaction beats, not just the big blow-ups.
The love-triangle tension stays grounded, so it feels awkward in a real way, not like a soap stunt.

Season 2 doesn’t hit the same comedy highs as Season 1 did.
The stakes stay modest, which keeps it breezy but limits the punch sometimes.