The Hunting Party has officially been renewed by NBC for a second season after a slew of cancellations from the network. The series follows a trio of officers who must track down escaped serial killers from a high-security and secret prison after a massive explosion. The first season followed various storylines connected to the prison, as the series worked as a weekly procedural show, as Bex, Shane, and Ryan worked to find the convicts. For the most part, The Hunting Party focused primarily on the work, with Bex trying to unravel the truth surrounding the prison's explosion and the central trio unraveling the mysteries of the serial killers they were chasing after. Otherwise, The Hunting Party also focused on two primary non-work-related plot lines: Bex's history with her boss Oliver and how that history connected to Bex's relationship with her adopted daughter, and Shane's dedication to trying to find his biological parents.
The Hunting Party relies on the chemistry of its central cast to keep things grounded for the audience, as the killers that the group searches for offer brutal and disturbing actions. Season one was not as interested in expanding on these characters and their relationships outside of their workplace dynamics and other mysteries that relate directly to their more professional plot lines. Season one concludes with Oliver in a particularly bad state, and it is left implied that while things are not looking good for Oliver, it will now be left to season two to officially confirm Oliver's death or reveal a miraculous survival. Season two has the potential to expand on many of these relationships, especially seeing as the central group was officially dismissed from their work at the conclusion of season one.
This opportunity allows for The Hunting Party to explore how these characters may react to each other on a more personal level. Season one showed the group, made up of Bex, Shane, Ryan, Oliver, and Jennifer, work well together professionally, even if they do not all trust each other all the time. Season two can branch out those relationships, creating a stronger sense of a work family as they could potentially grow to care for each other more as friends than just as co-workers. It will definitely be a shock to Shane to discover the truth about who his biological mother is, as the season one finale revealed that Shane's mother is a graduate and former inmate.
Just like former shows on NBC, such as La Brea and Manifest, The Hunting Party has offered subplots that have the potential to stretch out the show's run as the writing team starts to unravel the several dangerous truths that are connected to the show's main plot points and characters. The Hunting Party can grow strong with the ability to move its storylines forward and find a way to make itself unique among the landscape of police-based shows. The upcoming second season has a lot of potential to start to show audiences what they want the series to become. Throughout the first season, the writing team came up with ways to show their villains as despicable while crafting an interesting team that can break down the villains in a way that psychologically analyzes them. This is a group of main characters with the potential to help the series grow, and NBC's choice to renew the show gives the writing team and characters the opportunity to show the network and audiences why they deserve it.