Tulsa King: Rules A Very Profitable Kingdom

Tulsa King is an original gangster Dwight Manfredi (Sly) tale, who builds and rules a very profitable kingdom in Oklahoma. It is Sylvester ‘Sly’ Stallone’s first leading role in a series.

Sly has charisma and broad shoulders to carry the show’s heavyweights. Moreover, it’s hard to believe that the OG (original gangster) Sly is going to be 80 years old, in a couple of years.

Series Review [Spoiler-Free]: “Tulsa King” (Season 1 & Season 2)

King Builds & Rules A Profitable Kingdom In Oklahoma, But…

Recap of the Season 1 (2022-2023)

The first season of this series chronicles the journey of Dwight “The General” Manfredi (Sylvester Stallone), a New York Mafia capo recently released from a 25-year incarceration. Following his release from prison, he is unexpectedly sent into exile by his superior to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight gradually gathers a group of unlikely allies to assist him in establishing a new criminal operation in Tulsa, a locale that appears as foreign as another planet.

Dwight David Manfredi (Sylvester Stallone) derives his name from Dwight David Eisenhower, who served as the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe during World War II. Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States.

Synopsis of the Season 2 (2024)

In Tulsa, Dwight and his team are focused on building and defending their expanding empire. However, as they start to gain stability, they realize they are not the only ones with ambitions in the area. With threats from the Kansas City mob and a powerful local businessman looming, Dwight must navigate the complexities of protecting his family and crew while keeping track of his various commitments. Additionally, he has unfinished matters to resolve back in New York.

Show creator Taylor Sheridan

As we have mentioned above, it is a show about the Italian Mafia Gangsters of New York, wherein Dwight is a capo (or a “made member”) of an Italian crime family. Therefore, in a way, it is a series about how an Original Gangster Dwight goes about setting up the lucrative (legal and illegal) business empire in Tulsa.

Notably, we have reviewed quite a few shows coming out of Taylor Sheridan’s body of works in the recent past. Therefore, allow us to name a bunch of series created by Taylor, 1883, 1923, Yellowstone, Mayor of Kingstown and Special Ops: Lioness.

Significantly, it is a different kind of modern gangster tale from the show creator Taylor Sheridan and his ever-expanding cinematic universe. So, let us wait to see what kind of entertainment, he serves us next.

Poster

Meet the top characters

As expected, Sylvester Stallone portrays the lead character, Dwight ‘The General’ Manfredi, with a lot of style and charisma. Thus, it is fascinating to watch Dwight start from zero and take the rock-solid gangster approach to expand his businesses. In this show, he indeed emerges as the uncrowned Tulsa King.

For this reason, this OG is respected by his friends and foes alike. The rest of the ensemble cast also played their parts well in this action comedy-drama series.

Besides, Sly, we also liked the performances of Dana Delany (Margaret), Jay Will (Tyson), Martin Starr (Bodhi), Garrett Hedlund (Mitch), Frank Grillo (Bill Bevilaqua), Neal McDonough (Cal Thresher), Max Casella (Armand Truisi), Vincent Piazza (Vince Antonacci), Domenick Lombardozzi (Charles ‘Chickie’ Invernizzi), etc.

What’s good?

For a change, this time we are going to share the five things that we loved about the Tula King series. Firstly, we loved the swagger and well-heeled style of Sylvester Stallone (Dwight aka Tulsa King) in this mob series. Indeed, Sly acts like a true boss of the Mafia.

Moreover, he is fun to watch in both comedy and action scenes.

Secondly, almost every member of his rag-tag team of fresh (wannabe gangsters) recruits is entertaining to watch.

Thirdly, each of the actors has managed to add a little extra to their characters. Fourthly, the writers and directors of the series have done a fairly good job of surprising us with its (expected and unexpected) twists and turns.

Opening title credit scene

The opening sequence of credits reveals a collection of photographic and painted scenes, featuring Oklahoma’s landmarks, overlaid on the urban landscape of New York City.

• The Golden Driller Statue is imposed on NY’s Statue of Liberty.
• Route 66 Western Gateway Arch is superimposed on NY’s Major Manhattan “Avenue”.
• A Statue of The Sioux Indian Chief “Touch the Clouds” wearing a War Bonnet and a Bone Choker necklace (breastplate) imposed on top of NY’s Brooklyn Bridge.

Maybe, in a way, it highlights and conveys the basic theme that the Tulsa (King) is going to overshadow and eventually take over the mob business and kingdom of New York (King).

Aside from the airport and a few exterior establishing shots, the predominant filming location for the series was Oklahoma City, not Tulsa.

Ratings

Conclusion

Like us, if you are a big fan of Sylvester Stallone, then it is a must-watch. Moreover, the cliffhanger endings in both seasons have compelled us to come back and watch Tulsa King.

Key Details

The Trailers: Two Seasons

We are not sharing the "Ending Explained", as many FM readers have told us that they do not wish to be informed about its surprise endings. 

Awards & Nominations Won

Posters, Featured and Other Images of the Tulsa King (S1 & S2) Series are credited to Amazon Prime Video and IMDb.