I have been wondering how many people have seen the Netflix series Lilyhammer? After three seasons that began in 2012, the show was canceled. It seems unclear why. Steve Van Zandt who starred in the series only stated at the time in a tweet, “business got too complicated,” a vague statement at best. Lilyhammer never got the attention that other Netflix shows like House of Cards received at the time. I never heard of the show until recently when I was browsing the Netflix catalog and came across it.
Van Zandt portrays an offshoot of his Sopranos character, Silvio Dante, but do not misunderstand there’s no connection to the earlier show. Still, his character is so close to Silvio you would think there has to be a genetic connection (a brother from another mother). Van Zandt portrays Frank “The Fixer” Tagliano, a New York hood who after co-operating with the Feds, testifying in a trial against a former mob boss, now has a “hit” ordered on his head. Frank is put into the Federal Witness Protection program and requests he is relocated to Lillehammer, Norway (he saw the town on TV when they hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics). He figures whose going to look for him there? Frank’s given a new identity, Giovanni “Johnny” Henriksen, a Norwegian/American immigrant. Frank/Johnny has to learn to adapt to the small Norwegian community, and they to him. It’s not a smooth transition. When certain situations arise that are troubling, Johnny finds it necessary to resort to some of his old tactics.
Lilyhammer is not your typical crime show; it’s offbeat, funny, dark, edgy and as you may imagine bloody. As you may expect the soundtrack is superb thanks to Van Zandt. The show may not be to everyone’s taste, but I found it to be a show to savor and wished it had last longer. If you haven’t seen it, check it out.

Spoiler Alert!!!

The show’s final episode has a special guest.