Why Maeve Lets Eddie Get Away With Everything In MobLand & What I Think Her Real Plan With Vron Is

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for the first three episodes of MobLand

Helen Mirren stars in the Paramount+ crime drama MobLand as the oft-lubricated family matriarch Maeve Harrigan, whose volatility is best-demonstrated by her relationship with her antagonistic grandson Eddie. Starring Pierce Brosnan, Tom Hardy, and Paddy Considine alongside Mirren, MobLand chronicles the exploits of the various members of the Harrigan Irish crime family and their closest associates in modern-day London, along with the various parties that oppose them. By the end of episode 3 of MobLand, the Harrigans look headed for all-out war, largely thanks to the actions of Maeve and Eddie Harrigan.

The latest episode saw Tom Hardy’s Harry Da Souza put the brakes on the explosive conflict with the Stevensons that the Harrigans were careening towards thanks to Eddie (Anson Boon). However, Maeve doesn’t seem to have any intention of letting a measure of peace take hold. As she has in each of the first three episodes, she flexed her influence over her husband, Conrad, as he plotted out the overall direction of their criminal enterprise. It’s clear that there’s more to Maeve than her role as the supportive wife of a gang boss.

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I Can’t Believe Tom Hardy Doesn’t Have The Most Distracting Accent In MobLand

MobLand features several A-list stars in its cast led by Tom Hardy, who actually doesn’t have the most distracting accent in the London-based show.

No Matter What Eddie Does In MobLand, Maeve Treats Him Like He’s Perfect

She Labels Him A “True Harrigan”

Eddie Harrigan has proven to be both foolish and violent, a dangerous combination for someone with his privilege and resources. While he initially denied it, episode 3 of MobLand saw Eddie’s vicious murder of his rival Tommy Stevenson come to light. After stabbing him “50 or 60 times”, he paid a man named Valjon to dispose of the body, which he unfortunately did not do before Harry got to him. The murder is a straightforward path to an all-out war between the Harrigans and their south London rivals the Stevensons, who control the fentanyl side of the city’s drug trade.

However, while Eddie’s father Kevin (Considine) is so furious that he uses a cattle prod to punish his son, Maeve could not be more thrilled with his actions. Her doting attitude towards her grandson is made clear when she produces cocaine for him from her bra in episode 2, but it was cemented in episode 3 when the confirmation of his guilt made its way to Conrad. As Conrad prepares to chastise Eddie, Maeve cuts him off and tells him to make it clear how much they support Eddie’s actions, labeling him a “true Harrigan” for moving on an enemy.

I Think Maeve Knows Eddie’s Actions Will Lead To A War With Richie

She Encourages His Antagonistic Behavior To Kick Off A War

While some of Maeve’s behavior is likely born out of the wine glasses she constantly has in her hand during waking hours, it’s clear that she has a method to her madness. At every turn, Maeve has encouraged Conrad to make moves that would bring the Harrigans closer to conflict with the Stevensons, who up to this point had operated in a different drug trade and different territory so that the two families could conduct business under the conditions of an uneasy truce. Her support of Eddie’s murder is only the most obvious example.

Maeve clearly wants a war with the Stevensons to come to pass, although her reason for it is yet unknown. It’s possible that she is simply operating out of pride and confidence in her family and their enterprise, but that seems far too simple an answer for someone seemingly operating in the shadows. So far, she’s congratulated Eddie’s murder, lobbied Conrad to pursue fentanyl despite that being the Stevensons’ game, and encouraged him to kill his old friend Archie as a grass or rat. Those aren’t the moves of someone interested in doing good business.

Is Maeve The One Really Pulling The Strings In MobLand?

She’s Proven Her Influence Multiple Times

It seems as though Maeve is the one calling the shots for the Harrigans, even if the orders are technically coming down from Conrad. He has essentially operated as her puppet so far, with him following her direction in killing Archie, not coming down on Eddie for killing Tommy Stevenson, and most recently choosing to take the most important members of the Stevensons’ crime organization, whether the Stevensons move first or not. She’s also proven herself to be particularly cold and bloodthirsty when it comes to killing, as evidenced by her plan for Vron.

Vron is the wife of Richie Stevenson, and the mother of the recently-slain Tommy Stevenson. After Maeve tells Conrad that they should go after the Stevensons themselves and take over the fentanyl trade in London, she clarifies that their first target should be Vron, and not Richie. Firstly, she knows where and how to get to Vron (whether they both actually like her or not). Secondly, she makes it clear that she wants Richie to suffer more before he dies. It’s an unnecessarily cruel twist that Conrad seems hesitant to act on, but goes along with, proving that Maeve could be the most dangerous character in MobLand.

MobLand

Release Date

March 30, 2025

Network

Paramount+

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  Pierce Brosnan

  Conrad Harrigan