What Is the Conflict Between the Harrigan and Stevenson Families in MobLand?
The central conflict in MobLand revolves around the increasingly volatile tensions between two powerful crime families—the Harrigans and the Stevensons. What begins as an incident involving younger generation members rapidly escalates into a dangerous standoff that threatens to evolve into all-out war between these criminal dynasties. Understanding the origins, dynamics, and stakes of this conflict provides crucial context for appreciating the series’ central dramatic tension and the precarious position of characters caught between these warring factions.
The immediate catalyst for the conflict appears to be an incident involving Eddie Harrigan (Conrad’s grandson) and Tommy Stevenson at a nightclub. According to witnesses, Eddie “stabbed up another kid in a club” while “coked out of his mind,” after which Tommy fled the scene and subsequently disappeared. This initially personal altercation between younger family members quickly escalates to involve the families’ leadership when Tommy fails to return home, leading his father Richie Stevenson to demand answers from the Harrigans.
The disappearance of Tommy Stevenson transforms what might have been a manageable incident into a potential existential threat for both families. As Richie explicitly states to Harry: “Unless you can put the last person that saw my boy in front of me right now,” there will be consequences. This demand places immediate pressure on the Harrigans to locate Tommy—a task complicated by the fact that, as viewers eventually learn, Tommy has been murdered and dismembered, his remains stored in a freezer at the nightclub.
The power dynamics between the families emerge through their respective approaches to the conflict. The Harrigans, as the more established criminal dynasty, initially adopt a defensive posture. Conrad deploys Harry as his emissary to negotiate with Richie Stevenson, attempting to buy time while seeking information about Tommy’s whereabouts. When the Stevensons attack the vehicle transporting Eddie to the Cotswolds for safekeeping, Conrad moves to protect his grandson but still maintains a preference for de-escalation: “That road only leads to war,” he notes, suggesting he recognizes the potentially catastrophic consequences of full-scale conflict.
Richie Stevenson, by contrast, adopts an increasingly aggressive stance. His ultimatum to Harry—”You said you’d sort it at twelve o’clock. That was the deal”—demonstrates impatience with diplomatic approaches. His willingness to resort immediately to violence is evidenced by the attack on Eddie’s transport vehicle, where his men “shot up the car…with my grandson in it,” as Conrad describes. Most chillingly, Richie escalates to threatening Harry’s daughter Gina, recounting her movements after school and declaring: “Unless you bring back my boy here tonight, then tonight, I’m gonna break your fucking heart in two.”
This willingness to target family members outside the criminal hierarchy represents a significant escalation, violating what appears to be an unspoken code that generally protects non-participant relatives. Harry’s visceral reaction to this threat—experiencing “a vision” with “a very unhappy ending”—suggests Richie has crossed a boundary that could eliminate any possibility of peaceful resolution. The threat to Gina transforms the conflict from a business dispute into a deeply personal vendetta that demands response.
Historical tensions between the families are hinted at throughout these interactions. When Eddie and Tommy are first mentioned together, someone remarks: “Historic moment. Eddie Harrigan and Tommy Stevenson in the same cab. What would their dads say?” This suggests a longstanding separation between the families despite their operation in the same criminal ecosystem. Further context emerges when Conrad discusses business expansion involving “Mexicans, the Stevensons, fentanyl,” indicating the families have some form of business relationship or territorial arrangement that creates overlapping interests.
The conflict is further complicated by questions about Eddie’s reliability and the truth of what happened with Tommy. When Harry interviews Eddie’s friends who were present at the club, they reveal that “Eddie knew him…the manager,” which contradicts Eddie’s earlier account and suggests he may have deliberately arranged the meeting at the club. Additionally, Eddie’s pattern of drug use and impulsive violence—celebrated by his grandmother Maeve as proving he’s “a true Harrigan” but viewed by others as making him “a liability”—raises questions about his responsibility for escalating the situation.
The discovery of Tommy’s dismembered remains in the nightclub freezer dramatically raises the stakes of the conflict. While it remains unclear who exactly murdered Tommy (though the club manager appears responsible, possibly on Eddie’s behalf), this confirmation of Tommy’s death eliminates any possibility of resolving the situation by simply locating the missing Stevenson heir. Once Richie learns of his son’s murder, full-scale war becomes virtually inevitable, placing both families and their associates in mortal danger.
The conflict between the families reveals broader themes about the nature of criminal organizations. Despite their outward appearance of strength and cohesion, both the Harrigans and Stevensons demonstrate significant internal vulnerabilities. The Harrigans struggle with questions of succession and reliability, particularly regarding Eddie’s fitness to eventually assume leadership. Meanwhile, Richie Stevenson’s emotional volatility regarding his missing son potentially compromises strategic thinking, leading him to make threats that could prove counterproductive to his long-term interests.
Individuals caught between the warring families face particularly precarious positions. Harry Da Souza, as the Harrigans’ fixer tasked with resolving the situation, bears the most immediate risk. Richie’s threat against Gina places him in an impossible situation—loyal to the Harrigans but unwilling to sacrifice his daughter’s safety. This forces Harry to accelerate his investigation, leading to the discovery of Tommy’s remains but offering no clear path to de-escalation.
The conflict also attracts increased attention from law enforcement, adding another dimension of pressure to both families. Detective Fisk’s interrogation of Harry suggests police are already monitoring both organizations, and the disappearances of both Archie Hammond and Tommy Stevenson provide potential leverage for building cases against them. Fisk explicitly tells Harry that “the net is closing,” indicating that the increased violence and visibility resulting from the inter-family conflict creates vulnerability to legal consequences that might otherwise be avoided.
Religious and cultural identities further color the family conflict. References to Vron (presumably Richie’s wife) “saying prayers” hint at how faith intersects with criminal violence in these communities. Similarly, Maeve’s emphasis on Conrad’s identity as “an Irish gangster first and an English gentleman second” suggests the conflict may have ethnic dimensions, with the Irish-identified Harrigans potentially facing off against rivals with different cultural backgrounds.
As the conflict escalates, the prospect of negotiated resolution appears increasingly remote. Richie’s declaration that he will “descend on the Cotswolds like a plague of fucking locusts” if Tommy isn’t returned unharmed has already been rendered impossible by Tommy’s death. With Harry now aware of Tommy’s fate but unable to deliver him alive as demanded, the series appears poised for dramatic escalation of violence between these powerful criminal organizations, with potentially devastating consequences for all involved.
