At this moment in time, watching a thriller like “Homecoming” is a fairly cathartic experience. The new season, like its first, is chock-full of destructive corporate greed, elaborate lies and cover-ups, gaslighting, and slow-building dread. Its interrogation of capitalism, the military industrial complex, and corporate culture would warm my socialist heart any day of the week, but “Homecoming” feels especially prescient now, during the COVID-19 crisis. If nothing else, a global clusterfuck is the perfect time to be skeptical, even suspicious, of corporations and government institutions.

Janelle Monáe succeeds Julia Roberts’ as series lead in “Homecoming” Season 2. She, like Roberts’ character last season, is struggling with memory loss and trying to figure out exactly how she is connected to the Geist Group. Along the way, several familiar faces pop up, including the ambitious, conflicted Audrey Temple (played by the always wonderful Hong Chau).

There’s not much more I can say without giving away the podcast adaptation’s twists and turns. But I will mention that this season deals directly with what success can be like for career-driven women, women of color in particular. Basically, “Homecoming” stresses, the game is rigged. Climbing the ranks and gaining respect sometimes mean screwing over other women, or sacrificing one’s own moral compass. There’s also resentment from colleagues to contend with, as well as undue judgement. For instance, is Audrey ruthless, or is she just following her white co-workers’ playbook? What’s worse, selling out or being continuously underestimated and ignored?

Roberts sticks around as executive producer on Season 2 of “Homecoming,” but on-screen, the story is firmly Monáe and Chau’s. The cliffhangers and mysteries are definitely compelling, but the portrayals of women doing whatever it takes to prosper, that’s what makes this season worth watching.

The second season of “Homecoming” is now streaming on Amazon Prime.