the series doesn't back away from the operatic tone set in the freshman season. Like Kane himself, "Boss," which is loosely based on Shakespeare's "King Lear," is "big, dramatic and epic," he said.

"That's the scale of the piece that we chose to do," Grammer said. "We wanted to do something akin to tragedy."

The first season delivered plenty of tragic, epic storytelling, ending with Kane sprawled on the floor in the grips of a seizure caused by the degenerative neurological disorder that he knows will eventually kill him.

Johnson, who joined the series this season as co-showrunner with "Boss" creator Farhad Safinia, said the "unique tone" of the show was part of the appeal for her. The veteran producer of such dramas as "The Good Wife,""Army Wives,""Southland"and "ER" believes thecity and trying to repair his legacy. After chucking almost everyone from his inner circle last season—including senior adviser Ezra Stone (Martin Donovan) and chief of staff Kitty O'Neill (Kathleen Robertson)—Kane has surrounded himself with new staff members whom he doesn’t quite trust.

"Some of what happens in this season is a fallout from that," Grammer said. "He's unaccustomed to have to explain to people what he needs from them, so he's a little quick tempered in the beginning of this season, of course, with some of his new aides.

"We've got some terrific people that have joined the cast this year."

Jonathan Groff comes on board as Ian Todd, Kane's new adviser with a secret of his own. Sanaa Lathan plays Mona Fredericks, chief of staff to one of Kane's