I'll be writing my review of Season 1 of Amazon Original's "Reacher" soon, once I finish bingeing all eight episodes (I'm up to Episode 4). "Reacher" is based on the character of Jack Reacher from the Lee Child novels, popularized by Tom Cruise in two movies ("Jack Reacher" and "Jack Reacher: Never Go Back"). There were a lot of complaints when Cruise was cast in the role of Reacher because novelist Child describes Reacher as huge. Cruise, while a dominating screen presence, dominates mainly thanks to a steely gaze and an intense demeanor: he's actually a pretty shrimpy guy in reality (the trivia is that Cruise is, in fact, too short to qualify as an F-14 pilot, the character he played in the "Top Gun" films). The Jack Reacher of the novels, meanwhile, is as physically imposing as a large wall come to life.
Strangely enough, I have read one Jack Reacher novel: Killing Floor. And by a bizarre coincidence, Season 1 of "Reacher" is essentially a retelling of that very novel, so I already know the story. The TV show is following the plot of the novel fairly faithfully, and there's been no attempt, from what I've seen, to turn the show into a PC wokefest. Reacher, as written by Child, is an unrepentant Gary Stu: he knows things, he wins fights, and he always gets his man. This can become tiresome in the same way that Mary Sues can become tiresome (see my old review of "The Last Jedi"), but so far, the show has maintained my interest.
More on this later. Expect a full review.
I've heard good things about this. Unfortunately, I don't think it is on Netflix, which is the only streaming service we have. And you already know my position on having multiple streaming services...
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's an Amazon Original series, so those of us with Amazon Prime can see it without paying anything extra. Amazon Prime is, of course, more than just about streaming video: it's about free shipping and other perks, video being one of them. I wondered whether you already had Prime, but it sounds as though you don't. I use Amazon often enough that Prime pays for itself over the course of a year, but other people's mileage may vary.
ReplyDeleteI used to have Prime through my brother, but that ended a while back. I don't use Amazon enough to make it worth it otherwise.
ReplyDelete