Now that we finished our episode by season 1 episode recaps of Amazon’s thriller series, Reacher, we wanted to circle back with a full review of the initial season. Spoilers ahead! We’ll try to keep them to a minimum, but if you haven’t watched the show yet and are considering it, maybe skip to the bottom and just focus on our Watch it of Not verdict.
What’s it About?
Reacher is a thriller series focusing on the exploits of its title character – Jack Reacher. Reacher (as he has been known to everyone since childhood, including his mother) is a retired Army Major who headed up a special investigative branch of the military police. His team was brought in on particularly challenging investigations and fugitive retrievals.
Upon retirement, Reacher charted his own course, deciding to simply travel around the United States, without any particular long-term plan (or really even much of a short-term plan other than where he is headed next). He travels largely by bus and gives new meaning to the term ‘travel light’ as he carries nothing but the clothes on his back and a travel toothbrush. It’s not the kind of life most people would choose, but for Reacher, whose father was career Army, the idea of not having to be anywhere at any particular time is very appealing.
Reacher steps off a bus outside a rural town in GA, called Margrave. His reasoning? To visit the town where a famous blues musician allegedly died many years ago. His brother told him the story way back in the day and when he sees the town on his bus route, he decides to step off. But, he is quickly wrapped up in a murder investigation, initially as a suspect (stranger in town) and eventually working with two members of the local police department as they work to uncover a criminal conspiracy with far-reaching implications.
The Novels
The series is based on the first of the ongoing 26 novel Jack Reacher series, by Lee Child (pen name of James Grant) and most recently by Andrew Grant (who wrote the most recent novel). The first novel (Killing Floor – 1997) introduced Jack Reacher to the myster and thriller literary world. Readers welcomed the character with open arms, leading to an amazing run with still more novels to come (the next 2 novels are already in the works).
In the novels, Reacher is described as being a physically imposing man (6’ 5” and in the range of 220 lbs), who is taciturn, serious, and someone of very few words. He also has an unwavering sense of right and wrong, and a penchant for violence, when called upon (which is often).
The Cast
Reacher is played by Alan Ritchson. It’s a notable casting decision as the character has already been seen on the big screen, played by Tom Cruise in two feature films. However, there was some backlash from fans of the books about someone like Cruise (5’ 7”) taking on the role of the giant military investigator. The movies themselves were fine (particularly the first one) but that casting always stuck with a lot of fans and critics. No similar concerns exist with Ritchson, who is 6’ 2” and built like an NFL linebacker. So, from a strictly physical standpoint, he is a good choice. It turns out he also nails the Reacher character pretty well. Admittedly, it mainly requires conveying a quiet but constant threat of violence, speaking fairly little, and being very serious. Regardless, Ritchson does a more than solid job of owning the role.
Officer Roscoe Conklin is played by Willa Fitzgerald, as a tough as nails small town cop, who refuses to take any nonsense, even from someone as big as Reacher. She will become one of the three people who work together (mostly) to solve the murders and bring down the criminal organization at the heart of it all.
Captain Oscar Finlay, played by Malcolm Goodwin, is a big-city homicide detective who came to Margrave to escape his past and has now been sucked into the most dangerous investigation of his career. He and Reacher rub each other the wrong way from the beginning, but they will work together with Roscoe to find the guilty parties and bring them to justice.
Other cast members are solid, but these are the three main characters.
Watch it or Not?
If you’re a fan of the novels, then it’s a no brainer to watch the first season. You will likely find it a good adaptation of the book. If you’re a general fan of thrillers and slower moving action series, it should also be on your watch list. Overall, it’s a solid series. Not earth-shatteringly good, but neither are the books. What we’re talking about is solid, popcorn entertainment. It’s generally well acted, directed, and produced and season 2 is already in the works.
