Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan

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Season 1
Season #: 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
6.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 160 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 104 out of 160
  2. Mixed: 23 out of 160
  3. Negative: 33 out of 160
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  1. Sisyphus
    Sep 2, 2018
    7
    Here’s how it went down probably. No, most certainly.
    Showrunners pitching their “spy thriller” to Amazon.
    Amazon Executives, “Pfft Mr.Cuse we are familiar with your illustrious resume which includes writing for movies such as Rampage and Prestige TV Dramas like ‘The Strain’ but what you have here, I mean – Nuclear weapons, Chemical weapons, Bio weapons, we have all seen it. The show    Here’s how it went down probably. No, most certainly.
    Showrunners pitching their “spy thriller” to Amazon.
    Amazon Executives, “Pfft Mr.Cuse we are familiar with your illustrious resume which includes writing for movies such as Rampage and Prestige TV Dramas like ‘The Strain’ but what you have here, I mean – Nuclear weapons, Chemical weapons, Bio weapons, we have all seen it. The show “24” dedicated a season each to them, the initial ones not the crap that came after. ‘Homeland’ did it. What exactly is different about this “show” of yours”.
    Showrunners look at one another, knowing glances are shared and then one voice (a talentless hack named Carlton Cuse) breaks the silence, “But have you seen a show where the bad guy uses all three in eight episodes”.
    There is a stunned silence in the room. Amazon execs wonder who are these intrepid creators claiming to do what has never been done before. Long pause.
    One young Amazon studio exec finally asks the big question, “That is admittedly brilliant but why will people care even if you have a show like that”
    Carlton Cuse drops the following line, it feels like a bomb went off, he says, “One word, ‘Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan'”.
    Amazon execs stare at them in awe. Ten minutes later the Showrunners walk out with a piggy bank filled with 100 million dollars to create this masterpiece.
    Scene.
    FU AMAZON STUDIOS !!
    My takeaway after watching “Jack Ryan” was, 1) Amazon has Sh&# ton of money 2) Did no one realized after “The Office” ended that John Krasinski had a future on screen?
    Let’s just talk about the show. It is evident lot of money was thrown at it, what you see isn’t in the same league as say early 24, Homeland’s first two seasons or ‘The Americans’.If you were to strip this show of Tom Clancy’s name – I doubt even the charismatic lead could have carried it.
    John Krasinski is not an acting powerhouse but he’s very watchable and I honestly believe he could not have landed a role which was even more tailor made for him. He is a great pick. There is decent work by Wendell Pierce.
    The bad guy…there is screen time devoted to his past in the name of giving him motivation but, I didn’t buy it.
    There’s no effort to shoot action sequences in an interesting way, matter of fact they are poorly edited, you can’t always tell what’s going on. Way more talent was needed behind the screen. Writing is mostly serviceable and plain bad at times. It is not what someone might refer to as a ‘taut’ script.
    MY MASSIVE GRIPE IS ALSO THIS – The trailer ruined so much. Who made it? Did an algorithm design it with the objective of getting someone to pay for prime? I’m really not sure how the Retail and Studio business correlate. The trailer gives away something that would happen towards the latter half of the season. Bad guys and the good guys are after the same person(s), they do manage to build some tension, things might go wrong, you don’t know how it’s going to play out, and hmm…you do actually BECAUSE THE TRAILER REVEALED IT!
    I’m a sucker for such shows so I did binge watch it. I’m not a pro critic I don’t have to rate it strictly on merit, the one question I asked myself after it ended was, “Did it entertain me”, miraculously i found myself nodding and whispering, "Yes, it did". If you like the spy genre and can suspend disbelief then you’ll probably be satisfied with this 100 million dollar mess. Amazon does have another spy drama on its roaster, one not getting too much hype. It’s called ‘Patriot’ – that one I highly recommend. This version of 'Jack Ryan' is only for genre fans.    … Expand
  2. dave89791
    Feb 11, 2019
    0
    Really not quite a 0 but honestly, the writing is really poor.

    It says something about a show when the best scene is when John Krasinski almost gets into a brawl with a restaurant manager/owner The things the terrorists do in the show are really silly and unbelievable. Not to mention that the CIA's actions make no sense either Also, the sound is poorly mixed, the closed    Really not quite a 0 but honestly, the writing is really poor.

    It says something about a show when the best scene is when John Krasinski almost gets into a brawl with a restaurant manager/owner

    The things the terrorists do in the show are really silly and unbelievable.

    Not to mention that the CIA's actions make no sense either

    Also, the sound is poorly mixed, the closed captions interfere with the translations

    I'd take the worst season of homeland over this crap in a heartbeat    … Expand
  3. carlossolrac
    Nov 16, 2018
    4
    It's like Homeland for kheds who went to Newton South mush. Seriously, this show needs some better writing and less predicable outcomes. Go Lions!
  4. EerieDemonble
    Sep 3, 2018
    5
    Amazon wasted a lot of money on this absolutely uninspired show. "Avarage" is the only word that can describe every aspect of this show (except budget).
    - Every plot point is 100% cliche and predictable
    - Acting is passable - No suspense, no thrill, no mystery - Few scenes with cringey progressive propaganda Shame. I was hoping for solid spy-series. Anyway, you won't miss much if you    Amazon wasted a lot of money on this absolutely uninspired show. "Avarage" is the only word that can describe every aspect of this show (except budget).
    - Every plot point is 100% cliche and predictable
    - Acting is passable
    - No suspense, no thrill, no mystery
    - Few scenes with cringey progressive propaganda
    Shame. I was hoping for solid spy-series. Anyway, you won't miss much if you skip this one. Better to rewatch "Homeland" or "Americans".    … Expand
  5. WorstEver
    Sep 1, 2018
    4
    Unmitigated garbage TV for the 24 crowd. Plenty of explosions and played out terrorist plots should
    keep it entertaining yet it somehow manages to feel boring and predictable. Once you've finished your serving of military acronyms and dramatic "That's an order soldier" monologues you're left with the deep sinking realization that amazon and netflix now produce shows that would have once    Unmitigated garbage TV for the 24 crowd. Plenty of explosions and played out terrorist plots should
    keep it entertaining yet it somehow manages to feel boring and predictable. Once you've finished your serving of military acronyms and dramatic "That's an order soldier" monologues you're left with the deep sinking realization that amazon and netflix now produce shows that would have once been the in realm of made for TV B list cable channels.    … Expand
  6. patterninstatic
    Sep 3, 2018
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Binge worthy show with plenty of action, that can be enjoyable to watch as long as you can maintain an extreme suspension of disbelief throughout the experience. Spoilers ahead.

    Indeed, in order to keep the story on track and at a brisk pace, the plotline revolves around glaring logical leaps, insane coincidences, and deus ex-machina. Characters on the show go from having ridiculous epiphanies to being completely oblivious as the show sees fit.

    Ryan can randomly guess that an eight digit number is a prison ID for unlocking the phone (even though 8 numbers could correspond to a date) after randomly opening the file to a page with the prison number on top. This is after IDing the bad guy based on a hand gesture that he made on video with cuffs (arguably he could have simply learned to present his hands for cuffs from being cuffed multiple times since his capture in Yemen). On the flip side the good guys are pretty stupid when it comes to preventing the evil master plan. it would seem pretty standard protocol once it had been established that Ebola was in play to make everything and everyone from the compound go through quarantine. Once you have established that somewhere in DC could be targeted by an attack, it would also seem logical to secure the president instead of having him, the VP, and members of congress publicly quarantined in a single essentially a public location in the middle of the city.

    On top of this, the characters are ridiculously cliche and the backstories are stupidly stretched. Ryan could just have PTSD from deployment, but instead they have to one up it.... in trying to save an innocent boy, Ryan personally led to everyone's death. Despite this, Ryan has strong moral values, constantly being the one who reminds everyone that the end doesn't justify the means. We get it...

    Cliche scenes get repeated. Army personnel arriving to tell someone, "you have to come with us to this super high level meeting because you stumbled onto something".... Ryan speaking up at top level meetings when you know he's not supposed to...Ryan being asked to "stay back while we go in" then ending up where the real action is.

    The show also introduces random subplots that are meant to humanize but in reality distract. The drone subplot is fun as long as you don't ask questions. The drone pilots are supposed to operate in the same village every mission to the point of recognizing an unfamiliar SUV, yet the bad guys are constantly circulating in armed convoys nearby. Seriously, the pilot goes to Syria to meet the family of the man he killed, in militant controlled territory, speaking only English and with just a bag full of cash, and they share a warm moment.

    This is regular flaw. The show wants to fit in particular scenes, narratives, or subplots, and does so even if it defies logic or pacing. When the mother and children get put into protective custody, with a full system in place to isolate them, the girl is still given a video game console which can communicate over the internet, which she uses to talk to her brother in Syria. Ryan brilliantly deduced that the terrorists communicated over a video game based essentially on nothing (the two boys in Paris bickering), yet no one can see how giving the girl a device that can connect online can be a problem.

    Also it seems that the producers decided that the events in France were going to be a huge battle in Paris, followed by an one on one encounter in the Alps. To justify this, for some reason a huge brigade gets sent to the apartment in Paris when the address is just an "address of interest", but then after a huge battle happens, multiple people are killed etc., the French government decides to tone it down and simply send two police agents along with two Americans to follow a person who would essentially be public enemy number one.

    The "evil plot" is convoluted to the point of being a little stupid when you spend a few seconds to think about it. The terrorists go to Liberia to get an Ebola infected body, that they being back to Azerbaijan to extract the Ebola, so that they can infect a captured friend of the president, so they can get the president quarantined in a hospital, which they will access by blowing up a nearby pizza joint, ultimately in the hopes of putting irradiated powder which they sneak into the US, in the airways of the hospital in order to kill the president. The "bomb" is hooked up to the hospital landline (what?) and in a very "first world problems" scene, the final showdown consists of Ryan trying to stop the terrorists before their cellphones can find network.

    It seems like I'm only giving negatives, but this show still deserves a 5. Despite being bad you can have fun watching it. The decent acting and big budget action contrast with an extremely bad plot to make this an average show.    … Expand
  7. Echo9k
    Oct 13, 2018
    6
    I won't give it a 10/10 because the combat scenes are bad. However, the story is interesting.
  8. Broyax
    Mar 29, 2019
    0
    Tout ce qui est dérivé de la lucrative licence "Tom Clancy" est à l'image des bouquins de l'auteur : improbable, grand guignol, patriotique (gendarme du monde) et plus ou moins chiant, plus ou moins ridicule... et parfois divertissant.

    Au second degré, c'en est même drôle (à son insu bien évidemment) avec Harrison Ford ou pas... Ici donc, on en fait carrément une série qui retrace les    Tout ce qui est dérivé de la lucrative licence "Tom Clancy" est à l'image des bouquins de l'auteur : improbable, grand guignol, patriotique (gendarme du monde) et plus ou moins chiant, plus ou moins ridicule... et parfois divertissant.

    Au second degré, c'en est même drôle (à son insu bien évidemment) avec Harrison Ford ou pas... Ici donc, on en fait carrément une série qui retrace les "débuts" de l'analyste en chef qui pilote un bureau... mais qui sait tout faire en fait ! l'instinct de Sherlock Holmes en prime, la sagacité de Columbo en bonus... et les capacités d'un Rambo en combat !

    Non franchement, il lui manque juste des ailes et un collant. Et un bouclier aussi. Il pourrait demander à Pitaine Amerloca ? Mais passons, car le pire est à venir dans ces 8 épisodes de cette première saison et sa chasse aux terroristes. Des terroristes d'ailleurs présentés comme très humains. Sympas en fait les terros ! une complaisance rarement vue dans une série américaine...

    Faut dire que le patron de Jack est un Noir musulman jusqu'aux oreilles et que la petite famille dans la prairie syrienne est touchante ! sans parler du pilote de drone américain qui a des remords ! eh on est pas dans un jeu vidéo ici, tuer c'est pas bien !

    Cela dit, tout ça n'est rien en comparaison de la farce permanente de cette série en carton qui n'a jamais peur du ridicule : on se croirait dans un dessin animé tellement c'est idiot... bah dis donc, si on doit compter sur cette équipe de bras cassés pour s'occuper des terros, on est pas sorti de l'auberge !
    Et Jack d'ailleurs a une belle tête de vainqueur... à la direction des impôts, il serait très bien. Ou à un dîner du mercredi soir. Mais à la CIA ?... pincez-moi, je cauchemarde...

    De toute manière, il se passe pas grand-chose dans ces 8 épisodes : ça n'avance pas et quand ça avance éventuellement, on a des rires nerveux... putain on aimerait en rire au moins comme dans un vrai navet mais même ça, ils n'y arrivent pas. Ah c'est vraiment mais vraiment pathétique ce truc !    … Expand
  9. apparules
    Sep 4, 2018
    3
    I really wanted to like this. I'd bought into the various ad campaigns.
    I thought it could be like Homeland and present a different vision.
    I thought Amazon wanted to get into the premium shows market, unfortunately, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan is full of so many tired tropes and just doesn't give us enough meat to want to overlook them. There's the 'bad guy that slips away at the last    I really wanted to like this. I'd bought into the various ad campaigns.
    I thought it could be like Homeland and present a different vision.
    I thought Amazon wanted to get into the premium shows market, unfortunately, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan is full of so many tired tropes and just doesn't give us enough meat to want to overlook them. There's the 'bad guy that slips away at the last second' trick. The 'inept CIA agent who unwittingly helps the bad guy', darn it! The 'oh, he's running away, it never occurred to me to chase him' tension-builder. It's all just formulaic in a way that's no longer captivating in the golden age or TV.    … Expand
  10. eberman123
    Sep 11, 2018
    8
    This is a solid production. The acting ( John Krasinsk is great), story and direction are terrific. If love this genre, you will enjoy this show, Recommended.
  11. SeussMyTub
    Sep 2, 2018
    5
    The production values are nice, but it's the usual US versus terrorists all over again. Jack Ryan is a big old boring boy scout, and all the Muslim males are terrorists, while their women are treated like slaves. Nothing new.
  12. aawc
    Sep 4, 2018
    2
    This is what happens when you want to do a James Bond TV show...but are forced to write an American...nothing about this show reflects the Jack Ryan I know from the books...and the to changes to Jack's backstory obliterate a lot of the depth..also the whole plot is something a person with 0 knowledge of the Middle East would come up with all it's missing is Israel...and the notion that anThis is what happens when you want to do a James Bond TV show...but are forced to write an American...nothing about this show reflects the Jack Ryan I know from the books...and the to changes to Jack's backstory obliterate a lot of the depth..also the whole plot is something a person with 0 knowledge of the Middle East would come up with all it's missing is Israel...and the notion that an ISIS **** is going to make eyes at the daughter of a Sheikh and still have his head attached 5m later is amusing...… Expand
  13. P1mongoose
    Sep 10, 2018
    3
    It was hard to find this show enjoyable. There were some funny lines from Wendell Piere, but that was pretty much the highlight of this show's opening season. The side stories - the love interest or drone pilot - were awkwardly placed and seemed to distract too much from the main story. There wasn't enough backstory for these characters except for a couple expositional moments nor wasIt was hard to find this show enjoyable. There were some funny lines from Wendell Piere, but that was pretty much the highlight of this show's opening season. The side stories - the love interest or drone pilot - were awkwardly placed and seemed to distract too much from the main story. There wasn't enough backstory for these characters except for a couple expositional moments nor was there any reason to feel emotionally invested in anyone.

    John Krasinski doesn't seem like the right choice for this role. His performance was pretty bland and felt uninspired. Nothing about his acting in this show felt "bad-assery." In fact, nothing really felt too grand.    … Expand
  14. Harleyrk09
    Sep 17, 2018
    0
    Jack Ryan is a moron, every time he gets a chance to subdue a bad guy he freezes. He is smart at financial but very stupid with the street smarts. He is a very annoying character. We watched all his episodes and all agree he is a moron. He gets people killed because of his child like clumsy ignorance.
  15. Shekky
    Sep 5, 2018
    8
    Some episodes can seem to drag on but the overall feel is very similar to the movies portraying the same character utimately the show is quite interesting and I like these kinds of shows.
  16. psyberdelic
    Sep 4, 2018
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Looks great. Scenery is awesome. However... Krazinski is the new Kevin Costner. Handsome and boring. He doesn't act he just looks good. Plot is stupid. The bad guys know they are recognized and don't kill the witness (Jack Ryan). Sure he's got a grenade with the pin pulled but they're standing at the door and have plenty of time to shoot him and scoot. But they don't because PLOT! So, you're chasing a high-value target into a building and you don't surround the mf'er and block anyone from leaving. Bad guy just walks away because PLOT!

    I wound up jumping to the ends of scenes just to see what happens. Worth a watch if you've got nothing better to do.    … Expand
  17. Voodoo123
    Oct 6, 2018
    6
    Great cast deliver excellent performances. The Locations are interesting and the overall premise is worthy of the title.

    Sadly this show fails to deliver the quality setup from previous outings. Lackluster cinematography and action scene choreography betray the prevalent budget with the script failing to meet the detail of the scenarios being dealt with. Despite this I will say I had    Great cast deliver excellent performances. The Locations are interesting and the overall premise is worthy of the title.

    Sadly this show fails to deliver the quality setup from previous outings. Lackluster cinematography and action scene choreography betray the prevalent budget with the script failing to meet the detail of the scenarios being dealt with.

    Despite this I will say I had fun watching and will prob check out S2!    … Expand
  18. SteveinAZ
    Sep 15, 2018
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Just awful. Jack Ryan has got to be the greatest CIA agent ever. Not only does he solve every problem he's presented with, he even stands up to the President (in a meeting that he's supposed to be only an observer, no less) and talks him into seeing his point of view. A romantic interest that has no connection to the plot only muddies the waters further. I would have given this an even lower rating except that the series reminded me how great Wendell Pierce is. Other than him, this series was a waste of time.… Expand
  19. Eman0221
    Nov 5, 2018
    5
    I came into this show thinking it would be a more action-packed version of Homeland or at least a small screen version of the Harrison Ford version of the character from the 90s, but instead, its this era and generation's version of 24. Whereas 24 embraced the campy, 80s action movie style, this show pretends that it's smarter than it is, but it isn't. It tries to take the kind of fantasyI came into this show thinking it would be a more action-packed version of Homeland or at least a small screen version of the Harrison Ford version of the character from the 90s, but instead, its this era and generation's version of 24. Whereas 24 embraced the campy, 80s action movie style, this show pretends that it's smarter than it is, but it isn't. It tries to take the kind of fantasy peddled by Mission: Impossible and James Bond movies and lay it over serious, real-world issues that deserve deeper examination and ass-kicking, but it doesn't at the end of the day. At least John Krasinski does a good job shedding his image from The Office into a gritty action hero, but it isn't his fault that the plot and writing are dumb.

    If this show wants to want to be "Let’s just blow sh*t up, shoot some bad guys and have him go home and romance the pretty doc. Action 101, baby!” then embrace it, be good and not too serious about it, and drop the pretenses of it wanting to be deep and complex, or stylish like a Bond flick in order to win over the critics. It's not how Jack Ryan novels are supposed to be, but this show is like that.    … Expand
  20. oporto2
    Sep 16, 2018
    3
    They tried to do a Batman Begins with Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan. Instead of a playboy billionaire who becomes a ninja, we have a financial analyst who becomes a reluctant spy. Sounds about as boring as it is. Borderline unwatchable.
  21. Cineflux
    Sep 11, 2018
    0
    Very stupid plot, every characters are very stupid and weack to value Jack Rian's intelligence and bravery.
    The story is also full of stereotypes and false ideas
  22. JadenFrost
    Sep 5, 2018
    1
    Yet another show that should have been conservative, but is painfully obviously written by liberals. Deeply stupid, and unrealistic even by fictions standards. Not really worth watching.
  23. EludiumQ36
    Sep 11, 2018
    3
    I wanted to love this series since it's a fresh, modern take on this fairly old story. It starts strong but it doesn't go longer than into episode 2 where I have my first "this is ridiculous" moment. Look, you're either going to portray a plausibly realistic counter-terrorism story or you're going to half-a$$ it and make it a liberal foray into fantasy dressed as reality. And that's whatI wanted to love this series since it's a fresh, modern take on this fairly old story. It starts strong but it doesn't go longer than into episode 2 where I have my first "this is ridiculous" moment. Look, you're either going to portray a plausibly realistic counter-terrorism story or you're going to half-a$$ it and make it a liberal foray into fantasy dressed as reality. And that's what we have here guys. The most unforgiveable of all of this is that you've got a nerdy, desk-bound Agency analyst basically transforming into a super-hero caliber operative in a manner of hours! But even if you can somehow look past that idiocy, there's the whole drone operator Polizzi character who's there to make us all feel bad for using superior technology to remove terrorists w/o jeopardizing US lives. Yeh, gag worthy. Then the finale episode is so rushed and jammed with leaps of circumstance that you'd swear they were told to compress a 10-ep season into the 8 we have. And because of that compression, you have a bunch of stupid leaps happening, for instance our terrorist antagonist and his kid somehow make it out of Syria into an airport in the US, kicks off an operation, infiltrates the ambulance corps, getting into the same hospital as the president, etc etc, just ridiculous. And of course, it's an all loose-ends tied-up, good def evil, oversimplified Hollywood ending, our two protags are promoted, and there's not one lick of paperwork, bureaucratic delay or any other butterflies-and-unicorns-derailing hitch in sight. I haven't yet mentioned the pervasive liberal preaching that's scattered throughout, and the cheesy, stereotypical lines of spy-genre dialogue. This series has flashes of greatness but is pulled down by rookie tropes and the need to educate us on the humanity behind the terrorism. Unfortunately, this is a one-and-done for me.… Expand
  24. shoulderoforion
    Sep 3, 2018
    7
    Jack Ryan was a solid 7 and i'd have given it a 7.5 if MC let me. Turned out much much better than I thought it would, or appeared to be from the trailer. It's in the same style as Black Hawk Down with some side/back story drama mashed in for color. It's by the numbers, but a good solid Labor Day Weekend binge watch all the same. I would definitely watch a season 2 if they make it.
  25. Mdp6725
    Sep 2, 2018
    10
    I really liked this version of Jack Ryan but unfortunately the Liberals are going to hate it because it may hurt someone's feelings. Great writing with big budget scenes that leave the viewer wanting more, I can't wait for season 2!
  26. OlivierPiel
    Sep 22, 2018
    2
    This is the no-frills, Walmart private-label version of Jack Ryan, with low-budget action scenes, non-sensical script, horrendous ham-fisted acting (I'm looking at you French female police captain in particular - worthy of a Razzie award), and egregious casting (The guy from the office - really - is a war veteran, ice-cold blood in his veins CIA operative). It's very disappointing.
    I    This is the no-frills, Walmart private-label version of Jack Ryan, with low-budget action scenes, non-sensical script, horrendous ham-fisted acting (I'm looking at you French female police captain in particular - worthy of a Razzie award), and egregious casting (The guy from the office - really - is a war veteran, ice-cold blood in his veins CIA operative). It's very disappointing.
    I guess Amazon has Bosch and ....that's it.    … Expand
  27. section20mi6
    Sep 13, 2018
    4
    Childish and Cliche, Jack Ryan does not even live up to the standard of being an adequate spy thriller, but only an unprofessional piece with poor execution at most.
  28. LeahMaines
    Sep 3, 2018
    9
    This fast-paced show kept me engaged during all the episodes. The acting was good. The writers did an excellent job of bringing Tom Clancy’s beloved character to the small screen. While there was nothing shocking or unexpected, it was still very entertaining. I eagerly await the next season.
  29. RichardSayre
    Sep 9, 2018
    9
    The first season of Amazon's JACK RYAN is a perfectly paced, smash-mouth love affair with all things that made Tom Clancy a household name. John Krasinski gives us the best Jack yet and the good characters certainly don't stop there. The story is fresh and relevant, and with a second season already on the way, I can confidently say JACK RYAN is one of the best shows of 2018.
  30. Shalom200
    Sep 1, 2018
    10
    Still, Amazon's Jack Ryan succeeds by spinning a suspenseful, big budget adventure around terrorism around the blandness hero in the business.
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Awards & Rankings

98
#98 Best TV Season of 2018
22
#22 Most Discussed TV Season of 2018
72
#72 Most Shared TV Season of 2018

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
66

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 28
  3. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. Vox.com
    Reviewed by: Karen Han
    Aug 31, 2018
    60
    Ryan’s part of the story is a breeze: He’s the good soldier, here to save the day. Sometimes he’ll face some sort of moral dilemma, but it’s never too difficult to guess what the outcome will be. The rest of the series is much thornier, and all the more real for it.
    Read full review
  2. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Robert Lloyd
    Aug 31, 2018
    70
    Ryan may be the shallowest figure here, an assemblage of reactions and attitudes more than a person we get to know--or seem to get to know, which is all the same in television. His early-episodes earnestness is appealing. ... He is forced to spend much of the middle episodes in a kind of balled-up funk as Ryan stews indignantly over the moral compromises he encounters "in the field." ... It gives all the best moments away to Pierce, who is as easily believable, and believably easy, as an old agency pro as he's been in every other part he's ever played. Still, the star handles the action well, when it comes.
    Read full review
  3. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: John Anderson
    Aug 30, 2018
    80
    It’s a smart show, for all its huffing and puffing. Mr. Krasinski might even grow on you.
    Read full review
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