Jack Ryan, is an American action/political thriller web television series. It is based on Tom Clancy’s book by the same name.
The series is based on characters from the fictional “Ryanverse” created by Tom Clancy. The first series of Jack Ryan premiered on August 31, 2018, on Amazon Prime Video and was created by executive producer, Carlton Cuse, and Graham Roland. John Krasinski stars in the series as the main character, Jack Ryan, which makes him the fifth actor to portray this character after Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, Ben Affleck, and Chris Pine. It was announced in April 2018 that Amazon renewed the series for a second season.
Network: Amazon Prime Video
Genre(s): Action, Political Thriller
Cast: John Krasinski, Abbie Cornish, Wendell Pierce, Ali Suliman, Dina Shihabi, Amir El-Masry
Review by Megan Kelly
I was introduced to this series by my dad who simply said, “Hey, I found this show that I think you might like to watch”. Along with my brother, we all were fans of “24”, starring Jack Bauer, in a domestic political thriller. So my dad knew I enjoyed this genre. After watching the first episode together we were both hooked.
At first, I had doubts because sometimes his definition of a good show is different than mine. I even watched the first episode looking for a reason to hate the show, but there was none to be found. Immediately after the first episode ended, we automatically went right into the next episode…then the next…and then the next. Eventually, we had to physically say, “Okay this is the last one for tonight”. We finished watching the entire eight-episode series in just two nights.
This show is somewhat like other TV series with military missions, except the main character, Jack Ryan, is not an active member of the military. He is an analyst for the CIA. More specifically, he is a former marine and a financial analyst who works in the Terror, Finance, and Arms Division (T-FAD), which is part of the Counterterrorism Center (CTC).
The show starts off with some background on Ryan and what a typical day is like. In the first two episodes, we find out that he discovered a string of bank transfers that are being carried out by Suleiman, a rising Islamic terrorist. Since the first season is only eight episodes, the action quickly starts up.
Throughout the season we follow different perspectives which are helpful in understanding the full scope of the story. Not only do we learn about how the CIA is trying to stop Suleiman, but we also see how this whole operation affects Suleiman’s family.
Many political issues follow this series as immigration and terrorism are focal points. The series also pertains to real-life experiences as the culture in the Middle East and recent events are intertwined into the story. The whole series is action-packed, so there is never a boring moment as you watch an analyst try and catch a terrorist. The bravery and feelings of the characters can be felt and at some points, I forgot I was watching a TV show.
I don’t want to give everything away and there is little detail that I can discuss without spoiling some action-packed moment. However, it was a smart move on Amazon’s part to build off a character in a book. That is something that has not been done before, or not to this extent and has been really successful. The fact that Amazon announced a second season a whole five months before the first season was released, just shows how successful this series is and will become.
It is rare for you to be left wanting more after a TV show ends, but this show does that. The second season, which is coming out in 2019, shouldn’t disappoint as more action is slated for Ryan, who now seems to be more than a CIA analyst and rather an actual superhero.