Based on Lee Child’s novel Persuader, in the third season of the action-packed series, Reacher hurtles into the dark heart of a vast criminal enterprise when trying to rescue an undercover DEA informant whose time is running out. There he finds a world of secrecy and violence—and confronts some unfinished business from his own past.

Prime Video’s Reacher has become a force in streaming television, building a loyal following of fans who have devoured the two previous seasons and made series star Alan Ritchson one of the biggest names in Hollywood. Now Ritchson is back again as ex-U.S. Army Military Policeman turned wandering drifter Jack Reacher, and he’s roped into a dangerous game of cat and mouse where his back is up against the wall, and he’s got few options to choose from.

Loosely adapted from Lee Child’s Persuader, Season Three picks up after the events of Season Two and once again finds Reacher alone on the road and swept up into a compelling and dangerous new mission. A botched kidnapping soon turns deadly, and Reacher finds himself appointed as a bodyguard to Richard (Johnny Berchtold), the son of wealthy businessman Zachary Beck (Anthony Michael Hall), who has some very shady connections. But it’s all a ploy, as Reacher is actually undercover and on assignment to DEA Agent Susan Duffy (Sonya Cassidy), a hard-charging, take-no-prisoners agent who needs his help to rescue her previous undercover. And Reacher is soon in over his head, and this season brings all the tension.

For a character who is normally always in control, it’s a fresh take to see Reacher in over his head and doing everything he can to avoid suspicion and trying to stay above ground. Episode by episode, the pressure and tautness of the narrative continues to build, and Reacher has to do some pretty extreme things in order to prove that he’s all that, and this season makes for a far more psychologically complex watch because of it. While Ritchson again takes up plenty of space as the hulking Reacher, this time around, it’s a far more emotional journey for him as he has to contend with being undercover and holding back on his hero complex. Something that is not a natural behaviour for him and which makes his mission all the more taxing for him. It’s a bold new direction for the series to take, showcasing a visibly more vulnerable Reacher, and is a credit to both Ritchson and showrunner Nick Santora and their desire to push the character into new and unfamiliar territory.

Season Three of Reacher also packs a terrific supporting cast of both new allies and adversaries, and the performers add to the intensity of this new watch. Sonya Cassidy provides a brash, take-no-prisoners attitude as DEA Agent Susan Duffy, who sends Reacher undercover, and she’s incredibly compelling in the part. Cassidy builds a fun chemistry with Ritchson, and there’s a great bit of banter between their two characters, along with the odd flirtation that only builds on the series’ fun. Cassidy can also hold her own as Duffy, and she finds herself in plenty of tight corners where a fair bit of firepower is needed. The always dependable Maria Stern also shows up as Reacher’s former teammate and best friend Francis Neagley, and it’s always a blast when these two besties are back in action.

Bringing the menace to Season Three is the gigantic presence of Olivier Richters, a 7’2, 350-pound beast, as Paul “Paulie” van Hoven, a terrifying brute and the loyal mercenary of the sadistic Xavier Quinn (Brian Tee), a ghost from Reacher’s past who he thought he buried long ago, and who he now wants to put down for good. Richters immense frame dwarves Ritchson, and for the first time ever, we’re seeing Reacher literally in over his head and confronting an enemy who literally has him beat in both size and speed. While Ritchters is an immense physical threat, he also showcases that he’s a well-rounded performer and oddly humourous and quirky in the role. Reacher also has a bone to pick with Brian Tee’s Xavier Quinn, a sadistic former enemy. Tee brings an incredibly dark presence to this vicious, cold-blooded killer, and he makes a serious threat to Reacher’s mission.

Santora and Ritchson take a different approach to the action of Season Three of Reacher this time. Primarily directed by the series’ undercover narrative, Reacher, this time around has to take his time when it comes to pulling his punches, and this time, it’s much more about Reacher being stealthy and using surprise to his advantage. This series also throws the action right at its audience from the very start, and the danger and tension build step by step as Reacher finds himself dealing with a conspiracy that grows episode by episode. The threat of Richters’ Paulie also dictates the action, and the building showdown between Paulie and Reacher promises to be a rumble of pure brute force for audiences!

Reacher Season Three is a compelling and intense watch, and there are plenty of surprises in store for audiences. It gives fans a look at Reacher under pressure and having to fight his way out and proves that when it comes to settling for justice, Jack Reacher will go all the way.

Reacher is currently streaming on Prime Video.

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Watch the brand new trailer for Reacher Season Three below:

Here’s the official synopsis:

Based on Lee Child’s novel Persuader, in the third season of the action-packed series, Reacher hurtles into the dark heart of a vast criminal enterprise when trying to rescue an undercover DEA informant whose time is running out. There he finds a world of secrecy and violence — and confronts some unfinished business from his own past.

The action is big this time as Reacher faces his BIGGEST threat yet in the form of the gigantic Paul ‘Paulie’ Masserella, a brutal killer portrayed by 7ft 2-inch Dutch professional bodybuilder Olivier Richters, and this is going to be an intense mano-o-mano fight with no rules and no mercy.

Set to the pounding rock beats of Kansas’ ‘Carry On My Wayward Son’, this captures the grand outlaw, western vibe of the character, and plays into Ritchson’s presence as the ultimate action hero badass. The fight scenes look brutal, and under the guidance of showrunner Nick Santora, you can bet that there’ll be plenty of sharp dialogue and some incredible twists in this all-new season that lie ahead.

 

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Brace yourself for a full-on rush when Season Three of Reacher arrives back on Prime Video on February 20.

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Watch the brand new teaser trailer for Reacher Season Three here:

Audiences have continued to be swept up in the action, drama and just sheer badassery of Prime Video’s Reacher, and following the events of Season Two’s explosive drama, Season Three will find Reacher back on the road and drawn into another dangerous conspiracy.

While series showrunner Nick Santora is keeping things pretty tight-lipped when it comes down to Season Three, from this first footage and behind-the-scenes material, it’s been confirmed that Ritchson’s Reacher will take on his ‘biggest’ adversary yet. That threat comes in the form of 7ft 2-inch Dutch professional bodybuilder Olivier Richters, who has been vast as hulking killer Paul ‘Paulie’ Masserella and who will seriously give Ritchson’s Reacher a fight in the third season, which is set to adapt Lee Child’s Persuader as its base narrative.

It’s shaping up to be a hell of a brawl in Season Three, with Ritchson and Richters going all mano-o-mano with this one, and you won’t want to miss out on this fight!

 

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Reacher Season Three will arrive on Prime Video on February 20.

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British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and a group of military officials hatch a daring plan to neutralise Hitler’s fleet of German U-boats during World War II. Made up of a motley crew of rogues and mavericks, the top-secret combat unit uses unconventional techniques to battle the Nazis and change the course of the war.

When Guy Ritchie steps behind the camera, you know you’re going to get a hard-charging dose of pure machismo. The latest work from this self-described “cashmere caveman” is a rollicking good bit of fun. Drawing from true historical sources and the clandestine actions of the Special Operations Executive and the Small Scale Raiding Force (SSRF) in their role in Operation Postmaster, the first-ever Special Forces mission designed to cripple the Nazi U-Boat power and their hold over the Pacific.

From the moment it starts, you know that The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is going to be good. Ritchie brings his unique sense of creativity and play to the picture, and his use of high-powered action mixed in with deft comedic moments will keep audiences on guard. Step by step, the momentum of the picture moves forward at pace.

While watching The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, you feel as if you’re observing a group of modern-day pirates. At the commission of Sir Winston Churchill, they’ve been given the command to “Cry ‘Havoc!’, and let slip the dogs of war.” Ritchie and his cast and crew have a blast with this sensational yet entirely true story of a group of outsiders, reprobates, and insubordinates who, when their country called upon them, stepped up to the call of duty and went all the way to deliver a significant blow to Hitler’s war effort. The film has an almost ‘Spaghetti Western’ vibe to it, but even with its quick-witted characters and outlandish action, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is a deeply serious matter. This is a do-or-die mission where only total victory will do.

Taking commando of this unruly group of commando pirates is Henry Cavill in the role of Major Gus March-Phillipps, a wily and clever soldier who is not fond of rules and intends to break them and who will lead the fight into the Valley of the Beast of Operation Postmaster. Cavill is a perfect fit for the sharp and quick-witted March-Phillipps, and he moves quickly to establish his mission, and he’ll go to great lengths to see it completed. It’s fantastic to see Cavill back in league with Ritchie, and the two are having a blast as Cavill is in full hero mode and taking out Nazi’s left, right and centre at the end of a silenced STEN gun. He’s an apt leader for this ‘man on a mission’ picture, and it’s a radically different type of character that allows Cavill to play with his range as an actor and try something new as this almost ‘prototypical’ James Bond-esque spy leader.

Assembled behind Cavil is a whose-who of talent, including Alan Ritchson, Eiza González, Henry Golding, Alex Pettyfer, Babs Olusanmokun, Hero Fiennes Tiffin, Cary Elwes, Freddie Fox, and Rory Kinnear as Churchill. All of them leave their mark on the picture, and each has their moment to shine, something that Ritchie is good at doing with his characters. Standouts from the cast include Alan Ritchson as the hulking ‘Danish Viking’ Anders Lassen, a deer-hunting, bear-wrestling aristocrat turned Nazi hunter who utilises a bow and arrow and sheer ferocity to take out his sworn enemies. And he’s a hoot to watch. Eiza González brings incredible class and sophistication as SOE agent Marjorie Stewart, who has the task of seducing high-ranking Nazi Heinrich Luhr (Til Schweiger) and whose mission is a personal one. Henry Golding is a filled pyromaniac glee as explosives expert Freddy Alvarez, and he makes everything go BOOM. Freddie Fox is a deft choice as Ian Fleming, and Rory Kinnear is utterly brilliant as Sir Winston Churchill.

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare has a swift kinetic pace, and Ritchie clarifies that this is a do-or-die mission. Ritchie keeps things interesting, throwing problem after problem at Cavill’s March-Phillipps and his pirates. This keeps the tension of the picture interesting and gives our heroes some real stakes to go after. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is a real throwback to those classic war pictures and action films that we grew up on, and you’re fully invested as an audience member. As the mission to infiltrate the island of Fernando Po draws nearer and nearer, the tautness of the picture escalates, and you’ll be holding on for dear life as these brave men and women go into the fire against a guns-blazing Nazi defence. Hot lead is spent, and things go BOOM very quickly, and The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is a damn explosive narrative to witness.

Guy Ritchie’s The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is an epic WWII thriller with all the trimmings, and it will have your adrenal gland working overtime. This is an exciting, daring and clever piece of work, and it is a tribute to the men and women of the SOE who went beyond their duty and whose actions saved our world for good. It’s a truly heroic story in every sense of the word, and in my mind, it is the type of picture audiences desperately need now. It’s fun, zany and utterly adrenaline-soaked, and you’ll have the time of your life watching it.

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After more of his friends fall victim, Reacher (Alan Ritchson) forges an uneasy alliance with a dogged detective, and their only clue in the case leads the 110th to a troubling discovery.

Right from the start Season Two of Reacher has been a whole new different type of show. Lee Child’s wandering giant has proven that he can adapt to every situation, and so too has showrunner Nick Santora, who has stepped up the edge of the second season. Reacher, Neagley, Dixon and O’Donnell are now deep into the conspiracy that is seeing their teammates of the Special Investigators ending up dead. And in ‘Picture Says A Thousand Words’, they’re ready to hit back. And damn, is it one heck of a swing.

The action of Episode Three is proactive rather than reactive, as we’ve previously seen in the season. And damn, does it bring the BOOM. Throw in a homemade pipe bomb and plenty of firepower, and things get interesting. What’s really great is that this isn’t Reacher fighting alone; instead, we get to see each of the Special Investigators get in on the action. You’ve got Neagley’s clinical precision, Dixon’s double-tap, smashmouth gun style, and O’Donnell brings the rough and tumble thanks to his one-two combo of brass knuckles and switchblade! Bad guys, watch out. Ohh and Reacher also happen to take out an SUV with a barbecue, which is a hell of a lot of fun.

This mix of action is kept interesting with some great narrative points as well, not only do Reacher and his team form a defacto alliance with New York Police Detective Gaitano ‘Guy’ Russo (Domenick Lombardozzi), but we also get some notable flashbacks to the team’s military days and the introduction of their commanding officer, Lt. Colonel Hortense Fields (Josh Blacker) who has a big hold over the lore of the Reacher universe, and who has a role to play in how Reacher became Reacher. Santora and his team are not skipping out on the detail in this second season of Reacher, and it all adds to the complexity of the larger narrative.

One key narrative detail concerns the appearance of ruthless mercenary and arms dealer A.M. (Ferdinand Kingsley), known only by the initials of the various aliases he uses. A.M. is a calculating and sly killer with zero empathy, and he’s at the centre of the unfolding conspiracy in front of Reacher and his team. This conspiracy also points to corporate aerospace giant New Age hiding a dark secret courtesy of its head of security Shane Langston (Robert Patrick).

The action moves fast in ‘Picture Says A Thousand Words’, and the episode ends on a dynamic cliffhanger that shows just how deep and dangerous the conspiracy that Reacher and his team have wandered into.

Reacher steams on Prime Video.

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The investigation into Franz’s murder takes Reacher (Alan Ritchson) and the surviving members of his former Army unit to Atlantic City where the mystery deepens, danger awaits, and an old flame is rekindled.

Season Two of Prime Video’s Reacher started off with a bang, and a mysterious conspiracy is targeting Jack Reacher’s (Alan Ritchson) old army unit, the 110th Special Investigators of the United States Military Police. And Big Jack ain’t gonna let that slide. But this is no mere lone wolf mission, and Reacher’s got back up this time, being joined by former comrades Francis Neagley (Maria Stern) and David O’Donnell (Shaun Sipos). And their burgeoning investigation sends them directly to Atlantic City. And a whole heap of trouble.

But before they get there, Reacher and his unit find the final member of the team in the form of the vivacious and gutsy Karla Dixen, who the gorgeous Serinda Swan portrays. And she’s a pitch-perfect casting for the series and Reacher’s attention. A former member of the 110th Special Investigators, Dixon’s speciality is forensic accounting; she also happens to be the one who coined the phrase ‘details matter’. Smart, switched on, and damn sexy as well, Dixon is the perfect combination of beauty and brains, plus brawn, as this lady can hold her own in a gun battle, and she perfectly completes the assembled members of the 110th. Swan is effortless in her presence, and you instantly pick on the history and the sexual tension between Dixon and Reacher.

Episode Two of Season Two, ‘What Happens in Atlantic City’ takes the remaining members of the 110th on a road trip to Atlantic City, and its an opportunity for Reacher to reveal his life to his former comrades. While Neagley, Dixon and O’Donnell have all managed to transition from the Army to civilian life with relative ease, it hasn’t been an easy path for Reacher and his life is lost on all of them. It’s an interesting frame from which showrunner Nick Santora allows us to view Reacher and Reacher’s life on the road, and his loner path leaves a massive impact on his former comrades, especially Dixon. There’s a sense of what ‘could have been’ with these two characters, and this only heightens the emotional tension that is shared between them.

One of the coolest parts of the growing second season of Reacher is that we get flashback episodes to his time spent in the Army, and we get to see a different side of him. This side investigation sees Reacher and the 110th investigating a clandestine conspiracy that is taking place during the War on Terror, and it helps audiences to see how Reacher’s methods came to be shaped. Santora also throws some Reacher lore at audiences, particularly around the character of James Barr, a rogue former sniper and the antagonist of Lee Child’s One Shot, and Ritchson has a special look of glee on his face as he mentions having wrapped up Barr a year previously. It’s a fun call out for Reacher fans and the history of the character that they’re sure to enjoy.

But ‘What Happens in Atlantic City’ isn’t just all emotional callbacks and flashbacks. There’s a whole heap of action both in the streets and under the sheets. The shadowy conspiracy that is threatening the 110th is hot on the tail of Reacher, and he and Dixon go head-to-head with them in a meaty and violent brawl that will spike your adrenaline. While Ritchson hits like a Freightliner, Swan’s Dixon is a far more lithe, nimble combatant, and her intelligence and tricky fighting ability see her take out a host of bad guys. It’s a hell of a tag team match with Reacher and Dixon, and they put some bad people down hard. But it’s then that things really get hot, as that bubbling sexual tension boils over, and passions get heated and in the kindling of a relationship that will get your blood going.

The action of Reacher’s second season is starting to move at a fierce pace, and Reacher and the remaining members of the 110th are honing in on their prey.

Reacher is streaming on Amazon Prime NOW.

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Reacher (Alan Ritchson) and Neagley (Maria Sten) investigate the murder of a member of 110th, a group of Special investigators assembled by Reacher, only to realize the whole unit may be at risk.

In 2022, Prime Video unleashed Lee Child’s hulking, 6’5, ex-military policeman-turned-drifter Jack Reacher onto viewers, and audiences went nuts. Series star Alan Ritchson shot into the A-list stratosphere overnight, and audiences were hooked on the most dynamic, action-packed series of the year. What we got with that first season of Reacher, which adapted Child’s first book, Killing Floor, was a mixture of calculating detective fiction smashed together with brutal, in-your-face action with a modern-day wandering ronin action hero, and the result was damn epic. Now Ritchson and series showrunner Nick Santoro are back for Season Two, and an adaptation of Child’s 11th novel in the Jack Reacher series, Bad Luck And Trouble, and it’s set to be another gnarly watch for audiences.

While audiences might expect Santora and his team to go down the same path in Reacher’s sophomore year, nothing could be further from this when it comes to Season Two of Reacher. Where Season One was a hardboiled detective story, Season Two is more of an action thriller, and this is a conscious effort on Santora’s behalf. Right from Episode One, ‘ATM’, Reacher Season Two is darker and edgier and features a Reacher who is far different from the last time we saw him. While we might only be at the start of Season Two, this change-up to the style of the series keeps it interesting, and it’s a great start to the narrative. This change in direction for the series also mirrors its setting and ambience. Where Season One of Reacher is set in the burning sun and heat of the deep south in Georgia, Season Two throws Reacher into the blistering cold of New York City and the East Coast. And it all makes for a radically different experience.

Returning once more is Alan Ritchson as the hulking Jack Reacher. And damn, is it good to see the big guy back. Ritchson took the world by storm with his performance as Reacher, and he’s radically shot up into the A-list as a talent to keep an eye on. Returning to this new chapter of the developing Reacher narrative, we meet a road-weary Reacher in ‘ATM’. He’s slightly beat up and moth-eaten, life on the road not being the most comfortable way to live. But it suits Reacher, and he’s not about to change it. But when an urgent message from Francis Neagley reaches him, Reacher has to jump back into action. And Ritchson nails it. He is not even 5 minutes into the new narrative before he lays down a serious beat down, and with a case this close to home, well, you can tell that there will be hell to pay.

As a solitary figure, Jack Reacher spends a lot of time alone, and as a man of few words, it can be hard to get him to open up. But Santora fixes that problem with Season Two as he focuses on an investigation surrounding the 110 Special Investigators, Reacher’s old unit, and a dangerous and deadly conspiracy that is now gripping it. Maria Stern returns right out of the gate as Francis Neagley, and it’s fun as an audience member to see them back together as they pick up on this very personal case.

Episode One, ‘ATM’, also introduces another critical character to Season Two in David O’Donnell, a former member of the 110th and who is played with plenty of attitude by Shaun Sipos. Sipos is pitch-perfect casting for the role of O’Donnell, a private investigator who can pass in plain sight for a lawyer or investment banker but who also happens to carry a set of bass knuckles and a concealed switchblade. He’s a character who’s always up for a rumble and who, back in the 110th, was a degenerate womanizer and party boy who now, as a civilian, has been heavily domesticized. Much to the chagrin of Reacher and Neagely. Sipos nails O’Donnell’s quick-fire mannerisms and cocky attitude, and he brings a good dose of banter to the series and has a great back-and-forth with Ritchson. He’s a character to keep an eye on.

‘ATM’ provides a great start to the new series of Reacher and sets up that those close to Reacher are in trouble. And if there’s one thing you don’t do, YOU DON’T MESS WITH THE SPECIAL INVESTIGATORS. Get ready for a whole heap of action and plenty of intensity as we move into a gripping new season of Reacher.

Reacher is streaming on Amazon Prime NOW.

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Watch the all-new trailer for Reacher here:

Here’s the official synopsis:

Reacher Season Two begins when veteran military police investigator Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) receives a coded message that the members of his former U.S. Army unit, the 110th MP Special Investigations, are being mysteriously and brutally murdered one by one. Pulled from his drifter lifestyle, Reacher reunites with three of his former teammates turned chosen family to investigate, including Frances Neagley (Maria Sten); Karla Dixon (Serinda Swan), a forensic accountant for whom Reacher has long had a soft spot; and fast-talking, switchblade-wielding family man David O’Donnell (Shaun Sipos). Together, they begin to connect the dots in a mystery where the stakes get higher at every turn, and that brings about questions of who has betrayed them—and who will die next. Using his inimitable blend of smarts and size, Reacher will stop at nothing to uncover the truth and protect the members of his unit. If there’s one thing Reacher and his team know for certain, it’s that you do not mess with the Special Investigators. This season, get ready for Reacher and the 110th to hit back hard.

This time around, showrunner Nick Santora headlines an adaptation of Child’s 11th Jack Reacher novel, Bad Luck and Trouble, and it’s one of my all-time top three Reacher novels. And I couldn’t be more excited. Then we learnt that Ritchson would be joined by a stellar supporting cast, including the likes of the returning Maria Sten and newcomers Serinda Swan and Shaun Sipos, and damn, what a cast we have here! Everything has come together in Reacher Season Two, and this new trailer pumps up the excitement for a series I can’t wait to see more of.

After the overwhelming response to the debut season, the new instalment ups the ante with even higher stakes and action. The eight-episode season will roll out weekly, with the first three episodes premiering on December 15 and subsequent episodes dropping every Friday through January 19, 2024, exclusively on Prime Video.

Reacher is a series you have to be ready for, and this trailer has us amped for the action to kick off on December 15.

Images: Prime Video

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Having narrowly missed out on a grisly death, former military cop Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) and Margrave police officer Roscoe Conklin (Willa Fitzgerald) team up and are ready to go on the hunt for answers. Margrave might have a sunny exterior, but there’s something rotten underneath and their investigation uncovers new clues and plenty of new leads. And Reacher zeroes in on the conspiracy that is causing the body count to skyrocket.

Episode Two of Reacher, ‘First Dance’ ended on a hell of a gnarly note with Reacher and Roscoe discovering that they’d been targeted for assassination by the team of killers who are stalking the shadows of Margrave and Roscoe is pissed! Not to be confused with a damnsel, this girl locks and loads and lends Reacher one hell of hand cannon in the form of a 50.cal Desert Eagle and the two set out to find out who their would-be killers are and put a bullet in them. Showrunner Nick Santora and his team aren’t mucking around with Reacher and episode by episode the intensity builds and the main narrative conspiracy is brought to light and it really shakes up the stakes.

The crux of the conspiracy lends into a massive counterfeiting operation and the discovery that Reacher’s deceased brother Joe was a former Secret Service director who was looking into the operation personally before he was killed. This new discovery also leads Reacher, Roscoe and Finlay (Malcolm Goodwin) to Secret Service operative Molly Beth Gordon (Lara Jean Chorostecki) who provides the team with key information about Joe’s suspicions of the counterfeiting operation. Gordon is a new key character to the series and her reveal in ‘Spoonful’ showcases just how massive and dangerous this growing conspiracy is.

It’s not just the reveal of Molly Beth and the countefeting angle that will engage audiences in, but a showdown with the mysterious and suspicious Kliner family. While Reacher and Finlay pay a visit to Margrave’s benefactor and big time businessman Kliner (Currie Graham), Roscoe has to deal with KJ’s (Chris Webster) shifting advances and both scenes will have you hooked in. While Kliner at first entertains Reacher and Finlay, it soon turns menacing as he doesn’t like outsiders peering into his business and he sends them packing, but not before tiping off Reacher’s radar. Then there’s Roscoe’s run in with KJ, and this dead-eyed psycho has a dangerous lust for Roscoe and also tips her on Reacher’s past, planting the doubt that Reacher may not be the man he seems to be. The Kliner’s certainly aren’t clean in Reacher’s book and I have a feeling this suspicion is only going to grow.

Episode Three, ‘Spoonful’ keeps the suspense growing and it’s the episode’s penultimate ending where things get really interesting, Sensing that he’s being tracked, Reacher has a run-in with the hitmen who were earlier sent to kill him, and not mucking about he takes them out first. Two quick shots to the back, courtesy of a 50.cal Desert Eagle do the job. And it’s loud. This move by Reacher might not be the most heroic in the book, shooting another man in the back, but Reacher doesn’t mess around and I’m pleased that Ritchson and Santora show this side of him. Reacher’s plan is to win by any advantage necessary, he’s a functional, combat trained soldier and if he has the chance to take out a bad guy, he’s going to do it. This scene is a perfect reflection of that and showcases just how edgy and direct the Reacher series is going to be.

It’s starting to heat up in Reacher and Alan Ritchson’s Jack Reacher has got his finger on the trigger. The bag guys might have drawn first blood, but Reacher ain’t gonna let them get away with it, and he’s locked on target with a hell of a lot of firepower at his disposal.

Reacher is streaming on Amazon Prime NOW.

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Following the shocking revelation that his brother Joe was murdered in a violent and dangerous conspiracy, ex-military policeman Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) burrows his way into the growing investigation of the Margrave killings and the bloodshed has only just begun. After a new particularly bloody murder it’s clear to Reacher and Margrave cops, Detective Oscar Finlay (Malcolm Goodwin) and police officer Roscoe Conklin (Willa Fitzgerald) that they’re at the start of a particularly dangerous conspiracy and the three of them set out to find answers.

Episode One of Reacher, ‘Welcome to Margrave’, set down the gauntlet for a bold new standard in the action-thriller genre and Episode Two, ‘First Dance’ keeps the ball rolling with some particularly tense moments. Showrunner Nick Santora sticks to the outline of Lee Child’s gripping prose and the narrative moves forward quickly with Alan Ritchson’s Jack Reacher hungry for revenge and being forced into an unwilling alliance with the local Margrave cops who he assumes he can still trust. Santora keeps the pace of ‘First Dance’ moving fast and lose, mixing in moments of procedural investigation, character interaction and close quarter combat, and as an audience member, you don’t want to look away.

In his quest for justice, Jack Reacher falls into the Margrave investigation and another brutal murder soon occurs. This time it’s Margrave Chief of Police Edward Morrison (Peter Skagen) who suffers an unspeakable fate, but Reacher knows what’s coming. Found nailed to a wall and tortured to death, it’s the exact fate that jumpy accountant Hubble (Marc Bendavid) let Reacher know awaited him and this fact, and Reacher’s hesitancy to not reveal it, causes some severe friction between himself and Finlay. This friction between the two characters is interesting to watch and not content with having to deal with him, Finlay sends Reacher off with Roscoe to check in on Hubble’s family and it’s there where things get interesting. Knowing right away that Hubble’s wife Charlene ‘Charlie’ Hubble (Kristin Kreuk) is in danger, Reacher and Roscoe pack her and her family off to protective custody and it’s clear that the killing has only started in Margrave.

Along with the growing narrative, audiences are also introduced to several leading antagonists, although their exact antagonism is yet to be fully revealed. You have Bruce McGill as the pompous and arrogant Mayor Grover Teale who Reacher takes an instant dislike to. Then you have the slick suited and charming town benefactor Kliner (Currie Graham) who appears to be more than he actually portrays himself to be. Then there’s his dead-eyed son KJ (Chris Webster) who Reacher has a run-in with and who he severely doesn’t like, along with his shit-kicking cousin Dawson (A.J. Simmons). As KJ, Webster already has the shifty, psycho character down and while no punches are thrown, it’s certain that he and Reacher will get into it very soon. The atmosphere is building in Reacher and while there’s no clear villain yet, there are plenty of no-good suspects to fill the space.

‘First Dance’ is also an important episode in that it shines a light on the first interaction between Reacher and Roscoe. While there was a slight back and forth flirtation between the two of them in ‘Welcome to Margrave’, we now get a closer look at their interactions and there’s building chemistry between them. Along with an instant physical attraction both characters are drawn to each other’s investigative knowledge as police officers and this keeps things interesting. All throughout the episode the two are paired together and while following a lead, they’re forced to seek shelter at a motel, and while there’s no fun under the sheets just yet, the attraction is building.

Episode Two also goes back in time and we meet a young Reacher and see his growth as a character and his stance as a man who doesn’t like bullies, and who likes to stick up for the little guy. This trait is a defining part of the character of Jack Reacher and has been a cornerstone of Child’s series of books. Not only is this seen in Ritchson’s protective stance as Reacher throughout ‘First Dance’, but a nice little subplot develops with him looking out for a dog that is being abused by its owner. While Reacher fills the dog’s dry bowl with water and speaks some stern words to the owner, he makes it clear that he’ll keep an eye out on the dog. No punches are thrown, yet, but this little sub-plot is a key part of the reveal of Reacher’s character and we’ll see more of this come out in Ritchson’s portrayal as the series moves forward.

But ‘First Dance’ isn’t just all flirtations and lead following, Jack also gets his hands dirty again. Seeking to pay back dirty prison guard Spivey (Patrick Garrow), Reacher tracks him down to a bar and is set upon by a pair of hired killers, who he discerns are ex-South American military. What follows is a quick and sharp knife fight, where Reacher shows his stuff with an edged weapon and the slashing gets bloody. We also see Ritchson employ Reacher’s favourite technique, the headbutt, to good effect and his size and strength make him a natural fighter. From the start the fight choreography of Reacher has been too-the-point and unflashy, keeping very much in line with the style of combat Lee Child describes in his books. Reacher is a character who only cares about results, not showmanship, and everything he does is done to ensure that he wins. What does winning mean? It means he’ll do whatever is necessary to incapacitate or kill his opponent and we’re seeing Ritchson do this here in Reacher.

The narrative and action of ‘First Dance’ moves quickly and again audiences come to a hell of a shock ending. It’s starting to get dangerous in the streets of Margrave and no one is safe from the killers on the prowl. But these bay gays haven’t counted on one thing; a hulking 6’5, 220, ex-military cop who has got a hell of a score to settle and he plans to deliver it with extreme prejudice.

Reacher is streaming on Amazon Prime NOW.

Image: Amazon Prime

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