The Night Agent review: A flawed yet entertaining spy thriller

3/5

Story: Peter Sutherland, a young FBI agent (Gabriel Basso), is reassigned to desk duty at the White House, despite foiling a major terror attack. He is tasked with manning a phone that has never rung on his watch. However, one fateful night he does receive a distress call from a woman named Rose (Luciane Buchanan), who is being hunted by armed assassins. The two of them are then hurled into a dangerous conspiracy involving powerful individuals at the White House.

Review: The spy thriller sub-genre is one that never seems to fade away from relevance. From films to TV shows, it has undoubtedly become one that continues to generate plenty of interest among audiences. Prime Video TV shows Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and Reacher, are the latest from Hollywood that have garnered a cult following. In fact, Ubisoft’s iconic video game franchise Tom Clancy’s Splintercell is getting a remake. Netflix released a few films as well recently, such as The Gray Man, and now they have released their version of Jack Ryan and Jack Reacher with The Night Agent.

Based on Matthew Quirk’s eponymous novel, the series is a very conventional story about spies, assassins, and dark government conspiracy. The 10-episode series ticks all the right boxes to keep spy thriller enthusiasts hooked from start to finish – fast-paced action, intriguing mysteries, and deadly assassins. But it’s also its primary weakness, as the series leans heavily on familiar tropes and plot devices. Even the primary protagonist, Peter Sutherland, is a textbook ‘Boy Scout’ protagonist, to the extent that actor Gabriel Basso may have as well been auditioning to be the next Superman in James Gunn’s reboot, Superman: Legacy.

Despite its obvious flaws, the series does thrive when the protagonists are solving mysteries or evading assassins. These scenes often feature nail-biting moments that will certainly endear the show to fans of the sub-genre. And the undeniable chemistry between the lead stars elevates the show to a higher pedestal. And to the show’s credit, considerable focus is given to its supporting characters, who also have been afforded significant screen time for their subplots, and how it is factored into the overarching narrative.

The show’s biggest weakness, however, is not the cliched plot or characters – it is its inability to provide a convincing pay-off to the mystery behind the massive conspiracy. The conspiracy is akin to the slew of, often ridiculous, conspiracy theories on YouTube. While a plot about a deep and vast conspiracy involving powerful figures makes for compelling storytelling, there has to be an equally compelling explanation as to why the antagonists are involved in it in the first place. The show falls flat at this juncture and the plot holes become glaringly obvious.

There is one recurring theme in the show that unfortunately amounts to very little towards the end. Both antagonists and protagonists are paired in twos with a male and female partner. From the original Night Agents the Campbells, Peter and Rose, the assassins (played by Eve Harlow and Phoenix Raei), and Secret Service agents Chelsea and Monks (played by Fola Evans-Akingbola and D.B. Woodside). While Chelsea and Monks evolve into a mentor/protégé relationship the others are romantically involved and in the mould of Mr and Mrs Smith or even Bonnie and Clyde. But if there is an allegory surrounding the inclusion of these couples, it leaves no indelible mark on the series.

Verdict: If one were to ignore the jarring plot holes and cliched tropes, there is an engrossing story in Netflix's new TV series The Night Agent. The fast-paced and nail-biting sequences have been well crafted, which makes for an entertaining 10 episodes of television. The finale seems to suggest that if Netflix does renew for another season, the series will evolve into the globe-trotting adventures of a spy.