TV
Jack Ryan
I have this certain rule about movies. That rule, if I ever see that there’s a scene in a movie where a character is casually walking away from an explosion happening right behind them, I won’t see that movie. The first time someone walked away like that in a movie it was probably pretty cool, but over the years it’s become so lame it’s cliched and is an indication of the overall quality of said movie. I really haven’t had to worry about this with TV series since television budgets don’t really allow for effects like this, until recently. That was when I saw one of the posters for the Amazon Prime Jack Ryan TV series. There, the title character is walking away from an explosion that’s so immense it’s occurring over the horizon that would have to be so gigantic it would have been atomic in size.
And does Jack Ryan notice what’s happening behind him? Not at all.
Ultimately, I decided to give Jack Ryan a pass because, as Pee-Wee Herman so eloquently put it, “I’m a rule-breaker…”
The character of Jack Ryan was originally created by author Tom Clancy in his novel The Hunt for Red October (1984) and has been a feature of many books since. On screen Alec Baldwin appeared as Ryan in the movie version of that novel, then Harrison Ford in two films, Ben Affleck one and Chris Pine one too.
I’m a fan of the Jack Ryan character in general so I come at this new TV version as such, and as a fan I’m on the lookout for certain things. The history of the character is that he’s an analyst for the CIA who’s not a guy who goes out into the field to do things, he’s more comfortable tabulating statistics behind a desk. What happens is that Ryan’s thrust into situations he’s not prepared for — be it trying to find out if a Soviet submarine captain wants to nuke the US or defect or stop a terrorist attack his family is at the center to name a few.
With something like The Hunt for Red October, the only really Ryan’s even in the mix is because he’s one of the few people who knows of the special submarine in that movie and the background of its captain. And since he’s the only one with any knowledge whatsoever, he’s sent to try and figure things out. It’s not because he an expert marksman, has six-pack abs or knows eight silent ways to kill a man that he’s chosen to go, it’s because he has a little knowledge but still knows more than anyone else.
I don’t need much from the latest Jack Ryan TV series from Amazon, except the character should be somewhat true to this. Otherwise, if he’s going to be a Jason Bourne/James Bond/Captain America superhero, why make a Jack Ryan thing and not just make up a brand new character? I say let Jack Ryan be Jack Ryan.
Now comes the TV series version of the character in Jack Ryan, this time starring John Krasinski in the title role.
This version of of the character is more in-line with the Affleck one, they’re both young, single and brash. This Jack Ryan uncovers large sums of money moving through accounts overseas, and when it turns out Ryan is onto something he’s put onto a plane by the head of his department James Greer (Wendell Pierce) where the two end up at a CIA black site in order to interrogate suspects in moving the money. But there Ryan is thrust into being a man of action when the compound is attacked by terrorists in order to free these suspects.
I thought Jack Ryan was interesting, if it wasn’t quite strong enough to hook me just yet. The characters are thinly drawn — Ryan’s biggest characteristic is that he cares too much and Greer is one-note gruff. I also thought the plot was a sort of mish-mash of things that had come before like Zero Dark Thirty and 24.
I wish we could get a Jack Ryan TV series that was a little closer to the characters from the Baldwin/Ford films, but that doesn’t seem to be in the cards these days. It seems as if every character like that on TV or in the movies has to have almost superhuman abilities, they are a perfect physical specimen, never get tired and are never afraid. Which is how I felt about this latest Jack Ryan character. That character didn’t feel like a character, he felt like a real guy and I think the series would’ve been better if he did.
Can I also mention I couldn’t tell if the audio mix on the first episode was off or if it was something about my setup? I practically had to turn my TV speakers up to 11 to hear it when anyone was talking. This could’ve also been a stylistic choice to have everyone mumble and talk under their breath which was a bit maddening. It would be nice to hear what people are speaking now and then to catch what’s all going on.
True Detective season 3 commercial
Movies
First Man trailer
What To Watch This Week
Tuesday
Mayans MC
The spin-off series of the super-successful FX series Sons of Anarchy about a group of terrorist motorcycle riders running guns, murdering people and selling drugs in small-town California debuts this week.
The Purge
A ten episode mini-series based on the The Purge film franchise begins Tuesday on USA. Since The Purge is now a TV series, does that mean there’ll be no more The Purge movies? We couldn’t be that lucky.
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom
One of the biggest hits of the summer is set to be released on digital download this week.
Friday
Iron Fist
A second season to the Marvel series begins this Friday on Netflix. The first one got ugly reviews so here’s hoping the second does a bit better.
The Reading & Watch List
- A satellite engineer explains the challenges of space electronics
- The Milky Way Died 7 Billion Years Ago And Came Back To Life
- Roman coins found in Yorkshire revealed after years of secrecy
Cool Movie & TV Posters of the Week
Mayans MC poster 
Overlord poster
