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Creator (Platform): Shawn Ryan – based on the novel of the same name by Matthew Quirk (Netflix)
Publisher (Release): Netflix (2023)
Length: 10 episodes
Genres: Adult; Espionage; Thriller; Action; Romance
❗️Disclaimers❗️:
moderate violence and gore
this review contains low-level spoilers
recommendation: must watch
👍 Pros 👍
Strong twists inject excitement into a mostly standard spy thriller
Capable casting creates compelling dual protagonists
Difficult to stop watching by episode 3
👎 Cons 👎
Jagged beginning
Action isn’t as slick as I expected
Could do with 2 fewer episodes
👀 Synopsis & Trailer 👀
After answering a call, FBI Agent Peter Sutherland and ex-CEO cybersecurity expert Rose Larkin are thrown into a vast conspiracy orchestrated by the very people meant to prevent them.
🛎️ Introduction 🛎️
The Night Agent, based on the novel of the same name by Matthew Quirk (which I wished I’d known before watching the show since I prefer reading first), would be a shallow and paint-by-numbers action thriller if not for the heart its cast gives it with genuine and layered performances. Fans of the Bourne films or, more recently coming to mind, Reacher, will find themselves at home with this diluted but surprisingly effective binge-watch.
🧩 Plots 🧩
The Night Agent is blatant in its themes of duality and the sticky nature of truth and ‘truth’, but its serious tone helps sell it and its cast helps justify it. Along with some gritty action over the more choreographed stuff I expected, The Night Agent feels grounded just enough to keep its fantastical conspiracy from derailing it.
A jagged start can be jarring while the writers assemble the story’s pieces, but they effortlessly glide them together, bringing the disparate parts clicking together to form some shocking twists. It’s these that keep the show’s dark tone from sinking it. It’s still pretty rote, but it’s undeniable that there was genuine care put into adapting it for the medium.
Gabriel Basso shines
Repetitious scenes and plot points can pad out the experience, throwing off the pace and showing that its 10-episode run might have been better condensed into fewer parts. An explosive finale, however, capitalises on what’s been built, closing season 1 with a satisfying bang while setting up just enough for a second season to hit the ground running.
…its serious tone helps sell it and its cast helps justify it.
🎭 Characters 🎭
Surprisingly, despite the singular title of The Night Agent, the show focuses on a variety of duos working on their own stories. This starts a little haphazardly, but compelling characters and performances keep the viewer engaged long enough for the story to hit its stride. Predominantly, The Night Agent focuses on tag-team Paul Sutherland (played by Gabriel Basso) and Rose Larkin (Luciane Buchanan), the former a low-level FBI agent and the other a cybersecurity expert both unwittingly dragged into a conspiracy that, alone, they’re not equipped to survive.
It’s that note that provides my favourite element of the series. Both feel out of their depth but not incapable. This separates the show from most of its counterparts: it’s not the ultimate weapon of Jason Bourne or the utter naivety of Netflix’s other spy drama The Recruit. Its dual protagonists are two people fighting for survival in a game they never had the chance to opt out of, and it’s fantastic (Gabriel Basso in particular shines, bringing layers to character that easily could’ve been one-note).
Two minds are better than one
The Night Agent doesn’t leave them hanging, though, with other duos intersecting in interesting ways. It’s basically a battle of who’s the best team and who’ll be left standing to affect real change in the US. Development is solid if a little inconsistent in places, but, by the finale, all of the characters feel defined and changed by the events they’ve experienced.
(P.S. While I have absolutely no doubt that Gabriel Basso will return in the renewal, I hope the rest of the cast do, too. In particular, Luciane Buchanan. I can’t emphasise enough just how important the pairing is to sell the show and its values of trust)
…the show focuses on a variety of duos working on their own stories.
🧠 Final Thoughts 🧠
The Night Agent is a pretty standard spy thriller with some surprisingly effective twists at its core. Supported by a stellar cast of talent that forms its beating heart, a shaky beginning finds confidence in its parts to piece them into a fun conspiracy puzzle. It could lose a couple episodes, but you’ll still fly through its 10-part run at lightning speed.
Plus, it’s a show Netflix has renewed (oh my god, a renewal), and with the talent involved, might be one worth investment.
The Phoenix Project 