![]() ![]() As with several stories of this oeuvre, the opening combat sequence is blindingly chaotic, noisy and dark (in a sewage system of course). The first half of the series depends a lot on what happens in the first ten minutes – the doomed mission, codename “Odinsword,” on a Syrian beach. This joke will land better once you’ve watched The Terminal List (and made your own list). The conspiracy itself has something to do with PTSD – that’s all I can give away without being sued – and I couldn’t help but wonder if James Reece was a narrative surrogate for the audience, and the people who betrayed him, the makers of the show. That’s because it’s hard to understand the intricacies based on the tele-writing alone there are so many shady dealings and random character off-shoots that the series descends into an orgy of top-brass whataboutery till the sixth episode. At least four different scenes feature the reporter incredulously spelling out her story in layman language so that we understand who and what James Reece is up against. Given the sheer population of the plot, there’s also an intrepid impact journalist named Katie (Constance Wu), who exists purely as a human expository tool. He also growls “I’m already dead” soon after. He growls “I am justice” in the penultimate episode. He strides past the fluttering American flag after taking down the first name. He suspects a massive military cover-up, goes rogue, bands with a bunch of long-time allies, and starts to target the names on his ‘terminal list’ leading right up to the top. He has nothing left to lose – which is code for “hell hath no fury like a commando-screenplay scorned”. On his return home, he suffers a personal tragedy. A legendary Navy SEAL named James Reece loses his entire platoon in a doomed mission. The premise is so stale that I’m pretty sure Channing Tatum, John Cena or Dwayne Johnson did an email version of it a decade ago. But I’ll come to Pratt and his crippling lack of dramatic heft later. In longer form, all the campy excesses of a revenge thriller lose their identity and play out like convoluted slow-motion reveals that are less surprising than Chris Pratt’s global stardom. As it turns out, there’s a good reason for that. ![]() I suppose the rationale behind this production is that we’ve seen this story a hundred times before, but never as a long-form narrative. But at least it wouldn’t be buried under the obligation of being a ‘binge-worthy’ adaptation of a best-selling novel written by a former Navy SEAL. It would have still been a tired marriage of conspiracy-thriller literary tropes and generic action film-making. That’s not to say it would have been better. The Terminal List could’ve been 400 minutes shorter. America"), Riley Keough ("Zola"), as well as Pratt's IRL brother-in-law, Patrick Schwarzenegger ("Moxie").“This 500-minute-long 8-episode series about a wronged Navy SEAL could’ve been a film” is the new “This meeting could’ve been an email”. In addition to Pratt, "The Terminal List" will star Constance Wu ("Crazy Rich Asians") as "Katie Buranek, a risk-seeking war correspondent who uses her byline to speak truth to power" (via Deadline) Taylor Kitsch ("Friday Night Lights"), who plays "Ben Edwards, Reece's best friend and a former SEAL who now works for the CIA" (via The Hollywood Reporter) JD Pardo ("Mayans M.C."), Jeanne Tripplehorn ("Mrs. As previously mentioned, Pratt with play Reece, an extremely skilled Navy SEAL looking for answers behind the murder of his entire platoon during a covert operation. Speaking of Pratt, we should also tell you about the additional major cast member joining this television series. What is Capstone, exactly? Well, it is essentially a high-falutin' global fund that deals in a variety of industries, but Steve apparently likes to use Capstone to profit from the latest military innovations. With Steve's high-profile role in the world of business and politics, he will inevitably land on Reece's radar, but it's unclear how the two will directly interact in the series. ![]()
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