Jack Ryan

Gargamel · 10-27-18, 08:52 PM

Amazon recently released a new series based on Tom Clancy's series of books. It takes the main character from the books, Jack Ryan, and places him back about 1/3 the way into his career. I mention this in a new thread, as a good number of us are fans of the books, and have been disappointed of late by the portrayals of the characters and plots.

Trailer:

Quick review:
This should be a spoiler free review, but does include some things you'll need to appreciate the series.

I really did enjoy this series. Once I realized the characters were the same in Name and Spirit only, I really enjoyed it.

Ryan is pretty true to the books' character. He's an analyst for the CIA at this point, early/mid 30's, doctorate of Economics (not History, and that may be the biggest change in the character), ex-marine who did hurt himself in a chopper crash. And Krasinsky does a pretty good job of portaying how Clancy actually wrote the character. My biggest pet peeve is when he doesn't flinch at all at an unexpected helicopter ride.

The rest of the characters are true in name only. The character that would be John Clark, isn't even Clark (I don't think, that might be part of the shtick though). Greer is far from the one played by James Earl Jones. Once you get by that fact, you can appreciate what Pierce is bringing to the performance.

The plot is very deserving of the Clancy name. Elements of "The Sum of All Fears" and "Executive Orders" do shine through at times, but the story is it's own. It does become somewhat unrealistic about the willingness of the CIA to deploy an analyst to the field, but that is what made the Clancy stories great. I just think this series missed on the serendipitous elements of those deployments. But aside from that, it pretty much holds up.

All in all, I'd have to give it 8/10. The end of the series is clearly left open for future seasons, and I do look forward to those if they occur.

10-27-18, 08:52 PM	#1
Gargamel Lucky Sailor Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Rome Posts: 4,272 Downloads: 81 Uploads: 0	Jack Ryan Amazon recently released a new series based on Tom Clancy's series of books. It takes the main character from the books, Jack Ryan, and places him back about 1/3 the way into his career. I mention this in a new thread, as a good number of us are fans of the books, and have been disappointed of late by the portrayals of the characters and plots. Trailer: Quick review: This should be a spoiler free review, but does include some things you'll need to appreciate the series. I really did enjoy this series. Once I realized the characters were the same in Name and Spirit only, I really enjoyed it. Ryan is pretty true to the books' character. He's an analyst for the CIA at this point, early/mid 30's, doctorate of Economics (not History, and that may be the biggest change in the character), ex-marine who did hurt himself in a chopper crash. And Krasinsky does a pretty good job of portaying how Clancy actually wrote the character. My biggest pet peeve is when he doesn't flinch at all at an unexpected helicopter ride. The rest of the characters are true in name only. The character that would be John Clark, isn't even Clark (I don't think, that might be part of the shtick though). Greer is far from the one played by James Earl Jones. Once you get by that fact, you can appreciate what Pierce is bringing to the performance. The plot is very deserving of the Clancy name. Elements of "The Sum of All Fears" and "Executive Orders" do shine through at times, but the story is it's own. It does become somewhat unrealistic about the willingness of the CIA to deploy an analyst to the field, but that is what made the Clancy stories great. I just think this series missed on the serendipitous elements of those deployments. But aside from that, it pretty much holds up. All in all, I'd have to give it 8/10. The end of the series is clearly left open for future seasons, and I do look forward to those if they occur. __________________ Luck is a residue of Design.