Neagley Season 1 Review: A Brilliant Reacher Spin-Off
When Amazon announced a spinoff from Reacher centred around Frances Neagley, I was excited… but also slightly nervous. Neagley is already a fan favourite from the Reacherverse, so it made sense that Amazon would want to give her a show of her own. But my biggest worry was that the spin-off would just feel like a lost season of its big brother, essentially more of the same, just without Reacher himself; that worry disappeared pretty quickly.
After the first couple of episodes, Neagley really starts to stand on its own two feet. Yes, it’s still very much connected to its sibling, and there are plenty of links to the wider universe, but this feels like its own story with its own identity. One of the biggest strengths of the season is the amount of character development we get for Neagley. There’s a lot of backstory here, giving us a much better understanding of who she is, what shaped her and how she eventually became the character we know from the wider Reacher universe.
It also does a great job of expanding the world around her. Amazon clearly wants this to be another successful corner of the Reacherverse, and thankfully the world-building never feels like an excuse to throw in random references. It actually adds something to the story.
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The plot is pretty dark, too. We’re thrown into a cult-like world involving drugs, manipulation and an incredibly enigmatic cult leader. It’s a much darker story than I was expecting, but it works. There’s a real sense of unease running throughout the season, and the further we get into the story, the more twisted things become. The action sequences are brilliant, with some seriously pulse-pounding shootouts throughout the season. They’re brutal, chaotic and exactly the sort of thing you want from a show like this. There are some fantastic set pieces, and the action never feels like it’s just there for the sake of it.
Maria Sten is fantastic again as Neagley, but the supporting cast deserves a lot of praise too. Grayston Holt, who plays Detective Hudson Riley, is a particular standout. I can already see Riley becoming a fan favourite because Holt is absolutely fantastic in the role. Jasper Jones as Keno and Adelaide Rudolph as Renee also add plenty to the story. Damon Herriman is brilliant as the cult leader. He’s creepy in all the ways we know he can be. I’m not going to say when or how Reacher appears because that’s something you should discover for yourself, but I really liked how they handled his appearance. It didn’t feel forced, and it didn’t feel like the show was desperately trying to remind us that this is a Reacher spinoff. It felt natural.
Overall, I went into Neagley slightly worried that we were just going to get Reacher without Reacher. This show expands the universe while letting Neagley become more than a supporting character. It’s emotional, dark, packed with brilliant action and introduces some characters I really hope we get to see more of. If this is the beginning of another branch of the said Lee Child universe, I’m absolutely here for it.
★★★★
Streaming on Prime Video September 16th / Maria Sten, Greyston Holt, Adeline Rudolph, Jasper Jones, Damon Herriman, Alan Ritchson / Showrunners Nick Santora and Nicholas Wooton / Prime Video
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