The Terminal List: Dark Wolf Review

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf is the epic thriller prequel series to the global Amazon Prime Video hit show The Terminal List. Both Taylor Kitsch and Chris Pratt return for the new series and are joined by new cast members: Tom Hopper, Robert Wisdom, Luke Hemsworth, Dar Salim, Rona-Lee Shimon, Shiraz Tzarfati, and Jared Shaw. The original show followed James Reece (Pratt) as he worked to take down those who had betrayed him and his team.

However, the prequel instead delves deep into the origin story of Ben Edwards (Kitsch), who appeared in the original show, charting his transformation from a Navy SEAL to a CIA operative in a world of high-stakes espionage, moral ambiguity, and deadly covert missions. After the twist ending at the end of the original series, there will have been lots of questions from fans about why Edwards made the choice that he did, and Dark Wolf does a fantastic job in slowly piecing together his story to explain the decision.

Whilst the original show focused more heavily on action than story, Dark Wolf flips the script, focusing more on the more gradual development of the story and characters throughout. There are still several big set pieces throughout the show, with the ending of Episode 6 at the airport being a particular standout moment. By taking this approach, the key moments feel considerably more tense than in the original series and allow the audience to have a deeper investment in the storylines by the time the final episodes roll.

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The story focuses predominantly on the emotional driven journey of Ben Edwards (Taylor Kitsch), but by regularly pairing him up with Raife Hastings (Tom Hopper) the audience gets to see a interesting dynamic play out between the two characters as their morals and motives take them in different directions despite being in similar positions at the start of the show. This is interesting also because although Hastings doesn’t appear in the original, he does get referenced throughout and plays a key role in the ending moment of the show. This dynamic between the two sets up both Kitsch and Hopper with a lot of room to play with in their performances.

Hooper is particularly strong throughout, with Hastings working as a bit of a moral compass for the ever-evolving Edwards. The rest of the cast also put in some fantastic performances, with Hemsworth (Landry), Salim (Mo Farooq),  Shimon (Perash), and Tzarfati (Varon) all given moments to shine as part of the team.

Overall, it’s a really fun show that maintains the high standard of The Terminal List. A lot of fans have regularly felt that Taylor Kitsch is underrated with his work, and this show gives him another impressive performance on his resume. With a well-balanced combination of both action sequences and story, The Terminal List: Dark Wolf is an enjoyable, tense watch that successfully builds more layers to an already fascinating universe.

★★★★

Streams on Prime Video on August 27th with the first three episodes, then weekly until September 24th / Taylor Kitsch, Chris Pratt, Tom Hopper, Robert Wisdom, Luke Hemsworth, Dar Salim, Rona-Lee Shimon, Shiraz Tzarfati, and Jared Shaw / Prime Video 

About the Author

Danny Humby

Editor

Danny is a freelance media creative with a background spanning marketing, journalism and governance. From 2021 to 2024 he was Chair of the Student Radio Association and is currently a Trustee at Chichester Festival Theatre. He holds an MSc in Marketing and a BA in Film and Television from Solent University, and remains passionate about supporting young people, the arts, and charitable organisations to help broaden their reach and impact. He can be found under @popcornandpace on Instagram.

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