You’ve finished watching Black Doves and are contemplating that ending, wondering what will become of Sam, Helen — and the nanny — in season 2. While you wait, there’s another new-ish thriller that transports you across the pond and into several countries where there’s so many close calls you may feel conflicted about whose side you’re on. But probably not.
While Black Doves has spy hijinks, double lives and hand-to-hand combat sequences and a mystery at its core, it’s not a 100% assassin’s tale. For that, I urge you to watch the clever, suspense-filled Peacock series, The Day of the Jackal. There are moments that are teeth-clenching.
I don’t know if you’ve seen Eddie Redmayne play a killer before, but his Jackal — who goes by Charlie and many other names — has swagger, excellent marksmanship and extreme work-life balance issues like Keira Knightley’s Helen in Black Doves. However, these shows are not the same. The Jackal is a hitman-for-hire who’s been making millions from his illegal profession, taking advantage of technology and sophisticated prosthetics to do his job.
Based on the 1971 novel by Frederick Forsyth, the 10-episode series pulls some bits from the 1973 film adaptation but builds out the narrative to give the protagonist an origin story and affluent life with his unaware wife and baby. He speaks multiple languages, can blend in and is willing to hole up for three days and pee in water bottle to fulfill his end of a deal. That’s dedication. While he exhibits a certain amount of aloofness, the Jackal isn’t completely unflinching or unfeeling. At home, he’s Charlie, a loving husband, father and in-law.
Season 1 isn’t just about following him on missions. The show also stars Lashana Lynch as Bianca Pullman, an MI-6 agent on his tail after he assassinates a politician. As you watch, you learn that she is smart as an agent but creates messes on the job and at home, some of which cannot be fixed. Bianca’s obsession with capturing the Jackal comes with a high price.
In the midst of her kicking off her investigation, our assassin is chasing after someone who chooses not to pay a debt and simultaneously lands a high-paying gig that comes with a hard deadline and conditions. If he succeeds, he can leave this profession, but if he fails, he’ll have to run from MI-6 and the people who hired him. To make matters more complicated, his wife, Nuria (played by Money Heist star Úrsula Corberó) grows suspicious about him and starts digging.
While the Jackal is very meticulous and maps out almost every move, he can’t always account for last-minute logistical changes, law enforcement sweeps and checkpoints or nosey family members. There seemingly aren’t enough passports in the world to help him recover from a sloppy escape. And at one point in the show, he cracks emotionally. Have you ever seen a contract killer cry?
With British intelligence inching closer to discovering his true identity and whereabouts, there are tense scenes where the Jackal comes dangerously close to being found, caught or killed. He has a little bit of help, but that doesn’t always pan out the way you expect it to. The season finale made me gasp.
Stream all 10 episodes of season 1 of The Day of the Jackal, and patiently wait — like him — for season 2 to come to Peacock.
