Tom Clancys bestselling books about CIA agent Jack Ryan wrought a whole industry.
There is the ongoing videogame franchise, offering meticulous fantasies of killfest imperialism.
Taken all together, the Clancy pantheon comprises an insane universe brimming with nuclear terror and political hysteria.
The four episodes Ive seen try hard to capture the unwieldy realities of modern warfare.
The expansive storytelling finds room for fascinating supporting characters.
Suleimans wife (Dina Shihabi) has a complicated agenda.
Ryans boss James Greer (ever-wonderful Wendell Pierce) finds complex solace in his own Islamic practice.
One surreal subplot focuses on a nondescript drone operator in Las Vegas.
And Jack himself is presented, initially, as the opposite of a typical swaggery spy.
I dont interrogate people, I write reports!
True, for like two seconds.
For a moment, Krasinskis presence could be stuntcasting.
Hes not a field agent.
He works in, well, the Office.
His veteran status means hes gun-ready.
And the shows initial sensitivity dwindles in the face of jingoistic excess.
Mysterious brown people kill innocent white people on the streets of Paris.
In Syria, a Muslim character describes an American drone attack as an act of God.
Moments like that make Jack Bauer look subtle.
Woke enough, humble bae.
Yet you scan that statement for a deeper message:OUTSIDERS CHANGE NOTHING.
Suleiman is like Bin Laden, Jack insists.
With one big difference.Suleiman is amassing millions of dollars for his plan.
Whereas, as Jack tells us, 9/11 cost half a million dollars!
Hes trying to say that Suleimans attack could be much worse.
