Slow Horses, series four: 'swaggering' spy thriller returns
Gary Oldman is 'impeccable' in one of the 'most consistent' shows on TV
Based on a series of spy thriller novels by Mick Herron, "Slow Horses", which has returned to Apple TV+ for its fourth series, is a "jewel in the streaming service's crown", said Neil Armstrong on BBC Culture. The show about a rag-tag group of MI5 rejects has "lots to say about the UK", with its "London of grotty takeaways, depressing pubs and bin bags full of rubbish all over the streets".
The intelligence agents have each mucked up a mission in their own way or are just deemed no longer suitable to work at the Park, MI5's fictional HQ in London's Regent's Park. It's up to Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), who is in charge of misfit-central Slough House, to get the MI5 rejects to quit.
The action is exciting; the opening episode features a terrorist attack, a jaw-dropping killing and some "brilliant Jackson Lamb zingers".
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The so-called "slow horses" who have been put out to pasture have hitherto behaved as if they don’t give two hoots about each other, said Fran Hoepfner in Slate. But here, their admiration of each other comes through, though efforts toward developing relationships between some of the more minor characters "ring hollow" and the "pivot to personal" is a bit of a "shaky turn" for a show that excels at both action and comedy.
But Lamb's band of second-rate spies finally show what they are capable of when they "stop bickering for all of five seconds", revealing a group that is "stronger, sharper, and more capable than ever".
Good job then, as the new villain of the piece, Frank Harkness, played by Hugo Weaving gives them a run for their money. Weaving runs a mercenary home for boys, one of whom could be responsible for the bombing that kicks off the series' proceedings.
Alongside this new threat, agent River Cartwright (Jack Lowden) and his grandfather David (Jonathan Pryce), a former MI5 grandee, both find themselves on the run from The Park and the group of mercenaries operating out of France.
Notable new faces this season are the super keen Moira (Joanna Scanlan, known for her roles in Armando Iannucci’s "The Thick of It" and "In the Loop") and the slick Claude Whelan (James Callis), who comes up against the brilliant Diana Taverner (Kristin Scott Thomas). Callis's depiction of "slippery, half-confident upper management" is as good an example as you'll see, said Nick Hilton in The Independent.
If the fourth season of the show proves anything, it’s that these two characters – River and Lamb have given "Slow Horses" a "beating heart". Oldman as Lamb, who is "as corpulent and corrupt as ever" is "impeccable".
Despite its sometimes muddled plotlines and "repetitive bickering", "Slow Horses" establishes itself as "innovative time and time again", said Hoepfner in Slate. For all the chances they have to escape Slough House, "there’s a reason why they" – i.e. the slow horses – "(and we) keep coming back".
"Slow Horses" is both "swaggering and well-defined" and has emerged as one of the "most consistent, and consistently enjoyable, shows on TV", said Hilton in The Independent.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The mental health crisis affecting vets
Under The Radar Death of Hampshire vet highlights mental health issues plaguing the industry
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Onion is having a very ironic laugh with Infowars
The Explainer The satirical newspaper is purchasing the controversial website out of bankruptcy
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
'Rahmbo, back from Japan, will be looking for a job? Really?'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
These 7 touring theater productions are ready to carry you through the holidays and into the new year
The Week Recommends Your favorite movie-turned-musical might be coming to a city near you
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Kimpton Everly Hotel: the perfect base to explore Hollywood
The Week Recommends Escape the bustle of LA at this laidback bolthole
By Caroline Dolby Published
-
The best TV spy thrillers
The Week Recommends Brilliant espionage series, packed with plot twists to keep you hooked until the end
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Magnificent Tudor castles and stately homes to visit this year
The Week Recommends The return of 'Wolf Hall' has sparked an uptick in visits to Britain's Tudor palaces
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Vegetable cocktails are having a moment
The Week Recommends Wild carrot margarita? Mung bean old-fashioned? 'Allotment-inspired' tipples are appearing on drinks menus
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Renegade comedian Youngmi Mayer's frank new memoir is a blitzkrieg to the genre
The Week Recommends 'I'm Laughing Because I'm Crying' details a biracial life on the margins, with humor as salving grace
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Drawing the Italian Renaissance: a 'relentlessly impressive' exhibition
The Week Recommends Show at the King's Gallery features an 'enormous cache' of works by the likes of Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael
By The Week UK Published
-
Niall Williams shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The Irish novelist chooses works by Charles Dickens, Seamus Heaney and Wendell Berry
By The Week UK Published