John Powers

Ever since I saw my first James Bond movie as a kid, I've had a thing for spy stories. They always draw me in, be they nuanced like John le Carré, witty like Slow Horses, or pot-boiling like Homeland. I love their labyrinthine plots, their bubbling menace, their deep-dish paranoia. Never trust what you see on the surface."

Ever since I saw my first James Bond movie as a kid, I've had a thing for spy stories. They always draw me in, be they nuanced like John le Carré, witty like Slow Horses, or pot-boiling like Homeland. I love their labyrinthine plots, their bubbling menace, their deep-dish paranoia. Never trust what you see on the surface."

Ever since I saw my first James Bond movie as a kid, I've had a thing for spy stories. They always draw me in, be they nuanced like John le Carré, witty like Slow Horses, or pot-boiling like Homeland. I love their labyrinthine plots, their bubbling menace, their deep-dish paranoia. Never trust what you see on the surface."

I'm happy to report that the year is ending with two good new spy series, Black Doves on Netflix and The Agency on Paramount+. They make an interesting pair, for while both are compelling and feature top drawer talent, each takes a radically different approach to the espionage genre. Where one flashes with pop energy, the other is a slow burn.

I'm happy to report that the year is ending with two good new spy series, Black Doves on Netflix and The Agency on Paramount+. They make an interesting pair, for while both are compelling and feature top drawer talent, each takes a radically different approach to the espionage genre. Where one flashes with pop energy, the other is a slow burn.

I'm happy to report that the year is ending with two good new spy series, Black Doves on Netflix and The Agency on Paramount+. They make an interesting pair, for while both are compelling and feature top drawer talent, each takes a radically different approach to the espionage genre. Where one flashes with pop energy, the other is a slow burn.

Set in London, the mecca of spy stories, Black Dove stars Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, the wife of Britain's defense minister, who secretly works for the Black Doves, a private espionage firm that sells information to the highest bidder. When her lover is murdered, Helen vows revenge, much to the disapproval of her boss, Reed. That's Sarah Lancaster of Happy Valley fame.

Set in London, the mecca of spy stories, Black Dove stars Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, the wife of Britain's defense minister, who secretly works for the Black Doves, a private espionage firm that sells information to the highest bidder. When her lover is murdered, Helen vows revenge, much to the disapproval of her boss, Reed. That's Sarah Lancaster of Happy Valley fame.

Set in London, the mecca of spy stories, Black Dove stars Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, the wife of Britain's defense minister, who secretly works for the Black Doves, a private espionage firm that sells information to the highest bidder. When her lover is murdered, Helen vows revenge, much to the disapproval of her boss, Reed. That's Sarah Lancaster of Happy Valley fame.

To keep her safe, Reed enlists Helen's dear friend Sam Young, a gay contract killer played by Ben Whishaw. Soon Helen and Sam are sucked into a bloody maelstrom that touches everyone from the Chinese embassy and the CIA to No. 10 Downing Street and the world's most powerful criminal gang. Telling a complete story in an admirably brief six episodes, the show starts fast and just keeps coming.

To keep her safe, Reed enlists Helen's dear friend Sam Young, a gay contract killer played by Ben Whishaw. Soon Helen and Sam are sucked into a bloody maelstrom that touches everyone from the Chinese embassy and the CIA to No. 10 Downing Street and the world's most powerful criminal gang. Telling a complete story in an admirably brief six episodes, the show starts fast and just keeps coming.

To keep her safe, Reed enlists Helen's dear friend Sam Young, a gay contract killer played by Ben Whishaw. Soon Helen and Sam are sucked into a bloody maelstrom that touches everyone from the Chinese embassy and the CIA to No. 10 Downing Street and the world's most powerful criminal gang. Telling a complete story in an admirably brief six episodes, the show starts fast and just keeps coming.

Jokes and plot twists and fight scenes and flashbacks. Heck, even Tracy Ullman turns up. Black Doves was created by Joe Barton, who did Geary Haji, an exhilaratingly original Netflix series about a Tokyo cop in London. While this new show is more conventional, you can feel Barton's sensibility in its deft shifting from violence to comedy to surprisingly deep emotion.

Jokes and plot twists and fight scenes and flashbacks. Heck, even Tracy Ullman turns up. Black Doves was created by Joe Barton, who did Geary Haji, an exhilaratingly original Netflix series about a Tokyo cop in London. While this new show is more conventional, you can feel Barton's sensibility in its deft shifting from violence to comedy to surprisingly deep emotion.

Jokes and plot twists and fight scenes and flashbacks. Heck, even Tracy Ullman turns up. Black Doves was created by Joe Barton, who did Geary Haji, an exhilaratingly original Netflix series about a Tokyo cop in London. While this new show is more conventional, you can feel Barton's sensibility in its deft shifting from violence to comedy to surprisingly deep emotion.

Even the villains have more dimension than you'd expect. Of course, it's the heroes who hold us, especially since Knightley and Wishaw play off each other with such ease. Here, for example, Sam and Helen are driving to kill one of the men who murdered her lover, and she thinks he's acting a bit odd.

Even the villains have more dimension than you'd expect. Of course, it's the heroes who hold us, especially since Knightley and Wishaw play off each other with such ease. Here, for example, Sam and Helen are driving to kill one of the men who murdered her lover, and she thinks he's acting a bit odd.

Even the villains have more dimension than you'd expect. Of course, it's the heroes who hold us, especially since Knightley and Wishaw play off each other with such ease. Here, for example, Sam and Helen are driving to kill one of the men who murdered her lover, and she thinks he's acting a bit odd.

Helen and Sam are so enjoyable in such scenes, and their friendship so palpable, that it's easy to lose sight of the immorality of what they do, especially as both are capable of profound love and generosity. The human cost of spying is less breezy in the agency, whose provenance could hardly be finer.

Helen and Sam are so enjoyable in such scenes, and their friendship so palpable, that it's easy to lose sight of the immorality of what they do, especially as both are capable of profound love and generosity. The human cost of spying is less breezy in the agency, whose provenance could hardly be finer.