This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie being covered here wouldn’t exist.
The character of Jack Ryan is one that has had a long and varied life on screen, and an even longer life in Tom Clancy’s novels featuring the iconic character. The brilliant analyst has been brought to life by the likes of Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, Ben Affleck and Chris Pine. When it was announced that Amazon was going to steal the character away from the world of film for their own streaming series, the pressure was on to find someone who could live up to the performances that had been given before. While John Krasinski (The Office) may not have been the first name to pop in your head, the first season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan proved he was more than up for the task. As with the Clancy novels, each season is designed to be somewhat standalone where viewers can appreciate each story on its own terms. In the show’s sophomore outing, the political intrigue is ratcheted up to head-spinning levels where the show teeters just on the right side of guilty fun.
At the end of the first season, CIA operative Jim Greer (the always stellar Wendell Pierce, The Wire) extended an offer to Jack to join him in Moscow, which we quickly learn was declined in favor of other opportunities. Jack has become suspicious of some of the activity he sees coming out of Venezuela, which leads him to make his way to South America to investigate. Circumstances lead him to once again team up with Greer to uncover what exactly is going on in the unstable country. The relationship between these two is one of the bedrocks of the series, and this season allows them to explore their interpersonal dynamic in a really compelling manner. In the midst of the main conflict, Venezuela is facing an impending election that is looking uncertain for the deviously corrupt Venezuelan President Reyes (Jordi Mollà). The possibility of Reyes losing his grip on power introduces a great amount of intrigue and casualties. The season leaps into action incredibly quickly and does its best to deliver pulse-pounding action and suspense throughout.
The second entry to this series adds some really interesting characters to the Clancy universe. First and foremost is the mysterious Harriet Baumann (Noomi Rapace, Prometheus), who almost too conveniently lures Jack into bed before he can consider that she may have ulterior motives. She is a compelling character expertly inhabited by Rapace whose layers are slowly revealed throughout the season. Despite her entrancing presence, there is a bit of a Cathy Mueller (Abbie Cornish)-sized hole in the season. It is reasonable that she is not included due to their location, but you still kind of want Jack to remember he had a love interest before all of this. The highlight of the season might just be a ruthless assassin brought to life by Game of Thrones’ Tom Wlaschiha. He is cold and calculating in a way that indicates Wlaschiha should be booking even bigger roles in the near future. Both of these characters make a big impact on the proceedings, and would have been welcome if they had appeared more.
While some pacing issues in the middle of the season may cause this season to notch slightly below the first, the overall product is a blast to experience. This is a show that delivers intricately crafted sequences that are awe-inspiring from episode to episode. The performances are really solid from the entire ensemble, and twists are surprising enough of the time to keep things interesting. The only strike that longtime fans of the character might have against the series is lack of resemblance to the source material. Jack Ryan may be a badass who makes quick decisions to save the day, but the show does not really utilize his intelligence and skills as an analyst as much as they should. Intense action sequences are tons of fun, but it would be nice for the character to stick to his everyman roots at times. Nevertheless, the creative team of Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Graham Roland (Prison Break) has offered up another exciting season for the longstanding character. If you enjoyed the first season, there is no reason to believe you would feel radically different about this one.
Video Quality
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Season 2 is presented with a 2160p HDR transfer which holds up just as well if not better than its knockout predecessor. This particular package does not contain any accompanying Blu-Ray discs, but unlike the previous season we have the Blu-Ray release to compare the two formats. Not only is the physical 4K version a marked improvement over the Blu-Ray, but it also provided a welcome improvement over the 4K streaming option on Prime Video.
The series is bursting with the full range of the color spectrum as you get depressed hues when the palette calls for it and moments of jaw-dropping intensity when it is appropriate. The HDR really unlocks the potential of each hue, and the black levels are downright perfect, staying deep and inky with great detail. Highlights are contained with no moments of blooming to be found. There are some momentary instances of compression artifacts, but even this seems less of an issue compared to the debut season. This transfer shows its strength when it comes to depth, clarity and stability within the image. The locales are once again a visual standout with texture that you will want to marvel at. The disc is full with texture from the production design, locations and costumes. Paramount has done fans a service by upgrading this to a proper 4K UHD disc.
Audio Quality
This 4K UHD Blu-Ray comes with a powerful lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track, but it is hard to celebrate this when the older Blu-Ray provided a Dolby Atmos track. The reason for the downgrade is unknown, but it is a misstep regardless. Judging this disc on its own merits, this 5.1 track could be considered a beast that impresses sonically on multiple fronts. The series goes pretty big in its sophomore outing with several action-packed moments each episode that bring excitement to the track.
Dialogue comes through clearly in the front channel without being overshadowed by any sound effects or score. The track has an impressive sense of directionality with sounds always flowing from the appropriate point in the room. The more exciting moments put the low end to work like there is no tomorrow. The Ramin Djawadi score provides the appropriate atmosphere for this experience which fills the speakers well. This audio presentation is mighty even without an upgraded Atmos audio mix to push things higher into the realm of success. There are English and English SDH subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Deleted Scenes: Eleven scenes totaling about seventeen-minutes are provided here in their finished form in high definition. Most of these scenes are little throwaway moments, and only two contain Jack, but there is some interesting stuff here. The meatiest content is a multi-scene arc from episode 7 “Dios y Federacion” which features a cut down plot of the Ubarri family attempting to assassinate Reyes. Worth checking out!
Final Thoughts
The second season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan offers up the same level of action and suspense that the first season did with the added benefit of some new, compelling characters. This show is a big, fun time that would feel like a guilty pleasure if it were not so expertly crafted. Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment has provided a truly stellar A/V presentation for the 4K UHD Blu-Ray along with a nice assortment of deleted scenes to enhance the experience. Fans of the series should buy with confidence. Recommended
Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Season 2 can be purchased on 4K UHD Blu-Ray directly through MovieZyng or various other online retailers
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Paramount Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.