The Continental Series Premiere Review: Don’t Expect John Wick, And That’s A Good Thing
THE CONTINENTAL SERIES PREMIERE REVIEW SCORE
My impression is that you can blame the glaring green Rotten Tomatoes splat you’re met with when you click the first episode of The Continental: From the World of John Wick on one thing: expectation. The Continental premiere is a fun, suspenseful introduction to this crime drama prequel.
I can only assume all the thumbs down are coming from reviewers disappointed The Continental fails to be a beat-by-beat visual clone of the John Wick films; meanwhile the fact that it proves to be its own animal is exactly why I enjoyed it so much.
When we meet Colin Woodell’s younger version of Winston in The Continental premiere, he’s more London con man than New York killer–using subterfuge to trick rich Englishmen out of “investments.” But while his dealings aren’t strictly legal, it becomes clear at this point Winston knows nothing about the world of the High Table.
Back home in the Big Apple, Winston’s older brother Frankie (Ben Robson) pulls a daring, bloody heist on the titular hotel, attracting the wrath of the manager Cormac (Mel Gibson). Unable to find Frankie on his own, Cormac has Winston kidnapped and brought back to the States to help him find the wayward brother.
While we don’t know much about KD yet, her investigation does in part answer a question I’ve had ever since 2014’s John Wick – What happens if someone who knows nothing about the High Table tries to get a room in The Continental?
Cormac’s relationship with the brothers is a darker reflection of Winston’s future bond with John Wick; The Continental’s earlier manager is something of a father figure to Winston and Frankie, but only because he forced himself into the role. We don’t get too many details but when the brothers finally reunite, Winston makes it clear Cormac is responsible for their bio parents no longer being around.
So far, it’s Frankie — rather than Winston — who is The Continental character most reminiscent of Keanu Reeves‘ signature assassin. In the New Year’s Eve heist, the electronic beats of the Wick films are replaced with disco but Frankie’s gunplay, martial arts mastery, and penchant for improvisational melee brutality — often beating the hell out of opponents with the same ornate artifact he steals from The Continental — makes you think Reeves is going to come from around the corner to give him a high five and say, “Nice moves.”
“Brothers in Arms” introduces some interesting characters full of potential. In particular there’s a trio of gun runners — Lou (Jessica Allain), Miles (Hubert Point-Du Jour), and Lemmy (Adam Shapiro) — who promise to mean much more as the series continues. I don’t want to spoil anything, but with the perfect delivery of just a couple of lines regarding Winston’s outfit, Lemmy proves to be the single funniest character in the entire John Wick franchise.
Then there’s the bit more mysterious KD (Mishel Prada), a police detective whose connection to Frankie isn’t particularly clear yet. While we don’t know much about KD yet, her investigation does in part answer a question I’ve had ever since 2014’s John Wick — What happens if someone who knows nothing about the High Table tries to get a room in The Continental?
The more colorful types of assassins we’re used to from the Wick films are there, though they don’t get as much screen time so far.
There’s Supergirl‘s Katie McGrath in a mask that makes her look like she got scarred by Jack Nicholson’s Joker and the kilt-clad sadist who works for her. Then there are the deadly “twins” Hansel and Gretal (the former of whom has convinced me that in the alternate history of the World of John Wick, stand-up comedian Emo Phillips is a professional killer) .
If we’re going to give our box office dollars and our online clicks to all the sequels, prequels, and spinoffs (and we are), then shouldn’t one part of a franchise not feel exactly like all the other parts?
The Continental is visually faithful to its late 1970s setting, and not only does it give us some wonderful radio hits from the era — accompanying the beginning of Frankie’s heist is Donna Summer’s disco hit “I Feel Love” and the episode ends on Black Sabbath’s “Children of the Grave” — but with TV and contagious radio jingles of the day.
For example, a wonderful fight scene between a thug and Frankie’s wife Yen (Nhung Kate) unfolds along with the Mounds & Almond Joy “Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut” jingle.
But yes, from start to finish The Continental series premiere feels a bit more generic than one of the John Wick films, but I not only don’t think that’s a bad thing: it’s exactly what I hoped for from the series, and it makes sense narratively.
Our entertainment landscape is one in which expanding franchises reign. And it’s not all superheroes and spacemen and assassins. Knives Out and Kenneth Branagh’s Agatha Christie films have proven you can’t even make a profitable whodunnit without a studio executive hitting the “Franchise Potential” alarm.
If we’re going to give our box office dollars and our online clicks to all the sequels, prequels, and spinoffs (and we are), then shouldn’t one part of a franchise not feel exactly like all the other parts?
Just as the story is set in the past, the visuals, the pace, and the choreography likewise don’t feel like a story in the more contemporary setting of the films, nor should they.
Shouldn’t Loki be different from Thor? Shouldn’t Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon feel like different shows? And shouldn’t The Continental not feel like just another John Wick film? Except longer and on TV?
The fact The Continental premiere’s director Albert Hughes (The Book of Eli) uses elements of Stahelski’s style and story while not committing fully to the Wick director’s trademarks is absolutely the right choice.
Not just for the sake of variety, but it’s the right choice because this — in spite of the series’ subtitle — is not the World of John Wick; this is the world that will become the World of John Wick. Just as the story is set in the past, the visuals, the pace, and the choreography likewise don’t feel like a story in the more contemporary setting of the films, nor should they.
Honestly my only relatively minor complaints about The Continental relate more to the John Wick fan service. For example, I won’t spoil anything, but it’s pretty clear that by the end of the series we’re going to learn the parentage of John Wick and if the story broadcast that any louder you wouldn’t be able to hear the 1970s tunes over it.
Overall, The Continental is a solid, fun crime drama. Go in without expecting exactly what you get from a John Wick film — and forgive the fact that they chose top billing for a guy who could believably deliver all of his lines from a stadium podium in 1930s Germany — and The Continental promises to be a good time for Wick fans.
