Jack Ryan Season 4 Review: John Krasinski’s Spy Saga Ends on a Strong and Satisfying Note (LatestLY Exclusive)

Jack Ryan Season 4 Review: After a middling season two and three, John Krasinski's Jack Ryan returns with a victorious season four that may be the series' best since its first once. Jack Ryan was always one of Amazon's more promising shows that was let down by inconsistent execution, and thankfully, season four, which is also the show's final season, is a fun and satisfying return to form that really sends the show off on a high note. Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan S4 Teaser: John Krasinski Faces New Dangers and Torture in the Final Showdown of His Prime Video Series (Watch Video).

Picking up right after the events of Jack Ryan Season Three, a lot has changed. Jack is answering for going rogue, while in the dark a growing threat emerges following the execution of the Nigerian President at the hands of a group that was allegedly the CIA. Being pulled into duty once more, Jack must navigate through this web that not only puts him in front of a foreign threat, but also one at home.

The season begins with a cold open in which Jack is kidnapped and tortured by unidentified assailants in an unnamed location in Burma. Who exactly are they? That is the question that will keep you interested in watching the series as it sets a perfect backdrop for the chaos that comes with the season going at breakneck speed. It then leaps back three weeks to when the Nigerian President was executed and Jack still dealing with the fallout from season three.

Following the role of Jack Ryan is no easy task considering the stars (Harrison Ford and Alec Baldwin) that have played him before, but Krasinski establishes himself as the best part of the series and an ideal casting. This time, it's more personal for him because a key defining experience in season three, turning rogue, has made him a more capable and seasoned veteran of the game. There is a interesting moral line to him to him too, as he recognises there is a threat at home this season, and I really liked how the character evolved.

Watch the Trailer for Jack Ryan Season 4:

Michael Pena joins the series as Domingo Chavez, a man who can be quite deadly at times (and surprisingly humorous), and it's his banter with Jack that really adds a feeling of gray morality to this season. Returning actors such as Betty Gabriel (Elizabeth Wright), Wendell Pierce (Greer), and Michael Kelly (Mike November) are as fun as ever. Louis Ozawa's Chao Fah was a multifaceted character that I enjoyed seeing, and the rest of the ensemble did well as well.

Perhaps the one thing that Jack Ryan Season Four improves over season three is that there is not much downtime here. Things do calm down occasionally, but it has a much tighter focus this time around with a political conflict that makes a lot of the plot interesting too. You do get your occasional exposition dump scenes that do break the pace every now and then, but its not as distracting as it was in season three.

On the other hand, there is a bit of an uneven sensation here. With how quickly Jack Ryan Season Four progresses, there are a few times where the show does not land as expected. It just keeps flowing, and there's a bit of an overwhelming feeling that takes over every now and then when a few advancements don't get enough time to be effectively done.

This inadvertently affects the reveals in the second half of the season too. Some are fairly predictable, which often takes you out of the show. It's not so much the delivery as it is the framing of everything. However, the ending fits Jack's overall journey, and our favourite spy gets to go out on a high note, which was refreshing to witness. John Krasinski Is a Huge Fan of Spy Dramas, Jack Ryan Star Feels Spies Are the ‘New Superheroes’.

Jack Ryan Season Four is huge on action too. One of my main criticisms of season three was that the action just wasn’t there enough and season four can easily be described as action-packec. From covert missions to amazing set pieces in exotic locations, you could see Krasinski pretty much reveling in those scenes.

Final Thoughts

Jack Ryan Season Four is a fitting end for the series that has had a pretty inconsistent output. It definitely is the best season since the first, and with a tighter narrative and a more focused Krasinski, it does round itself as an entertaining spy saga that I probably will revisit in the future. The first two episodes of Jack Ryan Season Four are streaming on Amazon Prime Video right now.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 01, 2023 11:51 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).