Hunted (DVD) – Series Review
We’ve got another series review for you today. This time, I’m going to talk a bit more about Hunted, a new action and drama series, known for its appearance on BBC One. The title might sound a bit simple and then again, a series called ‘Hunted’ can turn out to be a lot of things. Here, not only is there a hunt going on, there’s a lot more than meets the eye. The complete series is only one season long, but Hunted proves that there’s no need for several seasons to tell a decent, interesting tale.
The title of this series tells us a lot about the content right from the start. The main character, Sam Hunter is getting…well hunted (I think this show loves to play with words). First of all, we see Sam in action, working as a spy for Byzantium, the company she works for. After completing her assignment, something rather unexpected happens: Sam is the victim of an attempt on her life. Luckily, she survives the attack but now the question remains: who tried to kill her and why? Sam is leaning towards the idea that her own employer or one of her former team members is behind all this. Eventually, after disappearing for a year, she goes back to work as a spy and infiltrates the Turner family, posing as a nanny. Bit by bit, she discovers more and more about the people behind the murder attempt and the result is rather surprising. She discovers that the reason for the whole situation lies somewhere in her past. In the end, Hunted knows several interesting plot twists at the end of the show. Meanwhile, Jack Turner (the grandfather of the child for which Sam is playing nanny) has his own business affairs and personal demons to deal with. He doesn’t trust Sam in the least and every moment between the two is a very tense one. Alex Kent (Sam’s fake nanny personality) seems to make a connection with Edward Turner, Jack’s grandson. It’s great to see how their relationship evolves throughout the entire series while danger lurks around every corner.
Story wise, Hunted has a lot of depth and although the storylines are of course connected to one another (as Sam is staying in the Turners mansion) there’re still two main things going on. Although both of the storylines are interesting, sometimes Sam’s story about being hunted gets a bit put in the background to make way for the somewhat less exciting “business” branch of the story. Seeing how one is trying to buy a certain dam at an auction or the disputes between Sam’s team members aren’t nearly as exciting as seeing the spy sneak through the mansion, knowing all too well that if she gets caught, she’s done for.
The series knows a very powerful first and last episode but in between, the pace might get too slow for some. Count with this the one storyline about all kinds of businesses related things and the occasional yawn could pop-up. A more balanced amount of action scenes and more serious matters would’ve been nice. As already mentioned, the first and especially the last episode knows a lot of twists and makes up for the less interesting moments in the past.
Sam Hunter is played by actress Melissa George (Lie to Me, Grey’s Anatomy) and her performances are quite good with some remarks here and there. Especially in fighting sequences, the acting seems to be of a minor quality than in other scenes (for the record: this doesn’t only apply to Melissa George). The fighting often feels “floaty”, like the actors are punching the air around them instead of their opponents. Stephen Cambell Moore who plays Stephen Turner does a good job as well without standing out, which is perfectly fine. Cheers to the young actor Oscar Kennedy who does a more than decent job of portraying his character Edward “Eddie” Turner.
Extras wise, there’s not so much to see. You’ll find some deleted scenes on the DVDs but other than that, don’t get your hopes up for any more features.
Conclusion
Hunted is certainly a series of quality but it won’t stand out for its originality or great fighting sequences. The story has two main branches where the one is just a lot more interesting than the other one although they’re both connected to each other in some ways. The acting is decent but nothing to get overly excited about. All in all, Hunted is an enjoyable espionage series with a deep story and a great finale. Certainly worth the watch in between bigger series.
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