Citadel - Season 1
When Citadel was announced, my expectations were high. Created by the Russo brothers in combination with a star cast, all ingredients are present for a top series in the making. My expectations were not fully met. After watching all the episodes, I'm left with an entertaining snack. There's nothing wrong with that, of course, but I had hoped for much more than that.
Eight years ago, Citadel fell. The independent global spy agency, tasked with maintaining the safety and security of all people, was destroyed by Manticore agents. Manticore is a powerful syndicate that manipulates the world from the shadows. With the fall of Citadel, elite operatives Mason Kane (Richard Madden, Bodyguard) and Nadia Sinh (Priyanka Chopra, Quantico) have their memories wiped as they narrowly escape death. Since then, they have remained hidden, building new lives under new identities, oblivious to their past. One night, Mason is tracked down by his former Citadel colleague, Bernard Orlick (Stanley Tucci, Inside Man), who desperately needs his help to stop Manticore from establishing a new world order. Mason searches for his former partner, Nadia, and the two spies embark on a mission that takes them across the globe in an attempt to stop Manticore as they grapple with a relationship built on secrets, lies, and a dangerous but immortal love.
The above storyline mainly serves as an excuse to usher in a number of action scenes during the episodes. A lot of attention has been paid to the action. The series has a budget of 300 million dollars and you can see that clearly. Mason and Nadia are very creative in killing as many villains as possible. Their opponents are also not gentle and show their brutal side with some regularity. The series is therefore entertaining to watch, but at the same time the only thing it has to offer viewers.The above storyline mainly serves as an excuse to usher in a number of action scenes during the episodes.
The storylines that are presented to you have, in my opinion, not been given the required attention. Credibility in particular leaves something to be desired. The game of erasing memories or getting them back is brought in a forced way. By bringing it this way and rushing through storylines, the makers ensure that I don't really empathize with the characters. Discovering a possible mole within Citadel never really gets exciting.
The different timelines you switch between during the episodes don't really help either. There's nothing wrong with flashbacks, but you can also exaggerate. In many episodes, you find yourself in the past for the most part. Because of this, they try to take you into the events before the Citadel fell. This could have been handled a little less or in a more structured way.
On the other hand, the cast seems to be having a good time. The chemistry between Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra explodes from the screen. They clearly had fun playing their roles and that pays off a lot. Especially in the action-packed moments, Richard and Priyanka are at their best. Stanley Tucci also gives his character extra shine through his acting performances.
As you may have read on MySeries, Citadel has been renewed for a second season. I hope the makers take the criticisms to heart to take the series to a new level. As an action lover, I would definitely watch this series, because as indicated, the action-packed moments are entertaining to watch. In addition, there is a lot of potential in the world of Citadel. Now it is important to shape this in an even better way.
About the writer, Karzal
