Treason - Season 1

Ex-Russian spy Kara Yusova travels to Britain in Treason on a mission. When her ex Adam Lawrence becomes head of MI6 shortly afterwards, she contacts her to put her plan into action. But is she the good or the bad in this story? The Netflix series Treason focuses on Adam Lawrence (Charlie Cox, Daredevil) who suddenly becomes head of MI6 after the poisoning of his boss Martin Angelis (Ciarán Hinds, Rome). An honorable job that entails the necessary responsibility and risks. The fact that Adam is a young father and has moved into this important position relatively quickly raises several eyebrows. Is this possible in a legal way or has he gradually put his reliability on the line?

The story seems more focused on the unexpected twists than a logical whole.

Treason is really one of those espionage series in which no one can be trusted and everyone cheats on each other. This makes watching the story intensive because you must keep paying attention. There are a lot of different characters coming your way. Although at the end of the story, it is clear who is responsible for what, it can sometimes be difficult to keep track of who is doing what. It is clear that the creators wanted to make the series exciting and unpredictable. This was largely successful, although the complexity of everything sometimes got in the way of Treason.

Adam is the father of two children, Ella (Beau Gadsdon) and Callum (Samuel Leakey), who are from his first marriage. However, his first wife has passed away, but in the meantime, Adam has formed a family with his new wife Maddy (Oona Chaplin, Game of Thrones) for many years. The American Maddy has a past in the army but nowadays works as a physiotherapist while taking care of the children. She knows about her husband's risky job and tries to keep the home base as quiet and safe as possible for the children.



I can't fault the acting. All characters know how to convey the seriousness of the situations they find themselves in and the emotional scenes are also convincing. The intro of the series, which can be seen during the first episode, is well-made and original. Moreover, the fact that this miniseries only has five episodes makes it ideal for binge-watching. The story also really has an ending, although one specific scene in the finale does leave some room for a possible sequel.

Kara Yusova (Olga Kurylenko, Magic City) is a former Russian spy and Adam's ex. She appears early on the scene, but her true intentions remain unclear for a long time. She does play an important role in everything that goes wrong around Adam's life after his appointment as C (Control, or boss) of MI6. Meanwhile, the CIA also lands in the UK when an old friend of Maddy's suddenly comes to visit her. This Dede (Tracy Ifeachor, Showtrial) says she's just on vacation, but it soon becomes clear that she has other reasons for reaching out.

Nice try, but could be much better.

Unfortunately, Treason won't be the spy thriller the trailer suggests. Although the idea is good, the story falls under the many clichés that are used. I have to say that the big twist during the last episode was very unexpected. But even that plot twist is hard to explain when you start thinking about it. That's the problem with the whole series. The story seems more focused on the unexpected twists than a logical whole. The 'why' is missing in many cases and that makes Treason too implausible.

Treason's idea is not very original, but it is a theme that appeals to me. Yet the makers drop the ball too often to really get me excited. The gadgets and characters that cheat on each other are fun, but more is needed to really make a good spy thriller. More background information about the characters, less naivety, more logic in the actions that are performed and, above all, more depth would have done the story good. But unfortunately, due to the lack of all this, the final grade remains as far as I'm concerned at barely sufficient. Nice try, but could be much better.