The Terminal List (Season 1)

Based on the best-selling novel by real-life former Navy SEAL, Jack Carr, The Terminal List follows SEAL Team 7 leader, and general bad-ass, James Reece (Chris Pratt) as he deals with

The Terminal List

Due to a suspected concussion, Chris Pratt’s James Reece is an unreliable narrator in The Terminal List, thrown into vivid, disorienting flashbacks that revisit—or reimagine—moments from his past, often at the worst possible times. Flashbacks in film can be a lazy crutch for weak writing, but here, they’re gripping, relevant, and drive the story forward. They also ramp up the tension, leaving you questioning whether Reece’s memories are leading him to the truth or a dead end.

                   

The main plot is straightforward: Reece uncovers a clue, tracks down a person, exacts revenge, finds another clue, repeat. It’s a standard revenge-thriller setup, but Pratt’s performance elevates it. He delivers his career-best work, balancing intensity and vulnerability, a driven man haunted by his own brokenness. He owns every scene—except for one glaring flaw: his trigger discipline in the early episodes is atrocious. As a weekend warrior with no military background, I dug into whether elite SEALs might keep their finger on the trigger for a split-second edge. Nope. My research, training, and experience all confirm that, especially the best practice strict trigger discipline. Those close-ups of Pratt thumbing the trigger are as cringe-worthy as I feared. Still, his haunted gaze and razor-sharp room-clearing moves are so crisp and compelling that you’ll forgive the misstep. The B-story—Reece’s headaches and flashbacks—jumps around in time, but it complements the linear A-story without feeling chaotic. The supporting cast, a mix of familiar faces and fresh talent, shines. Jeanne Tripplehorn, criminally underused since playing Tom Cruise’s wife in 1993’s The Firm, delivers a nuanced performance as Secretary of Defense Lorraine Hartley. She’s a strong female character who doesn’t fall into the tired “blue-haired feminist” stereotype. I’m genuinely pissed Hollywood hasn’t given her more roles—she’s that good. Constance Wu (Crazy Rich Asians) plays Katie Buranek, a self-serving journalist chasing scoops over truth. Wu nails a driven, believable woman who sticks to her principles despite her fear, making her compelling, if not beer-buddy material. Taylor Kitsch (Friday Night Lights) is Ben Edwards, a black-ops CIA agent and Reece’s old SEAL pal. He’s stuck with a thin role—mostly exposition and gear drops—but his rugged, stoic vibe fits, even if the finale falls flat. Christina Vidal (Training Day TV series) plays Mac Wilson, an ex-Army pilot shuttling Reece around. Vidal shines, but the character’s just a plot device. Then there’s Jai Courtney as Steve Horn, a corporate tool with fake military tattoos and a planet-sized ego. Hollywood’s failed leading man (Die Hard who?) found his niche as an arrogant prick after Suicide Squad’s Captain Boomerang. Courtney’s Horn starts flat but lands a satisfying third dimension in the finale. The Terminal List isn’t perfect—its predictable plot and occasional missteps can grate—but it’s a damn gripping ride. Pratt’s career-defining performance, paired with a stellar supporting cast like Tripplehorn and Wu, elevates a standard revenge tale into something raw and compelling. Even with its flaws, the show hooks you with its tension and heart, proving that a good story, told with conviction, can still kick you in the gut and leave you wanting more. The Terminal List is definitely Worth it.

Disclaimer:

• Even though the program has been praised, and rightly so, by those on the Right for being a well-done series that embraces “conservative” values and institutions, it was still produced by the people who brought us the woke $h!tshow that was The Rings of Power and managed to turn one of literature’s ultimate mensches, Jack Ryan, into a politically correct beta male. So, too, there is some wokeness in The Terminal List, but fear not, it’s not even in the same universe as She-Hulk.

DEI for The Ladies

• First, Katie Buranek’s character is described as middle European in the book, but was played by an Asian actress. Fortunately, Wu knocks it out of the park, and only those looking for something to complain about (sup) will notice.
• Next, Jeanne Tripplehorn’s character is an amalgam of two characters from the book, one of which is a man. You’ve got to believe that someone mandated that any character that could be a woman or BIPOC, or both, should be changed. However, Loraine Hartley does play a larger role in the book. So, this one feels more like a wash.
• The only glaring element of wokeness is the addition of Mac Wilson. Mac does not appear in the book, and her character feels like it was carved out of Kitsch’s Edwards. Vidal is of Puerto Rican heritage (check off that intersectional box) and, of course, a woman (check two); even though only around 2.4 percent of Army helicopter pilots were women at the time her character would have been in the Army, and only a fraction of that fraction were Latinas. With that being said, Vidal is great in the role, and the character is written like a woman, not a man being played by a woman. So, it’s another instance in which only nitpickers would notice.