The Day of the Jackal: Riveting Intellect and Adrenalin

Well, 2024 has two weeks and a few days left, so I can tell you with confidence that, amidst stiff competition, The Day of the Jackal on Peacock was the best TV series I saw this year.

Here are some of the reasons why (with no spoilers, hence "some of"):

• The series, adopted from Frederick Forsyth's 1971 novel, has almost nothing in common with the 1973 movie, also adapted from the novel (which I never read).  All three, as you no doubt already know, are about a master assassin (that's about all the movie and the TV series share).  I thought the movie was really excellent.  I liked the TV series -- the last two episodes of its ten episodes up just yesterday -- at lot more.
• Eddie Redmayne's performance as the Jackal was out-of-the-ballpark fabulous.  (If we're talking about Yankee Stadium, somewhere down Jerome Avenue.)
• The story will keep you guessing in every episode, and sometimes many more times than once.
• There are all manner of police.  Some good, some bad. Some get killed, some don't.
• There are all manner of villains.  Some bad, some really bad. Some get killed, some don't.
• There's a James Bondian aspect to the Jackal -- like a Bond and all his assets, turned bad.  And he doesn't need a Q. Other than the fact that he's an assassin, I wanna be just like the Jackal when I grow up.

On a more general level, I just wrote, in my review of The Agency, that 2024 has been a year for superb spy thrillers.   The Jackal isn't a spy, but MI-6 in London is the agency most after him, so this makes The Day of the Jackal indeed another example of a superb spy thriller streaming this past year.  A windfall of edge-of-your-seat excitement.  Hats off to creator/show-runner Ronan Bennett.

I know you'd like me to tell you more, but I don't want to spoil even one of the many jolts you'll have when you see this series.  Trust me, you'll be glad you did.