It all begins when an agent named John Porter of Section 20, a secret division of the British Intelligence, is taken prisoner by insurgents in the Middle East. When the rescue team narrowly misses saving him and loses a man in the process, Colonel Eleanor Grant (Amanda Mealing) determines to capture global terrorist Latif (Jimi Mistry), the man responsible. She puts her top man, Michael Stonebridge, on the job and tasks him with recruiting Damien Scott, ex-Delta Force, (dishonorably discharged, mind you), who was with Porter in Iraq and is one of very few friendlies that could identify Latif. Once the very prickly and arrogant Scott agrees to help, things turn explosive and the pair, along with the very mobile Section 20, is set off on a path that will take them from New Delhi, to Sudan, to Vienna, to Kosovo, to Chechnya and finally to the explosive season finale in Hungary. Each time they get one step closer to the elusive Latif, another part of the mysterious cover-up involving WMDs in the Iraq war exposes itself and they are off to another part of the world.
Stonebridge and Scott will have to deal with Latif and his merry band of terrorists, who are orchestrating some sort of cataclysmic event against the US and Europe called Project Dawn, but their travels will also have them facing off against a crazed IRA mercenary with past ties to Col. Grant, a maniacal South African who leads a murderous group called the Janjaweed, a global arms dealer with a dangerous Achilles Heel, a vicious trafficker of drugs, people and body parts in Eastern Europe, and eventually, Latif himself. They will slice, dice, punch and shoot their way through their missions with incredible acuity. I once said that watching the movie Act of Valor (a film about and starring actual Navy SEALs) was like watching an optimal Call of Duty mission play out. Watching Strike Back is just like that, only watching the mission play out in the most bad-assed way possible. Stonebridge and Scott are adrenaline and ass-kicking incarnate. They are a joy to watch. Supporting them are actors like Amanda Mealing (Col. Grant), who I can only imagine must channel a young M from the James Bond series. She is amazing and commands the screen each time she appears. Rounding out the excellent cast of Section 20 are Sgt. Richmond (Michelle Lukes), calm and cool Maj. Sinclair (Rashan Stone) and Capt. Kate Marshall (Eve Birthistle).
Special features only include commentary on a handful of episodes. It’s cool and all, but I would have really enjoyed seeing some featurettes on the amazing cast and on what it took to bring this British series to American audiences. Maybe next season?
Let me also mention that Frank Spotnitz of X Files fame serves as co-Executive Producer along with Daniel Percival and he also writes a good chunk of the episodes. So if you are looking for action and conspiracy, you’ll find it here in spades. This is a premium show and because of that, you’ll find your fair share of violence and sex. In fact, Damien Scott has a new woman in his bed almost every episode. But this one is for after the kiddies go to bed anyway. If you like action shows, Strike Back: Cinemax Season One should be at the top of your Must Watch list. It’s excellent and engaging, the presentation is flawless on Blu-ray, the cast is superior and I absolutely love it. I am really anxious to see where the series heads considering the shocking way the season finale played out. Season Two starts on August 17th, so gear up and set that DVR!
