Jack Ryan (Prime 2018)

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

I’d concur as entertaining as Homeland for me. Garth may be Clark, he said he gives a different name every op. The Dr, her face has a Reubenesqe beauty about her maybe.

Ryan's Dad was a cop in Baltimore, so who knows...

[Renegade]

I watched long enough to hear Greer say he only converted to marry his soon to be ex wife. But it was a bit too much of the PC world. Besides we are still suffering in real life from a Muslim that used to head the CIA

If the show lasts a few seasons, we know where Greer is headed, he told us joking "And my Black Muslim Ass might Be Director someday", or some such quote to Ryan.

[_Stormin_]

3. Jack never worked on Wall Street, and Cathy wasn't the daughter of the investor.

Incorrect per the books. That's one where they got things almost right. Jack Ryan worked for Merrill Lynch where he made a killing on a railroad investment, drawing the attention of Joe Muller. When invited to dinner he met Muller's daughter and that's where the relationship began. She was a med student (and later became an eye surgeon). In several books his father-in-law's distaste for Jack's desire to work in government vs on Wall Street is mentioned, and Ryan's personal net worth thanks to savvy investing comes up as well.

[HMM]

I'm 3 episodes in, we are liking it so far.

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

I thought that they had crammed too much into the Ryan Character's life since they seem to try to make him out to be in his late 20s, when he (Krasinski) is actually 38, which is about where Cathy would be, if not older. Marine, Wall street trader, Dr in finance would all fit in better then. The book Ryan had his copter crash while at the Naval Academy, which helped compress the time line. Did the Amazon Ryan attend the Naval Academy, or was it Boston College?

[ramairthree]

This is not oriented to guys that were in the SOF and intelligence and military interested types from the 80s.

They have done a pretty good update.

I have put on an hour or two each night after work. I cannot say I did not miss anything here and there doing other stuff while watching or dozing off a couple of times.

General vibe- without explicit spoilers- but don’t read further just in case unless you have watched.



He would have been about 21 out of college, say four years for USMC/injuries/recovery, four years for his Ph.D., a couple of years in finance, then four in his current position- making him mid to late 30s. His romantic interest would be more like late 20s/early 30s. Classic intelligent professional woman that has deferred husband/family and needs one RFN or there will be no kids in her future.

His backstory as originally written was always a little on the hokey side. Her backstory kind of boring. This may not be true to the original source, but actually appropriately updated.

In general,
Ryan actually looks like a lot of Operators. Above average height, slimmer build, sort of looks like a regular guy in clothes. But actually a functional monster.

The bike riding is not unusual. Lots of vets doing the GIBILL on urban campuses biking a few miles each way. His ride is a stretch though, probably about five times that. And hitting the age he is overdue to be a grownup. Not uncommon in society in general now let alone some vets.

I suspect the change of specialty for her is to get her in on some more bio WMD type action. She is an attractive, healthy women. Not a Hollywood stegasaurus spine anorexic. Realistically cast 80 hour work week professional woman.

The converted to Muslim operative is not that far a stretch. Plenty of SOF, Intel, etc. have gone a little native.

All refugees are of course poor little women and children, not the flocks of MAMs you see in reality.

The opening low profile FOB was pretty accurate.

The village scenes and stuff have the right vibe.

Something was off with the assualters. TL was a Captain, something off about the platehangers, just little things. Better than typically seen on TV.

They seem to have portrayed the difficulties with sigint, financing, etc well.
As well as how dirty you have to get in dealings to get things done.

The whole remote guy thing is tiresome. I have not actually met anyone in person that gave a shit about “kill TV”

Overall, respectable production values, not bad acting, etc.

You actually emphasize for the wife and kids. Just like you emphasize for the Mohawks and terps, etc. you ate and hung with, etc. all while really wishing we were not flooding western civilization with the seeds of its downfall.

The SIG scene with Ryan was a little odd. OGA and operators are pretty used to med, tech, and various other non-operator but mil and SOF background guys that provide direct support on target. Probably just a plot scene to establish he has at some point been trained beyond the standard military guy with a sidearm.

The French detective is like a cariacarure of various intel and gator women.

For a guy that got burned and got a whole lot of others killed for a mistake. He is adamantly resistant to have learned anything from it. Get a couple of less blatant deaths under your belt wondering if thing MIGHT have been different if you were faster, tried something else, been standing somewhere else, got someplace quicker, etc. makes someone a different person. Being directly responsible for an act and it’s all your fault like he did is not comprehensible to me, it’s like he has all the guilt and none of the lesson.

Anyways, it is neither a right wind kill them all nor a left wing welcome everyone with open arms type deal for me.

I have heard it painted in both lights.

[Renegade]

Incorrect per the books. That's one where they got things almost right. Jack Ryan worked for Merrill Lynch where he made a killing on a railroad investment, drawing the attention of Joe Muller. When invited to dinner he met Muller's daughter and that's where the relationship began. She was a med student (and later became an eye surgeon). In several books his father-in-law's distaste for Jack's desire to work in government vs on Wall Street is mentioned, and Ryan's personal net worth thanks to savvy investing comes up as well.

yeah you are right, I forgot about that (Merrill Lynch). Though that just leads to more inconsistencies - Boston College vs USNA, economics degree vs history., etc.

[ramairthree]

Again, this is not a true to the source in full faith adaptation.

It is very in spirit to the source with several accuracies, but pretty well updated.

TC needed a way for a guy Ryan’s age to have had mil experience and a ton of heroic wounds and accomplishments.
In a timeline not amenable to being a VN vet, so I guess mil academy and helicopter crash did it. Maybe he could have lined up Ryan as a platoon leader jumping into Grenada or having been in the Ranger company for the hostage rescue before that, I am not on top of the exact Ryan timeline from the books to say for sure.

[Renegade]

In general,
Ryan actually looks like a lot of Operators. Above average height, slimmer build, sort of looks like a regular guy in clothes. But actually a functional monster.

But he is not an operator. He is an analyst, and they have intentionally made sure he did not have significant skills in the books or movies. I thought at the end of Amazon Ryan, given where Greer ended up, the "read book" was going to be to send him through the farm. Glad to see they didn't. Good to NOT have another Bourne or Mathison character.

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

To me the key feature of the Ryan Character was that he was not an expert or had experience- he was a smart guy who was the reluctant hero. Where TC screwed up was moving him up the ladder. He needs to stay on the middle rungs.