Mr. & Mrs. Smith - Season 1

Do you no longer have goals in life? Give up your identity and live with a stranger in an arranged marriage to fight crime. Meet Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Many of you will be familiar with the entertaining action comedy Mr. & Mrs. Smith. It was not an Oscar-worthy film, but the nice chemistry between leads Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie and the numerous action scenes made up for a lot. As we have come to expect from the film industry, we had to wait for a remake. After almost twenty years, it came in the form of a series. I also found the final result entertaining, but as with almost every remake, there was much more to be gained from it.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith centers on two strangers who get a job at a spy agency. This job gives them a life of espionage, wealth and travel. In the film, the two characters meet during a mission where they do not know that they're both spies. In the series the makers put a slightly different spin on this. The cover John (Donald Glover, Atlanta) and Jane (Maya Erskine, PEN15) Smith are assigned the main characters when something happens to their predecessors. After this event, they are recruited separately and matched based on a screening. They meet in their shared home, because they are now a married couple.

They are strangers to each other and at first do not trust each other at all. This grows as the season progresses and they form more and more of a close team.

A review of the first episode indicated that there was a lot of dialogue between them and little attention was paid to espionage and action. After watching the entire season I have to conclude that this has not improved during the season. The story mainly revolves around getting to know each other. They are strangers to each other and at first do not trust each other at all. This grows as the season progresses and they form more and more of a close team. Getting to this point requires many dialogues. In my opinion, too much and too long-winded.

You can also grow closer during missions and intense events, but the makers choose to do this sporadically. As a result, in my opinion, there is too much lack of action and minimal attention is paid to real espionage work. Some episodes stand out, because as a viewer you get a boost from some action. The action that is taking place is nicely depicted. There are also a number of well-known actors who make an appearance in the form of a guest role. This is a pleasant addition. I thought the episode with a guest role by Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy) was one of the more fun episodes to watch. The last episode was by far the best thing you'll see. Finally, the balance between character development and action-packed moments was clearly reflected here.



Regardless of the many dialogues, I enjoyed watching the main characters. The chemistry between Donald Glover and Maya Erskine takes some developing, but at some point the connection between the two characters felt good. How their relationship develops is a nice addition to the story. If the makers had interwoven this better with espionage work, it would have been an ideal combination.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith is pleasant to watch, but the lack of balance between character development and espionage makes the series sell itself short. A second season has already been announced. If the makers learn from the reviews, I look forward to the sequel, partly because of the end of the first season.