Disclaimer: This review mentions murder and contains spoilers 

What started as a novel published in 2019 has become the biggest Netflix debut since the show “Wednesday” — “The Night Agent.” Starting on March 23, “The Night Agent” ranked No. 1 on the Top 10 shows in the United States on Netflix for over two weeks. Across 10 episodes, the characters go on a wild chase to share the truth about a dark conspiracy involving the president. 

The show begins with a bombing on the Washington D.C. metro in an attempted presidential coup. A year after the bombing, FBI agent Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso) monitors an emergency phone in the basement of the White House. The phone line is meant for undercover spies or “night agents,” but the phone never rings; until one night, it does. 

Later in the series, the vice president’s daughter, Maddie Redfield (Sarah Desjardins), takes a dangerous turn scurrying away from her security service, resulting in her kidnapping. Not only does this jeopardize her life, but the potential bombing suspect that kidnapped her wants nothing more but for her father to tell the world who he is and that he was one of the members behind the attempted presidential assassination. And while more truths are coming out about the bombing, a bigger threat that resides at Camp David, the President is planned to be assassinated. With all their lives at stake, the fight to stop the assassination before it’s too late becomes the next big step to protecting the White House. 

That night, Sutherland didn’t just answer the phone, but he risked his life and career countless times to protect Rose. The love between the two wasn’t intentional, but it never is in any show. The romance between Peter and Rose evolved naturally, which became important to recognize as they worked together to solve the conspiracy. I wasn’t surprised to learn that Peter and Rose would fall for each other; they did work together throughout the entire first season, which didn’t undermine the quest, but strengthened the journey quicker and more efficiently with Rose being incredibly intelligent and Peter having access to the White House. They were unstoppable. 

I’ve always loved presidential action movies, such as “London Has Fallen” and “Olympus Has Fallen.” All these movies complement each other so well, and it becomes interesting to look at how the president reacts to what’s happening in their country. Either you know who’s behind everything in the beginning, and the truth unravels in the process, or everything is revealed at the end once the truth has been discovered. In this case, “The Night Agent” was a bit of both because there were new plot twists to be unraveled in each episode. 

Diane Farr (Hong Chau), the White House chief of staff, was the only one aware of the original scheme between her, the vice president, and Gordon Wick. Still, the attempt developed, and it became clear that Farr was only in to help benefit Wick and the vice president, which she wasn’t aware of until the end. Additionally, it was smart of them to eventually cut Farr off once they got what they needed out of her. The fact that she was helping the enemy only to realize that they were against her showed how well-thought-out the characters’ roles were. Even as Peter and Rose were trying to find evidence, they knew the exact steps needed to be taken to find out the truth, and the path to these steps was clear in sight. 

At some points, it was confusing to understand where the vice president and his daughter fit in the series because initially, they showed up randomly. But — even though the vice president was behind the assassination scheme and framing Peter and Rose  — the series did an excellent job executing the plan to take down the government. 

Overall, “The Night Agent” does an excellent job incorporating intense elements that make the audience continuously watch. The challenging quest to discover the truth to find out who’s behind the Washington D.C. bombing — along with the romance between Rose and Peter — immediately captivates the audience’s attention. Each episode brings new evidence and scandals to be unraveled, leaving the audience to suspect that someone is about to be murdered once the truth is out. Although some key characters and events in the show were left out for the sake of spoiling the entire first season, it’s rather important to know that as you watch the truth come forward, your eyes will widen, your stomach will twist, and your heart will beat rapidly with every second. That said, watch “The Night Agent” on Netflix today.

“The Night Agent” 9/10