The Books
I am an accidental fan of Jack Reacher: one day years ago I went to the library to find some light reading and decided that a Lincoln Child horror potboiler would fit the bill; when I got home I realized that I had grabbed a book by Lee Child instead. I’d never heard of the guy. I read the blurb (some former military cop/drifter solves problems) and figured I’d give it a try (no I don’t remember which book, sorry, but an early one). By the time I was done, I was absolutely hooked. I proceeded to devour all the books I could find and all the ones subsequently released (it was a lot easier back then to find used paperbacks in second-hand shops. Now it is almost impossible).
I did like the premise, and Jack Reacher the character is compelling, but what really grabbed me was the quality of the writing. This is something that the blurbs and summaries do not adequately convey -- not only is Reacher a powerful character, but Lee Child is also an exceptional writer. Perhaps not quite Raymond Chandler level, but a far sight better than Lincoln Child or Dan Brown. There are only two multi-volume book series that I have sought to own in their entirety: the historical Aubrey/Maturin series by Patrick O’Brian, and the Jack Reacher series by Lee Child, and for very similar reasons. Exceptional writing leads to contented re-reading.
However, as they say: all good things come to an end. By 2019 Child had made the decision to stop writing the books, but he did not want to stop the existence of Jack Reacher. He recruited his brother Andrew Grant to take over, and together they wrote the 2020 novel The Sentinel. The subsequent books have been written by Andrew Grant alone (he uses the pseudonym Andrew Child). Unfortunately, Grant does not possess anything near the authorial skill of his brother, and the Reacher of these last books is not the Reacher of the earlier ones. He has become a thug.
I will not be continuing with them, and I will frankly state that anyone who wants to explore this series should begin with almost any book before 2020. As far as I am concerned, the book-version Reacher is finished.
The TV Series
The Reacher Amazon series begins with the first book, Killing Floor, spread over 8 episodes (there were some early rumours that they planned to do the series in order, but the next book to be adapted is the 11th, Bad Luck and Trouble, which also happens to be one of the best). I won’t talk about the events of the plot, but may mention diversions from the book (but that won’t spoil anything). Since I’m musing from the perspective of a long-time fan of the books, it is difficult for me to assess how the TV series might come across to someone who doesn’t know anything about Reacher. I also want to explain why the movies were received with such dismay and anger by the fan base.
My overall impression is that they really nailed the feel and atmosphere of the book, and for the most part the characters were right on. There was a lot of angst about who could possibly take on both the physical and the psychological aspects of the Reacher persona, but I think Alan Ritchson (a guy I’d never heard of before) has done a creditable job. He certainly has the presence, and by the fourth or fifth episode it was clear that he had become comfortable in the role. Or perhaps I had grown comfortable with him in it. At any rate, he makes for a convincing Reacher: imposing, intelligent (although I’m not sure Ritchson has fully nailed that aspect), witty, and very dangerous.
There are some quibbles, mostly to do with his physical presence. First: screen-Reacher is younger, and less scruffy and worn than book-Reacher, and way too buff. Book-Reacher is a huge powerful man but was never a gym rat. Second is his scar -- or rather, his lack thereof. Reacher is ex-military. He was posted to Beirut in 1983 when the US Marine Barracks there was bombed: he sustained a major injury that left a large, ragged scar on his abdomen. This scar is often remarked upon in the course of the book series. Ritchson displays an impressive six-pack (and we do get to see plenty of Ritchson) but no sign of a scar -- in fact no scars at all anywhere, whereas book-Reacher has an abundance.
The other actors filled their roles well, once I adjusted to the fact that some of them didn’t fit my mental images. Malcolm Goodman wasn’t exactly the Finlay of the book but the role worked in the context of the story, Willa Fitzgerald (Roscoe) pulled off her role as the frustrated cop faced with a hard truth, while Bruce McGill (Teale) was very convincing as the amiable face of evil. The only other recurring character from the books besides Reacher will be Frances Neagley, pretty much nailed by Maria Sten.
The story begins with Jack Reacher getting off a bus at a remote crossroads, and walking into the town of Margrave, Georgia. It turns out that he does have a reason for going there, one of those whims in which someone with no ties to anywhere or anyone can indulge, but may be hard for anyone else to understand. He is not in town for very long before he is arrested on suspicion of murder. A shocking truth is revealed, one that will keep Reacher in town, determined to get to the bottom of it, and along the way much darker truths are revealed about the town of Margrave.
Each episode reveals more details, more hints about the depth and complexity of events at the core of the murders committed in this quiet Georgia town. Reacher, cleared of the charges, is working (albeit reluctantly at times) with Finlay (chief detective) and Roscoe to get to the bottom of an increasingly convoluted and violent series of events, tendrils of which coil to Atlanta, to the Gulf Coast -- someone will go to any lengths to keep a secret, and it seems few people can be trusted. The finale is glorious full-on Reacher and true to the book. I was thoroughly hooked by the suspense, but of course I knew what was coming and was eager to see how the storyline would develop, episode by episode.
Obviously there are differences between the book and screen, there always are. For the most part the changes do not detract, and only those of us already familiar with the story will notice them. The major one is the introduction of Frances Neagley, who comes in to assist her former boss. I’m impressed with how seamlessly they slotted her in, considering that she has no role in the book Killing Floor; in fact, we don’t get introduced to her until the sixth novel.
The character Moseley is a composite of two characters in the novel, but I don’t think he fulfilled the characters' original purpose. His book equivalents provided some valuable information about the town of Margrave and the role of the Kliner family that didn’t really come across in the series. As well, and the change that I found most disappointing, was the reason Finlay gave in the show for taking the Margrave job, as opposed to the entirely different and actually important-to-the-plotline reason in the book. I have no idea why that got changed. Overall, though, these are relatively minor changes. I think the Amazon series serves both the book and the Reacher character well, and I look forward to the next one, out in December.
Jack Reacher
Why was there so much concern within the fanbase about who was going to play Reacher in the Amazon series? Why is it so important to get him right? Who is Jack Reacher?
Jack (none) Reacher is ex-US Army, having spent most of his career as an investigator: a military cop, and one of the elites in his field. This is an extremely important aspect of his subsequent life, since it gave him the skill set that allows him to do what he does. Reacher is huge: his physical presence is as important an aspect of the books as any plotline or moral theme, and it is emphasized continually. It is largely genetic -- he doesn’t work out, and his diet seems to consist mainly of small-town-diner cheeseburgers, huge breakfasts, and endless coffee, black and strong. Occasionally he may take on short-term physical-labour jobs to supplement his cash flow.
By the time the book series begins, Reacher has retired from the military and is a drifter. He was born in Berlin to a French mother and an American Marine father, and grew up all over the world on military bases. He and his older brother had to battle their way into the military-brat social hierarchy about every two or three years, as his father was posted to new locations (as a military brat myself, at least in my first decade of life, I can relate). He became accomplished at defending himself and his brother. He attended West Point and then spent his military career posted all over the world. He is an American who knows very little of America, so after retiring he chose not to settle down, but to explore the country in the most minimal way possible -- in fact, he seems to have an almost visceral aversion to the very idea of being tied down to a single place via belongings and recurring responsibilities.
He lives on his pension, supplemented occasionally by short-term labour jobs or robbing drug dealers, illegal gun dealers, and other bad guys. He carries a passport, a folding toothbrush, and some cash (and in later novels, an ATM card). His clothes come from thrift shops and hardware stores; he “irons” them by putting them under his motel mattress, and after three or four days he trashes them and buys another set (his only conceit being his expensive British-made shoes). I’m sure there is a whole psychology lesson on the underlying urge to live in such a fashion despite the actual logistics of it, but this is Reacher. He wanders the country in a not-quite-random fashion, taking buses, hitchhiking, or walking (one recurring theme is the difficulty in getting rides because of his size and general overall scruffiness). He mostly finds himself in small towns and out-of-the-way places, following whims, and runs into troubles happening to someone else. Often reluctantly, he takes on the bad guys, and then moves on. He likes women (as people, not only as potential sexual partners), and is happy to find one who likes him back, but eventually, Reacher moves on.
Reacher is a compelling hero, resolute and doggedly moral in his own way: like the original Equalizer, he solves other people’s problems, although he tends to stumble into them instead of being called in. He has accumulated an enormous body count over the series, but his rules are simple -- don’t start it, give the opponent a chance to walk away, and if they don’t take it ... well, they were warned. Generally the bodies are those of individuals so purely evil or dumb enough to willingly associate with it that we are not unhappy to see them go. And go they do, in innumerable grisly ways.
All of this somehow has to be packed into any adaptation of the books if the adaptation is to have any credence at all, because the books are more than just action thrillers: they are morality tales, about this guy Reacher and how he negotiates a world that is his home but is not particularly familiar to him, and is full of bad things happening to good people. His physical size is a metaphor. He is Nemesis, and Karma; his mission is Revenge. He is both hero and anti-hero. Just ask anyone he has helped.
There were two movies made based on the character and a couple of the books -- the 9th book One Shot, and the 18th, Never Go Back, and they are object lessons in how not to deal with a beloved fictional character. As movies go they are competent actioners. As adaptations go ... well, Tom Cruise played Reacher, to the enormous outrage of the fans. As noted above, Jack Reacher is a man of uncommon size and strength, and this is fundamental to his persona and his interactions and the whole thematic arc of the series. Casting Cruise seemed, to the fan base, like a deliberate insult; clearly the only aim in doing so was to make a lot of money. Cruise ran around and kicked ass all right, but he wasn’t -- he could never be -- Jack Reacher. If you’ve watched them and think “I’ve seen Reacher, no need to see the series or read the books” -- well, sorry. You haven’t, and you should.
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