TV Time: Silo, Jack Ryan, Drops of God

Are you in the mood for some dystopian post-apocalyptic science fiction? Or maybe you want a good political CIA thriller? Perhaps you’d like nothing more than the perfect show to watch while you enjoy a nice glass of wine. Whatever the case may be, you might find just what you’re looking for in one of the three shows I watched recently. These three shows are about as different from one another as possible, but each definitely has its own merits.

Silo (Season 1)

Apple TV+, 10 Episodes

It’s hard to find a worthwhile science fiction television series. It’s even harder to find a worthwhile science fiction TV series that isn’t set in outer space. Apple TV’s 2023 show, Silo, however, is such a show. 

Silo is set in a post-apocalyptic future and focuses entirely on the goings on inside one bunker (or silo), where residents are (supposedly) protected from toxic air outside. The massive silo consists of 144 levels, and those who live there must follow different rules and regulations that the governing body claims are in place to protect them, such as the prohibition of “relics,” or objects from before the silo was built.

Silo was based on a series of novels, which began after a 2011 short story by Hugh Howey gained popularity. The first couple of episodes do feel sort of separate from the rest of the season, centering on different characters. The show is never not engaging, but when we begin to focus more on lead Rebecca Ferguson, who plays an engineer named Juliette Nichols, the story picks up even more. Juliette is a great complex, yet flawed, protagonist and Ferguson definitely has the acting skills to pull off the role.

Overall though, Silo is one of those shows where the plot and trying to figure out what’s going on is what keeps viewers tuning in even more so than its characters. It’s not a horror show, but it reminds me of MGM+’s From (another program I’d recommend) in this way – the mystery of what’s going on is the best part of the series. Since this is the first season of a show that’ll likely run for at least several years, there’s no real resolution to what happens in Season 1 of Silo. Still, this is the most engrossing sci-fi show of 2023 so far.

Grade: 8.5/10

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan (Season 1)

Amazon Prime, 8 Episodes 

I’m a bit late to the party when it comes to watching Amazon’s Jack Ryan series, but I’m here to report that it is totally “fine.” In a way, this show, which recently wrapped up its fourth season, is exactly what I’d expect a show that’s had four seasons exclusively on Amazon Prime to be like – it has wide appeal, a good bit of action, and is never too deep with its characters.

At first, I didn’t know what to expect in terms of realism when it came to Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, but after just a few episodes it became crystal clear that CIA analyst Jack Ryan is more similar to James Bond or 24’s Jack Bauer than he is an actual human being in terms of effectiveness in finding and taking out villains. This show would have you believe that there are basically two branches of the U.S. government that are equal in their usefulness: There is Jack Ryan and then there are all the other government employees and government resources combined.

Just as impressive Jack Ryan is as a CIA super-agent, Season 1’s antagonist, Suleiman, is equally impressive as a super-terrorist. He’s got bombs. He’s got hostages. He’s got weaponized Ebola. Basically, he’s the most effective generically bad villain ever.

For all of its ridiculousness and despite how far-fetched it gets, Jack Ryan is never not watchable. I’d hesitate to call it ever really good (it’s definitely not ever great), but it’s always “fine.” If you’re in the mood for a political-action thriller show, you could do a lot worse, but this is still more of a series to watch when there’s nothing better on.

Grade: 5.5/10

Drops of God

Apple TV+, 8 Episodes

Drops of God is a very well put together series based on the Japanese manga of the same name that ran for ten years. The story focuses on a competition for the inheritance of an egomaniac wine expert and collector between his estranged daughter and best student.

I won’t say more about the series plot-wise so as not to spoil the show, but it has a similar feel, with its focus on a niche topic, as Netflix’s The Queens Gambit did, but with wine instead of chess. As it progresses though, I’d say that Drops of God emerges as a superior show, and is on a higher level quality-wise.

One interesting thing about Drops of God is that three different languages are used throughout each episode – French, Japanese, and English. The wine expert’s daughter, Camille, is French, and he taught in Japan, so his student, Issei, is Japanese. This adds to the worldly feel of Drops of God.

While the acting is excellent, and the story mostly held my interest, the series could’ve benefitted from being an episode or two shorter. I also think that viewers who are at least a little bit interested in wine as a subject will enjoy Drops of God more than people like myself (who don’t have much, if any, interest in wine). Either way though, if you’re looking for a quality, engaging drama that completely wraps up its story after eight episodes, Drops of God is the show for you.

Grade: 8/10