Reacher Season 2 Gets Tons of Undeserved Hate, And Reddit Isn't Having It
The reaction to the second season of the hit show has not been as unanimous as it was for the first.
Summary:
- After a failed attempt to bring the Jack Reacher books to the big screen with Tom Cruise-led films, a TV show felt like a godsend to fans
- But despite the exceptionally warm reception of season 1, the just-released season 2 is already provoking polarizing reactions
- Fans seem to be split on the matter, with some calling it a terrible disaster and others saying the backlash is an overreaction
With all the success of the Reacher TV series, some may not realize that this is not the first time Lee Child's book series has been adapted for the screen.
The first attempt, starring none other than Tom Cruise as the titular former Army police officer, lasted for two feature films released in 2012 and 2016, but failed to gain much critical or popular acclaim for a number of reasons.
One of the biggest problems for fans of the original was that Cruise didn't fit the description of Reacher, and even though he did his best, many of them still thought the actor was a total miscast.
After the second film, which turned out to be even more underwhelming than its predecessor, the big screen franchise ended for good, leaving fans of the novels wondering if they would ever get a faithful adaptation of their beloved books.
Reacher Season 1 Was A Near-Perfect Adaptation Of The Books
When the first season of the Reacher TV series, with Alan Ritchson portraying the character this time around, debuted in 2022, it received a much warmer reception.
With its respect for the source material, intriguing story, brutal action, and Ritchson not only better resembling the character, but also perfectly capturing his nature with his great performance, the show was hailed as a near perfect adaptation of the book series.
All of this made the show's renewal for a second season a practically done deal, and it arrived relatively soon, just one year later, with the first three episodes premiering on December 15, 2023.
But in an unexpected turn of events, the fan reaction to it was not as unanimous as it was to the show's debut, with some of them calling it a disaster that is a huge downgrade compared to the exceptionally strong start.
Reacher Season 2 Left Fans Divided
According to fans, the events of the second book would have been perfect material for season 2, so they don't understand why the show's creators didn't take this seemingly obvious route.
Others also felt that the quality of the writing had dropped significantly between seasons, as the story and dialogue felt much more natural in the first season.
However, there remains a large number of viewers who feel that these complaints about Reacher season 2 being awful are a bit of an overreaction.
They say that while season 2 isn't completely devoid of some stupid points, it's perfectly fine because "nothing is," so the backlash surrounding it feels completely undeserved, with some viewers taking it way too seriously.
According to them, the season has been great so far, showing a different side of Reacher's personality, as he is now "at home" with his military family, which is a completely new environment compared to season 1.
Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but considering that the show was never the most complex project ever, some viewers may indeed overthink it, which, to be fair, happens all the time with all movies and shows.
Episode 4 of Reacher season 2 will premiere on December 22, 2023.
Source: Reddit