Should You Try It: The Gentlemen on Netflix

We’re making our way through March; the network season is in full swing and we’re getting a load of high-profile new streaming series. With all that content, choices have to be made. Let this series be your guide as we walk you through new series to find the one that is right for you. Today, I’m looking at a new streaming series form Guy Ritchie.

Series: The Gentlemen

Where to Find It: All eight episodes are now streaming on Netflix

What’s It About: This new series comes from writer/director Guy Ritchie, who created the series, worked on the scripts, and directs the first two episodes. It shares a name with one of his feature films. While this is meant to be set in the same universe, it features an entirely new set of characters, a new story, and a new cast.

We meet Eddie (Theo James) as he’s a soldier working abroad for the United Nations. He’s the second son of an English Duke, and he’s called home as his father is dying. In his will, Eddie’s father eschews passing on his estate and title to the first-born son, Freddy (Daniel Ings), and instead passes it all to Eddie, who now finds himself head of the family with a lot of responsibility.

Eddie’s new title also comes with some challenges. First, he discovers Freddy is in deep debt with a looming deadline he expects his brother to meet. He also discovers his father’s main source of income was an off-the-books arrangement with a crime family whose leader, Susie Glass (Kaya Scodelario) is keen to keep the arrangement going.

Finding himself thrown quickly into the deep end, can Eddie adjust to his new role and right the ship moving forward?

You Should Try It If: You’re a fan of Guy Ritchie’s style of storytelling, a good crime drama, or a binge-worthy experience.

One Man’s Opinion of The Gentlemen

I enjoy Ritchie’s films. I liked his take on Sherlock Holmes and Aladdin, but mostly it’s been his crime dramas that have worked. He’s got a unique style for these stories, characters, and the way the worlds are built. I also liked the film from which this draws a similar name. It’s not the same characters or story, but this works.

I sampled the first two episodes so far, and it quickly had a hook that drew me in. I like James in the lead role, and his back-and-forth with Scodelario is a lot of fun. But what really works, especially in these early episodes, is the mad-cap performance of Ings as Freddy. He’s a screw up that just seems to keep making things worse.

The episodes here are between 45 minutes and an hour, with Ritchie’s first two installments the longest of the series. It’s a quick binge with some fun characters and a fun cast, including Giancarlo Esposito in a role that’s destined to take a darker twist as we move forward. I enjoyed this ride and I’m excited to see how it finishes.