TV Series Notebook. Echo 3.

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"Echo 3" (Apple TV+), political action/drama thriller, based on the Israeli series "When Heroes Fly" by Omri Givon, as inspired by the eponymous novel of Amir Gutfreund. According to military phonetics, Echo is the military alphabet for “E.” In the military, the phonetic alphabets are used to communicate over the radio.




CRACK military dudes Prince Haas (Michiel Huisman) and Alex "Bambi" Chesborough (Luke Evans) are out to rescue Amber (Jessica Ann Collins)--Prince's wife and Bambi's sister--who is captured by rebels in Colombian jungle while on bioresearch then transported across the border into the hands of Venezuelan leadership. Backstory: Amber was also "working" for the CIA. somehow. Prince and Bambi only found that out after the fact.

       Worse, Washington dismisses official rescue and Prince's dad, who is a rich and powerful arms manufacturer that has cool relations with the Pentagon, isn't so sympathetic over son's lost wife. So Prince and Bambi, members of the Delta Force unit of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) gotta rely on themselves.

Of course, I have seen many of the same black ops thriller and tale of international intrigue many times but here I am again.

       A lure is the series creator: Mark Boal. His portfolio includes the screenplay for "The Hurt Locker" and "Zero Dark Thirty," both directed by Kathryn Bigelow. But don't get your hopes high. "Echo 3" doesn't quite channel the multilayered drama of "Hurt..." and the edge of seat thrill of "Zero..." but it is still a non-boring ride.

       Also, my favorite German actress Franka Potente has a small role here as Hildy, a mysterious prisoner in the rebel camp. Her part should have been pursued as counterweight to Amber's that would have spared us the obligatory Ramboesque antics of the macho duo. 🎥📺📽


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