By now we know that Neagley has dethroned Reacher; long may she reign — and it’s not surprising, as the series has emerged as one of the year’s most unexpected, quiet triumphs.
It’s an unexpected assertion to make given that, on the surface, it’s not the type of series people would assume would have as much depth, complexity, and emotion as it does.
But that’s precisely why Neagley works so well, and why it truly has emerged as one of the few new series that has resonated so deeply with me at a time when, frankly, many shows don’t.
The thing about Neagley is that it’s more than just a Reacher spinoff. It immediately holds its own as a worthwhile companion in that universe, rather than something that could be written off as Reacher’s little sister in show form.
In doing so, the show captures the very essence of what Neagley has always been to Reacher: an equal, a worthwhile companion, and someone who holds her own.
But what makes Neagley so special to me, especially as a woman who enjoys the action genre, is that the series doesn’t strip her of her femininity, her softness, her vulnerability, or her beauty.
It’s still tough to see women holding their own space in the action genre without having to sacrifice the compelling, layered elements that make them human, that make them women, without the genre treating that femininity like a distraction or a drawback.
So often, action spaces for women champion a strong woman as “one of the boys.” Tough, hard, emotionless. And her femininity is only something regarded and praised as far as being an object of desire for the men around her or those watching, and nothing more.
Neagley doesn’t subscribe to any of that, which is so genuinely refreshing.
From the start of Reacher, she’s been one of the most consistent and intriguing characters in the series’ universe, so news that she’d get her own spinoff was met with excitement. Since then, a lauded first season has proven that it was the right decision.
But what was unexpected about Neagley is that the series didn’t present us with just another variation of a tragic heroine drowned out by high-action, complex fight sequences and thrilling plots that keep you on edge.
Neagley does something that the action genre, particularly in series form, has strayed away from doing — it gives us a character-driven story with a serialized element that makes you invest.
I tuned into Neagley knowing that I’d get an interesting case worth solving with a potentially twisty plot, loads of action, and maybe a begrudging buddy-cop dynamic that I’d grow to love.
What I got was an emotionally competent series that actually valued what I love most about shows: its characters.
It took a character I thought I knew and loved and showed me that the Reacher universe had barely scratched the surface.
Frances Neagley is truly at the center of her own story, and we get a deeper look at how multilayered she is while the season peels those layers back throughout.
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We don’t get just an action heroine with Neagley, but rather a woman with complexity, trauma, and all the things that make her so distinctly human that she doesn’t feel surreal — she feels relatable.
Reacher works and thrives as something akin to a power fantasy that offers escapism and a sense of justice in a world where it feels like we don’t see that nearly enough.
But Neagley thrives on being grounded and real.
In the series, she’s not just some character you idolize without a chance in hell of ever successfully emulating — she’s a character you can relate to — maybe see bits and pieces of yourself in.
Neagley’s strength comes from its ability to tap into the full breadth of emotion without apology, digging into the messiness in between kicking ass and awkward flirtations.
Neagley commits to a theme with a throughline that can carry across multiple seasons.
Because we have Frances Neagley coming to grips with the fact that she doesn’t want to be lonely, she craves connection, and she wants to overcome the trauma at the root of her haphephobia.
Trauma isn’t an elephant in the room that’s left unexplored in this series, and that’s probably the most unexpected thing of all.
The series cuts right into it, with such a delightfully blunt edge.
We start the season with her and Reacher, one of the few people in the world whom she feels understands and cares about her — and she makes a timid offer, an extension of the companionship she craves out of an innate fear of being alone, only to brush it off like it was nothing.
And we spend the rest of the season exploring how her world can expand and how she can find her “people.” In doing so, she works to get to the core of what makes her different, not for the sake or convenience of other people — but for herself.
Neagley’s haphephobia isn’t just some quirk that becomes a comedic punchline, nor is it glorified as a special ability or asset that makes her better at what she does, with zero impact or ramifications on her life outside of that.
The series strikes the perfect balance in recognizing that Neagley isn’t “broken” because of what she’s battling, but it IS a battle and something that impedes her life, and something that she wants to overcome.
Because she can be badass, cool, bold, strong, unapologetic, confident, and self-assured, but she cannot drown the effects of trauma that take hold in her in a bowl of cereal, and she can’t punch away the loneliness.
It’s an element of this story that works particularly well in a post-pandemic world where something like haphephobia can feel just as familiar or resonant to people in some capacity or another as touch starvation.
The emotional elements are what separate Neagley from the standard fare of most similar series in the genre. It’s not just about taking a loner type who resists it and having her form her own merry band of misfits who become a found family.
It’s about having a woman who has lived so much of her life a certain way actively realizing that she wants something more for herself and finally being in the headspace and under the right circumstances to do it.
That’s just emotionally and narratively gratifying storytelling for any character, let alone an action star. And dammit, it’s even better for a female action star.
She has the right people in her circle, people who have chosen her and continue to choose her, despite her shortcomings, her flaws, all the bits she felt made her broken. And in turn, she’s learning how to choose them, too.
Narratively, the supporting characters enhance Neagley’s arc of personal growth and evolution, while still standing on their own.
Riley, Keno, and Renee prove to be just as compelling in their own right, with or without Neagley. And a strong supporting cast is always a bonus.
But the permanence and consistency of what they bring to her life add to Neagley’s arc in a way that distinguishes this series from its brother show and highlights its strength.
On Neagley, the characters genuinely matter, all of them, and maybe that’s why the series keeps scratching at an itch for me in ways that I just never anticipated and still can’t shake.
But at its core, it’s Frances Neagley and what this short season lets her be that keeps sticking with me, and it’s what makes me want to relive the series again — it’s why I still find myself reflecting on it even after a binge.
We have one of the most badass characters out there, and she’s blessedly on a series that doesn’t treat vulnerability like it’s a character flaw.
She’s one of the toughest characters onscreen, but she’s also so soft — and the series lets her be that way without ever implying that it makes her inferior or directly deducts points from her skillset and badassery.
Neagley also doesn’t do what series of its caliber are wont to do — treat romance like a cop-out or some anchor that weighs down a series or detracts from its quality.
Instead, it smartly makes romance instrumental to Neagley’s evolution.
As a 30-something-year-old woman with haphephobia since she was a child, she hasn’t actually experienced a romantic relationship.
As she says during one of the most emotionally charged, gut-wrenching (and standout scenes of many for Maria Sten), she hasn’t danced with anyone or kissed anyone.
These are things that she wants and desires but hasn’t been able to actually do. It’s unusual to explore a stunning, strong, confident, intelligent woman like Neagley grappling with intimacy at a level we usually reserve for teenagers.
And for it to be something that makes her story more compelling rather than something to mock.
Romance and its potential don’t become something that ruins or derails the series; instead, it’s intrinsically tied to her evolution and growth, her healing, and even an achievement.
The easiest route could’ve been the stereotypical one: desexualizing Neagley.
Instead, we get a riveting slow burn without the same stale contrivances with Neagley and Riley, while the series never suddenly treats finding a guy she’s connected to and developed feelings for as enough to overcome decades of battling her trauma.
The magical healing powers of attraction and feelings don’t “fix” Neagley, and the series is all the better for that.
Thus, Neagley doesn’t treat romance like a liability, nor does it treat it as a solution to a woman’s troubles or a driving force and motivator; on all fronts, that makes Neagley a breath of fresh air as a series.
I tuned into Neagley for fun and action.
What I didn’t anticipate was carefully crafted storytelling, rich character exploration, emotional depth and resonance, and one of my favorite series and characters of the year.
Hell, nor this desire to revisit the series again so quickly. Alas, I’m off to rewatch Neagley while awaiting a second season, so I’ll turn it over to you. Did you love it as much as I did? Let’s discuss.
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The post Neagley Proved an Action Series Can Deliver Emotional Depth & Badassery — And I Can’t Stop Thinking About It appeared first on TV Fanatic.