Why You Should Binge The First Three Reacher Season 3 Episodes In One Sitting

Prime Video frequently spoils audiences by dishing out the first three episodes of a show to kick off a season. This week, the streamer has done it with the return of "Reacher," which brings Alan Ritchson back as the T-shirt-wearing tower of a hero and surprising mental health advocate in the show's third season. Now, even though historically, /Film has advised that "Reacher" is better off binged, some viewers might enjoy tuning in every Friday to watch Jack go to work on some unsuspecting goon who was blissfully unaware of what a broken rib or cheekbone feels like until now. That's fine, folks. You do you. But in the case of the first three episodes that debuted this week, we beg you to watch them all at once first.

Not to get into spoilers, but "Reacher" season 3 kicks off a lot differently from the last time we were reunited with Jack. He's not saving the day, but storming into a bad one that sees him sitting in a room with criminals, dodgy businessmen, and a henchman that's even bigger than he is. From here begins what some fans of author Lee Child's beloved behemoth of a hero like to see him do best: Going it alone. It's a route that not only works out for our Reacher, who spent a lot of last season in a pretty crowded space, but also demonstrates even more of Alan Ritchson's acting muscle, as opposed to the ones trying to vacate his solid-colored tees.

Season 2, while not lacking in highlights, may have irked original fans of the "Jack Reacher" books by jumping ahead in the timeline of the former Major's activities and adapting the eleventh book in the series. Doing so skimmed over friendships and alliances that had been built up for ten books, whereas here, we were meeting Jack's old allies and the stories that came with them. It felt a bit on the busy side, veering away from what made the first season of "Reacher" so enjoyable. Alan Ritchson, having fully inhabited the role so wonderfully within the first few hours as Reacher, proved that he really is at his best when he's alone. Whether it's local townsfolk who don't take kindly to strangers or specially trained mercs who encounter this juggernaut of a human, Jack Reacher can handle himself, which makes his new solo(ish) mission all the more compelling because of it.

Rarely a stealthy presence up until this point, seeing Reacher move around the mansion, break the organization he's trying to infiltrate from the inside out, and do his very best not to get caught is a massively refreshing route for the character to take. So far, it's making for a thrilling adaptation for what is the best book in the "Jack Reacher" series. More importantly, it also brings forward the strongest case that this is the Reacher we should've seen on the big screen.

If you take our advice and binge-watch the return of "Reacher" back-to-back-to-back, you might sense that, for once, there's something grander about this story than in previous seasons. With all the treachery, double-crossing, and Reacher having to think on his ridiculously large feet, there's a cinematic quality that makes season 3 of "Reacher" feel like the best "Reacher" movie we never had, making these first three episodes incredibly enjoyable to watch.

Everything feels more tense this time around. More refined. Perhaps it's because Ritchson undeniably owns this role, making it feel like a reunion that deserves greater treatment. It doesn't feel like we're starting a Reacher story, but rather a Bond movie — one where our burly secret agent has a spy phone in his boot, a henchman we all know he'll eventually have to take down, and even a Blofeld-like villain that he has a dark history with that he'll be forced to revisit. This is the kind of Reacher-sized punch we've been missing, and we're thrilled that season 3 has come out swinging. Once again, our boy is back and neck-deep in danger, and it's exactly the way he likes it. More importantly, so do we.