Review: Apple TV+'s 'Slow Horses' Enters Sixth Season Without Its Creator, Prompting Mixed Critical Reception
A Guardian television review says the espionage drama, now guided by new writers after creator Will Smith's departure, has become a more conventional thriller that shows signs of creative fatigue.
Apple TV+'s spy drama "Slow Horses" has released its sixth season, marking the first installment not overseen by series creator Will Smith, according to a review published by The Guardian's culture section.
The review notes that Smith, whose prior writing credits include "The Thick of It" and "Veep," had previously given the espionage series a distinctive comedic edge. Without his involvement, the new season adopts what the review describes as a "more straight-faced" narrative approach, resembling a conventional thriller rather than the show's earlier blend of satire and spycraft.
According to the review, the series centers on the staff of Slough House, a fictional offshoot of Britain's MI5 intelligence service where agents deemed failures are assigned menial tasks rather than being dismissed outright. Despite their supposed incompetence, these characters routinely outperform more conventional spies in the story, the review states.
Jack Lowden's character River Cartwright is described in the review as the show's lead field agent — a person with the physical appearance of a traditional spy hero but who is frequently characterized as fragile, unlucky and reliant on being rescued from dangerous situations.
The review argues that the show's comedic tone had previously helped audiences accept the implausibility of characters repeatedly surviving near-death scenarios, and that the series' use of run-down urban settings as a backdrop for spy action remains an effective element. However, it states that sustaining audience enjoyment of these narrative devices has become increasingly difficult as the show has progressed through multiple seasons.
The review concludes that while the series retains a polished and confident production style, it shows signs of the broader challenge many long-running television dramas face: creative material naturally becoming harder to sustain over time, compounded in this case by a change in creative leadership.
Sources
- Slow Horses season six review – it gets harder to enjoy Gary Oldman’s spy thriller every year — The Guardian — Culture
EGazette summarizes reporting from multiple sources; follow the links for the originals.
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