Hulu’s 2-Part Action Thriller Is the Best Series You’re Not Watching This Weekend

There has been no shortage of espionage shows within the streaming era, as stories about spies have taken the form of everything from Black Doves and Slow Horses to The Night Agent and The Agency. The FX series The Old Man, based on the acclaimed novel by Thomas Perry, stars Jeff Bridges as the former CIA agent Dan Chase, who has gone into hiding for 30 years after being involved in the Vietnam War. Chase’s one desire is to avoid attracting attention to himself, and a dangerous encounter with a would-be assassin is enough to convince him to briefly slow down, leading him to form a romantic connection with a woman named Zoe Macdonald (Amy Brenneman).

On the other side of the law is Harold Harper (John Lithgow), the active FBI Assistant Director for Counterintelligence, who wants to apprehend Chase due to his knowledge of events during the Cold War. Thanks to the use of inventive flashbacks and an equal spread of development among the cast, The Old Man examines the past, present, and future of America’s international spy programs.

‘The Old Man’ Is a Reflective, Character-Based Spy Thriller

The Old Man looks at the less glamorous side of living a life undercover. Chase has never been able to form a concrete relationship with anyone, because he is in fear of having his life uprooted. There’s a tragedy to the character because Bridges displays Chase as a worldly, charismatic person who is willing to connect with someone like Zoe emotionally, yet fears getting close because he doesn’t want to put her in danger. The series works because of the viewers’ multi-decade relationship with Bridges, who starred in many great spy films during the peak of his career, and The Old Man also delicately weaves in flashbacks that show turning points in Chase’s life, with a sharp performance from Bill Heck.

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Unlike most espionage shows, The Old Man isn’t a series with clear-cut heroes and villains, as most of the leads have at least some sort of ethically dubious sentiments. The most significant commentary comes from the ways in which Chase and Harper have come to reflect on their experiences in the past. While they believed what they had done to protect national interests was ethical when they were younger, the changing perception of America’s role as a superpower in modern times caused them to question what means they were fighting for. It’s not only a compelling interrogation about America’s involvement in international incidents, but an age-old moral question about culpability. Even if Chase and Harper were made to believe that what they had done was for the betterment of innocent people, they still committed actions that have had negative ripples into the future. It’s part of what makes their dynamic in the present so explosive, as neither character has fully been able to live past the trauma of making the wrong choice.

The 10/10 FX Thriller ‘The Old Man’ Gave Jeff Bridges One of His Best Roles

Bridges gives his best performance since his last Academy Award nomination for Hell or High Water. The Old Man gives Bridges a chance to return to what he’s best at, and also features one of the best villain roles of Lithgow’s career. (That’s saying something given how terrifying he was in several Brian de Palma classics.)

The Old Man was sadly cancelled at the end of its second season, but the two seasons that exist are unlike any other series FX has put out. It’s a consistently propulsive action series that features a Hitchockian-level of suspense, yet also addresses deeper questions about loyalty, family, and whether people truly have the capacity to change. Given how many great drama shows are out there to binge, it’s understandable that some viewers would want to avoid a series that they know was not given a proper ending. However, the visceral, exciting spectacle that The Old Man pulls off in its easily bingeable two seasons makes the mild disappointment worth it to watch an unforgettable show.