‘Black Doves’ Is Brilliant, but It Wastes Sarah Lancashire’s Talent

The latest spy thriller from Netflix, Black Doves, recently nabbed a Golden Globe nomination thanks to Keira Knightly and her performance alongside Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire. The series follows Helen (Knightly), who is the wife of a top UK government official and also a spy for an elusive organization known as the Black Doves. Having gathered secrets for the past ten years, so her employer could sell them to the highest bidder, Helen easily became a vital component of their operations. When her lover, Jason (Andrew Koji), is killed, Helen’s boss, Reed (Lancashire), brings in a former associate and old friend, Sam (Whishaw), to keep her safe, get to the bottom of what happened, and find out whether Helen might be the next target.

A brilliant series full of twists, turns, and vibrantly rich characters, Black Doves is nearly a perfect viewing experience. However, as Helen becomes embroiled in a larger conspiracy, she continues to meet with Reed periodically throughout the series. Whether their conversations occur via flashbacks or updates following Jason’s death, Reed is often only seen in one very specific way. When comparing Lancashire’s role as Reed to the show’s other central characters, as well as some of its minor ones, the depth of who she is doesn’t reach very far. Certainly an intriguing and commanding character, unfortunately, the series doesn’t fully allow Reed the necessary runway to take off as the type of character she could be.

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Black Doves

4.5/5

Release Date  December 5, 2024

Genres  Drama, Thriller

Cast  Ella Lily Hyland, Omari Douglas, Andrew Buchan, Kathryn Hunter, Keira Knightley, Andrew Koji, Sam Troughton, Sarah Lancashire, Ben Whishaw

‘Black Doves’ Wastes Sarah Lancashire’s Talent

Well known for her performances in The Paradise, Last Tango in Halifax, Happy Valley, and Julia, Sarah Lancashire is an extremely talented actress whose Black Doves performance is undoubtedly a good aspect of the show. However, it could have been even better had the role been a bit meatier. Unlike Helen or Sam, there isn’t the same level of depth present in Reed’s character. Rather, viewers are offered a one-dimensional character that could honestly be left behind if necessary. Where Helen and Sam shine, Reed is essentially dim. That isn’t to say Lancashire didn’t bring life to Reed in a unique and entertaining way. It simply means that the viewers could have been given more.

Almost immediately, Helen and Sam are given extensive backstories that offer viewers a lot to empathize with or relate to. There are subtleties present in each of them that aren’t there with Reed. The way Helen and Sam speak to one another and the manner in which they look at each other clearly highlights the depths of those characters, which all begin with the script. The storytelling throughout Black Doves is definitely amazing, but somewhere along the way, Reed’s gumption is absent, and Lancashire’s performance couldn’t make up for what wasn’t there in the first place. That being said, maybe something was simply lost in translation or fell victim to the cutting room floor. Either way, Lancashire’s talents feel wasted in Netflix’s newest spy thriller.

Reed’s Character Remains a Mystery in ‘Black Doves’

Given how much it feels as though something is missing from Reed’s character, it makes sense that even after the show’s finale, she remains a mystery to the viewer. In the beginning, it appeared as though tidbits of information would be revealed about her as the show progressed. However, she remained rather stagnant and elusive. Clearly, the role isn’t meant to be one rife with revelations, but only seeing her through the lens of Helen and Sam created a flat effect. It would have been nice to see just a few candid moments of Reed beyond the context of the Black Doves. Viewers do see extremely brief situations of her dabbling in entertainment following her meetings with Sam, but they simply aren’t enough to give the audience a well-rounded picture of the elusive spy boss.

There is a moment when Reed is speaking to Helen on the phone in which she’s wrapping a Christmas present very methodically. Such a mannerism clearly speaks to her personality, but viewers aren’t given much else to go on. Also, upon Reed’s first encounter with Helen, she insists, she is in fact “Mrs. Reed” and not “Ms. Reed,” which is certainly meant to convey something particular to the audience, but it doesn’t go beyond that moment.

Only at the very end of the series do viewers catch a glimpse of what could possibly be her wife, but there are no real clues given as to who the mystery woman inside Reed’s apartment actually is. Is she a wife? Or a daughter? Or a simple friend? There’s no way for the audience to really know. In the end, Reed is still a mystery. Given the talents of Lancashire’s, it certainly feels like a waste as we know she could excel with more material. However, maybe Black Doves never intended for the viewers to know Reed to begin with. All episodes of Black Doves are currently streaming on Netflix.