A classic New York tale of arranged marriages, espionage and mass murder via explosive wedding cakes, as told by the writers of Atlanta
In its seven-year existence, Prime Video has told stories of Nazi hunters, deranged superheroes and psychotic superfans. Still, their latest original series is probably their most ambitious storytelling expedition yet. Directed “This Is America” visual wizard (Hiro Murai), their re-imagination of 2005’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith tasks the man who wrote “Redbone” (Donald Glover) and Mizu from Blue Eye Samurai (Maya Erskine) with performing some of the world’s most imaginative espionage tasks known to man, woman or non-binary folks. While [insert word for moving the story along a bit too quickly at times], Donald Glover and Maya Erskine’s unnaturally strong chemistry and the show’s commitment to be everything but the original feature film allow the premiere to blossom beautifully into the sophomore episode without fail.
The Prime Video original premiere begins in a cabin occupied by a pair of agents turned lovers who have gone rogue, played by Alexander Skarsgård and Eiza González. The pair hopes to start a new life away from their previous line of work, but their former employers want their new life to start…in the afterlife. Before there is any time to admire how good they look together, à la Brangelina, their insides are rearranged by the bullets and gunsmoke of assassins. In one sense, this foreshadows what may come in later episodes if Erskine and Glover go AWOL. In another sense, it’s necessary to kill off the couple who may aesthetically remind the world of the original Mr. and Mrs. Smith and introduce the new (and improved) arranged couple who will carry the story.
Before the bodies of González and Skarsgård have gone cold, our Mr. John and Jane Smith, played by Glover and Erskine arrive on screen for a final interview. Equipped with ambition, nail clippings and an inflated sense of how tall they were, the two separately answer personal questions in a final interview before being met with the surprise of being paired together. However, they don’t come face to face until they arrive at a New York brownstone that costs more than you or I’d care to think about. From the first time they lock eyes in the brownstone’s elevator (yes, it has an elevator and a pool) to the episode’s closing credits, it’s clear that John and Jane Smith have a charming, yet awkward dynamic. Their bond only strengthens as they embark on their first mission — following a strange lady through New York and intercepting a package.
The Smiths spent most of their day/episode following the unnamed subject from a cafe to a park to a theater and eventually, an alley, before intercepting the package. During the chase and stakeout, the two make small talk by revealing personal anecdotes, like the time Jane met up with a pedophile in New York. This necessary breaking of the ice crescendos as the couple delivers the package to the correct address. Before they can take a breath or have a celebratory drink, their plan literally blows up in their face. The intercepted package happens to be an explosive cake designed to kill seven people at the address it was delivered to. Instead of playing things cool, they run down the street, into a restaurant and home before continuing the exercise of revealing personal details that seemingly bring them closer together. John Smith killed people, 14 to be exact, in Afghanistan and Jane Smith brought her cat with her despite being told that she needed to leave her past behind.
The premiere puts to bed most notions that it’s trying to rekindle the magic of the original. While it sometimes draws on themes and certain style choices of its feature film predecessor, it’s more Bel-Air in its re-imagination than a standard reboot or adaptation. Glover and Erskine’s on-screen connection is more relatable and honest than sleek and sultry. Murai’s direction also feels more intimate and warm like his videos for Glover’s “Sober” and “3005,” which appropriately fits the dynamic of the Smith’s growing co-working relationship, friendship or romance. Whatever you want to call the dynamic between Erskine and Glover, it feels natural, intriguing and invites everyone to root for them to live, survive their line of work and possibly fall in love?
