Black Doves Season 1 Review: A Superb Spy and Assassin Team-Up

Warning: This review contains spoilers for the entirety of Black Doves.

Black Doves follows Helen Webb as she balances her cover as a politician’s wife and conducts an investigation into the death of the man she was having an affair with. She’s determined to find the truth and get her revenge.

Overall, Black Doves is a decent spy thriller. It distinguishes itself from other spy shows through its characters. The conspiracy and mystery aren’t anything special; it’s the characters that keep us engaged throughout the six episodes.

Helen and Sam’s friendship is the highlight of the series. They are an unexpected delight, and it’s impossible not to fall in love with them.

Spy thrillers often fall into the trap of over-complicating matters by making the central mystery unnecessarily convoluted or by adding in more characters with their own storylines than the show has time to explore.

When Black Doves initially introduced Lenny, Williams, and Eleanor, there was some concern that it would be to its detriment. However, the series intertwines them and Sam’s triggerman backstory flawlessly into Helen’s hunt for justice.

Williams and Eleanor help Sam out when a big takedown needs to happen, and it’s too dangerous/outside the scope of Helen’s skillset. They are a fun addition to Sam and Helen’s team, providing even more humor to the show.

Admittedly, there is a bit of concern that more and more people are learning that Helen is not simply Wallis Webbs’ wife but a spy, but Lenny, Williams, and Eleanor don’t care that much about her secret.

The most difficult aspect of the show to get on board with is Helen doing all this for a three-month affair. Between confessing her most highly-guarded secret and becoming solely focused on vengeance, Helen is obsessed/in love with Jason, and it’s baffling.

The show attempts to provide reasons why Helen acts this way, and while they do help some, it’s still one of those things where it just doesn’t fully make sense.

On Black Doves Season 1 Episode 4, “Go Bang Time,” Helen and Sam have a discussion where she admits part of her love/obsession with Jason could simply be because she wants someone to know the real her and see her for who she is, which is a valid feeling and helps explain how she potentially became infatuated with Jason so quickly.

When Helen talks about how her step-father took someone precious to her and she made him pay on Black Doves Season 1 Episode 6, “In Bleak Midwinter,” this hints that she might have some psychological issues buried away, partially explaining why she would not put her gun down and walk away when Jason’s killer is in front of her.

However, it’s still hard to fully get behind her actions, and you find yourself throughout the season wondering what on earth is wrong with Helen to where she’s behaving this way and confessing important secrets to a man it turns out she didn’t even know.

This is not a be-all-end-all flaw of Black Doves. It’s simply a frustrating aspect of Helen’s character.

Black Doves seemingly leaves the door open for a second season through Hector Newman’s job offer to Sam. Whatever line of work Sam will end up doing could be a fun way to mix things up a little bit next season, making Sam more of the focus and exploring the very strange dynamic he and Hector have.

However, I will need to see Helen come bacl because I need more of her and Sam. Would you tune into Black Doves Season 2?

Stray Thoughts

• Impressively, Black Doves manages to correctly use flashbacks and doesn’t keep us bogged down in the past like some other spy shows (ahem, Citadel).
• I was not expecting this show to be so funny.
• Reed is a very complicated boss.
• Michael and Sam’s relationship is alright.
• I did not recognize Yarrick in the videos at first; I just thought it was a brutal killing of a random man.
• Dani is the real enemy #1, and Helen kicking her ass is so rewarding.

What did you think of Black Doves? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

Black Doves is now streaming on Netflix.

Follow us on X and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!