The Terminal List Review: Chris Pratt's Revenge Thriller

James Reece is a man free from the military's command structure now, which is the polite way of saying he answers to no one. Season 2 leans into that freedom: Reece applies the lessons of nearly two decades of warfare to hunt down the people responsible for the murder of his entire platoon, turning his training into a very personal, very methodical instrument of vengeance. The season doubles down on the investigation side of things, keeping the action grounded in Reece's relentless, one-man campaign. It's a revenge story with a ledger, and Reece is determined to balance it no matter who gets in the way. If you liked the idea of a soldier who's stopped asking permission, Season 2 is built for you.

Look, this show knows exactly what it is. It's a meat-and-potatoes revenge thriller with a movie star in the driver's seat, and Season 2 leans harder into that identity than ever. Where the first season had to do the heavy lifting of setup, establishing Reece's loss and his turn toward vengeance, this new batch of episodes gets to sprint out of the gate. The central premise is simple and sturdy: a trained killer with nothing left to lose, methodically working his way up a chain of culpability. That's a classic engine, and it hums.

Pratt is the whole show, and that's both the blessing and the mild curse. He's genuinely good in the role, playing Reece with a flat, haunted stillness that's a real departure from his usual quippy charm. There's a moment-to-moment intensity in the way he moves through a room that sells the character's lethal competence. But because Pratt is so magnetic, the scenes without him can feel like waiting for the main act to come back onstage. The series is at its best when it's just Reece, a plan, and the quiet dread of what's coming next.

Tonally, Season 2 stays firmly in the grim lane. This is not a show that's interested in levity, and it makes no apologies for it. That's a feature for the right audience and a bug for everyone else. The show treats Reece's skills with a straight-faced reverence that occasionally tips into indulgence, but it never loses sight of the fact that this is, fundamentally, a story about grief wearing a tactical vest. The action beats land because the show has earned its stakes, even when the plotting gets a little mechanical.

If there's a weakness, it's that the season occasionally mistakes intensity for depth. Reece's crusade is compelling, but the show sometimes treats his grit as a substitute for an actual arc. Still, for a thriller built on momentum, that's a forgivable sin. Season 2 knows what it wants to be, and it delivers that with efficiency that Reece himself would respect.

Pros

• Chris Pratt continues to be a genuinely compelling, unshowy lead as James Reece
• Tighter, more focused pacing than the first season
• The revenge-investigation premise remains a sturdy, satisfying engine
• Action sequences that feel grounded and earned

Cons

• Unrelentingly grim, with little tonal variation
• Supporting players get overshadowed by Pratt's gravitational pull
• The show sometimes confuses intensity with character depth

Season 2 of The Terminal List isn't trying to be prestige television, and honestly, that's fine. It's a muscular, no-nonsense revenge thriller anchored by a movie star clearly having a blast in a darker register. It's streaming now on Prime Video, and if you're in the mood for some grim, methodical vengeance, it delivers the goods. Just don't go in expecting a lot of laughs along the way.

Based on the show's existing audience rating of 8/10, Season 2 looks set to keep the faithful well fed.