Review: STRIKE BACK: PROJECT DAWN - Season 2 Finale, Episode 10

The show with more testosterone than an all male prison came to it’s explosive and chilling climax this week as promised by Sky and Cinemax.  Strike Back: Project Dawn has been the hit that everyone thought it would be making stars of it’s cast and securing it with both UK and US studios for a third season.

Ok sit back breathe in really deep, and say it with me “FUUUUCCCK MEEEEE”, that line was said so often by Sgt Damien Scott (Sullivan Stapleton) that it could have been this season’s tag line.  The thing that emphasized it most…Probably Australian actor Sullivan Stapleton’s half Australian half American accent but, it worked and the way it looks currently Sgt Scott will be the only surviving member of Section 20 to make it to the third season.

The show really centered on his character this year, not all of the focus was on him of course but the main grit to the story was all about him and the British and American attempts to set him up with a little help from Pakistan.  Scott was a former Delta Force operative who fell foul of a secret mission named “Trojan Horse”.  The American’s got away with it and he became their fall guy and ended up at UK Intelligence’s Section 20.

As far as their promise of explosive goes I would say that’s a little over the top.  Revealing would probably be more up there with it especially when you seem to be able to reason with a terrorist and his finding out of the intelligence agencies foul play around Trojan Horse.

Latif (Jimi Mystry) is the man who has been tracked for the whole of this season, the terrorist had pretty much the whole middle east in his pocket along with a bunch of corrupt US military staff and a Heroin trafficker.  At one point during the first few episodes he even fooled his way into Section 20 having them believe that he was Jamal Ashkani the head of Pakistani intelligence, and they wonder how he managed to dig so much dirt.  Latif was of course captured by Stonebridge (Philip Winchester) and Scott during the ninth episode, rolling into this one he was being interrogated (badly) by Colonel Elanor Grant (Amanda Mealing).

That’s probably where they get explosive from, when Latif men break into the Section 20 strong hold which they have kept secret for the whole of the season, other than knowing it was in Pakistan.  A load of Section 20 extras got shot up, the main characters survived thanks largely to Stonebridge and Scott and Colonel Grant was captured and forced to reveal all of her involvement in Trojan Horse and her attempts to aide the Americans is setting up Scott, how did that work out for her?  Not to good she blew herself up with Latif at the end of the show not wanting her secret to come out probably fearing she would be thrown into that prison I mentioned above.

The show has been a great one, a good 10 episode run has seen plenty twists and turns Stonebridge and Scott worked really well together and it’s a shame they both won’t be back for the third season, there has been plenty of knowledge on the characters and their backing stories and even the enemy where handed a good story, with plenty knife’s being dealt in the back amongst themselves.

I look forward to the third season which will start filming in South Africa in early 2012 but, who will be there!  Not Colonel Grant that’s for sure.  Stonebridge is off back to England to be a daddy, so that’s counts him out to.  Sgt Sinclair (Rhashan Stone) could well be back, probably as Colonel Sinclair.  Sgt Scott may be back, although it’s not confirmed but he left the door open at the end of the episode, roll on season 3.

Review: STRIKE BACK: PROJECT DAWN Episode 8

Since this show has just been renewed for a third season, I figured I would mention the last few episodes beginning with this one.  I watch this show every week but up until the latest I really couldn’t think of anything I really wanted to say on it.  I think now I’ve found something to say…Struggling to keep up?  I’ll give you a quick recap.

Strike Back follows an elite part of the British intelligence service named Section 20 (fictional, of course).  The unit is headed up by Colonel Eleanor Grant (Holby Citys Amanda Mealing).  The two main characters are Sgt Michael Stonebridge (Philip Winchester), the straight laced do everything by the book kind of guy, the other Sgt Damien Scott (Sullivan Stapleton) a former Delta Force operative disgraced and thrown out the unit, set up in his opinion.

This was the 8^th episode in the 10 part series which has saw Section 20 on the trail of terrorist Latif (Jimi Mistry) who earlier on in the series fooled everyone at Section 20 having them believe he was Major Jamal Ashkani, the head of Indian intelligence.  A lot up to now has been a big build up to what we just saw this week with the introduction of a new character Hasani (Mel Raido).



Latif fools Section 20



The story to this really started at the end of episode 7 when Stonebridge and Scott were in Kosovo, there they were to trade a prisoner in exchange for some kidnapped European Union officials.  Of course things didn’t go to plan and they found themselves held captive along with the officials.

So now to this week, they need to break out and get all of the hostages out of Kosovo, problem is Hasani has a section of the US military in his pocket and they are helping him run his Heroin business by keeping his competition to a minimum.

I really couldn’t have enjoyed this episode more, it was full on from the word go.  All action, explosions, guns, fighting and of course being Strike Back plenty guys getting there way (catch my drift).  I don’t think I have seen an episode this season which I enjoyed so much, every part of it was exciting.  Ok you know that that although the main character is involved in a gun battle (1 v 8) the likely hood is your going to get hurt and that he did but still he managed to escape and give the old lady Union official he rescued earlier a smile.

This for me was kind of what made last nights episode, with Stonebridge captured saving the hostages and causing general havoc for the Kosovo Heroin traffickers was left to Scott, the playboy of the US military.  He really came into his own with the effort this week though and put in probably his best performance yet.  You still have the cheeky one liners but I think his performance may well have just booked him a role season 3.

I also think the story was helped along this week with the introduction of the new character Hasani, he is the drug king pin at the top of his game yet he still has to answer to Latif.  Working for them both were Kosovo rebel fighters and section of the US army most of whom Scott promised to come back and shoot for their double crossing.

If you hadn’t figured yet I think this was the best episode of the second series so far and I’m really looking forward to the final two episodes before the cast (not confirmed) head off to South Africa early 2012 to shoot season 3.

Strike Back: Project Dawn continues on Cinemax (US) Friday October 14^th and on Sky1 HD (UK) Sunday October 16^th 2011 with episode 9.

Strike Back: Project Dawn Episode 1

I vaguely remember watching this show when it aired back in 2010, starring Spook’s Richard Armitage as MI6's section 20 agent John Porter.  It was only a six part show first time around and I don’t remember if I watched it all, needless to say it never really left a lasting impression.  I saw the previews for the second series aptly named Project Dawn, again starring Richard Armitage.  Unfortunately for this series though his commitment towards playing the Hobbit has got in the way meaning that within the first 15 minutes of this episode Porter’s character was killed off.  Good start.

Que Amanda Mealing (Holby City) as Colonel Elanor Grant head of fictional MI6 secret section 20, in the role she gets to boss around two new characters.  The clean cut Philip Winchester (Camelot) who plays Michael Stonebridge a British intelligence agent who plays by the book, he is joined by Aussie actor Sullivan Stapelton (December Boys) as Damien Scott a former Delta Force Operative who to be honest just likes shooting guns and shagging women, what more do you want on a Sunday night?

The second series is back with some added weight thanks to a joint production and investment from American network HBO, the show will arie in the US on the Cinemax channel.  What does this mean?  Well you would like to think an even better show than the one that was so critically raved about last year, unfortunately for me though that simply wasn't the case with Project Dawn.

Don't get me wrong it was enjoyable enough and was certainly a lot better than Jerry Bruckheimer's Chase (review coming soon) but for the added investment from HBO me and many others from what I have read were expecting more than a shoot up shagging fest.  It was of course only the first episode we are learning about the new characters Stonebridge and Scott in particular, straight laced not so straight laced I think we definitely got the picture that the new Section 20 partners could not be more opposite, but hey sometimes they attract, right?

The story is good and does look as if the 10 episode order of this series should pick up some serious steam in it's efforts to be like 24, a show which I don't think it will measure up to.  In the first episode we saw terrorist leader Latif and his team take over a hotel in New Delhi, India, holding the guests hostage and offing them one by one until they found the man they where looking for named Mahmood.  One thing Latif didn't bank on was that two section 20 operatives were already in the hotel and made an attempt at a fight back, unfortunately for them though two v eleven are not such good odds causing them to be taken hostage also.

All of this is happening whilst Colonel Grant has shipped her entire section 20 unit to New Delhi without informing the Indian government or military, only a mystery Indian intelligence agent in the form of Jimmy Mistri turns up to see what was going on.  This is TV remember but that amount of activity would surely cause some questions to be asked. 

It was a really good set up episode, cheesy in parts with one liners that will probably grow on you once you are more familiar with the characters.  It certainly didn't put me off and I even watched the first episode again midweek to re cap anything I may have missed.  I will be watching tonight and the show promises to provide us with a good couple of months entertainment.