Aahana Swrup
Prime Video’s police procedural show packs an action-heavy punch as it brings together a ragtag team of interdepartmental Agents hand-picked for one high-profile case. LAPD’s Mark Meachum is a lone wolf and a loose cannon with a penchant for getting results. Soon after the death of an HSI Agent, the officer gets unceremoniously pulled from his undercover assignment to join Special Agent Nathan Blythe’s task force. As it turns out, there’s more to the deceased Agent’s assassination than meets the eye. Thus, the unraveling of this dangerous conspiracy is now up to Blythe and his team of agents, including players like the FBI’s Keyonte Bell, the DEA’s Amber Oliveras, and more. Across the show’s first three episodes, Meachum and the other agents delve deep into the case, unearthing the beginnings of a troubling new ploy at play. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Nathan Blythe Puts His Task Force Together
Mark Meachum has been undercover in prison for months, collecting sensitive information for his investigation. Therefore, he knows he’s in for a ride when a federal order pulls him out of this operation and into another. Nathan Blythe, Federal Special Agent, with a history of task forces to his name, is launching a classified operation. As such, he has gathered a number of agents from across multiple law enforcement departments to helm the case. There’s Luke Finau, another LAPD officer, and Evan Shepherd from cyber investigations. Additionally, he recruits Amber Oliveras, a DEA officer with years of undercover work under her belt, and Keyonte Bell, an FBI Agent with something to prove. Thus, it becomes evident from the get-go that all this fanfare isn’t because of a simple murder case.
Robert Darden, the assassinated Homeland Security Agent, had a clean record for years of his service. However, suspicious activity was flagged on his bank accounts days before his death. The same, paired with his untimely death, suggests the federal Agent was compromised and receiving bribes from another party. Nonetheless, when Blythe and Evan talk to Darden’s widow, she remains vehement in her assertion that her husband was a good man and an honest agent. Furthermore, a deeper look into his finances and assets proves no dubious expenses on the Agent’s record. As such, a peculiar detail from a conversation with one of the agents’ colleagues at the customs office leads the team to believe their victim must’ve been framed and scapegoated by the real departmental mole.
Darden’s Assassination Unravels a Cartel’s Deadly Plans
As revealed by the task force’s investigation, Robert Darden was not a federal mole. In fact, the Agent had actually lost his life, trying to stand up to one such unethical breach. Days before his death, he discovered his colleague, Maurice, was supplying confidential information to the Los Reyas cartel. When he refused to sit on the secret for the other Agent, his contacts helped him frame Darden as someone who took bribes and orchestrated his assassination. Fortunately, after extracting this information from Maurice, Keyonte is able to comb through the corrupt HSI Agent’s burner phone to find the details of a meeting about to go down at the port.
Consequently, once the task force crashes the cartel meeting, a tense shootout follows, at the end of which they discover a troubling cargo in the cartel’s hold: enough fissile material that can cause a radiation nightmare across the country in the wrong hands. On the other hand, Meachu, who has some unpleasant history with Blythe, discovers a startling truth about this underdog group the latter has assembled. Even though each Agent is skilled and talented in their own ways, they’re all also notable outcasts in their departments. Meachum is a nightmare to partner with, rumors of Oliveras’ drug problem keep her on the fence, and Keyonte’s legacy is consistently overshadowed by his father’s. Simply put, they’re the kind of agents whose absence wouldn’t be noticed or missed by anyone. Blythe explicitly designed the task force because he had suspicions about multiple moles being active across law enforcement departments. Therefore, it’s best not to trust anyone with the real purpose of their operation.
Oliveras Reaches Out to Her Past Contacts
The radiation fissile found in the Los Reyas’ raid promises big national trouble brewing on the horizon. Fortunately, Agent Oliveras, who has done more than a decade’s worth of undercover work, has some connections in the drug cartel that could prove to be helpful. As such, the DEA Agent finds herself returning to undercover work to gather some intel from her contact, Javi Lopez. The only downside is that she has to partner up with Meachum for the job. Needless to say, the duo decidedly do not get along and have been bashing heads since day one. Even so, they make a good team and manage to find a way to earn Javi’s trust: by smuggling a truckful of shipment for the druglord. As such, the task force combines their skills to pull off an impressive, and illegal, drug run from Mexico.
The fallout from their plan does land Meachum in the border holding for a moment, but it’s nothing that can’t be fixed with expedited release orders and Keyonte’s FBI badge. Yet, this entire debacle brings unnecessary attention from the local DA Valwell, who is eager to learn more about Blythe’s top-secret operation. On the other hand, Oliveras’ successful smuggling mission means she has now directly contributed to putting tons of heroin on the streets. When the Agent struggles to reconcile with that fact, Meachum assures her that he’s ready to go rogue and overlook an order or two, if she has a plan to get the job done through other means. Nonetheless, in the end, she only ends up stowing away one brick, as a metaphorical sacrifice. Naturally, this brick ends up haunting Oliveras’ conscience, tempting her to give up on her sobriety.
Meachum Goes All in on a Risky Plan
Early on, we learn one crucial fact about Meachum. The Agent has a tumor in his brain that can’t be treated or cured, and often manifests as aggravating headaches. Nevertheless, despite his fatal diagnosis, the LAPD officer continues to stay in the field adamantly against the idea of retirement. Furthermore, his colleagues seem to be in the dark about his condition. Consequently, when the team discovers a Belurisian name, Volcheck, linked to the cartel and the radiation fissile material, he’s the first one to pitch a dangerous idea. During his previous undercover work in Palmdale prison, Meachum befriended another convict, Timur, from a Belurisian crime family in the city. Therefore, he wants to return to the prison to extract information from the man.
Nonetheless, the prison’s warden remains insistent against Meachum’s return to his establishment. This compels Blythe to come up with a different, even more chaotic solution. They orchestrate a transfer order for Timur, which coincidentally lands him the same truck as his old friend. From there, a conveniently blown tire allows the duo to carry out an escape. As such, Timur, eager to leave the country as a fugitive, brings his friend to his uncle. Consequently, Meachum is able to ping his colleagues about his location. Yet, shortly after he brushes off the need for a backup team, the officer finds himself in the lap of trouble as his cover is blown. As a result, he finds himself on the wrong end of a few loaded guns.
The Task Force Risks a Tragic Loss
Given the sensitive nature of the task force, their run-ins with drug cartels and crime families, it remains evident that Blythe’s operation sets the Agents up on a dangerous path. Agent Luke, a husband and a father of two, is perhaps most intimately aware of this. Therefore, it’s an ironic twist of fate when the officer ends up in multiple near-death situations on his 40th birthday. Still, he manages to dodge every single bullet fate sends his way. The same happens when Blythe decides to send backup for Meachum.
However, while Luke manages to evade a deadly bullet, the same isn’t true for Damon Drew, the operation’s second-in-command. The Agent had recently suffered a grave tragedy when his nine-year-old son, Noah, passed away. The young boy died due to a fatal drunk-driving incident. The grieving father has been trying to move forward in his life in light of the catastrophic loss. Yet, it seems this shootout has brought him to his demise, potentially robbing him of a future.
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