Earlier this month, Peacock concluded the three-episode 'John Wick' spin-off about young Winston Scott, played by Ian McShane in the films. We tell you how valuable 'The Continental' turned out to be for the universe of professional hitmen.

This year, John Wick's story ended (or did it?) in the fourth film (review ), but the franchise is not being abandoned. A 2024 release is being prepared for 'Ballerina' with Ana de Armas , where Keanu Reeves will return to the role of Baba Yaga (the timeline allows), and now a miniseries about the acquaintance and youth of characters played by Ian McShane and the late Lance Reddick has reached small screens. It's a shame, of course, that 'The Continental' doesn't offer presidential suites, but you can't call it a hostel either.

Evgeny Belousov

Baba Yaga Retires. Again: Review of the Film 'John Wick 4' (2023)

The fourth installment of the 'John Wick' franchise has officially been released in Russian theaters. The story of a hitman who initially took revenge on thugs for killing his puppy and stealing his car continues to expand

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What's the Plot?

The network of 'Continental' hotels has existed for a very long time, so there have been many managers. This story revolves around the New York haven for hitmen in the 1970s. A certain Frankie Scott (Ben Robson) decides to steal a very valuable item from the hotel's vault: a coin minting machine used by mercenaries to pay for drinks, accommodation, and other services. 

Manager Cormac O'Connor (Mel Gibson), who once took Frankie and his younger brother under his wing, is enraged by this news. He sends his thugs to Europe to kidnap Winston Scott (Colin Woodell), who lives there, hoping the guy will lead Cormac to his relative and help avoid the wrath of the High Table. But Winston tells the manager to get lost and decides to personally help Frankie out of the mess. 

Continental Royal Resort & SPA 3*

Initially, 'The Continental' was planned for release on Starz, with the first episode to be directed by Chad Stahelski himself, but eventually the project was sold to Peacock, and the franchise creators (Stahelski and Kolstad) took on producer roles. Directing duties were assigned to Albert Hughes (episodes 1 and 3) and Charlotte Brändström (episode 2), but their work here is, so to speak, purely formal. Any distinctive style from the directors is barely noticeable in the miniseries.

The story of Winston Scott consists of three episodes, each lasting 1.5 hours (the last one even a bit longer). Such a runtime is usually typical of British, not American, shows. Sitting through that much time for one episode is quite doable, but was it really necessary to release 'The Continental' in this format? In this situation, the creators must realize that they need to hook the viewer with the story so they don't want to turn off the project midway. In 'Sherlock,' time flew by because the detective took on a new case each time, the presentation was interesting, and the action was captivating. But Winston Scott, alas, is as far from Sherlock Holmes as London is from New York on the map. 

Over more than 4.5 hours, we are told just one story that lasts as long as three full-length films, and the plot is far from original and very conventional. The main character sets out for revenge (all in the tradition of Mr. Wick), good fights evil (although people who so diligently kill their own kind are hard to call good), and all motivations are extremely transparent.

At the same time, viewers are burdened with a bunch of secondary storylines and just as many new characters. The first 'John Wick' told a similarly simple story in 1 hour 41 minutes, but presented it beautifully and never let boredom set in. The fourth, at 2 hours 49 minutes, managed to tire a bit but was packed with inventive action to the brim, making it a pleasure to watch the over-the-top ultraviolence. 'The Continental' spent the first episode just on exposition. 

In this world of professional hitmen, characters are used to fighting and shooting rather than talking. But here, it's all so spread out over the runtime that even the action sometimes fails to hold interest. The central story could have been told in 1.5-2 hours, but the viewer is forced to follow some vague side plots about the rivalry between Asian and African-American street gangs and watch new characters who ultimately aren't even fully developed. 

And even if the show delved into the lore of the universe (which everyone expected from the miniseries), it doesn't do that either. We still don't know exactly how everything works, what the High Table is and how great its influence is, how the hotel network came about, and how professional hitmen formed their hierarchy.

There are still a whole bunch of similar questions about the franchise, and the creators are in no hurry to answer them. Instead, they decide to show us that there is some important coin minting machine (which is essentially a MacGuffin), and that the police actually exist in this cinematic universe—unlike in the fourth part, where, despite such a massive bloodbath, there were no cops at all. It turns out they are simply aware of the activities of the hotel's guests and management and turn a blind eye. Well, color me surprised, not. 

Incidentally, if you remove the hotel's name and the names Winston and Charon (Ayomide Adegun) from the script, the miniseries instantly loses all connection to the franchise. Of course, an outside viewer could easily watch it as a standalone project, but then why the tie-in to 'John Wick' in the original title? 

That said, 'The Continental' cannot be called an outright bad project. It's a decent action film with all the components (even a muscle car), which will appeal to genre fans without high demands on the show. The writers simply filled the gaps between fairly tolerable action scenes with a shaky plot. Watching attempts to raise topical issues like feminism and racism is extremely funny, because in the 'John Wick' universe it looks very silly and out of place. However, the creators did a good job on the fight choreography for a TV level, and the project also has a very cool atmosphere of troubled 1970s New York after Vietnam and an incredible soundtrack. From this point, you can't fault the series. 

However, comparisons with the main franchise films are simply inevitable, and 'The Continental,' alas, does not hold up. And Colin Woodell, unlike Keanu Reeves, is not capable of carrying the project on his own. The only one worth highlighting from the cast is Mel Gibson, who plays a rather caricatured but still charismatic antagonist. The rest of the ensemble is somehow forgettable. It's not that anyone does a bad job with their role, but there are no particularly bright characters. Except perhaps the twins Hansel (Mark Musashi) and Gretel (Marina Mazepa), who didn't say a single word throughout the series, stand out a bit from the general background; otherwise, the series is packed with ordinary secondary characters and extras whose names are unlikely to be remembered after watching.

What's the Verdict?

'The Continental' was a highly anticipated premiere this year, but it rather disappointed fans than pleased them. Viewers wanted to check into a five-star hotel with all-inclusive, but in the end, it became clear at the reception that it's a maximum 3-3.5 star, where, God willing, only breakfast is included. Well, now all hopes are on the female version with Ana de Armas. 'Ballerina' will either expand the universe and reignite interest in the franchise, or drive such spin-offs into the grave where Mr. Wick found his peace.