REVIEW: ‘The Continental: From the World of John Wick’ Episode 1 — “Brothers in Arms”

The most recognizable character from the John Wick franchise after the titular character himself is easily Winston. The confident and self-assured manager of the Continental Hotel was a companion, an ally, and an adversary over the film series four installments. But how did Winston find himself under the table and running his hotel? The Continental Episode 1 begins the journey in delivering those answers.

In the opening moments of the episode we get a glimpse at a childhood Winston Scott and his brother Frankie in a police interrogation room. What exactly has happened is unknown, but the pair of kids are truly terrified as they await the police. Frankie does his best to sure up his younger brother’s strength as he assures him he didn’t do anything wrong, and that whatever happened was all his fault.

Jump ahead roughly 20 years and it is now the 70s. It’s New Year’s Eve at the titular hotel and Frankie (Ben Robson) appears to be a trusted part of the establishment’s staff. Here we are introduced to the hotel’s current manager Cormac (Mel Gibson) who seems to be far fonder of Frankie than Frankie is of him. This lack of mutual respect may play into why, as the clock strikes 12, Frankie pulls off a heist beneath the hotel, stealing something of great value, while also violating the neutrality of the establishment. It is this heist that gets The Continental Episode 1‘s core plot rolling.

As the heist goes down, everything doesn’t quite go to plan and Frankie finds himself needing to fight his way off of the grounds. The ensuing gun/fist fight establishes with pitch-perfect delivery that the stylish, hard-hitting action of the movies has made its way to the streaming series without losing a step. Frankie comes across just as lethal as Wick did, moving from one opponent to the next, weaving between melee and range combat with all the fluidity of his predecessor.

If there is one complaint to levy against this sequence is that it feels too familiar to what the series has done before. It would’ve been nice to see some differentiation in style, as there are roughly three to four decades between this series and Wick’s various rampages through New York. That Frankie doesn’t have something unique to set him apart feels like a miss for the production.

Once Frankie makes good his escape, prize in hand, The Continental Episode 1 jumps across the pond to London, where we find Winston (Colin Woodell) utilizing less violent ways of making money. Having grown into what looks like a successful con artist, the series showcases Winston’s formidable charm in action as he talks a new mark into making a bad choice. This moment serves to both establish Winston as a character, as well as highlight just how different his life has been as opposed to his brother’s.

While he celebrates another job well done, he has a run-in with several armed men who knock him out and take him to New York. Once in the States, he is brought to Cormac, who it seems is failing to find Frankie and the item he stole. We learn there is some substantial history between Cormac and the Scott brothers here, as Winston seems to know Cormac, but is unfamiliar with much of what the man is involved in. Having not seen his brothers in years, however, Winston assures Cormac he cannot help him find his brother, nor does he have any interest in seeing him.

This is where the most significant flaw comes into the episode with Cormac. Cormac comes across as overly aggressive and a bit unhinged here. For a world that is as much about the rules and respecting one’s place in the order of things, Gibson’s portrayal of Cormac makes the character a hard one to see rising to any significant rank as he comes across as far too loose of a cannon. The episode even tries to address this in a scene where he interacts with some of his minions, but it doesn’t manage to assuage these doubts.

Despite his claims to the contrary, once he is out of Cormac’s line of sight, Winston begins searching for his brother. Old haunts are explored and figures from the brothers’ shared past are seen, further fleshing out the Scotts’ corner of the world. When Winston does manage to catch up with his brother, things once again go south as Cormac’s men are hot on their tails. A great action sequence wraps up the episode, as we see Winston’s first step into the violent world under the table, as well as what his motives will be for the coming episodes.

Separate from the core narrative, The Continental Episode 1 also sets up a secondary plot following a New York City detective, known as KD (Mishel Prada), who stumbles across the hotel during an investigation. While her supervisor warns her off of looking into the obscure establishment, KD cannot help following her instincts to learn what she can about what goes on in this secretive place.

Prada’s portrayal of KD makes this side of the episode entertaining to watch, despite the fact that it has no clear connection yet to the core narrative. How the determined detective’s tale will come to mesh with Winston’s however is a mystery to look forward to. It feels like the pair will clash in an interesting way when they finally meet, creating an entertaining dynamic.

The Continental Episode 1 establishes both its action and characters well. With only a couple of hiccups, this introductory episode does everything it needs to while establishing the quality and excitement that fans have come to expect from this world.

The Continental Episode 1 is streaming now on Hulu.