REVIEW: ‘Citadel: Diana’ Has Pulled Me Back In

I shrugged when it was announced that Prime Video’s Citadel had been greenlit for spin-offs. A fine enough series, the bloated budget was recognizable in the large action set pieces with often iffy CGI that made even the most human of moments feel artificial. Carried by its leads, it limped across its finish line with too many twists and not enough impact. So, it’s safe to say that I didn’t think I’d want to return to the world of Citadel. But to put it simply, Citadel: Diana changes everything.

More grounded than the first series, Citadel Diana is astonishingly good at both action and spycraft. Not without its science fiction edge, the series pulls on the reigns and brings the audience to a spy story steeped in romance and resiliency. The leads in this series are doing work, but they have a script that meets their talent in a way that resonates with every subsequent episode. The series is directed by Arnaldo Catinari and developed by Alessandro Fabbri, the head writer who wrote the series with Ilaria Bernardini, Gianluca Bernardini, Laura Colella, and Giordana Mari.

An Italian production, Citadel: Diana, will air in both the English subbed and dubbed versions on Prime Video, though if you can, watch it in the original Italian. A spy series before all else, Citadel: Diana thrives on betrayal and small movements that pay off with substantial consequences. Set in the world of Citadel, the titular character is played by Matilda De Angelis. The Italian series also features an international cast that includes Lorenzo Cervasio, Maurizio Lombardi, Julia Piaton, Thekla Reuten, Giordana Faggiano, Daniele Paoloni, Bernhard Schütz, and Filippo Nigro.

Citadel: Diana takes place in 2030s Milan. Eight years ago, the powerful enemy syndicate, Manticore, destroyed the independent global spy agency Citadel (the events of the original series). Since then, Diana Cavalieri, an undercover Citadel agent, has been alone and trapped behind enemy lines as a mole in Manticore. Told in a non-linear fashion, we watch as Diana is pulled into the vicious Manticore center while she attempts to keep her morality and her promise to Citadel.

When she finally sees a way out and the chance to disappear forever, the only way to do so is to trust Edo Zani (Lorenzo Cervasio), the heir of Manticore Italy and son of the head of the Italian organization, Ettore Zani (Maurizio Lombardi). The Zani family aims to create a power vacuum to fill. Vying for leadership against the other European families, there are elements of Citadel: Diana that feel half mafia family negotiations and half spycraft. That balance and focus on lineage and relationships is what makes much of the series’ reveals and twists all the more interesting.

The non-linear storytelling could have easily been a gimmick, but in Citadel: Diana, it’s a strength that helps craft the mystery. As we see pieces of Diana’s life in segments and the Manticore power struggle and rise, keeping track of choices made in the present day holds a lot of weight. That mystery helps push the series further than its predecessor.

Additionally, Diana feels stripped of what came before in Citadel’s action sequences. That’s a good thing. Action as a narrative device can be essential to spy stories. Here, that’s how it’s used. This doesn’t mean that Citadel: Diana isn’t without its own striking locations. Only here, they don’t feel like computer effects, even if they are. Instead, Diana’s world is weighty and, more importantly, like all of the walls, has a history to offer.

Whether it’s landscapes or Manticore offices, the series’ architecture and set design are absolutely gorgeous. Using those elements to frame the hand-to-hand action sequences keeps the series firmly in a realm of believability, even when everything about it points to the science fiction genre.

Better than the original by all accounts, Citadel: Diana has me all in on the concept of different international versions of stories set in the world of Citadel. With its Indian counterpart scheduled to debut next month, everything about this six-episode series bodes well for the future of the budding franchise. Spycraft, action, and a hefty dash of science fiction, Citadel: Diana understands how to blend genre and tell a story with compelling characters.

Citadel: Diana is streaming exclusively on Prime Video on October 10, 2024.