Next week, Apple TV+ will premiere a new crime drama—Smoke—that reunites the team behind one of its best reviewed shows ever: Black Bird. Reviews for Smoke have arrived, here’s the verdict.
Smoke premieres next Friday, June 27 on Apple TV+
Among Apple’s growing slate of crime thrillers, one of the streamer’s strongest has long been Black Bird.
Now, creator Dennis Lehane has re-teamed with stars Taron Egerton and Greg Kinnear for another Apple TV+ crime thriller—this time inspired by the true events of a California arson investigation.
Smoke’s first two episodes will arrive on Apple TV+ next Friday, June 27, followed by weekly drops thereafter.
Lehane might be best known for his work as the author of novels like Shutter Island, Gone Baby Gone, and Mystic River. But in recent years, he’s made a successful transition into TV work.
How has Smoke turned out? Reviews are largely favorable, but not to the same degree as Black Bird.
Alan Sepinwall at Rolling Stone notes that Smoke really shines after a key reveal in the second episode, becoming “vastly more entertaining and complex the second that it turns all of its cards face-up.”
Some critics were turned off by Smoke featuring a lot of twists, while for others that was a plus.
Here are some other review quotes:
- JoBlo: “strong narrative builds every character into someone you want to root for while questioning whether you should. No one is innocent, and everyone is guilty of something, but that does not prevent you from behind equally engrossed and horrified by what happens in this series.”
- The Wrap: “Smoke has everything fans of Lehane’s books or TV shows have come to expect—mystery, action, violence, foreboding atmosphere—but this series also has dark comedy and bits of fantasy.”
Spoiler-free summary and Smoke trailer
Due to the nature of Smoke involving a lot of spoiler-filled reveals throughout its nine episodes, there’s not a lot that can be shared about the show safely.
But here’s Apple’s brief series summary and the trailer:
Inspired by true events, “Smoke” follows an arson investigator who begrudgingly teams up with a police detective as their race to stop two arsonists ignites a twisted game of secrets and suspicions.
Do you plan to watch Smoke? Let us know in the comments.
Apple TV+ is available for $9.99 per month and features hit TV shows and movies like Ted Lasso, Severance, The Morning Show, Silo, and Shrinking.
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