The bad news is that they'll need to wait at least a few more months, as filming for Hijack Season 2 is currently underway in the UK.

The good news is that star Idris Elba will be joined by a top-tier supporting cast when the show eventually makes its way back to our screens.

Deadline reported today that three very talented stars are currently on set in London.

First off is Toby Jones, a British actor, who might he might be best known for his work in American period pieces, such as Frost/Nixon, My Week With Marilyn, and Infamous (in which he memorably portrayed Truman Capote).

While he's gained a reputation as an esteemed "actor's actor," Jones is no stranger to the world of action and green screens.

Related: Hijack Series Premiere Review: A Plane Hijacking Like No Other

He voiced the house elf Dobby in the Harry Potter films, and he appeared in Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

Details of Jones' role on Hijack are being kept under wraps — as is just about every aspect of the plot for Season 2.

Jones will be joined by German actress Christiane Paul, who's best known stateside for her role on FBI: International, which ran on CBS from 2022 to 2023.

It'll be a very Teutonic season, as Paul will star alongside her fellow German Lisa Vicari, who's best known for her work on the Netflix science fiction thriller Dark.

Again, everything about the roles these stars will play is just one big question mark at the moment.

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As the title indicates, the first season of Hijack centered around a plane hijacking and its aftermath.

It's possible that the show will continue along those same lines.

But the writers might also pursue more of an anthology format by placing Elba at the center of an entirely unrelated crime.

Whatever the case, showrunners George Kay and Jim Field Smith are surely hoping to recreate the success of Hijack Season 1, which turned out to be an unexpected smash for AppleTV+.

What do you think, TV fanatics?

Are you excited to revisit the wild world of negotiator Sam Nelson?

Are you hoping the show veers in a different direction in its sophomore season?

Hit the comments section below to share your thoughts.

The post Toby Jones, Lisa Vicari, Christiane Paul Join Idris Elba For Hijack Season 2 appeared first on TV Fanatic.

When he woke up in the morning, Kai didn't know his dad's plane would be hijacked, he would be held hostage, and the man he hates who's dating his mother would save his life.

When she woke up and was late to take her kid to school, Alice didn't know the plane she'd been assigned would be hijacked, and she would help it land.

When they woke up and boarded the flight, the passengers on the plane didn't think they faced mortal danger multiple times in less than a day.

On Hijack Season 1 Episode 7, it became clear that the hijacking of Kingdom Flight 29 was never about getting some crime bosses out of prison.

There are two major reasons why people commit heinous crimes. It usually comes down to love and money. And the hijacking of the plane was all about money.

It didn't come as a surprise that would be the reason because, honestly speaking, that was tame compared to what people have done to tip the odds in their favor and make a staggering amount of money in the process.

Person 1: It’s always gonna be more to this. It had to be? If you wanna break two men out of prison, whoever they may be, you don’t need to hijack an airline. You just kidnap the governor or a guard. Now, this here is known as a bear raid. Bear is in the animal. Yeah, there was a major short trade made at the moment. So. They hijacked the plane, then leak it to the media. Not a major outlet, of that we’ve put under blackout, but some trigger-happy financial journal who goes straight onto Twitter, and before you know it, shares in Kingdom Airline are falling faster than the plane itself.

Person 2: But if the share price is dropping, don’t you lose money?

Person 1: Not if you bet the other way.

Home Secretary: Exactly.

_{🔗 permalink: But if the share price is dropping, don’t you lose money?}

CEOs have been kidnapped and murdered, while countries and corporations have sponsored war in other regions because they stood to make a lot of money.

Countries have invaded their neighbors to steal valuable natural resources, causing decades-long conflicts in some regions. Other countries have looted and pillaged under the guise of trying to end war and terror.

Hijacking a plane was just one stop in people's journey to enrich themselves.

But sometimes, they become too greedy for their own good. Edgar would never respond to Amanda's texts, partly because he was dead and didn't want to.

He knew crashing the plane would send Kingdom Airline's stocks into low numbers as they'd never been seen.

And his greed cost him his life. Good riddance; nothing worth losing a night's sleep over.

But in the plane, things came to a head.

Everyone had lost control. An unknown woman had locked herself in the cockpit and steered the plane towards London.

When she first showed herself on Hijack Season 1 Episode 6, I thought she was there to ensure her friends didn't fail, but she was working alone.

Shooting the pilot was bad, but like we said before, people do horrible things for two reasons. And she was fuelled by love. She thought whatever happened, at least her daughter would be safe.

But what about the daughters, husbands, wives, sons, and parents of the other passengers on the plane?

Giving their phones back and calling their families rejuvenated their will to fight for their lives so that they could see the people they love.

They were willing to break into that cockpit, and no one would blame them.

But like always, Sam saw ahead. If she felt threatened, there was no way of telling what Amanda would do with the plane. She was also the only one capable of landing the flight after the pilot died.

He had to negotiate with her using what she valued the most: family.

Family can come in different ways, even when we reject them. Daniel was never Kai's favorite person, but when the moment called for it, Daniel came through.

Who would have thought the exchange they had that morning would save Kai?

Daniel: Kai. Are you OK, Kai? Listen, if you can hear me, there’s some serious stuff going on, but I’m on my way over there. You’re at your dad’s? Yeah, I’m coming over there now, OK.

Kai: No.

Daniel: Kai, your mother wants me to come over there now.

Kai: No, no, please, I’m OK. I’m coming home anyway. I’m gonna get on my bike. One was on this morning. The bike that I was on this morning, I’m gonna ride as fast as I can. I’m coming back home.

Daniel: OK, mate. You ride sensibly. Make sure no one pulls you over, OK?

_{🔗 permalink: OK, mate. You ride sensibly. Make sure no one pulls you over, OK?}

If you don't remember, on Hijack Season 1 Episode 1, Kai rode a stationary bike at home, so telling Daniel he rode his bike to Sam's was a way of telling Daniel there was trouble.

He couldn't have ridden the bike anywhere because it doesn't move. And to show that he'd understood, Daniel referenced his response.

The crisis team had banked on the plane, making it to British airspace and landing safely, and then everything would be okay.

But that choice was taken from them when it was headed for London, and possibly shooting it down became the top choice.

If it had crashed into London, the causalities would be more than if the plane had been shot down.

And sure as the grass is green, fighter jets were ready to shoot it down.

That was not a position or job I found myself in envy of. To be responsible for losing over two hundred lives, even if you were following orders, would be too much for me.

Maybe that's how the pilots in those jets always sound, but there was a sense of relief when he was told to fall back, just like his Romanian counterpart on Hijack Season 1 Episode 4.

The landing of the plane was majestic, given the circumstances. For a moment there, it looked like the plane would explode.

Sam: Just listen to me, Alice. Do me a favour. Listen to me, OK? Amanda, she shot and killed the pilot. Not because she wanted to, but because they’re holding her family, right? They’re holding her daughter. And she needs some assurances. That she’s not gonna go to jail. I need you to tell me that there’s someone there that is listening that can offer some assurances to the pilot right now. Please.

Home Secretary: Listen, Sam. If what you’re saying is true, then Amanda will will face no charges.

Sam: Who’s that? Sorry. Sorry. Who’s that?

Home Secretary: I’m Neil Walsh, Home Secretary. Repeat no charges. You have my word for that. This is a resigning matter.

_{🔗 permalink: I’m Neil Walsh, Home Secretary. Repeat no charges. You have my word for that. This is a…}

Amanda agreed to land it after being promised freedom, even after killing a man in cold blood. That was something I was torn by because, on the one hand, there were extenuating circumstances, yet on the other hand, a man was dead by her hand.

Whatever happened, I hope she at least felt guilty about it, but it's highly doubtful, given her military background.

The office tension during the landing was so thick it nearly emanated from the screen.

Everyone was safe, but Sam returned to the plane to get back something he'd forgotten, and I swear if I had gone through all that, it wouldn't matter if I left baby Jesus himself; I would not return to that plane.

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It would even take me a while before I boarded another plane.

A showdown ensued between Sam and Stuart, and just like it had happened throughout Hijack Season 1, Sam bested Stuart.

The season didn't end with a cliffhanger which is a nice touch for a limited series.

Coworker: While all that was happening, the school rang, Bobby’s not well.

Simon: I thought Bobby was off school.

Coworker: Go. I will cover.

Alice: Thank you. OK, Simon, I’ll be 15 minutes, 20 minutes tops.

_{🔗 permalink: Thank you. OK, Simon, I’ll be 15 minutes, 20 minutes tops.}

It's unclear what a second season would look like or even if it would be good, but I would gladly watch it because this has been a nice ride. Well, for us, but certainly not for the passengers on K29.

Would you watch a second season? Let us know in the comments section.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 7 Review: Brace Brace Brace appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Stuart, or any other kidnapper, has no idea who the woman is.

Sam convinces Stuart to give him the loaded gun to prevent the angry passenger from killing him.

Stuart complies as the passengers overpower the kidnappers and tie them. Sam bands the passengers together to tackle a new problem.

Flight control prepares for K29 to enter their airspace.

Sam tries to know who the woman in the cockpit is. He calls her, but she destroys the phone.

The crisis team learns what the hijack was about. It was about tanking the airline's stock for profit.

Marsha tells Daniel about a phone call she received to confirm Sam's address. He heads there.

The woman in the cockpit is a mom.

Flight control learns that the plane is headed straight for the center of London.

The crisis team has to decide whether to shoot the plane down or not.

Police show up at Sam's, and they find the cleaners. One of the cleaner finesses his way out of the situation, as the other finds Kai.

Flight attendants find everyone's phones. Sam calls Alice and updates her on the situation.

British fighter jets sandwich the plane.

The Home and Foreign Secretaries continue debating what to do.

The jets lock on the plane.

The Foreign Secretary tells the Prime Minister they can't shoot down the plane full of British citizens.

The jets fall back.

Somewhere, Edgar follows the Kingdom Airline stocks decline.

Daniel calls Kai, and the cleaners pull a gun on Kai. He tells Daniel that everything is okay. He sends a secret message to Daniel that everything is not okay.

The passengers get their phones, and everyone tries to find the person whose phone they have.

Another passenger surrenders and identifies himself as a trader who made the trade for Edgar.

Edgar's people are nervous and want to run, but Edgar wants the hold on a little longer to make more money. They kill him and make the trade.

The woman on the plane tries to contact Edgar without success. She panics as the flight approaches the city.

Passengers call their loved ones.

Daniel orchestrates a plan to save Kai. Zhara is suspicious of Sam.

The passengers learn that the woman's name is Amanda. The rest of the passengers grow impatient and want to break into the cockpit.

Amanda calls Sam, who knows they have her daughter Elodie and they will kill her.

He convinces her to open the cockpit to him alone. She opens and agrees to land the plane.

Daniel fakes a fire emergency and saves Kai from the cleaners.

Alice guides the plane where to land, but after that, Amanda is promised she won't be prosecuted.

The plane crash-lands. Everyone survives.

The passengers alight and are frisked. The kidnappers are arrested but the police mistake the trader for Stuart.

Sam remembers he left something on the plane and goes back for it, but Stuart locks the door and decides to kill Sam before the police find and kill him.

The police breach the plane after hearing gunshots and arrest Stuart after Sam disarms Stuart.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 7 Recap: Brace Brace Brace appeared first on TV Fanatic.

That seemed to be wishful thinking on Hijack Season 1 Episode 6 when it became clear inside flight K29 that people would die, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Not the passengers and certainly not the kidnappers.

On the ground, the crisis team ran out of options and had to release Edgar, but they tried to delay his journey for as long as possible until the plane landed, and they had the situation out of control.

Mutiny was a long time coming inside the flight because everything had gone south for the kidnappers from the moment they entered that plane.

They had threatened, shoved, pushed, and killed, and all that had not gone unnoticed by the passengers.

Team Member: The expediate thing to do here is to comply, but comply slowly.

_{🔗 permalink: The expediate thing to do here is to comply, but comply slowly.}

Most of them, however, would have complied until the plane landed if that would save them. But then it became clear that the kidnappers would be killing people, and the chances of anyone being chosen randomly were equal.

It was why everyone agreed to Sam's plan even when we had started to get bored of his antics in Hijack Season 1 Episode 5.

One thing you've got to give Sam is that he was a quick thinker, even under the circumstances. The carton idea was genius.

Seeing the passengers stand up for themselves was possibly the most satisfying thing in the show.

Everyone has a threshold of what they can tolerate, and being a candidate for murder is pretty much the highest one can go.

These kidnappers were stupid, and their blood would be on their heads, whatever fate they met.

If all they wanted was to get a man released from prison, there are other easier ways to go about that, which don't involve confining oneself in a space full of unpredictable people you can't control for long.

They could have abducted a dignitary or stolen damning government documents, but they had to take a plane.

If there was a tier list of idiotic things kidnappers can do, this must be high up on that list.

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There were people from all walks of life on that plane, and among them was someone convicted of murder. There's no way a person like that would sit around waiting to get killed. If anything, they must have been waiting for the uprising.

The organized crime syndicate seemed to stretch very far but had some significant weaknesses. The leaders of the group were the weaknesses.

For example, Stuart, the hijackers' leader. He was afraid of making even the most essential decision someone in his position could make. All he did was yell mumbo jumbo, hoping to scare someone into doing something.

I'm not supporting his actions, but Sam should have been the most straightforward choice if he wanted to kill someone. But like a fool, he was played.

Then there was Edgar. He was a pig.

He walked around with overconfidence that was bound to cost him something. No one that confident fails to make a mistake.

Edgar: I made it quite clear to your colleagues in prison, I said ‘anyone stops us, anyone follows us, and people start dying’. That was our agreement. You just broke that agreement, Daniel.

_{🔗 permalink: anyone stop us, anyone follow us and people start dying. That was our agreement. You just…}

Time was running out fast in London, and a choice was put forward. They could take the plane by force, consequences be damned, or let a criminal walk away scott-free.

Letting Edgar walk away would have been the right decision, but the consequences for whoever made it would be dire later. Taking the down plane had the potential to birth horrible results. It was a case of being caught between a rock and a hard place.

The pressure was mounting with every passing minute as the plane approached Heathrow without a pilot and with kidnappers on board.

A passenger was also murdered, showing that the kidnappers had no boundaries. There wasn't a line they wouldn't cross.

For a while, the focus had been pulled from the people on the plane to Edgar and his counterpart, something that Alice noticed.

Alice: Let’s focus on the two people in the car and not on more than 200 in the sodding plane.

_{🔗 permalink: Let’s focus on the two people in the car not more than 200 in the…}

Alice is my favorite character in the show. It was clear as early as in Hijack Season 1 Episode 3 that she is the voice of reason and common sense when everyone else's fails them.

In Sam's apartment, cleaners had arrived, and Kai did a great job of hiding because those blue jumpsuits spelled trouble.

I'm still unsure why he thought going to his dad's place was a good idea, knowing very well that his dad might be in a kidnapped plane. For an eighteen-year-old, that was a dumb decision to make.

Elsewhere, news about the hijacked plane was leaked to a reporter who was resistant to publish but was blackmailed to do it.

It seemed like the leaker wanted the story out there, and one would think keeping it a secret would be prioritized to prevent mass hysteria.

While that was maybe done to pressure the government into taking action, there seemed to be something deeper going on.

Zahra: That’s not Yansson. That’s a negative ID on the target.

_{🔗 permalink: That’s not Yansson. That’s a negative ID on the target.}

The fact that Edgar never made it to that airstrip was another tell. Why wouldn't he make a run for it when he had the opportunity? Why give up a chance he might never get again?

Like most Hijack Season 1 episodes, "Comply Slowly" ended on a high note when someone thought to be a passenger, got up, assembled a gun, and entered the cockpit.

The plane's pilot had been debating entering there, but I'm unsure if it was the editing or if he delayed too long.

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Who was this woman? Was she also part of the team, or was she the fallback in case the original plan didn't work?

It was an exciting cliffhanger that teased an excellent season finale. "Comply Slowly" was a better episode than its predecessor because it balanced the ground and the plane such that Sam's antics didn't seem as annoying.

We would love to hear your thoughts about the episode, so don't hesitate to share them in the comments section.

Are you ready for the season finale?

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 6 Review: Comply Slowly appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The UK government releases Edgar from prison, where he takes his car and warns them not to follow him or make an attempt to obstruct him.

The Home Secretary says the goal is to comply with the kidnappers' demands but do it slowly until the plane lands.

Daniel and his partner follow Edgar from a safe distance as Edgar heads for an airstrip nearby.

Edgar stops and comes out of the car. He brings Daniel a phone and calls him. Edgar says he warned them against following him. He decides to send them a message.

Stuart receives a message. Edgar wants him to kill a passenger and send proof. They pick a flight attendant.

Sam intervenes and tells Stuart he doesn't have to kill anyone because someone is dead. They take her picture and send it to Edgar, who sends it to Daniel, and finally, it lands on the crisis team.

In Sam's apartment, the cleaners try to get into his computer while Kai tries to find his phone.

The hijacking story is leaked to a reporter. They are blackmailed to publish it.

Realizing they will start to get murdered, the passengers, led by Sam, begin to plan a coordinated revolt against the kidnappers.

They pass around a milk carton telling everyone to "get ready to shake things up."

The crisis team learns the identity of the woman who was killed was Gina, an Australian speech therapist.

The Foreign and Home Secretary differ on how to approach the issue.

Edgar runs into a traffic accident and thinks the police are trying to block the road. The police didn't.

Edgar finds a shortcut and uses it to get to the airstrip.

Kai calls the police from a landline when he can't reach his phone.

The hijacking news air.

The passengers prepare to take the kidnappers on.

One of the kidnappers finds the message being passed around, and they all panic.

The kidnappers want to kill someone, so Sam admits to the plan.

The Home Secretary wants to shoot down the plane, but the Foreign Secretary wants them to give in to the kidnappers' demands.

The police get ready to take Edgar in at the airstrip, but they realize he is not the one boarding the plane. They missed a switch when they lost sight of the vehicle, and Edgar was in another car.

The passengers revolt, and a fight ensues between them and the kidnappers.

The pilot wants to take control of the plane and land it safely, but a woman rises from her seat with a gun and shoots the pilot in the end, killing him instantly.

She enters and locks the cockpit.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 6 Recap: Comply Slowly appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Passengers on KA29 had hoped dangled before them, so close within reach that they could taste it on Hijack Season 1 Episode 5. And just like it had appeared out of nowhere, it disappeared into thin air, no pun intended.

Hijack had tried to keep the intentions behind this hijacking a secret as long as possible, and while that question was always at the back of our minds, it didn't affect the story.

Demands arrived at the British government's table, and in them, the team learned who was behind the hijacking and what they wanted.

In our Hijack series premiere review, we had speculated a little about who the hijackers could have been because of how diverse they were, but none of our ideas panned out.

And that was because we thought they had a noble cause they were working towards. But as Hijack Season 1 progressed, the nobility started fading as they threatened and murdered.

The episode finally revealed why they hijacked the plane, and it felt underwhelming that these were just workers sent to blackmail the British government into letting some very bad people out of jail.

Home Secretary: I’ve been given this. It’s quite short, so I’ll read it fast. You can tell me if it tallies with anything that you have. Fully attention of the Home Secretary and members of the UK Government. On the 7th of January 2023, Edgar Yanson and John Bailey Brown were wrongfully imprisoned. As a direct result of this, flight KA29 has been hijacked. This is your opportunity to right that wrong. You have the time it takes for the plane to reach London to release these men from prison. Failure to do so, or comply with any subsequent instructions will result in the death of all 216 people on board.

_{🔗 permalink: I’ve been given this. It’s quite short, so I’ll read it fast. You can tell me if it tallies…}

As the plane cut through the air, approaching London with every passing minute, matters had come to a head inside the plane.

Ryan's health deteriorated fast.

A familial revelation put the leader in a tough spot as he was placed in a tough spot of having to stick to the mission or save his brother.

He made the decision everyone would have made for family.

Family and the lengths people would go to protect theirs was a prominent theme in this episode. It started with Sam and his family's troubles on Hijack Season 1 Episode 1.

Now, two hijackers were putting everything on the line to save a brother.

We revisited Dubai, where the complete picture of what transpired prior to Final Call was revealed.

It answered some questions about how the hijackers were able to get on the plane despite there being tight security at the airport.

The young woman was trying to save her husband.

No one likes nosy neighbors because they tend to get involved in everything that is none of their business, but sometimes nosy neighbors are good for you.

Neighbors learn everything they can about you and your routine simply by observing, which was why her's knew something was off.

Sam had been making moves on Hijack Season 1, and the latest saw him try to get the plane landed in Hungary.

Sam: I’ve been thinking. Maybe we can end this.

_{🔗 permalink: I’ve been thinking. Maybe we can end this.}

Now, isn't Sam just a corporate negotiator? That's the only thing we know about him, and it felt like he was working for MI6.

It's true that some people perform better than others under pressure, but Sam seemed reckless.

He had zero experience dealing with situations this fragile, yet he acted like he'd been doing it for his entire life.

He became annoying not only to the hijackers but also to the viewers because one can only get away with so much. He didn't face any consequences even when what he did should have earned him a bullet.

Elsewhere, suits were gambling people's lives on a roundtable.

Home Secretary: There is a long history in this country and it’s fairly well known that we do not negotiate with terrorists.

Foreign Secretary: Can we not just walk in here and start calling them that, please?

Home Secretary: Whatever we’re calling them.

Foreign Secretary: They’re an organised crime group, and a proficient one.

Home Secretary: The point being, we cannot be seen to be blackmailed. That is the line we always take.

_{🔗 permalink: The point being, we cannot be seen to be blackmailed. That is the line we always take.}

It is always bizarre when a group sits on the highest floor of a building and decides the fates of others without being in their shoes. To be able to make decisions that will affect someone else's life more than your own is a privilege that shouldn't be taken lightly.

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It was why when Hungary learned that a hijacked plane might be landing on their runway, they took measures to ensure everyone was safe.

But did they?

Captain: Whichever door the medics are called to, we breach from the other side.

_{🔗 permalink: Whichever door the medics are called to, we breach from the other side.}

An elite response team would know better than to breach a plane where they knew nothing about who the hijackers were and how many there were.

They could have done more harm than good if they'd gone through with their plan, and even if the plane returning to cruising altitude was shattering to most people in there, it might have been for the better.

The ruthlessness found in organized crime cannot be overstated. No one is safe from the consequences that arise when anyone behaves funny.

Between the hijackers, there was an air of anxiety that they operated with, and initially, I judged that as dedication since it came off as passion.

Learning about who they worked for helped understand why everyone was willing to cross their apparent leader if he didn't stick to the plan.

There were consequences for every action anyone on that plane were to take.

Passengers and hijackers could easily lose their lives; even if they didn't, someone would be waiting for them outside the world.

Ryan’s Mother: These people are serious. They live in this street. Their family, their relatives. They live in the houses all along here. Edgar and Johnny, they own the whole lot. And they’ll send people to clean this up.

_{🔗 permalink: These people are serious. They live in this street. Their family, their relatives. They live…}

The organization they worked for would wipe everyone in their family line out of existence. Sam saw the real danger and finally played ball. Knowing that he might face severe consequences was thrilling because he was crafted as invincible when he was just a man.

There was a sort of harmony in the plane when some people learned that danger didn't only exist in the plane.

Ryan passed away from injuries sustained on Hijack Season 1 Episode 3, and even if his brother felt the loss, no one else cared that much. The circumstances under which he died were unclear. It could have been the bleeding, an infection, a drug overdose, or someone who pulled the biro out of his chest and had him hold it as he passed.

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Or he might have done it himself. Will his brother go insane and start looking for whoever stabbed Ryan?

Elsewhere, Zahra was tired of playing the game with different rules and decided to give the hijackers a taste of their own medicine.

Kai was caught by the cleaning crew (those jumpsuits were beginning to look scary) in his father's apartment. Why did he go there knowing his father might be on a hijacked plane?

Will UAE respond in kind to having two of its people killed? Should the government give in to the kidnappers' demands?

Hit the comments section with your thoughts.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 5 Review: Less Than an Hour appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Sam sees a flag on a flight attendant and asks around for nationality. It's Hungarian. He thinks they can end the hijack.

The Home Secretary calls the Foreign Secretary and says he was coming in with the list of demands he received.

The letter demands that the British government release some prominent organized crime group heads.

Sam thinks two of the kidnappers are brothers.

He talks to the head kidnapper and tells him he knows the injured guy is his brother. Sam asks him to land the plane and get his brother some medical help before he loses him.

The Home Secretary takes the stance that the British government cannot be seen to be blackmailed.

In Saudi Arabia, neighbors of the murdered airport worker think something is amiss after seeing strangers leave the house. They call the police.

The police search the house and find the family murdered.

Kai arrives at his dad's place.

Other kidnappers are against landing the plane.

Sam tells the co-pilot they need to get a message to the Hungarian authorities in their language so the kidnappers don't catch on.

Daniel pays the injured kidnapper's mother. They first watch the property.

The co-pilot asks for medical assistance and slips in that hijackers are on board.

Hungary is hesitant to take in a kidnapped plane. The plane begins its initial descent to prepare for landing if approved.

Daniel questions the mother. She tells him that the crime syndicate murdered her husband when he strayed, and Daniel's presence meant they'd be coming for her.

Hungary allows the plane to land, but they prepare to take out the kidnappers with the pilot's go-ahead.

One of the kidnappers tells Sam that they must stop the landing. If they land, the people they work for will send people to wipe out all their families, Sam's included.

The mom makes a run for it and walks into oncoming traffic. She is run over and killed.

The injured kidnapper begs the doctor to stop the landing. They consult the head kidnapper, who finds his brother had removed the biro tube and died.

Landing is aborted, and the plane ascends.

Zhara begins her investigation.

The response team receives images from Dubai of the murdered airport worker.

The cleaning crew arrives at Sam's and finds Kai. He hides, and they search for him.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 5 Recap: Less Than an Hour appeared first on TV Fanatic.

A hijacker was injured on Hijack Season 1 Episode 4, allowing Sam to get in touch with the human in the hijacker despite the current circumstances. Elsewhere, the incident team attempted to save two hundred and six … nay, two hundred and fifteen lives aboard Kingdom Flight 126.

It was confirmed in the worst way possible that the kidnappers on board were as bad as their counterparts on board when one passenger sadly lost their life.

So, they had real bullets all along.

While the early revelation that the bullets were fake rested some concerns on how weapons managed to get into the plane, real bullets in the plane raised the same question, which needed to be answered.

Yet there was no time for that because a crisis had occurred in the plane, and one was waiting to happen on the ground and outside the aircraft.

It is unreal how much coordination goes into ensuring that one plane ferries passengers from one corner of the earth to another.

To most people, flying is as easy as paying for a ticket, boarding on time, and reaching your destination.

But the people who work behind the scenes in various countries are the real heroes. They ensure no traffic accidents happen, and the response is swift and immediate in case of a crisis.

They would appreciate being remembered and focused on once in a while. Yet most would not have loved the circumstances under which it was happening currently.

In London, Alice was trying to calm down a distraught Romanian air controller who, for all she knew, they were about to be attacked.

The potential international crisis that could arise from an unresponsive plane became clear on Hijack Season 1 Episode 3, as Flight 126 cut through various airspaces with irregular communication.

That issue was the episode's main focus, but as usual, a bit elevated.

An unresponsive plane is a cause for concern by itself.

But when that plane has all its blinds lowered, there's no telling what it might be carrying and why the blinds were lowered close to Budapest and not anywhere else in that journey.

Alice: Yeah, Betina’s lost it. And she’s got a point, to be fair. They’ve got a non-communicative passenger plane heading straight for their capital city. I mean, if it was the other way around, if that plane was coming to London and it carried on ignoring us, we’d be shooting it down.

_{🔗 permalink: Yeah, Betina’s lost it. And she’s got a point, to be fair. They’ve got a non-communicative…}

The Romanians had something to be afraid of.

To make matters worse, they got a glimpse inside the plane, and there was a weapon. That was enough to take any measures necessary.

While everyone in the crisis team was playing politics, being curt, and showing no genuine concern for the plane, Alice tried to use all the goodwill she had gained with the Romanians while working with flight control, but that goodwill was running out fast.

Zahra and Daniel seemed to be the only people working in that room.

On the plane, they were dealing with a crisis of their own.

To say the passengers were on edge is an understatement. But the hijackers were also on edge because things were not going well when they boarded that plane on Hijack Season 1 Episode 1.

They had an erratic leader who would lose his composure at the smallest sign of trouble.

The scariest thing that could have happened was if a passenger was injured. I did not anticipate a hijacker being injured, and when it happened, I held zero sympathy for him.

And maybe it was a good thing I was not on that flight because I would have responded very differently from how Sam did, and that would not have served anybody.

Would you have cared if the guy died? Good riddance, I would say. One less problem to deal with.

But Sam sympathized with him genuinely and didn't want the guy dead.

He also saw an opportunity and killed two birds with one stone. It is the thing that might have made that successful as a corporate negotiator. He takes the road most people wouldn't take, so he gets a different view. He then uses that view to his advantage.

Sam: Okay… Is it “Mum”? Yeah? 016 32… Yeah? 960 487?

_{🔗 permalink: Okay… Is it “Mum”? Yeah? 016 32… Yeah? 960 487?}

Having someone's life in your hands is huge, and I was happy that most characters didn't take that lightly.

The flight attendant scoured the cabinets to find something strong enough to block the wounds; Sam tried to keep the hijacker alive for as long as possible; David ignored his wife and went to help; the fighter jet pilot delayed the takedown for as long as possible.

Controller: Two minutes. Confirmed for weapons release.

Jet Pilot: Are you sure about this?

Controller: Mars, you will obey the order.

Jet Pilot: Copy that.

_{🔗 permalink: Jet Pilot: Are you sure about this?}

One could almost hear him sigh in relief when the abort order came in, and he couldn't wait to get out of there. He was staring directly at that plane, and the fact that he would be responsible for the death of over two hundred people was a huge weight lifted off his shoulders.

Controller: Abort. Abort. Disengage.

Jet Pilot: Copy that. Weapons cold. Returning to base.

_{🔗 permalink: Copy that. Weapons cold. Returning to base.}

We still didn't know what the kidnappers wanted, but since they didn't communicate directly, they were working for someone else.

And when the MP was given the folder with demands, it was confirmed.

In Hijack Season 1, nothing is straightforward, and I think a bigger thing must happen. My guess would be dirty politics. What's yours?

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One point it feels like the show is still missing is the organization the kidnappers work for. Clearly, they have reach bigger than a single country. They even found Sam's address and visited the location.

Yet, they couldn't have done some basic research to find out all the passengers' occupations on the plane. It would have been much easier than screaming, "Is there a doctor here?"

"Not Responding" was as thrilling as ever and gained significant ground in the story. The episode's plot was very well executed.

We always love hearing your thoughts, so don't hesitate to comment below.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 4 Review: No Response appeared first on TV Fanatic.

Lizzie's mom is still looking for her. Lizzie runs to her past the amnesty period, but one of the kidnappers lets them get back to their seats.

The young woman Lizzie's mom argued with was shot and killed.

Sam is zip tied.

Alice tries to convince a Romanian agency official to give them some time before taking action on the plane approaching Bucharest without anyone responding. One of the kidnappers breaks a radio.

The Foreign Secretary is briefed.

In the plane, the kidnappers' leader tries to calm one of his people.

Daniel arrives at the crisis team and is given a computer by Fahjoor to work on.

One kidnapper has been stabbed and is bleeding out quickly. A flight attendant tries to bandage him. Sam tries to help, but the kidnapper doesn't want to talk to him.

In the crisis center, they learn that the plane is being followed by fighter jets that want to shoot it down.

The kidnappers demand everyone shut their blinds. The jets notice. The kidnappers continue ignoring Romanian communication.

The stabbed hijacker continues to lose blood.

A flight attendant tries to signal the fighter jets, and they see the attacker's gun.

The pilot realizes they're flying close to Bucharest, and if the plane doesn't answer, they will be shot down.

He convinces them to let them talk to the Romanian authorities, but the radio is broken.

The fighter jets are in pursuit. The Foreign Secretary's efforts fail.

The stabbed hijacker continues to fade away with more blood loss, so he decides to talk to his mother in case he dies.

Sam places the call, but before calling the guy's mother, he sends Marsha a voicemail recording their conversation.

She receives the recording and sends it to Daniel. They can identify the kidnappers as British.

A doctor on board helps the stabbed hijacker breathe better as his lungs collapse.

British authorities convince the Romanians that the hijackers do not threaten Romania. The jets withdraw.

Marsha comes home and finds Kai not in.

A British secretary is given a folder with demands.

The post Hijack Season 1 Episode 4 Recap: No Response appeared first on TV Fanatic.

The concept behind Hijack was not new because many movies have been made about hijacked planes, and if we're to go there, it also happened in real life on September 11, 2001.

What was supposed to set this show apart was that events were unfolding in real-time, and as a result, everything depicted on Hijack Season 1 was to take place in ten hours. The time it takes to fly from Dubai to London boarding time included.

Yet, showing events in real time was also not new, having been executed perfectly in the series 24 starring Kiefer Sutherland.

It would appear that they were taking many risks in creating Hijack, but maybe it wasn't that risky for them because they knew how to set the show apart from other existing works.

I was skeptical of it because, based on the trailer, it felt like something we had seen before. But by the end of Hijack Season 1 Episode 1, I was convinced of the opposite.

The opening scenes did a great job of capturing the airport environment, introducing us to everyone from the air controllers who make sure grisly accidents don't happen to the flight attendants who ensure you don't kill yourself or others by accident, and even the pilots who transport you from one point to another safely.

We were also introduced to the main character.

Despite appearing like a man who can take fifty men and not break a sweat, Idris Elba has always had this calming effect through his line delivery and general demeanor, which would serve him well in portraying Sam.

One could tell that he was generally a nice guy by how he interacted with other characters, from the check-in officer to his seatmate.

He had a way with words that made someone feel like the bad guy if they didn't do what he requested. Even when he wanted to tell someone off, he did it in the nicest way possible.

From some of his earliest acts, we were already on his side, which is a good thing when you're crafting the protagonist.

A flight is one of the few places you will find people from all walks of life in an enclosed space without the possibility of getting up and leaving if your immediate neighbor is not the nicest.

Hijack Season 1 saw tensions begin to flare up between other passengers.

A young woman just wanted to travel from one place to another, but a mother whose children were wreaking havoc clashed, becoming instant enemies. It can't be overstated how important it is for a parent to have some level of control over their children.

Young Woman: You don’t get one.

Mom: So… Sorry, love?

Young Woman: The lockers, it’s not like they’re allocated. They all belong to all of us.

Mom: We’re entitled to ’em as much as anybody else is.

Young Woman: No, yeah, I know. I’m just saying…

Mom: And there are four of us. It’s not just us and our fruity water. We’ve got kids.

Young Woman: I hadn’t noticed.

_{🔗 permalink: I hadn’t noticed.}

It is selfish to ruin everyone's mood because you can't get your children to behave.

Things were not going so well with Sam and his neighbor too.

Sam: Enjoy the movie.

Hugo: Movie?

Sam: Or whatever it is you’re gonna do that doesn’t involve speaking to me.

_{🔗 permalink: Or whatever it is you’re gonna do that doesn’t involve speaking to me.}

At the back of our minds, we knew something was about to happen, and if they were to get through it, these passengers needed to support one another. But will their little squabbles stand in the way of safety?

The episode didn't keep us waiting because after some students discovered the bullet, the bad guys accelerated their timeline, and the hijacking happened faster than you can say fast.

Terry: One of our lot left a round in the toilet, and some girl found it. We bring it forward.

Marcus: That’s my call.

Terry: Yeah. That’s why I’m here, to advise you to make the call.

Marcus: The plan was three hours.

Terry: Plan’s gone to shit.

_{🔗 permalink: Plan’s gone to shit.}

The reactions were what you would expect, ranging from misguided bravado to composure and health issues.

The situation was volatile, with many reactions, and anything could go wrong. It made the situation tense.

Under no circumstances should the cockpit be opened when a threat like this happens. In most movies, the bad guys appeal to the humanity of the pilots, but in this case, they manipulate secret love.

The episode revealed a lot, but it didn't feel overwhelming because it was what we would expect.

A lot of mysteries came up naturally, including the big questions. Who were these hijackers, and what did they want? How did they get guns on the plane, and were they going to murder people, or were they bluffing?

On the ground, a lot was also happening. What was the relationship between a random security guard and the hijackers?

Why was the Saudi air controller disappointed that the threat didn't escalate?

In London, we met Sam's ex-wife and son. We also met Daniel, his ex-wife's boyfriend.

Focusing on the people on the ground didn't make sense when all the action was in the plane. But after seeing the texts between Sam and his wife, it was heavily insinuated they both knew what might happen, and he was on that plane intentionally.

By the end of "Final Call," enough intrigue had been created to warrant following this story.

Sam: Let me just tell you where I’m at, okay? Let me tell you where I’m at with this, all right? I don’t care about any of those people. I just wanna get home to my family. So here’s what I’m gonna do. I’m gonna help you.

_{🔗 permalink: Let me just tell you where I’m at, okay? Let me tell you where I’m at with this, all right? I…}

The episode was well done, with a considerably fast pace and suspenseful music used appropriately. Cutting between the inside of the plane, Dubai and London did a disservice to the thrill factor of the show.

Most of what was happening on the ground could have been shown in a few consecutive minutes at the beginning and end of the episode, leaving the rest of the time inside the plane.

Overall, the Hijack pilot episode was a good one that checked all the right boxes but found a way to elevate every point beyond what we would expect from a show like this. The worst it could have been was predictable, and predictable it was not.

Hijack Season 1 Episode 2 was rough for the first three-quarters because it veered away from what was most interesting and focused too much on what was happening on the ground.

But the final quarter paid off well even though we could have used a better use of the time.

Most of what happened on the plane was still something one would expect.

Discord had begun between the passengers as soon as they got on that plane, and being caught in a hijacked plane was not doing the situation any favors.

Passenger 1: So, what did you do then? Come on, you must have done something.

Passenger 2: Don’t talk to her like that.

Passenger 1: Well, think about it. They’ve not put her here for no reason.

_{🔗 permalink: Well, think about it. They’ve not put her here for no reason.}

Sam stepped up in a big way, raising some red flags for the viewer and the passengers.

Passenger 1: You all right, pet? What’s happening?

Passenger 2: What’s happening? There’s a man up there who’s gone over to their side. He’s just betrayed us all to help himself. That’s what’s happening.

_{🔗 permalink: What’s happening? There’s a man up there who’s gone over to their side. He’s just betrayed us…}

One of the few things known about him is that he is a corporate negotiator called upon when huge mergers are about to happen and aids in the negotiations.

Yet this was not a typical negotiation where the worst that could happen was some extremely rich corporations losing a fraction of their wealth.

Sam seemed eerily prepared for this, like someone who knew it might or would happen.

There was a constant shift between various characters in London and Dubai.

In London, Sam's ex-wife's boyfriend followed up on Sam's cryptic message from the airplane. He got in touch with flight control, who said that the problem had been resolved.

It seemed stupid that they would take the other end's word for it and didn't compare and contrast the time difference or the source of the two calls for help.

A few more characters were introduced, which felt like it was bogging down the story.

When you have a job, some things are expected of you. It's called the bare minimum. But some people go beyond the bare minimum.

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In Dubai, a flight controller didn't buy the story that everything was just okay. Once might be a mistake, but twice, especially in something as important as this, there must be a bigger story.

He followed up on some information but ultimately met his death.

We had been wondering just how far these kidnappers were willing to go, and it was confirmed in the worst way possible. They were willing to go all the way.

It also exposed how wide the hijacking team stretched. People from various races, genders, ages, and even languages existed.

This observation brought forward the question in everyone's mind. Who were they, and what did they want? Hijackers are usually a monolith of race or religion with a political message. These kidnappers were the most random people ever. 

It was evident that the show was trying to keep that a mystery for as long as possible, but it was affecting the story.

Oddly, they didn't want the ground to know what was happening on that plane. The earliest thing hijackers do is communicate their demands. They were a random group of people. What cause could they have in common?

We met a new character in London whose life we traced from home.

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The show tried to communicate that Alice is not the best timekeeper, but it went on far too long.

But when she got to her workstation, she did what we wanted to get into the show and do all along. She asked all the right questions.

Alice: I mean, that’s really weird, don’t you think? Somebody on board calls the UK, manages to get a message to us via Counter Terrorism of all people? But the passenger who’s done that, who’s gone to all that trouble, they’ve also got it wrong?

Simon: Maybe they dealt with it.

Alice: Then why didn’t the second caller say that too? If it was all fixed, why didn’t the second caller send any more messages?

Simon: Well, because for some reason the Wi-Fi was down.

Alice: Because for some reason the Wi-Fi was down?

Simon: Okay. Yeah.

Alice: Something smells dodgy.

_{🔗 permalink: Something smells dodgy.}

"3 Degrees" was imperfect in many ways, but we were still interested in seeing where this flight landed.

The magic in the season premiere was significantly less potent, and the show needs to get to the hijackers' demands, or they risk losing us.

Flight Controller 1: It’s a three-degree shift. It’s meant to be at 320 degrees but someone’s changed it to 323.

Alice: So, something has happened to Kingdom 2-9… and someone is calling for help.

_{🔗 permalink: So, something has happened to Kingdom 2-9… and someone is calling for help.}

Too much focus on the backstories of the ground characters is unnecessary in a show where every minute is important, and forty minutes is too short for a streaming show.

Over to you, Fanatics. What did you think of the series premiere?

Are you along for the flight?

What is their cause do you think? Climate change activists? Anti-war activists?

Chime in in the comments section.

The post Hijack Series Premiere Review: A Plane Hijacking Like No Other appeared first on TV Fanatic.