If there’s any show you should be catching up on this week, it’s this underappreciated thriller with a 98% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The crime thriller is one of the most oversaturated genres, with every streaming service having some form of gangster drama, detective procedural, or espionage thriller. Some of these are among the best shows on TV.
With that abundance in mind, there’s a vast quality difference between the best and worst thrillers around, and many of the best don’t get the viewership they deserve. Apple TV+’s library has some great titles in the genre, such as Dope Thief and Smoke. The best, however, would have to be the British spy thriller Slow Horses.
Slow Horses Is An Underappreciated Emmy-Winning Masterpiece
Having only just begun in 2022, it’s shocking to think Slow Horses is already nearing its fifth season. The series is led by the great Sir Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight) and Jack Lowden (Dunkirk), who play members of an MI5 office for rejects, where those who have failed in missions or training get sent. Of course, the band of misfits finds itself involved in important cases anyway.
The series boasts an enormously talented cast, including Olivia Cooke (House of the Dragon), Jonathan Pryce (Game of Thrones), Hugo Weaving (The Lord of the Rings), and many more, all of whom contribute exceptional work to the critically acclaimed masterpiece. Slow Horses has maintained superb critical and audience reviews throughout each season so far.
The show has been nominated and earned multiple Emmys and has been nominated for Golden Globes. However, as is often the case with underseen shows, the series has rarely earned its due respect at awards shows. Oldman has been giving some of the best performances of his career to the show, but hasn’t gone home with any major trophies.
For a show that features so many outstanding actors, exceptional writing and filmmaking, and a popular genre, it’s shocking that this spy thriller hasn’t had a bigger audience. Apple TV+ shows tend to fly under the radar, but with four seasons under its belt, the fact that Slow Horses hasn’t found broader acclaim is a travesty.
I can’t stress enough that this is not only a great spy thriller, but also one of the most fun TV shows available all around. It’s got the perfect blend of suspenseful espionage drama, political intrigue, character work, and dark British humor. This is a genuine masterpiece; let’s give it some more love.
Slow Horses Season 5 Returns On 9/24
Slow Horses season 5 is on its way soon, and the returning series has already scored a 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. Audiences have four seasons to catch up on, but with only six episodes in each, this can easily be done by the first or second week of the new season. Slow Horses returns on 9/24/25.
- Release Date
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April 1, 2022
- Network
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Apple TV+
- Directors
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Saul Metzstein, James Hawes, Jeremy Lovering
