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Apple TV+ is quickly becoming a must-have streaming service for Taron Egerton fans. The actor’s latest role in Apple’s “Smoke,” he works as an arson investigator with Jurnee Smollett, is a crime drama miniseries created by author and screenwriter Dennis Lehane (for unconsciously, think Lehane is like Stephen of Stephen of Stephen of Stephen of Stem). The show has a jaw-dropping twist in the second episode, inspired by the “Firebug” podcast about serial arsonists in Southern California.
If you try “Smoke” and find yourself not only like it, but wanting more, I think there is another series on Apple's Ribbon starring Egerton, which is also worthy of your attention: “Black Bird,” coincidentally another crime drama by Lehane. The series, released in 2022, features Egerton as Jimmy Keene, a fallen Golden Boy who turned prison criminal, while Paul Walter Hauser takes a memorable turn on alleged serial killer Larry Hall. One thing that makes the show so interesting, at least in my opinion: The series' score on Rotten Tomatoes is close to the score – 98% of critics and viewers, which is almost unheard of on TV (which doesn't guarantee you're a fan, but you still rarely see it).
Why Blackbird like this fist packed on Apple TV+
This crime drama draws inspiration from real events as Keene gives a grim choice: sentence him to a full ten years in a minimum security prison – or Take risks by criminal acts transferred to the highest security prison. His mission is as dangerous as unusual: He is asked to gain the trust of Larry Hall, a suspected serial killer, and let him admit the truth before appealing can bring him back to the streets. What follows is not a direct investigation of the truth, rather than a battle of wills.
Written for Indiewire, the series is “a poem that is more than just a plot-driven TV show. It interrogates masculinity in a way that invites men to commit crime stories, just to make them call for them to take deeper introspection about how we can reach the world.” That is: While “Blackbird” is a nervous thriller, it also operates deeper and raises questions about power—and the spotlight of masks worn when men are forced into extreme situations.
For fans of “Smoke”, “Blackbird” offers the same intensity, but in a claustrophobic narrative setting. It's easily one of the best crime dramas to debut with Apple TV+ so far.