Critic Reviews

It’s rare for a story with such a brutal and violent edge to have such a heartfelt message at the core. The Netflix show is truly something special. Ultimately, this deeper level makes Netflix’s Man on Fire a must-watch.

If you’ve seen political action thrillers of any stripe, you’ve seen at least a few of “Man on Fire’s” plot beats before. The key is that Killen, his writers, and his cast all enjoy the process so thoroughly that no amount of foreknowledge short of reading Wikipedia can fully spoil the experience of watching Creasy stay a step ahead of the bad guys while walking in lockstep with his demons.

It occasionally feels like there are too many side characters for the show to successfully juggle, especially when their subplots borrow time away from the most interesting parts of the narrative, but none of them ever overstay their welcome. What Man on Fire does ultimately succeed as a showcase for, amidst the narrative's twists and turns, is Abdul-Mateen II's undeniable magnetism as both a leading man and an action star.

Netflix’s Man on Fire doesn’t do much to freshen up the revenge thriller genre, but Yahya Abdul-Mateen II’s John Creasy anchors the season with enough emotional weight and physical badassery to offset the show’s formulaic nature.

“Man on Fire,” created by Kyle Killen, is straightforward action entertainment, a traditional payback drama with generally clear-cut good guys and bad guys, once you sort them out.

“Man on Fire” might not venture into unknown narrative territory, but Mr. Abdul-Mateen puts an unapologetically anti-heroic spin on a movie cliché—the purveyor of justice—and makes him new. To some degree, the variations are what keep us intrigued. But there’s depth to the performances, too. And heat.

Abdul-Mateen’s Creasy can get wooden at times and, thus, won’t clear Denzel Washington’s high bar with those familiar with the 2004 IP. But there’s no denying he’s put in the work to earn respect in his own right, especially with newcomers.

The show is different enough from what came before — and well-made enough — to justify its existence. Only by a little bit, but that's all it needs, because its ambitions are relatively modest.

The series relies heavily on Creasy being an indomitable force of revenge, but because we never really feel the weight of what he lost early on in the season, or get a sense of an attempt to struggle against his basest instincts, his actions wind up feeling like overkill rather than justice.

It’s not a non-stop cavalcade of action: it regularly relents for extended, talky scenes concerning Creasy’s instability or Poe’s grief. Sometimes the combination is powerful. .... Man on Fire’s glowering intensity is, however, hard to take seriously.