The Terminal List: Dark Wolf has no interest in reinventing the wheel or really being particularly innovative beyond its exemplary craftsmanship, and it's easy to get caught up in admiration for a show that takes this much pride in presenting the kind of old-school action entertainment that feels increasingly rare these days.

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf very successfully widens the lens on author Jack Carr’s action universe and sets up an even more promising future, although it does so more thanks to its excellent eye for action and strong support players rather than via lead character Ben Edwards.

If you liked "The Terminal List," you may not like the very different "Dark Wolf." But if you liked better shows like "Jack Ryan" or "Reacher," you'll enjoy this.

We don’t know if Dark Wolf is gonna show us exactly how Ben Edwards became the Dark Wolf, which as a title feels airport novel generic. But we are interested in Taylor Kitsch building on the brood he brought to the Edwards role in Terminal List, or perhaps showing us how he got that way in the first place. And yeah, the guns and jocularity and serious people saying stuff like “Team 1, go!” into ear bud microphones – that’ll be here, too, which is its own draw for shows such as this.

Kitsch is a diverting anti-hero, morphing from fraternity-embracing band of brother to an “every man for himself” everyman. Thanks to him, The Terminal List: Dark Wolf has just enough brain to compensate for its overdose of gun-toting brawn.

Narratively, Dark Wolf lacks the revenge-fueled clarity of purpose that drove The Terminal List, and the plot feels a bit disjointed. .... Kitsch shine[s] as part of an ensemble or in supporting roles — his enigmatic performance as Edwards on The Terminal List gave the season a jolt of intrigue — but it makes him emotionally inaccessible as a lead.

There’s so little to the show besides apparent ideology. Edwards has little backstory besides a fiancée back home he refuses to return to, nor much personality besides his dedication to his comrades. It’s hard for the actors to visibly emote from under so much tactical gear, though Wisdom’s natural gravitas helps elevate the lackluster material.