Netflix has had so many great Netflix Originals since they started, but few get universal acclaim like Narcos. Running for three seasons (plus the spin-off) this was a wild ride that told the story of Pablo Escobar. It is very entertaining stuff and one of the better crime dramas to be released over the last decade or so.
How to Stream or Download Narcos (TV series)
To stream or to download the series from Netflix, get the Netflix app and click on the Download button at the end of the review to visit the official website. If you like series about drug dealing, check out also Breaking Bad.
The Movie Review
We have a fantastic cast that all bring their A+ game. We have Wagner Moura as Pablo Escobar and Boyd Holbrook and Pedro Pascal as DEA Agents Murphy and Pena. It is a show that truly does captivate you and a huge part of that is the incredible performances by the actors.
The first season of the show is one hell of a wild ride. We get to see Escobar go from making a small amount of cocaine in the late 70s to a drug kingpin billionaire by the early 90s. Seeing his rise is great stuff as we see his operation expand, expand again, and then some more too!
Wagner as Escobar (especially at the height of his power) is truly amazing! As his white gold starts filling the streets of the USA, the DEA gets involved and sends two top agents to Columbia to try and bring him down. This DEA task force has to work with the Columbian authorities to try and bring this drug cartel down.
While Pablo Escobar is the drug kingpin, there is a huge drug cartel and Narcos does showcase them and their relationships with Escobar too. We get to see Escobar be charismatic, paranoid, and downright psychotic and it speaks to Wagner’s range as an actor that he is able to pull all this off.
The second season of the show continues on from the first where we have the DEA trying to stop Escobar and the other drug cartel people. There is a truly amazing scene where we get to see just how powerful Escobar is when the authorities have him but are scared to move on him!
Seeing Escobar have to go on the run and how he adapts to this is pretty interesting. It is also a brutal reminder that getting involved with drugs no matter at the street level or as a boss like Escobar never ends well. The third season I feel is good, but not quite up to the first two.
The third season sees the DEA still trying to stop the flood of cocaine that is happening in the USA. However, this time the DEA’s number one target is the Cali Cartel. I think that the third season does have its moment, but without Wagner as Escobar and the team of Murphy and Pena (Pena is still here), it just loses a bit of what made the first two seasons so good.
I have watched all three seasons of Narcos twice and been thoroughly entertained by times. If you love crime dramas and learning about the drug cartels of the 80s, you are going to have a lot of fun with this show. There is also a fourth season that is called, Narcos: Mexico that is also well worth watching. This is set during the 80s and focuses on the rise of one of the elite Mexican drug cartels.
