Breaking Bad fans might recall the villains that would wreak havoc on fan-favorite Jesse Pinkman’s life in Netflix’s follow-up film El Camino. The pair of bad guys in this acclaimed sequel thought they could just mosey into certain properties dressed as law enforcement officials, play the part and ultimately walk away with whatever riches they could scope out inside. Similarly, the pair of delinquents at the center of a new Apple TV+ series have that crooked, impostor-like career path in mind, setting the stage for a juicy new entry into the crime television genre.
Dope Thief sees Oscar-nominee Brian Tyree Henry (remarkable in Causeway) and Wagner Moura (Civil War) as likable but ultimately poor-intentioned knuckleheads who think they have what it takes to put on the ultimate performance for the sake of some quick cash, even if it means facing deadly weapons and drug-fueled maniacs square in the face. Created by Peter Craig (writer of The Batman), Dope Thief is adapted from the acclaimed 2009 novel of the same name by Dennis Tafoya and transports us to a specifically dreary part of America: the Eastern seaboard.
Thanks to a certain terrible decision or two — to put it mildly — the series becomes a wild ride involving drug rings, conspiracy thrills, broken families and more. It all might seem a bit derivative plot-wise, but Henry and Moura are reliably magnetic, plus a solid supporting cast to keep things lively for the most part.
Can’t Knock the Hustle?
“Cops & Robbers” certainly was fun to play with your childhood friends… during your childhood. But there’s an issue when you and your buddy are now grown-ass men and still dressing up as law enforcement officers — and taking it a step further by actually busting into people’s homes like it’s the real thing. Jay-Z might say, “Can’t knock the hustle,” but playing with fire comes with a price.
We meet Ray (Henry) and Manny (Moura) in the series’ smooth-sailing cold open, offering a glimpse as to why these two street-smart hooligans think they can make a killing in this crooked line of work. Equipped with knock-off “DEA” vests, they undoubtedly look the part as they swoop into Philly’s tucked-away drug dens and collect the loots, escaping with enough dough and goodies to last them until their next dirty job.
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It should come as no surprise that both Ray and Manny themselves struggle with drug use, with Ray actively attending AA-type meetings in his free time — when he’s not seeing to his mom, Theresa (the terrific Kate Mulgrew), who lives in the area by herself. They’re not blood-linked, but she’s been in his life long enough to serve the role. Plus, her husband (Ray’s biological father) is currently locked away in prison. Ray occasionally pays visits to the aging Bart (Ving Rhames, always a treat but underutilized here), but there’s a whole history there. You can probably guess it ain’t exactly positive in nature, given the show’s graying, dreary tones and perpetually cloudy Philadelphia backdrop offered right from the pilot episode’s get-go.
The Dark, Bland World of ‘Dope Thief’
The overall vibe is simply “meh” across Ray’s world, so that means Ray is only paying visits to his dad because he’s in trouble — not to wish Dad a happy birthday or anything remotely along those lines. Ray is in hot water because the next job after the series’ opening drug-den raid doesn’t exactly go to plan. Their small-time grift becomes a life-or-death enterprise as they unwittingly reveal and unravel the biggest hidden narcotics corridor on the Eastern seaboard. A police investigation quickly spawns from said chaos, with the younger and ambitious detective Mark Nader (The Blacklist star Amir Arison) leading the charge.
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Detective Nader links up with one of the survivors from Ray and Manny’s deadly drug-den fiasco: a fiery undercover agent named Mina (The Umbrella Academy guest-star Marin Ireland) who had been building a case while very much looking the part of a strung-out user within the meth house. Hey, she certainly had Ray and Manny fooled when they foolishly infiltrated. Now in the aftermath, she is damaged goods in uniquely traumatic ways we won’t spoil here, but actress Ireland gives a standout supporting turn you won’t want to miss as Mina helps the feds track down the delinquents who unearthed a sprawling drug operation.
Brian Tyree Henry Makes Ray the Sequel to “Paper Boi”
Meanwhile, Dope Thief also thrives, perhaps most, via its deep exploration of Ray’s troubles in particular. No surprise there, of course, with Ray being the role portrayed magnificently by the “Paper Boi” actor himself. Indeed, if Brian Tyree Henry’s Atlanta character were to observe Ray and the great depths of chaos to which he descends, Paper Boi would do his signature scoff and say something like, “Man, I thought I was in some sh*t.”
But Ray’s madness — pun intended, since the new show’s conspiracy vibes strike similarities with Colman Domingo’s Netflix series The Madness, perhaps a superior show — is what sucks us in. Seeing Ray do things like relapse, angrily tear his mom’s house apart, then try and put it back together, keep it real with Manny’s fam about what’s really transpiring — all that will keep us hooked for the next episode.
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Sometimes, however, it feels like a cop-out when Ray quickly bounces back to a sense of normalcy after bouts like a severe drug and alcohol binge, as if the abuse were just a one-off night of partying. The ever-talented storyteller Peter Craig, creator of Dope Thief, knows how to dig deeper with the vast array of acclaimed stories he’s concocted, beyond just scratching the surface. At times, that’s all his new show feels like, sadly enough — but time will tell with audience reactions. Hey, this new Apple TV+ project could become the latest example of the sophomore season soaring beyond its initial installment. It’s happened before, and Season 1 of Dope Thief certainly lays the groundwork.
Dope Thief will begin streaming on Apple TV+ March 14. Watch it then through the link below: