Special Ops (2020)- Review

Special Ops is a story about Himmat Singh’s(K.K. Menon) quest to find a terrorist who was directly involved with the 2001 Indian Parliamentary attack and at the same time trying to prove his existence to the Indian authorities. With the prologue displayed in the initial scenes, the series kicks off, which is set years after the event in question. In that time Himmat’s hair has turned to grey from sombre and he is now heading the government agency he worked for but he has still not been able to find the terrorist nor has he been able to successfully prove his existence. The story continues with Himmat and his team trying to capture the mystery man, all while still trying to prove the existence of whom.

The series follows the now so common sequence of the protagonist reliving his story while retelling it in front of a camera/person. Nonetheless, because of the short amount of information to be shared from the past, the unoriginal storytelling style would not bother the viewer too much. Despite indicating the importance of other characters of Himmat’s team to the ‘operation’ and the story line, it excessively focuses on K.K. Menon’s character. It vaguely and quickly introduces the other characters, with diving deep in the ‘back/origin story’ of only one of the characters Farooq Ali (Karan Tacker) and ignoring the rest for the time being (possibly leaving it to be showcased in the following seasons), which may initially disappoint the viewer.

Acting-wise K.K. Menon’s portrayal of Himmat is a class apart which makes the viewer realise the short comings in acting of other cast members. The story is extremely well written and smoothly portrayed. Background score and sound has a huge scope for improvement, nevertheless it does not hamper the viewers experience. The fighting sequences may have gone a little overboard, the inclusion of which too can be questioned.

All in all the series has its set of shortfalls but they are compensated with an engaging story and good directing & cinematography. While viewing Special Ops one may be reminded of celebrated spy characters and Tv shows of the west from James Bond & Jason Bourne to Homeland & Jack Ryan, all with a fair share of ‘Indianness’ showcased in it.

Acting- 8.5

Casting- 9

Cinematography- 9.5

Dialogue- 8

Directing- 9

Editing & Effects- 7.5

Sound & Music- 6

Story- 9.5

Storytelling- 8.5

Rating- 9

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