Citadel (1×05) Time Renders Us Enemies Review

For our review of the last episode of Citadel, click here.

Seemingly obsessed with with the past, picking off the edges off way too many flashbacks to build its narrative, it fails to distract from its lack of story that has little interest in moving forward. Beating viewers over the head with spy tropes and cliches to get by, Citadel, at this point, is beyond dull as it shows no sign of a direction, which is made worse now at the penultimate episode of the season. Throwing plenty of twists and turns at viewers, they are essentially meaningless as they are grounded in virtually nothing. Therefore, it’s hard to care about the story and characters. Whatever else the series has to offer, the fact that no one is trying anymore gives little reason for viewers to try either. That being said, the actors can only do so much with the mediocre material they are given. The only thing missing from the series is stronger material and anything remotely resembling direction.

Picking up the story from Morocco (with yet another upside down camera shot for some reason), it immediately abandons it for another flashback of Mason and Nadia in Athens following the failed Amsterdam mission. Mason proposed to Nadia who did not take him seriously. Fracturing that relationship even further was Nadia discovering that Celeste was backstopped without her knowledge. What was meant to be a tense confrontation simply devolved into silliness as a result of the mediocre material and the lack of chemistry between Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Meanwhile in the present, Bernard came back from obscurity to see his escape plan fail as Anders Silje paid the price. Dahlia’s ultimate motivation, unsurprisingly, was thinly-veiled revenge. Keeping him alive, she merely wanted nuclear launch codes. However, she needed Mason to complete her plan, giving her access to a nuclear submarine.

Finally escaping the Moroccan facility, Mason and Carter confronted Nadia about where she stood. Nadia’s behavior suggested she may be a double agent but in reality, her secret was that she had a child whom she was hiding to keep her safe, entrusting her to her father who was also a known terrorist. Of course Mason was the father. He didn’t know that at the time but she was going to tell him before Citadel was destroyed. It didn’t take long for Dahlia to figure it out too and kidnap Mason and Nadia’s daughter to use her as a bargaining chip in a trade for Mason and his vital fingerprint. Lesley Manville, in spite of limited screen time, is the best part of the series as Dahlia but is given so little to do.

So this is what it’s all been leading to. It’s a shame that the season waited until now to get going. The story up until now has been an absolute mess, featuring little to no coherent buildup whatsoever. Keeping things on the convoluted side in a way that feels like the writers were making up as they went along, there are no real stakes as it has largely failed at developing its story and characters in an impactful way. At least there’s just one more episode left.

still courtesy of Prime Video

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.