The Sentinels, an eight-part French wartime series from STUDIOCANAL, has been acquired by the BBC and is currently streaming on BBC iPlayer. The show, which stars Louis Peres, differs from many period pieces as it also has a sci-fi twist that has enthralled viewers, reports the Mirror.
Plot and Premise
The programme, described by the BBC as fusing "action and espionage", is adapted from the graphic novels Les Sentinelles by Xavier Dorison and Enrique Breccia. It is about a badly injured soldier who gets injected with a special serum that gives him "extraordinary strength, speed, and resilience". He is then signed up to a special secret unit of augmented soldiers forged for the front lines that has been given the mission of bringing the war to an end.
"A new kind of war and a new breed of soldier, in a reimagined World War I," the logline reads.
Viewer and Critic Reactions
The Sentinels has gone down a storm with viewers, with one saying on IMDb.com that it's "a wild, stylish series" and that it "surprises at every turn". "There are a few twists in the plot and the way things turn," said someone else.
Meanwhile, it scooped a four out of five star review in The Guardian, with the critic noting: "It’s exciting, propulsive and not based on the same old threadbare franchises… this adaptation of a French comic book series is a steampunky tale of a secret experiment to inject wounded First World War fighters with a serum."
"Not really the action-packed show I was expecting; it’s more of a slow-burn mystery … and I’m kind of gripped," said another review. One impressed viewer posted a message on Facebook saying that the series was "refreshingly different" to other TV fare.
One reviewer in The Times of India said that it "combines the emotional weight of a war drama with the intrigue of science fiction while keeping both elements in balance for most of its run".
Cast and Availability
The hit series also stars Thibaut Evrard, Kacey Mottet-Klein, Carl Malapa, Olivia Ross and Ouassini Embarek. The Sentinels is available on BBC iPlayer.
