The Veil Episode 1 and 2 Review: The first episode is titled ‘The Camp’, followed by the second episode being called ‘Crossing the Bridge’. The series is being headlined by Elisabeth Moss as Imogen Salter alongside Josh Charles as Max and Dali Benssalah as Malik. The other cast members include Yumna Marwan as Adilah, Haluk Bilginer, Alec Secareanu, Thibault de Montalembert, Kobna, Holdbrook-Smith, James Purefoy, Joana Ribeiro, Phill Langhorne, Dan Wyllie and Aron von Andrian.
The show is by Steven Knight, who we know so well due to his work in Peaky Blinders and Tom Hardy’s Taboo. It is produced by Love & Squalor Pictures, PatMa Productions, Di Novi Pictures and FX Productions. Each episode is 35 to 45 minutes long.
The Veil Trailer
– Hulu’s The Veil Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers –
The Veil Episode 1 and 2 Review
With the announcement of Elisabeth Moss headling a spy-thriller and the drop of a trailer which was intimidating enough not to give away everything, there were seemingly big expectations on The Veil. Especially following the snooze fest surrounding the recent thrillers, including the reboot of Mr and Mrs Smith, that did not do enough to amp up the spy-thriller genre. In fact, the last truly devasting one I can think of in this genre will surely be Zero Dark Thirty, just over the top of my head.
The first episode of The Veil opens up with quite the glam as we see Moss’ character lure some bad guy right into the hands of Interpol as he gets furious at her because of being played. As he calls her a ‘bitch’ and gets dragged away, Moss’ character just has a triumphant smile as she receives a phone call for her next mission where she states she wants to be called ‘Imogen’. This births the storyline we are to follow and, Imogen is the one who will lead us through.
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Imogen lands amidst isolated, snow-capped mountains as her mission lies right in the middle of a UN-sanctioned refugee and military camp: a woman named Adilah El Idrissi, assumed to be one of the high commanders of ISIS. We soon get to know her purpose as an MI6 agent and the plan of action, along with which government is she exactly working with (it might just change in the future, keeping in mind that spies do go rogue).
With the progress of episode two of the series, we get to see Imogen build her relationship with Adilah to lure her into the government trap waiting for her. On the other, Adilah continues to deny that she is anywhere close to being a terrorist mastermind, which is again highly suspected. With Imogen and Adilah both trying to paint their own stories on each other, the interjection in the form of Max soon arrives, giving the show more layers and perspectives to work with.
The Veil Episode 1 and 2: Final Thoughts
The Veil does a commendable job of reinvigorating the spy-thriller genre, trying to leverage Elisabeth Moss’s compelling performance and a well-paced narrative. However, whether it will be enough or not remains. There aren’t many new elements that the series is bringing to the table that can be added to the genre, which generally is worrisome.
As the series unfolds, we will clearly see Imogen’s complex relationship with Adilah deepen, blurring the lines between truth and deception. It can be a great challenge that can possibly ignite more human aspects to the show.
You can watch the first two episodes of The Veil on Hulu. Also, let us know in the comments down below what you think of the new show!