'Reacher' Returns for Season 4 With Its Signature Mystery That Does the Trick

Since its debut in 2022, Reacher has been one of the most reliable titles in the Prime Video catalog. The adaptation of Lee Child's books won over audiences thanks to its bruiser hero and investigation-driven stories — usually involving crimes and U.S. government agencies — that recapture the feel of 1980s and 1990s movies and TV shows. Like Child’s books, the Amazon streaming series fully embraces the idea of fast-paced entertainment, excelling at delivering “the Reacher adventure of the season.” Season four begins in exactly that fashion, reminding viewers that this is just another day in the former soldier’s life.

After leaving a bar and buying a sandwich, Reacher (Alan Ritchson) is calmly riding the subway when he notices a desperate woman with her hands inside her purse. He suspects she’s carrying a bomb, but the woman ends up taking her own life the moment he says he’s a police officer willing to help her. From there, the protagonist discovers he has become entangled in a much larger plot involving a congressman, an old military operation from the 1990s in Indonesia, the CIA, and even a possible paternity issue.

We watched the first three episodes, and the new season delivers exactly what fans expect: Reacher moving from place to place, beating up villains, gathering new clues in every episode, and piecing together the puzzle he’s gotten himself into. Of course, he gets help from new supporting characters, especially Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette (Barry, The Girl Next Door), who plays Jacob, the brother of the subway victim. The structure is reminiscent of a procedural series, checking all the genre’s usual boxes; the difference is that instead of the classic “case of the week,” we get this investigation spread across eight yearly episodes.

After exploring more personal storylines for the protagonist — such as the deaths of his brother and members of his former team — Reacher now moves into a more urban setting. The action shifts to major cities like Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, placing the hero in environments ranging from public libraries and luxury hotels to the Capitol, seat of the U.S. Congress, where he decides to go after his main suspect.

Lighter and more straightforward than what the second and third seasons seemed to aim for, this fourth season starts off at a brisk pace, with strong action scenes and a Jack Reacher who is noticeably more charismatic than in the episodes released in 2025. There’s a hilarious moment when the former soldier tries to figure out what OnlyFans is — a scene in which Ritchson shines with his comic timing, immediately bringing to mind the T-800 learning about human behavior from John Connor in Terminator 2.

Engaging from the start, season 4 of Reacher has everything it needs to maintain the franchise’s track record of success. Does it promise something revolutionary? So far, no. Even so, it keeps swimming confidently in its own lane, mastering with precision what it does best. The remaining question is whether the story will have enough steam to sustain that level through the eighth and final episode.