The Jack Reacher books are an enduring book series in modern literature. Since the late 90s, author Lee Child has kept fans captivated with his stoic soldier wandering the world and bashing bad guys. It recently spawned two movies starring Tom Cruise, but these flicks took many liberties which left fans sorely disappointed.
Thankfully, Amazon has produced a TV show correcting the movies' mistakes. Reacher is far more faithful to Child's works, striving to portray the character in all his Herculean glory. Viewers are generally much happier as a result. Not only is it an entertaining series in itself, but it boasts an incredible attention to detail. Through its eight episodes, Reacher showcases quirks and subjects which readers never thought they'd see on film. On the surface, these may seem insignificant, but they add up to a greater whole and prove essential in an authentic Jack Reacher experience.
8 Reacher's Size
Among the most defining elements of Reacher is his size. He's six and a half feet tall and built like a tank, easily making him the most intimidating person in the room. Audiences have to believe he can kill three people without breaking a sweat.
In the film adaptation, Tom Cruise didn't fulfill that requirement. Not only is he on the short side, but he's never been all that physically threatening. Fans were dissatisfied, thinking his presence in the films was based mainly on star power. Alan Ritchson, on the other hand, is much more in line with the books' description. He towers over everyone else, and he comes with enough bulk to snap his enemies like twigs. Suffice it to say, nobody would want to get on his bad side.
7 His Speech
The writing in Lee Child's books is short, precise, and to the point. He often uses fragments in addition to full sentences, and many of these are strategic observations about the environment. It's similar to the approach that Ian Fleming takes in the James Bond books, which is appropriate. After all, soldiers or other men of action would opt for a no-nonsense mentality, casing every joint to find out where they stand or what they can use.
Reacher talks like that in the show. He quickly rattles off information he either already knows or gains about the subject through preliminary investigation. It's a convenient way to keep viewers in the loop. More importantly, it allows the spirit of the book to shine through the script, as if the author himself is speaking through his character.
6 Boxing & Hand-To-Hand Fights
At one point in the show, Reacher encounters a boxer in a bar. They inevitably come to blows, but calling it a fight would be too generous. That mainly comes down to what Reacher says beforehand: he dislikes boxing due to its artificiality. The padded gloves and rules rob the brawl of any stakes or realism. Sure enough, he hits the boxer below the belt and takes him down in two seconds.
Readers learn of Reacher's perspective on this sport through his thoughts. As he processes his surroundings, he mentally dismisses a guy who wants to talk about boxing, reflecting on his disdain for the sport. However, this doesn't happen in Killing Floor, the novel that this season is based on. Instead, it's an excerpt from Bad Luck and Trouble. It's not the only thing the creators took from other entries.
5 Neagley's Role
Later in the season, Reacher seeks help from an old army buddy, Frances Neagley. Now working as a PI, she tracks down valuable information and helps bust up the baddies' operation in the end. Neagley is Reacher's peer in many ways, nearly as formidable as he is in both firefights and melee combat. She's also not supposed to be here.
The character isn't in Killing Floor. She does appear in several other entries — Without Fail, Bad Luck and Trouble, The Affair, and Night School — fulfilling a similar function there as she does in the show. She and Reacher have a platonic relationship, which the show thankfully maintains. This doubtless gratifies fans who were afraid of a clichéd romance rearing its ugly head.
4 Clothing As Needed
The nomadic Reacher gets by on the bare minimum. He doesn't have many possessions, meaning he mostly sports simple clothing items. If he needs new ones, he doesn't splurge; he buys cheap ones from a thrift store.
What's surprising is that he doesn't keep these new duds. Rather than wash them, he tosses them. He demonstrates this policy in the show, much to the delight of fans and confusion of other characters. It's a bizarre ritual, somehow frugal and wasteful at the same time.
3 No Cell Phone
Also cementing Reacher's low-maintenance lifestyle is his lack of modern tech. Because of that, he doesn't have a cell phone. It's one of the many things Finlay is appalled by when this caveman rolls into town.
Thankfully, Roscoe gets him a phone. When unraveling a mystery, it obviously helps relay information quickly. In fact, the device becomes instrumental when Reacher seeks answers outside Margrave. In characteristic fashion, though, he breaks it later on. Fans wonder whether each season will see him get a new phone.
2 Joe's Death
A big reason why Reacher gets involved in the events of Margrave is his brother, Joe. He was looking into the conspiracy in Margrave and met an untimely death because of it. This might throw some readers off, since Joe is alive in several of the books.
The subject of this season, Killing Floor, may have been published first, but it's not the earliest chronological tale. Child wrote a few stories set during Reacher's younger years. In The Enemy, for example, Joe is obviously alive and well. Incidentally, the show uses scenes from that book, such as their mother succumbing to illness, for a few flashbacks. It gives a clear picture of the protagonist for the debut season while leaving enough unexplored for the future.
1 Lee Child Cameo
Unlike some acclaimed authors, Lee Child is around to see the success of his work. He wrote all 26 Jack Reacher novels and continues crafting the series to this day. The show pays tribute to this scribe in its final scene, in which Reacher goes to the diner where he was arrested in the first episode. Child briefly appears as a customer who exits just as the hero walks in.
The author also makes cameos in the movies. However, this was probably more of a symbolic gesture than a stamp of approval, especially since he later denounced those films as unfaithful to the source. He was more involved in building this series, so his presence at the end may feel more meaningful for fans.