# Strike Back (2010)

> A former British special forces soldier is drafted back into covert action by a secret intelligence unit.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/29979

## Facts

- Seasons: 8
- Episodes: 76
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: action, thriller, drama
- Created by: Jed Mercurio, Marigo Kehoe
- Network: Sky One, Cinemax
- Cast: Richard Armitage, Warren Brown, Orla Brady, Daniel MacPherson, Colin Salmon, Alin Sumarwata, Andrew Lincoln, Jodhi May
- TMDB rating: 8.1/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1492179/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: breakneck
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: dense
- Violence: graphic
- Tone: tense, gritty, propulsive, dark, relentless

## What critics say

Viewers broadly rate the series as a positive, high-tension military thriller with strong action set pieces and a committed lead performance.

## Synopsis

Strike Back (2010-2020) is a British action thriller series created by Jed Mercurio and Marigo Kehoe for Sky One and Cinemax. Richard Armitage plays John Porter, a former British Special Forces soldier pulled back into violent service by Section 20, a fictional covert branch of the Secret Intelligence Service. Warren Brown and Daniel MacPherson play his fellow operatives Sergeant Daniel Mac Macallister and Sergeant Samuel Wyatt, while Colin Salmon and Orla Brady appear among the shadowy handlers and officials who send the team into hostile territory. Each season builds a serialized arc of covert missions, betrayals, and shifting conspiracies, with the team trying to stop threats that officials would rather keep hidden. The show spans eight seasons and roughly seventy-six episodes, and its tone is tense, gritty, and relentlessly propulsive, with brutal firefights and morally compromised decisions. Fans of Spooks and Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan will find the same blend of clandestine operations and high-stakes military intrigue, delivered as a dark, serialized espionage saga.

## Shows like Strike Back

- [Traitors (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/73675)
- [Treason (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/119265)
- [Berlin Station (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/58467)
- [Pine Gap (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/70459)
- [Covert Affairs (2010)](https://ember.film/tv/29134)
- [Treadstone (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/71568)
- [The Night Manager (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/55098)
- [The Agency: Central Intelligence (2024)](https://ember.film/tv/139632)
- [The Game (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/55075)
- [The Ipcress File (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/95757)

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