Atomic (2025) Series: Entertaining Chaos with a Geiger Counter

Two civilians get caught up in a cartel's uranium smuggling across North Africa. Facing a nuclear threat, they must decide whether to save themselves or stop the bomb delivery while evading agencies and traffickers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nshrjk9I3b8

There’s a particular joy in British thrillers that don’t bother explaining themselves too much. They just toss you into the deep end, shout “Swim!” in a charming accent, and then wander off to make tea while the world teeters on collapse. Atomic lives comfortably in that tradition. It’s lean, impatient, occasionally brilliant, occasionally baffling, and fully committed to the idea that normal people making terrible decisions can somehow end up holding the fate of continents in their shaky little hands.

Let’s start with the good stuff, because when Atomic hits, it hits. The episodes are short, quick, and built for modern binge habits - the kind where you say, “One more,” and suddenly it’s tomorrow and you’re questioning your life choices. This thing moves. When it wants to sprint, it sprints like it just heard the TSA found something suspicious in its luggage.

Alfie Allen brings that familiar, twitchy intensity - like a man who knows the universe is against him but hasn’t quite figured out why yet. Shazad Latif balances him nicely, projecting intelligence wrapped in just enough anxiety to make you believe this guy absolutely did not sign up for nuclear brinkmanship. Avital Lvova adds a sharp, controlled presence that keeps scenes grounded even when the plot decides to chug three energy drinks and leap off a moving train.

And the writing - when it’s on - has real snap. Dialogue crackles, scenes arrive late and leave early, and there’s a confidence in the direction that suggests people behind the camera actually know where the story is going… even if they occasionally choose to take the scenic route through Absurdistan.

Now. The other side of the ledger.

Atomic sometimes slows to a crawl like it’s stopping to admire its own reflection in a tinted window. The pacing can wobble - fast, fast, fast, then suddenly you’re wondering if your streaming app froze or if this scene is genuinely meant to breathe this long. And look, I respect a show that wants atmosphere. But there are moments where the tension evaporates because the story simply refuses to convince you that anyone is truly in danger.

This is where the “GI Joe movie” comparison starts to feel uncomfortably accurate.

The plot is over-the-top in a way that asks you not just to suspend disbelief, but to fold it neatly, place it in a drawer, and never speak of it again. Nuclear material, cartels, international agencies, shadowy motives - it’s all here, stacked like a Jenga tower built by caffeine-addicted writers at 3 a.m. And yet, despite the stakes being theoretically apocalyptic, you never quite feel the jeopardy. Not for the characters. Not for the world. Not even for the furniture.

Part of that comes down to characterization. The show tells you these people matter, but it doesn’t always give you enough nuance to care whether they succeed or fail. You’re watching events unfold rather than emotionally investing in outcomes. It’s entertaining, sure - but it’s entertainment at arm’s length.

That said, there’s something weirdly refreshing about a show that knows it’s a distraction and doesn’t pretend otherwise. Atomic isn’t here to change television or redefine the genre. It’s here to give you fast episodes, sharp performances, and a story wild enough to pull you out of your own doomscrolling spiral for a few hours. And honestly? There’s value in that.

Gregory Burke’s original pitch - the two worst people in the world have to save the world - feels like the thesis statement the show sometimes forgets to underline. When it leans into that irony, it works. When it forgets and tries to be a serious geopolitical thriller, it wobbles like a folding chair at a backyard barbecue.

Still, I kept watching. That counts for something.

Atomic is the kind of show you recommend with a caveat. “It’s fun,” you say. “Just don’t think too hard.” It’s stylish, occasionally sharp, intermittently ridiculous, and never boring for long. A flawed binge, but a binge nonetheless.

Final Verdict

Rating: 6.8 / 10

Solid performances, slick direction, and binge-friendly episodes pull Atomic across the finish line - even if the plot occasionally trips over its own ambition and the emotional stakes never quite go nuclear.