Hostage review: Suranne Jones thriller is fine binge-watch material, but quite forgettable

The drama appeases to the growing lack of attention span many TV viewers have these days, dragging us along on an arguably child version of a roller coaster ride that manages to keep you (somewhat) guessing till the very end.

The twists may be ones that many won't see coming, but some will spot plenty of them from a mile off – as I did. Is that down to the sheer volume of dramas I have to watch on the job, or the fact that the series doesn't exactly take any big swings? Either can be true.

Hostage isn't a bad watch, it's entirely pleasant enough. But will it linger with you after watching and prompt any kind of water cooler conversation? I doubt it. It's the kind of show that's perfect for a weekend spent in and suits the timing of landing on Netflix ahead of the Bank Holiday weekend, essentially crying out to be blasted through in a day or so.

The series centres on Prime Minister Abigail Dalton (played by Jones), who we meet as she continues trying to fight the good fight for all in her leading position as the main decision-maker of the country.

While we may follow her through the series, we don't actually really know anything about her. Vignettes into her relationship with her father (James Cosmo) are hurriedly thrown in, making it clear that the path to father-daughter friendship never did run smooth.

Understandably, though, it's not part of the central focus of the show, which is primarily concerned with the kidnapping of her husband Dr Alex Anderson, played by Ashley Thomas.

Again, it's a tender and defining relationship we may not see in its romantic entirety, but is shown to us through flashbacks of them ambling through forests, hosting parties and clearly being the kind of couple that truly love one another. Their devotion to one another plays out through Abigail's impossible decision before her – to choose her husband or her future as prime minister.

But as we come to find out, the literal hostage situation involving Alex isn't the only one that this series deals with. The metaphor of UK government and 10 Downing Street being the place in which Abigail is being held hostage is also a running theme in this, as it is with Julie Delpy's French president Vivienne Toussaint.

When Toussaint arrives in the UK for an anticipated summit, all eyes are on these leaders to see how relations will be secured and restored between the two countries.

While their initial meeting may be a tad measured, the series intertwines their stories and problems as one overarching dark cloud. A scandalous video, a complicated marriage to a media tycoon, flying into the UK to be greeted to a flurry of small protests – if that doesn't scream out for a bit of trauma-bonding, then what does?

Delpy brings her to life with sophisticated ease, urging the viewer to want to know more about her whilst also assessing whether or not she is a friend or foe of Abigail's. By the end, we're supposed to believe that they're a weird hybrid of friend and enemy, but the half-hearted exploration of female friendship here doesn't really ring out as believable.

Again, it's a symptom of never really knowing a lot about Abigail. As much as she's framed as more than a politician (as also being a mother, wife and daughter), we don't have enough time or emotional buy-in to truly understand her as more than the no-nonsense political figure she appears to be.

There are more emotionally wrought moments between Abigail and her daughter Sylvie (Isobel Akuwudike), as well as Abigail and her own close-knit team. The motivation for getting through the series is trying to suss out what wider plot is at play here and why exactly they're targeting Abigail and her family.

Of course, a series like this is as good as the leading star at the helm of it, and after watching Hostage, you'll likely be wondering just why Jones has never had any kind of role as a prime minister before, that's how believable she is.

Labelled as a political thriller, Hostage doesn't really say anything about the state of the world we live in, somewhat lazily throwing in references to riots and the NHS, and never really making it clear which side of the political fence Abigail rests on.

The latter is obviously a creative decision so as not to bias the viewer, but should it be the duty of political dramas to also engage in the very same prevalent topics that are being spoken about throughout the country? That's a whole other issue that this review can't be concerned with, but it should be an important question for those in this screenwriting arena.

Hostage is surely a good time – it's a series that is entertaining, has some fine performances, is slightly surprising in parts and fits the binge-watch model perfectly. It just won't be one that you'll likely remember after watching.

Hostage is coming to Netflix on Thursday 21st August. Sign up for Netflix from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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