Netflix’s Legends, created by Neil Forsyth, is based on the true story of the United Kingdom’s customs officers in the 1990s as they tried to dismantle and take down the heroin importers in the UK.
The Netflix original series begins in 1990 when the daughter of a British politician and a teenager overdose on heroin around the same time. The national media picks up the story and runs with it, painting the picture that Margaret Thatcher’s government was incapable of stopping the rising drug crisis in the country.
To remedy the issue, the Home Secretary (Alex Jennings) gathers a group of special operatives to go undercover and, as Ice Cube’s character says in 21 Jump Street, infiltrate the dealers and find the suppliers.
Unfortunately, there’s no money to go around. So, UK customs leaders Blake (Douglas Hodge) and Don (Steve Coogan) have to get creative, pulling everyday people from their boring, underpaid government jobs and into the undercover program.
What starts as a few dozen potential suitors staying together for a three-week training and crash course is whittled down to a ragtag team of four: Kate (Hayley Squires), Bailey (Aml Ameen), Guy (Tom Burke), and Erin (Jasmine Blackborow).
And, while they are a legendary group, they must come up with “legends,” which are personas that they create to make sure their story is airtight when they get tested. Together, they work to find out who is distributing the heroin in Liverpool, London, and beyond.
And, they are tested early and often. Guy is one of the first selected for a trial run. He’s asked to go undercover and buy drugs at a club while also finding out who the dealer is working for. He does his job quick and easy, but when he heads into the bathroom to spit out the pills, he’s shaken down by two cops.
When they try to jerk him around, Guy plays his part well, doesn’t reveal his true identity, and punches one of the cops in the face. He’s arrested and taken to jail where Steve is waiting for him. You see, he made those cops shake him down, and Guy responded perfectly.
He’s ready for the job, but first, the four selected return home before real challenge begins.
After reconnecting with his wife, played by Charlotte Ritchie,and daughter after the three weeks away, Guy gets a call in the middle of the night asking him to meet at Indigo Wharf at 6 a.m. There, they get their mission assignments.
Erin presents the information about the growing heroin problem in the UK and highlights the two biggest importers: Liverpool and London.
Guy has been selected to go to London to infiltrate the Turkish dealers, while Kate and Bailey are sent to Liverpool to take down that operation. And, they start immediately.
In London, Guy uses his instincts to find the dealers and follows them up the chain until he finds the distributors. Blake also connects him with a rather eccentric Greek, who is connected to the Turks, and his name is Mylonas (Gerald Kyd). He accepts a deal to help Guy get in with the Turks in exchange for his freedom from prison.
Guy follows Mylonas around London as he settles old scores and tries to get back in the game. Mylonas has ties to Hakan (Numan Acar), the biggest heroin distributor in the country, but it's not like Guy and Mylonas can just walk into his operation. They need to be patient.
In Liverpool, Kate and Bailey do the same as Guy. They observe some of the lower levers dealers in estate housing, and they start to put together the pieces and figure out who is supplying them.
At the end of the episode, Mylonas tries to introduce Guy to Hakan at his bar, but Hakan doesn't want to meet them. Unfortunately, Hakan orders his guys, including Zeki (Joshua Samuels), to rough up Guy. They break into his flat and question him. They obviously think that he's a cop, but Guy keeps to his legend. He's not going to break this easily, though he does have to do some distracting to stop Zeki from finding his letter from his daughter, which Guy claims he doesn't have.
With the gun pointed at him, Guy moves himself closer and puts his head on the barrel. If they want to kill him, they can go right ahead. Zeki appreciates the show of strength, and they finally leave.
That's a great first episode of the Netflix series! I have a feeling it's going to be even more intense than the end of episode 1 very soon.
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