Butterfly: Is It A Good Spy Drama?

Butterfly (Season 1/USA/2025) Series is an unusual spy drama set. As the show title suggests, this intriguing action-packed drama follows the mission of a deep-cover female agent, Butterfly &/or Rebecca (Reina Hardesty), in South Korea. And when her deep cover is blown and she is set up for a murder, she is on the run.

When everything seems to be lost, she meets her long-lost father, David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), a dad she believed had died twenty years prior. The circumstances compel both father and daughter to join hands and escape from the clutches of powerful enemies. But can they really getaway and stay safe?

Butterfly:- Is It A Good Spy Drama? Well, It Is A Fairly Decent Show, With More Than Enough Twists & Turns To Keep One Interested

Spoiler Free Review of the Butterfly (Season 1/USA/2025) Series

The introduction

Butterfly is a spy-thriller series based on the graphic novel series of the same name, which was written by Arash Amel, a Welsh-Iranian screenwriter and graphic novelist. However, it is worth noting that the series takes a different path than that of the original graphic novel. So, in case one has read the Butterfly novel and also seen the Butterfly series, they would be surprised by the inclusion of South Korea as its main playground for the spies. Moreover, the novel focuses on the story of the active female agent Rebecca. Furthermore, this series puts the spotlight on the personal tales of the former agent David Jung.

The betrayal is dominant theme in this spy tale

In an espionage world, betrayal is the name of the game. Not surprisingly, the instances of treason and double-crossing are far too many to ignore in this series. Can business partners trust each other? A father should believe his daughter, right? And a mother could rely on her son, couldn’t she? Or why would the CIA, a government spy department, place confidence in a private spy agency, Caddis, to carry out espionage jobs? So, what do you think about the expectations and trustworthiness in espionage? Especially when each one of them is an active and trained player in modern Spycraft.

So, one can see the exhibition of disloyalty, even in family relationships, friendship bonds, business ties and professional connections. In this contemporary spy series, it is not really the question, who will betray whom. But, when is the betrayal of trust to be done? So, be prepared to be shocked by its twists and turns.

The leading cast members have done a fairly good job

The protagonist of the show is the father and former agent, David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), who looks good in intense action scenes. And the deuteragonist is the daughter and active agent, Rebecca (Reina Hardesty), who looks equally at ease in the fast-paced fight sequences. Both Daniel and Reina have played their respective characters well. On the other hand, the antagonists are the mother and son duo, Juno (Piper Perabo) and Oliver (Louis Landau). They play the roles of nervous owners of the Caddis, a private spy organisation. Also, the complexities of the relationships are shown honestly. The rest of the ensemble cast is okay.

Dad David Jung Gets Snacks With Assassin Daughter Rebecca (Is she a Butterfly or someone with deadly stings?) | Prime Video ~ YouTube Shorts

The father-daughter duo is chased by the armed team of agents working for the mother-son duo in South Korea. So, we get to travel across four different cities of South Korea: Daegu, Busan, Pohang, and Seoul. We loved the beautiful cinematography of these cities. And surely, Korean culture is becoming mainstream.

The conclusion

However, this show makes us wonder, how a bunch of American spies operate so freely in a foreign nation, South Korea. And if one is willing to overlook that query, then it becomes easier to enjoy this thrilling action drama. Not to forget the shocking murder in the season finale episode. It was a cliffhanger ending.

Who is the killer? And why did they kill? Oh, about the identity of the mysterious killer(s), the possibilities are far too many. Who could be the killer – Rebecca, the Russians, the Americans, or someone else? Now, we have to wait for its second season to get the answers. We enjoyed this kind of layered storytelling.

FM Rating

Poster

Key Details

Trailer & Synopsis | Official

Second chances don’t come twice.

David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), a mysterious former US intelligence operative living in hiding in South Korea, has his life blown to pieces when the consequences of an impossible decision from his past come back to haunt him, and he finds himself hunted by Rebecca (Reina Hardesty), a deadly young assassin, and Caddis, the sinister spy organisation she works for. 

(~ Prime Video~)

Spoilers Alert: Summary of its Six (6) Episodes

4 Episode Titles are the names of 4 different cities in South Korea: Daegu, Busan, Pohang, & Seoul.

Annyeong (안녕) is an informal Korean word that means "hi" or "bye", depending on the context. 

Also, read the review of another spy drama, Citadel Diana (Season 1/Italy/2024) Series in our Focus Magazine.

Poster and the Featured Image of the Butterfly (Season 1/USA/2025) Series are credited to Prime Video.