WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Dope Thief Episodes 1 & 2.
The first two episodes of Apple TV+'s Dope Thief are some of the best television I've seen so far in 2025. The pilot episode, "Jolly Ranchers", is directed by Ridley Scott and contains visual and tonal elements that resemble classic crime dramas such as American Gangster and Training Day. Like those films, Dope Thief celebrates an unexpectedly winning lead duo in Wagner Moura's Manny Carvalho and Brian Tyree Henry's Ray Driscoll, two best friends who impersonate DEA agents to rob small-town drug cookers.
The onscreen chemistry between Moura and Henry is primarily what makes the first two episodes of Emmy-winning series Atlanta, each bring their signature brand of charisma and humor to make Dope Thief compelling on various fronts.
Moura's Manny & Henry's Ray Are Reason Enough To Check Out Dope Thief
The Winning Duo Bring Humor & Adventure To A Heartless & Lethal Setting
From the opening scene of Dope Thief season 1, we are immersed in a life-or-death confrontation that slowly reveals the amateurish air of the protagonists, Manny and Ray. After posing as DEA agents, Ray wastes no time mocking and belittling a young adult drug dealer while Manny encounters an unseen threat that ends in a punchline. Scenes like these that blend thrills and humor are at the heart of the series, even as the stakes increase for the two best friends, who are just trying to make a living in a rough Philadelphia neighborhood.
By the time we meet them, Manny and Ray have hit just about every small-time drug dealer in Philadelphia, leaving them hungry for expansion. They enlist a shaky ex-convict named Rick who Ray knew from prison, which is just one aspect of Ray's backstory that is revealed through brief monochrome flashbacks. Ray's unofficial adoptive mother Theresa, a no-nonsense but loving woman, took Ray under her wing once his father, played by the scene-stealing Ving Rhames, faced a lengthy prison sentence.
Even though Manny and Ray have known each other most of their lives, their loyalty and trust can't override their desperation, leading them to a massive but messy score that is too big for their own good.
What is most apparent in the first two episodes of Dope Thief is Manny and Ray's crime-ridden environment that both try to succeed in rather than get away from. That is, until they try to enlist a third leg for their operation – the sketchy Rick, whose word is thinner than paper – which is when the season's main action starts to pick up. Even though Manny and Ray have known each other most of their lives, their loyalty and trust can't override their desperation, leading them to a massive but messy score that is too big for their own good.
Dope Thief Episodes 1 & 2 Offer An Entertaining Blend Of Drama, Thrills & Laughs
Dope Thief Has Set A High Bar For Itself For The Rest Of Its First Season
The first two episodes of Dope Thief provide artistic stylization and narrative layering that adds levels of sophistication to an otherwise straightforward narrative. Ray's sobriety, dysfunctional upbringing, and endless mourning for a dearly departed friend make him tragically complex and human, let alone his questionable sexual orientation. All this leads Ray to emerge as more of the protagonist over Manny throughout Dope Thief's opening episodes, whose main concern is to provide for his wife.
Like Josh Brolin's Llewelyn Moss in No Country for Old Men, Manny and Ray truly don't know what they're up against – so they take the money and run.
On the other side of the equation are actual DEA agents such as Mina, who Rick shot and nearly killed. There is also a mysterious Boston-based kingpin who quickly closes in on Ray and Manny after they steal millions in cash and liquid meth. After Rick's fatal screw-up, Manny and Rick's collective amateur status really starts to make itself obvious, but again, desperation prevails as they run like bats out of hell. Like Josh Brolin's Llewelyn Moss in No Country for Old Men, Manny and Ray truly don't know what they're up against – so they take the money and run.
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Reacher season 3 delivers another classic round of sharp twists, witty humor, palpable suspense & thrilling action with bigger threats & darker tones.
After a near-perfect first episode, the plot unfolds quite rapidly in episode 2, "Bat Out of Hell", which makes for some choppy exposition and chaotic editing on par with The Bear. Still, the heartbeat of the show remains true, fitting in everything from stunning visuals, thoughtful backstory, witty banter, and violent shootouts. Series creator Peter Craig, known for writing The Town and The Batman, nails the gritty street setting, which is the most fascinating aspect of Dope Thief next to its two lead actors. Hopefully, the series can keep up the momentum throughout its eight episodes.
New episodes of Dope Thief are released every Friday exclusively on Apple TV+.
Dope Thief follows two lifelong friends from Philadelphia who impersonate DEA agents to commit a robbery, inadvertently stumbling upon a major narcotics corridor. The seemingly simple heist escalates into a critical situation, threatening their lives and unravelling their friendship against the backdrop of the East Coast drug trade.
- Network
- Apple TV+
- Cast
- Brian Tyree Henry, Wagner Moura, Ving Rhames, Dustin Nguyen, Idris Debrand, Liz Caribel Sierra, Will Pullen, Kiều Chinh
- Creator(s)
- Peter Craig
- Moura & Henry are an unexpectedly great leading pair
- Henry's Ray is complex, flawed, and hilarious
- Peter Craig nails the ruthless street setting
- Dope Thief delivers high-quality thrills and laughs
- The series takes some forgivable logical & narrative leaps
