Black Doves Vs The Diplomat – which Netflix series should you stream first?
These two spy dramas are both thrilling, but which is the pick?
Netflix has managed to drop a couple of really quite superb spy-ish thrillers in the last few years, and both have garnered welcome praise and a raising of the profile of their already-famous female stars.
Black Doves, with Keira Knightley in the lead, has shown that an actor who you wouldn't really have thought was a banker for this sort of role can nonetheless surprise you when given the right material. It's also got a brilliant supporting cast and an enjoyably dark tone.
Then there's The Diplomat – a series that isn't quite as explicitly about spies, but nonetheless involves plenty of subterfuge, politics and outright lies. It's a more political engine, of course, but the similarities between the two are pretty clear (although this time it's Keri Russell in the lead).
So, if you're wondering which of these two series you should pick first, I'm here to give you a little guidance, and to introduce you to each of them in some more detail.
Black Doves
- Seasons: 2
- First streamed: December 2024
If you want a lean and taut spy thriller that puts the emphasis right on spies, rather than on the structures that support them, this is a great place to start. Black Doves stars Keira Knightley as Helen Webb, the wife of the UK's Secretary of State for Defence and also very much a spy.
Her professional life becomes drastically more complicated, though, when the man she's been having an affair with is murdered. She realises that this might hint at her double life being exposed, and has to swing into action to stop that from happening.
Except, the crucial variable here is that she's not an official spy, but instead works for a private organisation as effectively a spy-for-hire. That means her ethics are a little more dubious, and her colleagues a little more liable to be unhinged. In particular, Ben Whishaw as hired gun Sam Young is a real treat, as is Sarah Lancashire as the experienced handler Elizabeth Reed.
Black Doves succeeds because it's profane and fun, and actually feels more than a little like a response to Slow Horses, Apple TV's runaway hit. It has the same sense of a grungy reality to it, and it's no wonder it was swiftly renewed for a second season, which is streaming now.
The Diplomat
- Seasons: 4
- First streamed: April 2023
If you prefer your thrillers to be a little more political, then this is the way to go – or, really, a lot more political. I mean, The Diplomat doesn't exactly hide its light under a bushel; instead, it puts its themes right there in the title of the show.
Keri Russell is that diplomat from the title, Kate Wyler, who starts the series off having just been named the new US ambassador to the UK. She's also married to a career diplomat – Rufus Sewell as Hal Wyler, himself the former US Ambassador to Lebanon and Iraq.
Their marriage is on the rocks in a major way, for a whole heap of reasons, but the political turmoil that greets Kate in the UK is hard to predict. Over the course of a few seasons, we've seen regime change and total scandal break out, and in particular the arrival of Allison Janney as a frosty and at-times terrifying President.
This is a show that keeps itself zipping along really nicely, and the sense of momentum that it sustains is really impressive. It's a little more dialogue-heavy than Black Doves, and would be a great pick if you like political thrillers that have a little more actual edge and threat than something historic like The West Wing, for instance.
So, which should you watch?
So, both of these thrillers have a huge amount going for them, so how do you pick between them?
Well, firstly, let's talk appetite. If you're in the mood for a quick sprint through a good chunk of TV, then you're probably going to want to opt for The Diplomat first. It has twice the number of seasons as Black Doves, and seems to come out on an annual basis.
That's a rarity for Netflix, but it means that the show is just more frequent than some of its rivals, which counts for plenty. By contrast, Black Doves is a little slower, but it's still doing pretty well given it's on two seasons in three years. These are numbers that Stranger Things trailed far behind by its end.
Both shows are nice and mature in their tone, so I wouldn't say there's a huge amount to pick between there, but it's also worth saying that Black Doves is quite a lot more violent. It's right there in the gutter while wetwork happens, whereas the explosions of physical threat in The Diplomat are far more muted in on-screen terms.
That said, both series also have a nice and detailed approach to their main characters' perspectives and interior lives – so either choice gets you a fascinating portrait of a woman under intense pressure.
Here's the best part, and the woolliest: there's no wrong answer. These are both excellent shows that have become minor critical darlings already, so the best choice is probably to watch them both. In terms of what order? I'd probably start with Black Doves' first season, then dip into The Diplomat for a couple, back to Black Doves' second season, and then finish with two more from The Diplomat to bring me right up to the present.
