Six Clever Writing Tricks in Netflix's Black Doves

27 Sep 2025 #writing

I binge-watched another TV show again. And to not feel guilty, I’m writing about it.

This time, I watched Black Doves on Netflix, an espionage and action story that takes place in present-day London. The Black Doves, a private intelligence firm, placed an agent close to a top government official to steal secrets and sell them.

After binge-watching the 6 episodes, here are the writing devices I noticed:

#1. It starts with action, blood, and mystery. The first scene shows a triple killing. Enough action to hook anyone.

#2. Every episode complicates the plot more. It felt like watching The Mandalorian, where each alliance pulls Mando away from his goal. The same thing happens in this show.

A simple revenge turns into an entangled plot that involves Britain’s political stability and possibly sparks the next World War.

#3. Almost every episode starts with a time jump to show us the background story of our characters. We see how Helen is recruited and how she turns from an amateur agent into a cold-blooded killer with a double life.

#4. It uses flashbacks to tell us when Helen is lying. The Black Doves have one rule they take seriously: nobody should know about the existence of the organization. But Helen broke this rule and she lies about it all the time. And through flashbacks, we see the truth.

#5. Instead of an omniscient narrator, we get to know about Helen’s past through an interview. She applies to an international company, where her past is questioned during the interview. We get to know her without boring dialog or narration. Clever trick!

#6. They use a line as a connecting element. “If one door closes, a window opens elsewhere,” or something like that. We hear it in almost every episode. It keeps the plot going in spite of every setback.

Other TV show breakdowns? Not Really on Purpose, House M.D., and Six Triple Eight.