After she returned to Pandora in late 2022, Zoe Saldaña embarked on a new project: a Paramount+ series called Special Ops: Lioness. Season One ran summer 2023.

Lioness focuses on Joe (Saldaña), a CIA operative who leads an all-female team called Lioness. This three-disc set includes all eight of Season One’s episodes, and the plot synopses come straight from the package’s liner notes.

Sacrificial Soldiers: “Things go awry for Joe and her team during a mission out in the field. Joe is left devastated. Upon her return home, Joe's family life presents its own challenges. Cruz Manuelos (Laysla de Oliveira) tries to escape a dangerous situation. Joe must choose a new recruit.”

If nothing else, Lioness launches with a bang, as the opening scene takes us right into battle. This treats Joe as a finished product, essentially, as we see her in the thick of things.

We get an “origin story” for Cruz, however, as we see how she leaves an abusive situation to join the military and eventually end up on Joe’s radar for Lioness. This tale offers intrigue and gives us a character with whom to bond.

We also find aspect of Joe’s personal/family life that feel less interesting, although I think the show might need them to give the role some broader elements. In any case, “Soldiers” becomes a pretty decent introduction to the series, even if it doesn’t dazzle.

The Beating: “Joe continues her training with Cruz but her methods are questionable. Cruz starts to build a relationship with Aaliyah (Stephanie Nur). Kate (Hannah Love Lanier) gets into a fight during her soccer game. Neal (Dave Annable) has to deliver difficult news to a patient.”

I wouldn’t say “Soldiers” concluded with a cliffhanger, but it did finish with unsettled business in regard to Cruz’s first mission. This means “Beating” picks up with material that follows those events.

These elements take some unusual paths that add character development. We also find more about Joe’s personal life in ways that seem more compelling than expected, so “Beating” moves along the season well.

Bruise Like a Fist: “Cruz is invited to spend the weekend with Aaliyah and her inner-circle. Joe keeps Kaitlyn (Nicole Kidman) informed of Cruz's progress. Kyle (Thad Luckinbill) comes to Joe desperate for help with an asset.”

As a whole, “Fist” mainly offers a plot-thickener, as it focuses on Cruz’s attempts to get deeper into her undercover position. This doesn’t become the most dynamic show, but it accomplishes its goals.

The Choice of Failure: “Cruz is put in a compromising position in the Hamptons, causing Joe and Kaitlyn to doubt her. Kaitlyn and Westfield (Michael Kelly) confront Kyle over what happened at the border, complicating things further for Joe and her team.”

Season One of Lioness hits its halfway point with a bit of a thud. We get a bit too much unnecessary family melodrama along with a main plot that feels a little stagnant. Hopefully the second half of the season will rebound.

Truth Is the Shrewdest Lie: “Joe and Neal deal with the aftermath of Kate's accident. Westfield and Kaitlyn deploy Joe's team to subdue a terrorist threat. Cruz's cover may be in jeopardy”

After a somewhat mushy start, “Shrewdest” picks up as it digs into the season’s terrorist-related main narrative. The show ultimately balances the personal and the professional in a fairly positive manner.

The Lie Is the Truth: “Aaliyah bonds with Cruz over a spa day. Bobby (Jill Wagner), Tex (Jonah Wharton), Two Cups (James Jordan), Randy (Austin Hébert) and Tucker (LaMonica Garrett) confront a threat at the Safe House. Kaitlyn and Joe are scolded for the San Antonio mission in a debrief.”

“Lie” takes the Aaliyah/Cruz relationship to a fairly predictable place, one that threatens the mission in a way we could anticipate. Despite these trite choices, the show pursues the overall narrative in a largely engaging manner.

Wish the Fight Away: “While shopping in Manhattan for the wedding, Aaliyah and Cruz get closer. Kate returns home only to say goodbye to her mom once again. Joe guides Cruz through internal struggle and doubt in completing the mission.”

As S1’s penultimate episode, “Fight” ratchets up the relationships and potential danger. Cruz’s connection to Aaliyah feels a bit “soap opera” but it does add some sizzle to the scenario, so “Fight” pushes us toward the finale fairly well.

Gone Is the Illusion of Order: “Unforeseen circumstances leaves the mission in jeopardy. A suspicious Eshan (Ray Corasani) confronts Cruz before his wedding day. Joe and the team prepare for the worst.”

S1 one finishes with the expected tense action finale. It doesn’t throw a totally unexpected tale at us but it comes with enough twists and drama to finish the year on a positive note.

And I’d call it a pretty good collection of shows. S1 of Lioness doesn’t stand out as remarkable, but it maintains a largely involving thriller across its eight shows.

Special Ops: Lioness appears in an aspect ratio of 2.00:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Across the board, the shows looked good.

Sharpness was fine. A little softness occurred in some wide shots, but those didn’t become a concern. Overall definition seemed solid.

I noticed no jagged edges or moiré effects, and the presentation lacked apparent edge haloes or other artifacts. I also saw no print flaws, as the movie always seemed clean.

In terms of palette, Lioness reflected Hollywood’s modern fascination with orange and teal. As tedious as that has become, the colors looked fine within the design parameters.

In addition, blacks were dark and tight, while low-light shots were decent. Some could be a bit dense, but they weren’t bad. This was a positive presentation.

As for the series’ DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack, it added breadth to the experience. The movie didn’t deliver a consistently rock-em-sock-em soundscape, but it managed to open up well.

A few louder sequences – usually connected to action beats – made more dynamic use of the spectrum, but those didn’t pop up with great frequency. Instead, the emphasis on general environment remained, and that was fine, as I felt the soundfield fit the material.

Audio quality always pleased. Speech remained natural and concise, with no edginess or other flaws.

Music sounded full and dynamic, while effects came across as accurate and clear. All of this suited the series and earned a solid “B+”.

All eight episodes come with Behind the Story featurettes. Combined they run a total of 52 minutes, nine seconds.

Across these, we find notes from actors Zoe Saldaña, Michael Kelly, Laysla de Oliveira, LaMonica Garrett, James Jordan, Jonah Wharton, Dave Annable, Stephanie Nur, Nicole Kidman, Austin Hébert, Jill Wagner and Morgan Freeman.

The featurettes mainly look at character and story elements. They don’t tell us much that seems insightful, as they remain fairly promotional in general.

Disc Three adds three other featurettes. Embedded with Special Ops: Lioness runs 21 minutes, 38 seconds and brings notes from Saldaña, Kidman, Freeman, Kelly, de Oliveira, Nur, Annable, Wagner, Garrett, and creator/writer Taylor Sheridan.

“Embedded” examines the series’ origin and development, cast and performances, sets and locations. These offer little substance and stick with the puffy vibe of the “Story” featurettes.

Battle Forged Calm goes for nine minutes, two seconds. It features info from Wagner, Garrett, Jordan, Wharton, Hébert, military advisor Jared Shaw and armorer Russell Cannon.

This one discusses the actors’ military training. It offers more information than its predecessors but still lacks real depth.

Finally, Inside the Series lasts 19 minutes. Here we get notes from Garrett, Saldaña, Freeman, Kidman, Nur, Annable, Kelly, Hébert, Jordan, Wharton, de Oliveira, and Wagner.

“Inside” delivers a basic series overview. Expect another promo piece.

No one can claim Special Ops: Lioness breaks new ground in the military/thriller genre. Nonetheless, Season One delivers a fairly involving overall narrative that maintains attention from start to finish. The Blu-rays come with very good picture and audio as well as a lackluster set of supplements. I look forward to Season Two.