Series synopsis
Narco Wars is a British documentary television series that premiered on National Geographic on December 9, 2020.
Narco Wars explores how opportunistic smuggling networks in Latin America turned into powerful and ruthless drug cartels with the power to destabilize and tear apart whole countries. The series combines gripping access to cartel members and the law enforcement agencies opposing them with a deep dive documentary exploration of the geo-political, social and cultural factors that led the cartels' rise.
Premise
Narco Wars explores how opportunistic smuggling networks in Latin America turned into powerful and ruthless drug cartels with the power to destabilize and tear apart whole countries. The series combines gripping access to cartel members and the law enforcement agencies opposing them with a deep dive documentary exploration of the geo-political, social and cultural factors that led the cartels' rise.
Episodes
This series spans 3 seasons with 22 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 10 | December 9, 2020 | February 17, 2021 |
| Season 2 | 6 | May 26, 2021 | June 30, 2021 |
| Season 3 | 6 | August 3, 2022 | September 7, 2022 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
How Cocaine Came to America Despite $1 trillion spent on enforcement and 2.5 million death toll, more illegal drugs are being produced, trafficked, and consumed than ever before. Featuring interviews and action filmed with key players on both sides of the law, this 10 part series will examine the drug wars - both past and present - to explain why. |
December 9, 2020 |
| 2 |
Mexicos First Cartel How a group of marijuana traffickers created Mexico’s first-ever drug Cartel and committed murder to protect their billion-dollar operations. |
December 16, 2020 |
| 3 |
The Battle for the Border El Chapo Guzman’s rise to cartel leader through his ingenious cocaine-smuggling tunnels and a war with the Tijuana cartel unleashes narco terror. |
December 23, 2020 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
The Mob: The Heroin Don Carmine Galante was the mafia boss who industrialized heroin smuggling into the United States. A brutal psychopath, he let nothing stand in his way… |
May 26, 2021 |
| 2 |
The Mob: The Mafia Meth King The rise and fall of Philadelphia mobster Long John Martorano, who built a meth empire worth $500 million; told for the first time by those closest to him. |
June 2, 2021 |
| 3 |
The Mob: Drugs, Bugs and the Dapper Don In 1980s New York, John Gotti kills the boss of the Gambino Crime Family to protect his drugs empire, breaking the Mafia’s most sacred rules and becoming the infamous ‘Teflon Don'. |
June 9, 2021 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
How Sgt. Smack Hooked Up Harlem In this enhanced episode, an army veteran helps flood Harlem with heroin. |
August 3, 2022 |
| 2 |
Prince of Death Drug lord Khun Sa floods New York, N.Y., with purity heroin until the DEA hatches a plan. |
August 10, 2022 |
| 3 |
The Mob and the Mujahideen The mob connects with the Mujahideen to create an ambitious heroin pipeline. |
August 17, 2022 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | National Geographic |
|---|---|
| First aired | December 9, 2020 |
| Last aired | September 7, 2022 |
| Runtime | 45 minutes |
| Status | continue |