Dawn breaks over the Maine countryside as Duke (Donald Sales) and Reacher (the remarkable Alan Ritchson) drive back to the compound and discuss the infuriating Angel Doll (Manuel Rodriguez-Saenz). In the kitchen, Reacher tries to glean intel from housemaid Annette (Caitlin McNerney) and sharp-tongued English chef Agnes (Helen Taylor), though things are more friendly once he makes it clear to Annette, a frustrated marine biologist, that he speaks fluent French. He also wipes his feet when Agnes commands him too, reminding everyone that Reacher is a woman respecter. On the other hand, things get tough with Beck (Anthony Michael Hall), who’s unsure whether Reacher is someone he can trust. It’s unspeakably unsettling to see an actor who came to the world’s attention as a gawky teenager specialising in playing the lovestruck best friend playing the angered middle-aged head of a major criminal enterprise. That is, of course, entirely the point of this incredible casting choice. And it’s nice to see that even as Reacher works against him, he is prepared to concede that Beck’s love of his kid is genuine.
Though Reacher leaves the compound with Richard (Johnny Berchtold) for a day of errands in town, there’s no respite. A group of young men who bullied Richard in high school decide to do the stupid thing, leading to a physical fight that includes the glorious sight of Alan Ritchson snapping a baseball bat in half. It’s one of the most casually impressive images ever put on film, not least because it leads to Richard buying Reacher a thank-you ice-cream cone. This enables Reacher to top the magnificent image with the baseball bat by giving voice to one of the most magnificent sentences ever uttered: “Any flavour other than chocolate or vanilla is nonsense.”
That sentence, which will cause dads around the world to stand and cheer, is the heart of Reacher. This show is about a man who has devoted his life to his belief that his opinions are the best and only correct ones to have, whether that’s about the best flavour of ice cream or if it’s ever justifiable to violate someone’s human rights (never mind the Constitution) for the greater good. Clearly no one ever told a younger Reacher the metaphor about opinions and assholes, but it’s pretty obvious the man without fear would not have listened.
So when Richard has the balls to ask if Reacher will accept strawberry as an alternative ice cream flavour, it’s impressive both that Richard has the courage to stand up to him, and also that Reacher is willing to concede the point (“only in a pinch”). It’s also charming to see Richard’s choice of birthday gift for his dad’s upcoming fiftieth: a Roy Rogers capgun. For American men of a certain age, nothing is more guaranteed to send them into a Ratatouille-style childhood flashback. It’s also an on-the-nose reminder that the American archetype has always been the cowboy, whether or not anyone has thought too hard about what the Wild West really means.
Neagley delivers on the favour Reacher requested, confirming that the terrible trio of Duke, Paulie (Olivier Richters, who is so large he has to duck to walk through a doorway), and Angel Doll are all scumbag ex-feds with gross criminal histories of sexual violence and/or physically assaulting their senior officers. Reacher’s insistence that the situation is both under control and too hot for Neagley to handle immediately tips her off to the true reason Reacher is there, which is another reminder of the depth of their friendship.
Most of Reacher’s machinations in this episode involve him attempting to clean up the mess he made at the end of Truckin’. This involves sneaking off the compound the only obvious way: stripping down to his underwear and going for a night swim in the Atlantic Ocean to meet up with Duffy (Sonya Cassidy) on a remote road. The sight of Reacher dripping wet and nearly naked, which will cause moms around the world to stand and cheer, is greeted by Duffy with an entirely accurate two-word remark.
It’s clear the show – of which Mr. Ritchson is an executive producer, let’s not forget – wanted to remind all of us that Mr. Ritchson was the first actor to play a live-action Aquaman, back in the later seasons of Smallville. Frankly, most of us can appreciate that if we had a body like Mr. Ritchson’s, we’d want everyone else to see it too. It’s also clear the show, which by design cannot have much of a sense of humour about anything, is doing its best to laugh at itself where it can. Sometimes that involves a reminder that passwords are a better source of protection for a laptop instead of fingerprint recognition. Sometimes it’s being mean to Paulie. And sometimes it’s Mr. Ritchson sporting a tourist t-shirt with a lobster instead of a heart.
Reacher and Richard together make an unexpected double act. Reacher finds himself liking the teenager almost in spite of himself, and Richard finds himself with a strange new friend, one to whom he can speak about the scary things at home for maybe the first time in his life. It’s the amuse-bouche of manly bonding in between the larger feast of dishing out to bad guys all the pain that they deserve. There’s a lot of romance in that fantasy, but an enormous amount of horror, too (for example, I personally would not refer to the torture I endured during a kidnapping as ‘wet work,‘ as Richard does).
Despite that, this episode is one of the rare ones which focuses on the lighter side of all the righteousness these violent, terrifying men have going on. When Beck complains that a group of drug dealers have changed their weapon of choice, demonstrating their lack of loyalty, you can virtually hear audience heads around the world nodding as they add, “Kids today.“ The denouement is all built around Beck’s anger that someone has harmed Richard and how far Reacher is willing to go in service of that anger. If you know anything male fantasies of revenge, you’ll know that’s pretty far indeed. Especially since Theresa is still missing.
Credit needle drop: “Firestarter“ by The Prodigy. A song a younger Reacher could conceivably have thrashed around to at a middle school dance, an incredibly precious image.
Season 3 of Reacher is now streaming on Prime Video.
Learn more about the show, including how to watch, at the official site for the title.
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