Alan Ritchson’s gift for stillness and subtle facial expressions is put to exceptional use in “Cage Fight.” There is also some audience pandering – screengrabs of which are all over social media already, but it would be churlish to spoil that fun – that makes it clear this season really is a kinder, gentler Reacher. But that’s not all of it: the fact that Reacher has some qualms about discussing s-e-x in front of a lady is deeply amusing. (The woman respecter, respecting again!) The fact the dumbass frat bro won’t talk about s-e-x in front of Detective Tamara* Green (Sydelle Noel) is funnier still – not to mention Reacher’s precious all-timer of a reaction. The frat bro with the Wawa logo shirt that says ‘jawn’ instead shows respect for Philadelphia, too. Docherty (Kevin Corrigan) has very little to do, except call Reacher ‘hobocop,’ but he does it with panache.
The pace of “Cage Fight” never lets up. It begins with Reacher strapped to a gurney. The gurney is inside a metal cage, next to cages containing Tamara and Detective Jacob Merrick (Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette), who have not been strapped down. (When Reacher wonders aloud about the unfairness of this, Jacob retorts “Yeah. Have you seen yourself?”) The cages are inside a basement, where they have been known who knows how long since they were all separately kidnapped. As the episode title implies, they’re going to have to fight their way out.
This is slightly easier than expected because the lead interrogator, named in the credits as Foster (Dean Armstrong), seems to take Reacher’s size and strength as a personal insult instead of a threat. Reacher’s ability to do a backwards somersault from a sitting position while shackled doesn’t hurt either. Not to mention he has an unexpected talent for unexpected uses of a wheeljack. (There have been comparisons before to Bond and to Holmes, but now we gotta throw MacGyver into the mix, too.) There is also the unanticipated help offered by Russell Plum (Kevin Weisman, who should have gotten better billing), a former investigative reporter now blogger who has been stalking black sites in DC (not Philadelphia!) and happened to notice them being dragged in. He is thrilled to have concrete proof of government malfeasance, and throws his home – a squat in a warehouse loft – open to the motley crew.
It’s clear that whatever Jacob’s sister and Lila (Agnez Mo) were involved in is much more serious than they initially thought. Reacher is good and mad about this aftermath, but so is Tamara, and so is Jacob. The jump drive is still missing, so we have a gang all put together! Of course they immediately split up – it’s been a while since there’s been a fight in Reacher which did not involve Mr Ritchson – so Reacher can go sauntering into Congressional offices and fancy hotels hoping for a little face time with Congressman Sampson (Marc Blucas). This involves first meeting his wife Elspeth** (Kathleen Richardson), the kind of Chanel-suited ice blonde that makes it clear how much of a fun thrill ride it is to be connected to American politics. But Sampson’s firm handshake and no-BS manner impresses Reacher quite a bit. Something is not adding up. Maybe more than one something: Jacob’s nephew Ben is still missing. Most of all, Jacob reacts to the most violent moment in the episode by throwing up, to which both Green and Reacher react with understanding and kindness. There’s no shame in not being able to handle the worst parts of human nature, but they are also both surprised by Jacob’s lion-hearted insistence on justice for his sister; Mr. Rodriguez-Marquette is truly the season’s MVP.
But all those things are by the by. The fact the enemy seems to be a government agency who should not be operating the way they do against American citizens is quite a thing to see in the current moment. To have someone mention, in a tone of resignation, that presidents have been elected after sex scandals is as damning a direct criticism of, well, everything, as mainstream American shows have allowed themselves lately. It is also very fascinating to see all this happening within a property owned by Jeff Bezos (Amazon Prime) that also includes criticism of an organisation also owned by Jeff Bezos (The Washington Post). Yet so many people tell Reacher to walk away that he digs in his heels. Who, in the current American moment, has the capacity to do this? Only the man without fear. So if this is some pandering to how audiences are feeling these days – and based on the explosion of chat about the opening episodes all over social media, the pandering has worked – it’s done more to trap the zeitgeist than almost anything has lately. And all with a sense of sly humour about it, too. It’s incredibly unexpected, but the hooks are into us already, and we’ll definitely keep watching.
*Accent on the second syllable: Ta-MAH-ra.
**Not Elsbeth! The Good Wife universe has made that variant more famous in the USA, but everyone should know a British author would pick the Scottish spelling for sure.
Credit needle drop: “People Are Strange” by The Doors
Reacher Season 4, Episode 2 is now streaming on Prime Video.
Learn more about the show at the IMDB site for the title.
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