Reacher Recap: All It’s Cracked Up to Be

by

One thing I hope to avoid in future is a drone perspective of a fast-moving vehicle, similar to the one that starts this episode. It appears overly promotional for a car advertisement, and neither stylishly artistic like Michael Mann’s work nor even entertainingly excessive like Michael Bay’s. Instead, it comes across as cheap. If this is how the upcoming Amazon streaming adaptations of the classic 07 film series will feel, could we perhaps skip them, if possible?

While driving, Duke queries Reacher about their conversation at the warehouse. Reacher, whose hand was still smeared with Angel’s blood, pretended not to know. Angel’s impulsive eagerness led to his death and Reacher’s survival: He chose to keep his suspicions to himself, opting to talk to Beck instead of sharing them with Duke.

At the grand Beck Manor, Reacher has the pleasure of enjoying the Irish cook’s hearty stew and engaging in a bit of French conversation with the French maid. She shares that Beck employs a mechanic as well, which leaves Reacher puzzled. Duke calls for Reacher to confer with Beck once more. Despite his inclination to arm himself for this encounter, the kitchen knives are inconveniently out of reach. In Beck’s office, adorned with firearms and causing confusion among Reacher and his DEA colleagues about the nature of the contraband hidden within Beck’s rugs, Beck informs Reacher that he ran the plates of the pickup truck they observed in the previous episode. It belonged to a gang known to Beck, although none of its members resemble Reacher’s description of Richard’s kidnapper. (We know this was scrawny DEA agent Eliot.) Beck also presses Reacher for more details about the type of weapon the kidnapper used. Reacher remains firm in his account and cautions Beck that their adversaries are escalating, suggesting a preemptive strike before they can regroup and launch another attack.

Via a phone call, Neagley provides Reacher the files he asked for: Paulie was dismissed dishonorably after knocking his captain’s eye completely out, and later removed another inmate’s finger in prison. Angel served eight years for sexual assault, making us less troubled about our enjoyment when Reacher fatally struck him with a head-butt. Duke is a former corrupt cop turned full-time criminal. Yet again, Reacher declines Neagley’s assistance. The fact that Neagley seems to sense Reacher is dealing with Francis Xavier Quinn without Reacher mentioning their old foe’s name only highlights how Reacher should accept help from his old squadmate.

In simple terms, Recher’s plan is to contact Duffy next. He requests her to abandon a vehicle and a change of clothes for him, about a mile away from Beck’s residence at midnight. He intends to go back to Bizarre Bazaar to tidy up the mess he made in the shape of an Angel, which he left behind earlier.

As a movie buff with a soft spot for Lee Child’s character, Jack Reacher, I was taken aback by the scene where his internal clock-driven sleeping pattern was portrayed differently than usual. In the storyline, we see him retiring around 9 p.m., which is in line with his ability to sleep for an exact duration. However, the subsequent morning swim at 4 a.m. had me questioning whether he might have overslept or if there was another explanation for such an early awakening and cold, unpleasant nighttime dip in those chilly waters.

As a movie critic, I find myself compelled to express my thoughts on this scene: When Reacher encounters Duffy, who seems as though she’s just emerged from a 40-day desert trek, her gaze locked on him in a disheveled state, and she whispers something suggestive. At that moment, her phone displays the time as 12:22. In any investigation, details are crucial, and this one is no exception. Despite Reacher’s preference for a car over company, Duffy persists, claiming that if he’s bound for “Bizaaah Bizaaaaah,” she insists on tagging along. It seems Teresa might also be present there.

As they leap over the fence, we notice a T-shirt that Duffy gave to Reacher with “I love Maine” written on it, but instead of a heart, there’s a lobster. Cute. They get rid of Angel’s corpse, not before Duffy uses the deceased’s thumbprint to access his laptop and alter the password, and Reacher grabs Angel’s handgun. However, their investigation of the warehouse yields no results. Once more, Reacher demonstrates his intelligence superiority over Duffy by reminding him that none of the cargo containers they worry Teresa might be held captive in are equipped with oxygen supply. I really hope the scriptwriters for this series let another character besides Reacher learn something.

While cleaning the floor alongside Duffy, Reacher laments, much like Lady Macbeth, the difficulty in removing stubborn stains. “How frequently do you find yourself doing this?” Duffy inquires. Two additional men from Beck’s trucking crew show up. To avoid any potential evidence a fight might leave behind, Reacher and Duffy resort to a different kind of force, eliminating these men using sheer physicality. However, that’s not entirely accurate: Reacher impales one of them with a crowbar! This incident likely means more scrubbing is required. In this case, the correct term is “entails”, not “entrails”.

Upon returning to the Beck compound, Reacher easily found it despite the rough waters and pitch-black darkness. He managed to avoid hypothermia and slipping on rocks, ensuring he didn’t injure himself or his SmartCar-like physique. After what seemed like barely an hour of rest, he reported for duty. Beck was furious because a large shipment was due and two of his drivers were missing. Reacher and Duffy had apparently dealt with them. Beck asked Reacher to take their place, but instead ordered him to escort Richard into town. It was clear that Beck wanted the boy away from whatever was about to happen at the house. As they left the compound, Reacher attempted to hit Pauli with his car. Moved by this action, Richard revealed who his father’s boss was: Julius McCabe, a name we weren’t previously aware of.

Richard recently stopped by an antique toy shop and made a purchase – a Roy Rogers replica cap gun similar to one his father owned in the past. He plans to give it to his father for his 50th birthday, thinking this toy pistol may have sparked the old man’s fascination with firearms. However, neither Reacher nor Duffy have managed to identify what illicit goods Beck is dealing with at present.

In conversation with Duffy through a special device (shoe-phone), Reacher expresses his frustration over the tightly guarded information about Beck’s mission at higher ranks. He’s forced to eliminate Duke and assume his position. To lure the target, he asks Duffy to send an email from Angel’s computer, pretending to have the latest whereabouts of Richard’s captors. In reality, the location provided is a DEA safe house situated near Hartford. Although they are unaware of what Beck intends to bring, Duffy and Villanueva ready themselves to monitor the cargo dock. Their prisoner, Richard’s bodyguard, warns he will contact his political representative. “The only politician you’ll reach out to is Ted Kennedy,” Duffy replies. If Reacher were present, he might remind them that Ted Kennedy was a senator.

At long last, Reacher and Richard’s grand adventure delivers something delightful: an extravagant, unprovoked, thoroughly entertaining physical combat sequence that outshines the chaotic crowd brawl at Bizaah Bizaah. I find it hard to believe that these three college students would harass Richard and ruin the collectible he just purchased for his father, given that it’s evident they are aware that Zachary Beck is wealthy enough to retaliate against anyone who harms his son with a vengeance ten times over.

Let’s simplify this on a more basic, playground level where Reacher operates: I find it hard to believe that these three adults, who appear to be well over college age, would pick a fight with a man as imposing as Reacher! However, since we haven’t seen any scenes of Reacher taking down multiple opponents in the past two episodes, I’ll take whatever action there is. The fantastic bar brawl from the underappreciated 2012 film “Jack Reacher,” written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie before his promotion into the Impossible Mission Force, was plausible: A group of five average individuals might be excused for thinking they could overpower one man of Tom Cruise’s stature. (The back-and-forth banter that preceded the fight in the movie was funnier than what we see here, but McQ does have an Oscar for screenwriting.)

Three average-sized men facing off against a colossal figure akin to Ritchson is a completely different scenario. Yet, each of these seemingly fragile individuals approaches Reacher with the audacity of an ordinary Sam Wilson (Captain America), challenging a titan like the Red Hulk. It’s fascinating to observe how Reacher handles them, though such encounters might stir quite a commotion in a small community. So, they decide to leave the area without delay.

They don’t leave, they hang around for ice cream! Reacher inquires about the flavor of the ice cream Richard has brought him. “Lavender infusion,” the boy replies. The look on Ritchson’s face as he discards the cone is worthy of an Emmy. He assures the boy that his nomadic, bossless, and complications-free lifestyle is everything it’s made out to be, and offers to help Richard achieve a similar state of independence/antisocial behavior… if the lad will trust him.

At last, Richard confides in Reacher, admitting that the lives of the Becks are not their own. Five years ago, McCabe seized control of Zachary Beck’s shipping business, and now he closely monitors both Zachary and Richard. Furthermore, he discloses that it was Paulie, following McCabe’s instructions, who kidnapped him and severed his ear.

Can you repeat that? It seems that the story takes an unexpected turn, like an old sweater being unraveled. If McCabe or Quinn (since Reacher is convinced they’re the same person) was the one who kidnapped Richard five years ago as a means to control Zachary Beck, and if McCabe or Quinn was also the one who placed Paulie and Duke in Beck’s home to monitor him, then how could Beck have permitted Reacher to join their group on his own accord? McCabe or Quinn would certainly recognize Reacher if they ever saw him, and it’s hard to believe that they wouldn’t have known about Richard Beck being targeted for another kidnapping, where he had no involvement. The fact that Reacher’s cover story has remained consistent this long requires us not so much to put aside our doubts as to send them soaring into the cosmos.

Well, shit. I hereby agree to these terms.

In case you’ve read Lee Child’s novel “Persuader,” you’re aware of the fate that befalls character Agent Eliot. I won’t spoil it here, but this current season of “Reacher” is an adaptation of that 22-year-old book, not a word-for-word copy. By casting Daniel David Stewart as Eliot and making him appear as though he couldn’t stand a chance against a Trapper Keeper, the creative team is subtly hinting at a possible tragic end for the inexperienced FBI agent. In one scene where Richard’s bodyguard deliberately harms himself to manipulate his captor, they are setting us up to anticipate a grim outcome for the rookie G-man.

Upon their arrival back at the Beck compound, Zachary shares with Reacher an email he received from someone called “Angel.” This individual has provided them with a location for Richard’s captors, and Zachary urges Reacher, Duke, and even Beck to immediately take action against these individuals.

Within what appears to be an abandoned DEA safe house, posing as a kidnapper’s hideout, Reacher disarms Duke and queries his whereabouts regarding Teresa Daniels. When Duke hints that McCabe would silence him if he spoke but someone like Reacher couldn’t be silenced, thus potentially securing his promotion, Reacher shoots Duke dead. To deceive Beck, Reacher then creates a spectacle by firing numerous bullets into the house’s floor, walls, and ceiling, setting the gas stove to blow up, and ultimately striking himself in the face with the gun he had taken from Angel at Bizarre Bazaar.

As he hastily retreats through the forest towards Beck, he maintains that he managed to evade an attack, yet laments that Duke didn’t share his fortune. This reminds me of Iago subtly framing Desdemona in Shakespeare’s “Othello”. Much like Iago did with the handkerchief, he deceitfully informs Duke that he found this handgun on one of the men he killed, knowing full well that Beck will recognize the rare German pistol as belonging to Angel. Given that both Angel and Duke are now deceased, Reacher has moved up two positions; he is now effectively second-in-command to Duke, albeit with a fatal bullet wound.

Read More

2025-02-21 01:56