Explosive
Summary
Season 3 of Reacher is elevated by the final episode which really is worth the wait with the much hyped showdown with Paulie; the rest of the season is enjoyable but I found it a little plodding at times and didn’t have many big set-pieces until the end. This is still damn good television and an entertaining adaptation of the beloved books.
Plot: Season 3, an adaptation from showrunner Nick Santora of the seventh novel, Persuader, finds Reacher tossed into a criminal conspiracy wherein he must help rescue an undercover DEA informant and confront his own past.
Review: I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the television series of Reacher starring Alan Ritchson; it isn’t perfect, but it delivers the kind of old school action thrills I love with a musclebound lead, an entertaining script with some nice moments of humour and of course plenty of fight scenes, explosions and shoot-outs.
Season 3 is no different and (mostly) delivers the thrills we’ve come to expect from the show. I did find the story did plod occasionally and there aren’t as many fight scenes throughout it, but that’s because they were saving it all for the final episode which is what elevates this season for me.
Big meets bigger with Reacher facing off against henchman Paulie (Olivier Richters) in what is arguably the best showdown of the entire series thus far. The final episode is practically one long, over the top fight scene which gives us everything we’d want to see.
In this season Reacher goes undercover with Zachary Beck (Anthony Michael Hall) to try and find an old nemesis called Quinn (Brian Tee) who he thought he had killed. After what Quinn did to Reacher’s protégé it’s understandable why he wants blood, and he won’t stop until he gets it.
Brian Tee is always a welcome addition to any cast and it’s great to see him in a sizeable role as a min villain; he can be incredibly menacing and Quinn is truly hateful. I also laughed when he did the little head dance in the final episode.
I do enjoy Maria Sten as Reacher’s trusty helper Frances Neagley who helps get him out of various scrapes; I don’t think she needs a spin-off which she is reportedly getting. She’s a supporting character so let’s just leave it at that.
In terms of drama, I think the father/son talk in the second last episode between Beck and his son Richard (Johnny Berchtold) is the most moving of the entire series and tears of manliness were almost shed.
Some have said they thought Susan Duffy (Sonya Cassidy) was the weakest side character of the show so far, but I loved her, and I enjoyed her banter with Reacher. She can barely keep her hands off him, which provides a few laughs, but she’s also tough when she needs to be.
The reason I love Reacher is that it’s total wish fulfilment; he takes on the big guys/bullies while looking out for the little guy and we know he’s going to come out on top. The scene where he beats up local punks picking on Richard is so satisfying and one of my favourite fight scenes because it’s emotionally charged. Reacher is also at his most ruthless in this season killing unarmed opponents practically with a smile on his face and frankly I find it refreshing as it makes Reacher more of an antihero rather than a true blue good guy.
Overall, Reacher: Season 3 is a little bumpy at times with few surprises, but that final episode is fantastic with the showdown with Paulie worth the wait. It has some nice heartfelt moments and gives us arguably Anthony Michael Hall’s best ever performance too.
On a side note, I despise that Prime now put ads in their shows and movies; I had 3 ad breaks during the final episode so I have now cancelled Prime… which I will likely reactivate on Tuesday when I want to buy a 4K… sigh.