Reviewer Rating: 4.5/5.0
4.5
Your and your parents’ favorite action drama is finally back for a new season with a tale of reward seeking, family secrets, and Justin Hartley beating up some people. It’s probably (?) better than ever.
The first episode of Season 2 of Trackers is back with a new case, giving us a potentially season-long mystery about Curt’s past, and I don’t mean Shaw family drama!
They dropped a bombshell in season two and got off to a great start.
When we last saw Colt in Trackers Season 1 Episode 13, he was in shock as his case caused him to reexamine his family and reignite the eternal cloud of deceit, and when A question that always came up when he started investigating them.
But last season immediately delved into everything Shaw, and they went a different route, picking up something from Colt’s past that he’s never forgotten, even if we’re only hearing about it now.
But before we get too deep into that, Colter’s case this week is an interesting one, as he travels to Arkansas to find a missing family who seemed to have been taken while sending vibes to Steely Dan.
I’m here to watch another season of Colter engaging with law enforcement and almost immediately doing better than them. The cops may not have Renee and Bobby in their back pocket, but it still amazes me how much better Colter can sometimes do at their jobs.
It didn’t take long for him to realize that whatever scene he happened upon was not quite what it seemed. As information emerges, we discover this is more than just a kidnapping.
Stalkers love to mislead, and the missing father, a lottery-winning gambler, is one such obvious one. Don’t get me wrong, $50,000 is a lot of money, but do we think people are making elaborate kidnapping plans for it?
Maybe I watch too much TV.
Marshall Martinez is a law enforcement officer we meet from time to time in the series. She was the one who didn’t respect what Colt was doing and didn’t want him to get in the way.
But Marshall Boyd was the opposite, and as he stumbled through the woods, I knew immediately something was wrong, but couldn’t quite figure out what.
Once we understand Connie’s past, or lack thereof, it’s easier to put things together.
There comes a point in the story when Bobby, Velma, or Renee must assist Colt. With limited help from the Marshalls, Curt might not have been able to put it all together if he hadn’t made the connection that Connie was in witness protection.
Poor Connie must have finally reached the point where she can breathe a sigh of relief. Nine years later, she could have been a wife and mother, living a relatively safe life without constant fear. Suddenly, a scratch-off lottery ticket ruined her life.
It was brave and scary to testify and then change your entire life, but Connie was smart and had a plan for when the worst happened, and it did.
Even with a plan, she needed some luck, and just like Colt stumbled upon the kids before “Boyd,” he found Ted before the man.
Something could go wrong in a different direction, or Colter stops to buy a sandwich instead of investigating, and everything could go terribly wrong.
At what point in the story do you realize that Boyd is actually Kirk’s ex-husband? I sensed he was suspicious from the start, and the silhouette of him walking into the gas station behind Colter made me hold my breath because the slow pace had ambush written all over it.
But I didn’t realize it until someone spelled it out for me.
The conversation between Connie and Colt in the car that leads to this reveal feels like a variation on a conversation we’ve heard from Colt ten times. But I’ll forgive the repetition because it’s been a while since we’ve heard it.
It’s a beautiful sentiment that your past doesn’t determine your future, but unfortunately it’s not for everyone, and these two are the literal embodiment of that.
As long as Connie lives under a new identity under the protection of law enforcement, her past will always be with her. After all these years, she must have felt okay, but never truly safe. Maybe one day, when it’s no longer threatening to look for her, she can make peace with her past.
And Colt? We know that his past drives his entire existence. His childhood was tied to his lone wolf status, difficulty trusting, and wanting to live his life on the road.
Again, letting bygones be bygones is nice to say, but much harder to put into practice.
Once Colt takes an interest in Kirk, finding him becomes a problem, and he’s obviously going to be straight for the kids since this is a network TV series after all.
Perhaps the biggest tragedy of the entire hour is the death of Craig, a kind brother and uncle who didn’t deserve anything like this. To be honest, for some reason, his death hit me really hard because he just wanted to bake cookies and protect his family, but now he’s gone.
I wonder if the eldest son is Kirk’s son, since that crime family went to great lengths to track down Connie in revenge for the murder. She must have had something else they wanted.
Kirk wants Bret.
I love how Colt tells someone he just met to trust him in a life or death situation like it’s such an easy thing to do. Yes, Justin Hartley clearly looks like he could protect someone in a time of crisis, but he’s still a stranger!
A very brave stranger, but still!
Marshall Martinez teams up with that sniper to catch Kirk before things get bad, but I can’t help but think that killing him might just piss off the rest of that family even more.
Of course, that’s not because Trackers actually has a way of ending things in an overall satisfying way, so it looks like Ted, Connie, and the kids will finally get away with it all.
But nothing can bring Craig back, which is so sad.
Elsewhere in the opening hours, Velma is working with Renee to help Colt if necessary, and if Renee’s sideways glance while chatting with Colt is anything to go by, it looks like Velma and Teddy might Trouble in paradise.
With news that Robin Wiegert will not be returning for Season 2 of Trackers , the obvious question is how they will write her character. It appears she will be “helping her mom settle in” and may ultimately decide not to return home.
Putting Velma and Reenie together helps solve one of the problems that occurred during the Trackers season, which was that everyone was spread out. Considering Renee is a frequent presence in many of the towns Colt visits, it would work wonders to make the show more cohesive if she went there with Velma.
Among other things, Colter began threatening a man named Frank during the hour and asking him about a woman named Gina Pickett. After Colt tells some backstory, it becomes clear that Gina’s case is one of the few that Colt will never be able to solve.
We’re so used to seeing Colt saving the world that it’s fun to see him, well, not.
Gina has been missing for ten years, and during the ten years that Gina has been missing, what Colter has been doing is keeping an eye on the people most likely to do this.
This feels like something Colter would do. When he sets out to find someone, he makes a lot of promises and doesn’t get a reward if he doesn’t find success, but it’s clear he doesn’t give up easily.
Gina’s case has been bothering him, and it may have something to do with Camille, with whom he also has a past.
The tension between them is high, even though they both have a lot of vulnerability and just need reassurance.
Aside from the Shaw family drama and the usual cases of the week, I really enjoyed following this case! They teased me well enough to pique my interest and start the second season on a solid note.
Keep track of notes
- My favorite nickname Bobby gave Colt this week was: C-Shizzle! I hope someone sticks with it.
- I love that Reenie goes out on her own and starts practicing!
- Bringing Jensen Ackles back quickly for the next hour was the right call. Whenever possible, give people what they want.
What a great start to the second huge effort in the series! There is still a lot of work to be done in this area and they have made some improvements.
How did you feel about this episode?
What are you looking forward to seeing this season?
Leave all your comments below so we can discuss it!
You can watch Trackers on Sundays at 8/7c on CBS.
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