WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Reacher season 3, episode 8.
Prime Video’sReacherseason 3, episode 8, “Unfinished Business,” closes out the exciting but sometimes sluggish third season in style. After an incredible opening episode,Reacherseason 3 lost some of its footingand momentum in its latter half, particularly with its sluggishReacherseason 3, episode 7. Thankfully, most, if not all, of the season 3 finale was immersive, intense, andalmostincredibly satisfying.
With Zachary Beck turning out to be more of a victim than a trueReacherseason 3 villain, he teams up with Reacher, Duffy, and Villanueva to rescue his likable but wimpy son.It’s finally nice to see Duffy and Reacher working together, whereas many of their previous interactions have been emotionally charged and combative. While I enjoyed Duffy’s no-nonsense demeanor in season 3, her passive aggressiveness and one-dimensionality make her my vote for the worstReachersidekick of the series so far.
Reacher’s Final Showdown With Paulie Was Worth The Wait
Image via Prime Video
Finally, Reacher and Paulie “fight like men” with an awesome and creative fight sequence, which has been painful to wait for over the past several weeks. The greatest tragedy ofReacherseason 3 isunderutilizing Paulie and keeping him sizzling on the backburner for so long. Fortunately, it all pays off in the finale as Paulie and Reacher duke it out, instantly creating some of the best moments of the whole season.
Reacher breaking free from a chainlink noose and walking over to Paulie armed with a garden rake has to be one of the best moments of Reacher season 3.
Meanwhile,Neagley is also cleverly incorporated into the finale episode as an undercover waitress, improving on the original ending of Lee Child’sPersuadernovel. Poor Villanueva never really had a chance against one of Quinn’s guards toward the beginning of the episode. Shockingly, he made it out of the season alive. Back in the thick of the Paulie vs. Reacher action, Reacher breaking free from a chainlink noose and walking over to Paulie armed with a garden rake has to be one of the best moments ofReacherseason 3.
The underwater elements of Paulie and Reacher’s showdown added a thrilling layer to the action sequence and were the perfect way to (seemingly) send Paulie to his death. When he reemerged to end it once and for all in his security hut featuring a vicious machine gun, it truly felt like Reacher had finally met his match. In the end,Reacher’s brains overpowered Paulie’s physical mightbut Reacher still had to do a double take to make sure that the beast of Paulie was relinquished.
I Wanted More From Reacher’s Brief Confrontation With Quinn
Beck had Quinn right where he wanted him but an unfortunate stroke of fate left him compromised, dying in a sort of sacrificial way and rekindling his relationship with his son at the least possible moment. Quinn is seriously frightening when he shoots and kills Beck with a dozen bullets, whichshould have set up a more righteous death for him in the final moments ofReacherseason 3.
Negaley’s addition with a dead hand grenade was satisfying and only made her character all the more cool, but it would have been even more satisfying had Reacher really madeQuinn pay for what he did to Lt. Dominique Kohl. He reminds Quinn of Dominique, which seems to break through his amnesia in his final seconds on Earth. Still,it would have been more compelling if Quinn had said something after remembering Lt. Kohl. Instead, he accepted his fate with a point-blank shotgun blast to the face.
Quinn was undoubtedly a fierce villain but his psychopathic ferocity made him truly despicable and chilling, almost to the point of him being a caricature of a TV villain.
Quinn was undoubtedly a fierce villain but his psychopathic ferocity made him truly despicable and chilling, almost to the point of him being a caricature of a TV villain. One of the most interesting aspects of villains is learning their motivations and their warped perspectives on people and the world. Quinn was devoid of all complexity and emotion – he was simply an unhinged businessman and a ruthlessly barbaric killer.Paulie, while also one-dimensional, could have realized that Quinn was not worth fighting forbut that moment never came.
Predicting Which Book Reacher Season 4 Will Adapt: 8 Lee Child Stories That Would Be Perfect
Season 4 of Reacher is set to adapt another of Lee Child’s successful Jack Reacher novels, and there are plenty of great candidates for the job.
In aReacherseason that was relying on its villains to pull through in its finale episode, “Unfinished Business” offers many thrills and great moments, even if some plot elements are more predictable and unsatisfying. Reacher offers some great advice to Richard before he leaves, summing up their personal but not-too-close relationship. Duffy’s speech about relationships was mostly unnecessary butit was funny to see Reacher on the other end of being let down softly.
Reacher jetting out down the winding roads of coastal Maine on a Harley was a nice touch with “Shine” by Mondo Cozmo ending the season on a high note. Ultimately, theReacherseason 3 finale got the job done even it it did play it rather safe.
Reacher Season 3 Finale
Reacher follows Jack Reacher, a former military police investigator, as he navigates civilian life. Without a phone and carrying minimal belongings, Reacher drifts across the country, experiencing the nation he once served, and encounters intriguing challenges along the way.
