Warning: Spoilers ahead for Reacher season 3, episode 5, “Smackdown.”Reacher season 3, episode 5, “Smackdown,” includes a moment that could easily be a narrative oversight, or it could be a worrying sign of the mental state of Alan Ritchson’s character. Although Ritchson has returned to lead the Reacher season 3 cast, his character finds himself surrounded by a sea of new faces after parting ways with the 110th Special Investigations Unit at the end of Reacher season 2. As such, the current season has once more undergone another transformation, resulting in some new challenges for Reacher‘s titular character.
As a live-action adaptation of Lee Child’s Persuader, the Amazon show’s third season is heavily based on the author’s source material. As with the previous two seasons, there have been minor changes and additions so far, but nothing to take the show too far from the original version of the story. “Smackdown” manages to uphold and increase the tension that exists due to Reacher’s chances of being identified as a DEA infiltrator in a criminal organization, and it’s that nail-biting scenario that may have just resulted in a writing error.
Reacher Should Have Taken Duffy’s Badge With Him When He Left To Meet Villanueva
Ritchson’s character missed a chance to offload the sensitive item
After managing to thwart Zachary Beck (Anthony Michael Hall) and his order to take out Susan Duffy (Sonya Cassidy) and Guillermo Villanueva (Robert Montesino), Reacher manages to recover Duffy’s badge, which the DEA agent loses during the shootout. Although it’s great that Reacher is preventing Duffy from being identified and hunted down, he’s then left with an incredibly sensitive item in his possession that would see him killed by Beck’s men if he were found with it. Weirdly, Reacher misses his best chance to ditch the badge.
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After returning to Beck’s mansion in the company of Harley (Brendan Fletcher), Reacher stows the badge in his pillowcase, which is about as good of a hiding place as he can hope for, given the circumstances. However, when Duffy later takes the risk of calling her inside man to alert him to their prisoner’s escape, Reacher doesn’t take the badge with him when he meets up with Villanueva, who could have taken it off his hands. Sure, time was of the essence, but retrieving the badge from the pillowcase would have taken mere seconds.
Reacher Not Thinking To Take Duffy’s Badge Away From Beck’s House Proves How Under Pressure He Is In Season 3
Alan Ritchson’s character is in a much scarier scenario than usual
Finding himself behind enemy lines with no direct support is new territory for Ritchson’s character. In previous seasons, he’s always had allies by his side rather than just on the other end of the phone, so it would make sense that Reacher is nervous and a little off his game. Although his Sherlock Holmes-esque analysis of certain scenarios seems to be running on overdrive this season, his lapse in judgment regarding Duffy’s badge proves the pressure of his situation is impacting his decision-making.
If he had continued to operate as he always had done while staying at Beck’s house and helping the DEA in Reacher season 3, it wouldn’t have made any sense.
As such, Reacher season 3 is showing a new side to the character. For a figure who has been immovably consistent across the show’s first two seasons, it’s great to see how Ritchson’s performance has been forced to adapt by his character’s unexpected and especially life-threatening circumstances. If he had continued to operate as he always had done while staying at Beck’s house and helping the DEA in Reacher season 3, it wouldn’t have made any sense.
Why Reacher Might Have Not Taken Duffy’s Badge When Meeting Villanueva
Reacher’s fatigue is probably having an impact on his decision-making
Image via Prime Video
Amazon’s Persuader adaptation takes pretty much everything that Ritchson’s character has faced in the previous two seasons and piles it all on him at once. For instance, he’s grieving the loss of his brother in Reacher season 1, and the death of Mariah Robinson’s Dominique Kohl is still clearly quite raw in season 3, despite her loss happening years earlier. Most other challenges have been replicated in Reacher season 3, only this time there is even more for Ritchson’s character to deal with. Therefore, Reacher clearly isn’t operating at peak efficiency.
One of the running issues for Reacher in season 3 is that he’s often been unable to get any sleep, and when he has, it’s only been for a few hours at a time.
One of the running issues for Reacher in season 3 is that he’s often been unable to get any sleep, and when he has, it’s only been for a few hours at a time. Instead, he’s spent most of the time he should have been getting some shuteye by either further exerting himself in the name of the mission, or staring thoughtfully at the ceiling. With the pressure of being behind enemy lines, this potent combination of circumstances could easily explain why he would neglect to take Duffy’s badge with him to meet Villanueva.
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Another great point was pointed out to me in the comments of this very article, with Screen Rant user Tiny stating that Reacher is a “very deliberate person.” Paired with the fact that Duffy told Reacher “give [my badge] back to me next time I see you,” it could make perfect sense that Ritchson’s character would intentionally leave the badge when meeting Villaneueva. Reacher tends to take things very literally, so if Duffy says she wants him to return her badge to her, he may see it as a violation of her desires by giving it to her partner.
Reacher’s Badge Plot Hole Was Worth It For The Great Maid Fake-Out
I almost believed Reacher was about to be identified as the infiltrator
I’m fairly confident that there is an in-universe explanation of Reacher’s exhaustion and how that can account for him leaving Duffy’s badge in his room. However, if it is a writing oversight, it’s at least a mistake that allowed for a brilliant moment in “Smackdown.” Reacher can be seen as visibly afraid, or at least nervous, during his conversation with Beck when Ritchson’s character returns from his meeting with Villaneueva. Seeing him experience such an emotion is incredibly disconcerting due to the fact he’s usually unflappable.
Beck thankfully names the maid as an ATF agent before Ritchson’s character blows his own cover by trying to fight his way out.
Almost every word of Beck’s monologue about identifying the spy sounds like he’s gearing up to name Reacher as the traitor. At this point, both Reacher and the audience are fully aware that he left Duffy’s badge hidden in his pillowcase, which is the only item that could result in him getting caught. The scene pushes Reacher to his limit, but Beck thankfully names the maid as an ATF agent before Ritchson’s character blows his own cover by trying to fight his way out. Of course, the death of said maid is devastating, but it was a well-written Reacher sequence.
Prime Video’s Reacher Season 3 Release Schedule | ||
Episode | Title | Release Date (2025) |
1 | “Persuader” | Feb 20 |
2 | “Truckin’” | Feb 20 |
3 | “Number 2 with a Bullet” | Feb 20 |
4 | “Dominique” | Feb 27 |
5 | “Smackdown” | March 6 |
6 | “Smoke on the Water” | March 13 |
7 | “L.A. Story” | March 20 |
8 | “Unfinished Business” | March 27 |
Reacher
8/10
- Release Date
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February 3, 2022
- Network
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Prime Video
- Showrunner
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Nick Santora
- Directors
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Omar Madha, Carol Banker, Julian Holmes, Lin Oeding, M.J. Bassett, Norberto Barba, Stephen Surjik, Thomas Vincent
- Writers
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Cait Duffy