Colter agrees to help Stephanie Porter, a teenager convinced her father has been wrongly convicted of murder.

This is a weird one, and it’s the sort of script you often get in a show at this stage of its life. The plot is a little more action orientated than episodes to date but it also touches on some interesting, complex moral issues.

First off, the stark horror of a teenaged girl running a fundraising page to cover her father’s legal costs can’t be overstated. Neither can the importance of a show like this exploring those issues. Procedurals, deservedly, get a bad rap a lot of the time but this sort of exploration is what they excel at and this episode really flies in these scenes. Dana L. Wilson and Kudakwashe Rutendo are great as the family members, as is genre stalwart Martin Roach as Clay Porter, the victim.

The episode wraps this complex morality around its remarkably direct lead and the beats we’ve seen it explore over the last few weeks. Justin Hartley is very very good here and in a way that mirrors Alan Ritchson’s work in Reacher. While the two shows are getting further apart in subject and tone every episode, Colter and Reacher are both driven by their need for the scales to balance. The difference being Colter is rather more honest and open to his emotional investment than Reacher. It’s nice to see Fiona Rene get more time as Reenie too and her escalating presence in the show gives it a really fun dynamic at its core.

The rest of the cast build on this. This really is an episode full of ‘oh hey it’s them!’ faces and Katharine Isabelle, of legendary horror franchise Ginger Snaps, is excellent as Mallory, the witness who can exonerate Clay. Once again, this episode is full of surprisingly likable or complex supporting characters too. Jason Burkart is great as Mallory’s uncle, Bree Woodill and Steve Eddy James have memorable cameos as poker players and David James Lewis is great as a weaselly lawyer. Charles Zuckermann’s villain, the magnificently named Caesar Ashford, is good too and the most physical threat Colter has faced to date.

Which, oddly, leads to the problem. The ending here is the most conventional the show has done to date, a straight up hostage exchange that leads to a climactic rooftop showdown that ends exactly how you think. It’s a little rote, a little predictable and in a show that’s prided itself on not being that so far, that’s a real shame.

Maybe.

Given Colter’s origin story involves finding a loved one at the bottom of a long fall I’d like to think resolving a case in that manner is going to have consequences. We don’t, quite, see them yet but my hope is that’s where we’re going. Recent casting announcements have confirmed Colter’s sibling (including a very cool choice for his brother) are en route to the show and I hope this incident is going to colour the episodes leading up to that point.

Verdict: For now though, this is a fun, packed episode (underground poker! An actual shootout!) with a ridiculously good cast that doesn’t quite land as well as it should. Still good, but the show’s been better and I’m sure will be again. 7/10

Alasdair Stuart