10 Ways Reacher Season 2 Was Worse Than Season 1
Reacher season 2 ends with the 110th accomplishing their mission, but the series’ sophomore year still feels like a letdown compared to season 1.
Warning! Spoilers ahead for the Reacher season 2 finale.
SUMMARY
Reacher season 2 lacks the charm of its predecessor, with major cities replacing the small-town setting of Margrave.
The Special Investigators in Reacher season 2 are too similar, lacking the dynamics that would have made them more interesting.
The romance between Jack and Dixon in season 2 is not as exciting or developed as his previous relationship with Roscoe in season 1.
Reacher season 2 ends on a high note, but it’s still inferior in quality compared to its predecessor because of several reasons. After the success of Reacher season 1, Amazon Prime Video jumped on the opportunity to build on a new TV franchise based on Lee Child’s famed books.
Despite being initially clouded by Tom Cruise’s movies, the Alan Ritchson show was able to quickly separate itself and establish its own identity. Beyond Reacher season 2, the Nick Santora-created show is already set up for future seasons on the platform.
Kicking off with Reacher season 1 adapting Child’s debut novel from the series, Killing Floor, the project took an unexpected leap, skipping several books and tackling Bad Luck and Trouble for its sophomore year. As in its source material, Reacher season 2 properly introduced the 110th Special Investigations Unit, which was previously spearheaded by Jack.
Aside from the returning Frances Neagley, it also features two other Special Investigators — David O’Donnell and Karla Dixon. Despite their history, Jack’s time with Oscar Finlay and Roscoe Conklin in Reacher season 1 is still an overall better outing for the former military officer-turned-hobo.
10. Reacher Season 1’s Margrave Setting Had More Charm
Small towns are still better for mystery thrillers.
While the show is based on Child’s books, Santora has made it clear that they are not beholden to what’s on paper. Instead, they’re using the novels as narrative guides in developing Jack’s character. This explains why Reacher season 2 can make the East Coast its backdrop despite Bad Luck and Trouble taking place in the California desert.
Unfortunately, just because Jack and his team move around so much in the series’ sophomore year, it doesn’t mean that it’s better compared to Reacher season 1, which was set in the sleepy town of Margrave.
If anything, season 2 lost some charm for featuring major metropolitans like Washington DC, New York, and Boston. Granted that being in Beantown allows for Finlay to return, in totality, season 2 doesn’t really have an established location, unlike its predecessor. Jack did visit big cities in the show’s freshman year, but the majority of its storytelling took place in Margrave.
9. Jack & His Other Special Investigators Are Too Alike In Reacher Season 2
No wonder they’re effective as a team.
As revealed in Reacher season 2 flashbacks, Jack personally chose every member of the 110th Special Investigations Unit. While he wasn’t always sure that they were going to work well together, it ended up better than he expected, with the team having an unbreakable bond even after it was dissolved.
The problem is that they are all too similar, which would have been an upside when they operate as a unit, but not so much in terms of storytelling. There are no clear variations among them, and even if they have differences, they aren’t significant enough to create interesting dynamics.
8. Jack & His Allies Are Too Ruthless Throughout Reacher Season 2
Nobody messes with the Special Investigators.
Reacher season 1 showed how ruthless Jack can be, although he has always had that tendency, which is exacerbated by his size. As the leader of the 110th Special Investigations Unit, he imbued that ruthlessness into his team, allowing them to be effective in situations that can be highly dangerous.
Reacher season 2 features several group action set pieces that fully highlight this common trait, but considering that some of the people they were fighting were nothing but henchmen, it’s unnerving to see them consistently brutal, regardless of who they are fighting.
7. Reacher Season 2’s Romance Isn’t As Interesting
Jack and Dixon’s romance has always just been temporary.
Like in season 1, Jack finds a new romantic interest in Reacher season 2. Instead of introducing a new love interest, the show rekindles Jack’s attraction with fellow Special Investigator, Dixon.
Reacher season 2 doesn’t waste time bringing them together, and while they remain focused on the job, they maintain a romance throughout the show’s run.
Disappointingly, their coupling isn’t as exciting as Jack and Roscoe’s love line in Reacher season 1 for some reason. The tension between them dissipates immediately after they get together, and they don’t progress anywhere after that.
6. Reacher Season 2 Lacks Great Plot Twists
Overall, Reacher season 2’s mystery isn’t well-executed.
The premise of Reacher season 2 sets up compelling mysteries, especially since the case is already personal for Jack from the get-go. However, the show isn’t able to pull off a well-executed plot twist despite the many opportunities that it could have been able to.
Swan’s supposed involvement in New Age, while technically not an unexpected turn, could have been clarified more interestingly. Reacher season 1, on the other hand, was better in being a mystery thriller, as it featured several great unexpected narrative turns.
5. Reacher Season 2’s Wasted Its Best Pairing
Jack and Russo could have spent more time with each other.
Surprisingly, Reacher season 2’s best pairing isn’t between fellow Special Investigators. Granted that Jack’s friendship with Neagley has been satisfying to watch, it isn’t as entertaining as his dynamic with New York police officer, Guy Russo.
Instead of leaning on it, however, Reacher season 2 barely spends some time with them as partners. Reacher season 1, on the other hand, took advantage of Ritchson’s chemistry with Malcolm Goodwin and spent time with Jack and Finlay. To make matters worse, Russo is now dead, so future seasons of Reacher can’t make amends by bringing him back.
4. Jack Isn’t As Fun To Watch In Reacher Season 2
Reacher season 2 dulls Jack’s appeal.
While Jack is often surrounded by interesting characters in Child’s books, their biggest draw has always been its titular character. Richtson quickly endeared himself as the protagonist of Reacher when he debuted the role in 2022; it helps that he looks like how the character is described on paper. However, the overall quality of a season still depends on the characters he is surrounded by.
Somehow, being poked fun (in good nature) by his old military crew dulls his appeal. Seeing him navigate the mystery in Reacher season 2 isn’t as fun as seeing him find his way out of the prison in Margrave. It’s likely partly because of the more comfortable dynamic with the 110th and partly because of Reacher season 2’s writing.
3. Reacher Fails To Highlight Jack’s Capabilities
Jack operates mostly with back-up in Reacher season 2.
Because he is surrounded by an elite team that he once officially led, Jack doesn’t have to fight alone in Reacher season 2. Aside from the opening action set piece, he has primarily operated with a backup.
That’s great for him, as it minimizes the danger on his end, but it doesn’t give the show enough opportunities to show off just how capable he is. While he teamed up with Roscoe and Finlay throughout Reacher season 1, there were countless times when he had to fend off for himself — including the intense fight in the Hubble home.
2. Reacher Season 2 Doesn’t Have Great Smaller Roles
Reacher season 1 featured several memorable supporting players.
Unlike season 1, which featured some fun supporting characters, Reacher season 2 lacked memorable smaller players.
Marlo Burns can be considered as such, but she is used so sparingly, not to mention ineffectively that she doesn’t really add anything to the show’s appeal other than being an expository vessel for how Swan fits into New Age.
1. Reacher Season 2’s Bad Guys Are Wasted
The Kliners are still scarier than New Age and Langston.
The primary villain of Reacher season 2 is New Age’s Shane Langston, but he also has secondary bad guys, including AM, who was so interesting when he first appeared.
Perhaps it’s the way the whole season was designed, but the Amazon Prime Video series ultimately wastes all of them. Langston is nothing but a stereotypical greedy company executive.
Other than that, there’s really nothing to him. AM initially had potential, but Reacher season 2 failed to further flesh out his character, resulting in a lackluster death for him. At least the Kliners of Margrave had personalities.
