Reacher – Season 1 Episode 8 Recap, Review & Ending Explained

Pie

Episode 8 of Reacher Season 1 starts this finale with Reacher held up at gunpoint. It’s three against two and the odds aren’t on their side. It turns out Picard was seduced by the money in this counterfeiting gig and worse, they’ve got Roscoe held hostage too. Thanks to a smirking KJ holding a mobile, their demands are broadcast through her.

KJ is going to do to her, Charlie and the kids what they’ve done to Morrison unless Paul is brought back to him. These guys are not messing about.

Who killed Kliner Senior, Molly and Joe Reacher?

It turns out the real crux of the issue here comes from the Coast Guard Blockade, which explains the issues these guys have had all this time. However, Reacher’s suggestion that the Venezuelans are responsible for killing Kliner Senior is completely wrong. It turns out KJ actually killed his own father, taking inspiration from the South Americans to kill him and make it look like they did it.

Furthermore, KJ also hired Picard’s partner to go and kill the Memphis agent. KJ is responsible for killing Molly, and for the death of Joe too. Dawson was the one who kicked Joe’s body too. This explains how everything ties together.

And as for Teale, he’s as crooked as can be and with Kliner pouring money into financing the town, he’s hardly complaining.

How does Reacher outsmart Picard?

With Picard tasked with watching Reacher’s every move, KJ orders him to go and find Hubble. He’s the one loose end in all this and needs to be dealt with accordingly.

Reacher hits the road with Picard, where the pair show up at a diner where Reacher orders himself a piece of peach pie. He also tries to work out where Hubble is located in order to protect his family.

So Reacher checks a map and deduces that Paul is in Augusta, two hours outside Margrave. Just before they leave the diner, Reacher stabs the tyre with a fork, which in turn forces a stand-off between them when they’re halted by a flat tyre.

Reacher tells Picard that they both need to stay alive for the time being and with a gun apiece, Picard promises not to kill him. Reacher has other ideas. He shoots Picard down and takes off for Augusta, where he soon finds Paul.

What happens with Finlay? Is Officer Baker dead?

Together, they drive back to the police station where Reacher straight up smashes Baker against the cell bars with his car and saves Finlay’s life. Just before they leave the station, Finlay watches as Baker dies.

The time is now; the trio work together to grab as many guns and as much ammo as they possibly can. While they work, Neagley shows up too and she also starts to load up for the final fight. Naturally, they arrive at Mosley’s to formulate their plan to break the kids, Charlie and Roscoe out of Kliner’s warehouse.

Does Picard die?

The final fight is upon us, and it starts with Reacher starting a fire to distract all the goons inside. Paul’s job in all this is left to get his kids and wife out of the thick of action, Reacher, Finlay and Neagley meanwhile, work together to take out as many of Kliner’s goons as possible. Of course, this leads Reacher along to Roscoe and Charlie, whom he manages to save and help untie.

There are several significant one on one fights here. Picard and Finlay skirmish, with the former having recovered from his gunshot and seemingly made it back to the warehouse before them. Anyway, that doesn’t last for long when Finlay literally squashes him to a pulp. Good grief, talk about a Mortal Kombat fatality!

What happens with KJ and Teale?

Meanwhile, Roscoe and Teale square off together. There’s obviously bad blood between them, given what happened with Gray, and she ends it with several gunshots to the head, one of which straight through his eyeball.

This leaves Reacher to go after KJ who, of course, monologues like a true villain. This gives Reacher enough time to go after him, getting the jump and eventually leaving him burning to death. Reacher survives, despite the explosion that ensues, and immediately embraces Roscoe as the two kiss. It’s done, the bad guys have been killed.

How does Roscoe’s story end?

Off the back of this, Roscoe confirms that Reacher needs to stick around to answer some questions. That’s not who he is though and he informs Roscoe that he needs to keep moving and continuing on. She hands over an empty Clark Bar though, complete with her number on; an inside joke the pair shared earlier in the season.

Roscoe is going to try to rebuild the town, although Reacher suggests that she run for Mayor. I mean, there is a position going now available after all!

What happens with Finlay? Why does he choose to go back to Boston?

After saying his goodbyes to Roscoe, Reacher does the same thing for Finlay, who’s still twirling his ring on the table in the diner. There’s a new level of respect between the two now, typified by him buying the pair a slice of peach pie. This has been something of a recurring joke between the pair, this idea of not eating fatty food, and seeing Finlay do just that shows a shift in his character.

Finlay is going to go back to Boston. He’s stopped spinning his life away (typified by the ring twirling) and is actually going to live his life properly now. He’s also adopted the dog for himself too, which he’s decided to name Jack.

How does Reacher Season 1 end?

Just before Reacher leaves town, he drops by the spot Joe died and buries his medal as a sign of letting go of the past and moving on. As Reacher gets back on the road, the first season ends with the main plot wrapped up but plenty of room for potential sequels.

The Episode Review

Reacher has been a solid watch and although this ending was a little cheesy and cliched, it ticks all the boxes when it comes to being an enjoyable action romp.

There’s some wonderful set pieces here too, with the final warehouse fight doing well to round out all the big conflicts in the season. Although to be fair, the gruesome way Picard was dispatched felt a tad overkill!

The entire season has built up a consistent mystery though, with the Venezuelan threat doing well to add an extra element of danger above Kliner’s operation. Understanding how everything slots together, especially last episode and the start of this chapter, was nicely handled and it comes at the perfect time too, just before the final fight.

The villain monologue from KJ, along with his motivations, are perhaps a tad on the cliched side but to be honest, what else do you expect from an action thriller like this?

If you’ve been in the mood for a rip-roaring action slobberknocker, Reacher is bang on the money. Real money though, not those counterfeit 100 dollar bills!

Either way, a second season would certainly be welcome and given how many of these novels could be adapted, there’s plenty in the pipeline for that to happen. For now, Reacher bows out with a very solid finale, despite some minor grumbles.