8 Most Ridiculous Moments in ‘Reacher’ (So Far)

Reacher is amazing. A deft balance of action and drama, coupled with Nick Santora’s spiced-up versions of author Lee Child’s literature plots, has earned the show the admiration of both book loyalists and new fans. Even when Jack Reacher is swimming in extraordinary waters, the showrunner does his best to ground everything in reality so that the saga remains understandable and relatable. But don’t expect him to be neat 100% of the time.

As is the case with many action-themed movies and TV shows, things can get silly in some instances. At times, events move so quickly that logic can’t keep up, though this doesn’t make the show any less fun. Viewers are used to it. After all, this is fiction, not real life. Even so, it’s worth noting that many of the greatest shows of all time have very few idiotic moments, so it would be good if the team behind the hit Prime Video minimized the WTF scenes as much as possible.

8

Reacher Fails to Kill Quinn

“Dominique” (Season 3, Episode 4)

One of the most heartbreaking moments in Reacher plays out when the protagonist (in a flashback scene to his days as a military policeman) finds his protégé, Dominique Kohl dead. We learn that she was captured, tortured, and murdered by Quinn after she tried to arrest him. As soon as Reacher finds Kohl’s body, he scours the compound for the villain and shoots him before pushing him down a cliff. Years later, it emerges that Quinn is still alive. Why? The bullet only got lodged in his skull. It didn’t kill him.

Shoot and Go?

Reacher is often portrayed as a meticulous person with a great understanding of his work. He also happens to know pretty much about human anatomy. Despite this, the show forces us to believe that Reacher, at close range, didn’t know exactly where to shoot Quinn to ensure he was dead. And why push him down a cliff before confirming if he was still breathing or not? It not only doesn’t make sense, but it’s also very careless of him.

7

An Unlikely Weapon Choice

“A Night at the Symphony” (Season 2, Episode 4)

Thou shall not allow conspirators to get away. In one of the show’s most laugh-out-loud moments, Jack Reacher realizes he won’t be able to catch a man who is taking off in a vehicle. He thus disappears briefly, only for a grill to be thrown at the car from miles away, causing it to stop. Reacher is then seen running towards the car, from a different direction from where the grill was thrown.

Stop, Or… Reacher Will Throw a Grill at You

You can’t doubt that a man of Reacher’s size has the strength needed to use a grill as a projectile. But you’ll ask yourself why he isn’t running in the same direction as where the grill came from. Such a scene belongs to critically panned TV shows, not a Prime Video hit. It’s juvenile, unnecessary, and cartoonish. It’s unclear what Lee Child thought of it, but it is safe to presume that he didn’t approve of it either.

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6

Reacher Hides a Badge in a Pillow Case

“Smackdown” (Season 3, Episode 5)

Meticulous Reacher shocks viewers again by hiding Duffy’s DEA badge in a pillow case in his room in Beck’s mansion. The protagonist recovers the badge during a shootout, and, in his wisdom, he decides to hide it in a place where even a housekeeper can find it.

Risky Evidence

Ordinarily, Reacher never takes such chances. Why not just ditch the badge? Duffy can always get a replacement. Or why not hide it in the rocks near the sea next to the mansion? The former military police officer also misses his best chance to get rid of the badge. When he steps outside to meet Villanueva secretly, he still leaves it in his room. We understand that he is under immense pressure, but the military offers the kind of training useful for situations like those.

5

Reacher Doesn’t Get Hit by Bullets

Multiple Episodes

Jack Reacher is a big guy, bigger than any action movie hero you can imagine. Interestingly, he never gets hit (not even grazed) by bullets. There have been several instances where miscreants were firing at him, notably during the Rambo-like forest battle in Season 3. Despite him being targeted a lot, nothing ever hits his large frame.

Incompetent Shooters?

Is Jack Reacher simply lucky or are the bad guys just incompetent? It’s improbable for all of them to be such poor marksmen, especially when dealing with a giant. Even an amateur could get at least one shot at someone like Reacher. It would be nice to see him treating bullet wounds a few times. After all, he seems like the kind of guy that would tolerate pain easily.

4

Doctor Reacher

“The Man Goes Through” (Season 2, Episode 7)

Posing as doctors, Reacher and Neagley walk through hospital corridors and sneak into a ward to interrogate the hitman who had been run over in the previous episode. Reach then starts choking him while delivering a warning, telling the man that he will “tear your trachea out and your last thought will be ‘Holy shit he really did it.'” But he promises to only do that if the man screams.

Here to Injure, Not Heal

People disguising themselves as doctors? It’s an overused trope in the action genre, yet it keeps playing out again and again. It’s possible to do just that, but how likely is it for such a huge, muscular man to pose as a doctor without raising any suspicion? Reacher’s size rules him out of any kind of any kind of stealth activity. There are probably many other ways he and Neagley could have used to get to the man.

3

Reacher Fakes a Police Officer’s Death to Infiltrate Beck’s Organization

“Persuader” (Season 3, Episode 1)

To infiltrate Zachary Beck’s organization, Jack Reacher pretends to rescue the criminal’s son from attackers. He also pretends to have accidentally killed a police officer while at it. The secret remains within the team for a while, until Beck’s son spots the officer who is supposed to be dead.

No One Does a Followup

It’s interesting how no one in Beck or Quinn’s organization does a follow-up to find out who this officer was. Additionally, it is interesting how the officer supposedly ‘resurrected’ and walked away without anyone in the town noticing. Unless the town’s entire law enforcement was in on the plan, there is no way such a move would fly. Reacher’s ruse would have been discovered very easily.

2

Sarah Connor

“What Happens in Atlantic City” (Season 2, Episode 2)

In one scene, Langston is informed that Neagley checked into a hotel room under the name Sarah Connor. He rubbishes the information, insisting he doesn’t care. Well, Sarah Connor just happens to be the person Langston’s actor, Robert Patrick, was up against when he played T-1000 in Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

This T-1000 Doesn’t Care About Sarah Connor

This moment is silly, not because it’s poorly executed, but because of how Langston reacts. While the pop culture reference is a clever one, Langston is painted as idiotic when he insists that he “doesn’t give a sh*t.” Which great villain, especially one who has risen to his level, wouldn’t care about every little detail? Interestingly, Nick Santora revealed that he came up with the Sarah Connor disguise subplot way before Robert Patrick took on the role, and everything that followed was a mere coincidence.

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1

Reacher Rejects Money

“Fly Boy” (Season 2, Episode 8)

After defeating Shane Langston, Jack Reacher, and his men find themselves with a whopping $65 million, which they decide not to hand over to the authorities. Wisely, Reacher distributes most of the money to the family members of his slain associates. Still, some cash is left for Reacher and his team to allocate to themselves. Despite being urged to do something for himself, the hero only purchases a bus pass to get him across the country for a full year.

All Good But…

Jack Reacher’s frugality is admirable, but his choice ought to trigger a debate on how exactly he survives. Being a drifter, he has minimal expenses, but he still needs a few things. For example, he is seen eating fast food a few times. Where does he get the money to pay for it? What about deodorant and other necessities? It would have made sense for him to allocate money to such things from the huge loot he acquired.