S01.E10: Into The Wild

[DanaK]

Quote

Colter journeys into the wilderness of Idaho to help track down the owner of an aerial outfitting company's missing adult children, and friends of Reenie's father, who were last seen in a plane that took off during bad weather with a mysterious client on board, on the CBS Original series TRACKER, Sunday, April 28 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+

 

[TheCathedral]

is that the first episode with a title like that? It's usually just city names

 

It sounds MYSTERIOUS 

[AnimeMania]

Gil Birmingham as Gus McMillion

[Snazzy Daisy]

[possibilities]

When Colter was running through the woods, I kept thinking about the camera person doing it backwards and in heels... I mean backwards and carrying camera equipment.

They probably don't do it that way, but the thought amused me.

I thought it was weird that there was a fire at the abandoned campsite. Why would they set up a tent and light a fire if they were on the run and not actually camping out? I must have missed something, because this show is sometimes absurd, but not THAT absurd.

Oh, and the obligatory beefcake scene with Colter emerging from the shower and Reenie filming him... Justin H is not my type, but I see that the show is fully committed to using him in that way for those for whom he is. I guess turnabout is fair play after eons of women being used that way, but honestly, the games between him and Reenie make me like both of them less. Also, if I thought I was alone, I would not come out of the shower with a towel wrapped conveniently around nothing but my not-safe-for-broadcast-tv bits covered. But, I guess they thought that was more enticing than a waist up camera angle.

Oh, and where is Bobby? Totally missing last week. Mentioned but not shown this week. I hope the actor is okay.

I thought it was strange that Madison was just lying in the dirt instead of trying to walk out of there, since her problem was just her arm and she seemed perfectly capable of walking once Colter showed up. Also, how convenient that, after evidently being there a while, she suddenly started screaming when Colter was in earshot.

Did the idiot brother really plan to steal the money? I didn't understand how he got away from his kidnappers in the first place. Did they explain that? I genuinely might have been distracted, so I don't blame the show until someone else comes along and says no, none of it made sense.

I still like Velma and Teddi best. I don't know which is which, though. And them sending Reenie to his trailer instead of calling him about the job? Not cool. Everyone seems to think that it's cute and funny to trash Colter's boundaries. I think this show is a bad influence. I realize they are playing it like it's a flirty game, but it grosses me out. I'm not a gamer, I guess.

I genuinely do not understand how a fisher's skill determines the size of the fish that takes the bait, but I am sure that people who actually go fishing know what kind of skill is involved.

Gorgeous scenery. This show could do nothing but no-plot/no-character scenery and it would be a good watch. Sometimes I forget that we're supposed to be more interested in what the humans are doing.

Oh, and is it usual to leave your parachute in a pile in the woods? That's not littering? And aren't they expensive? Are they single use/disposables? I'm just curious. I know Colter was in a hurry and traveling light, but that struck me as at least a technical violation that would get a person fined, if caught.

[preeya]

A trail of wounded people and dead bodies and NOT ONE COP in the entire episode. Tea bags for gunshot wounds??

[AnimeMania]

59 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I still like Velma and Teddi best. I don't know which is which, though.

Velma has white hair and Teddi has dark hair.

I am not exactly sure how the bad guy could figure out where they were hiding beneath the cabin floor, how they got under the cabin or why the bad guy cared after he had the money.

[Gramto6]

19 minutes ago, preeya said:

A trail of wounded people and dead bodies and NOT ONE COP in the entire episode. Tea bags for gunshot wounds??

I don't know about gunshot wounds, but when I had a bunch of teeth extracted the dentist said if it started bleeding again later to bite on a tea bag. Black tea, not green or herbal tea. And it worked!  So I guess it could work for other bleeding wounds in a pinch as a temporary remedy. 

[possibilities]

I think the bad guy needed to kill all the witnesses who saw his face and could potentially testify against him. 

Maybe he heard the heavy breathing underneath the floorboards? Though how they got under there when they didn't have time to exit the cabin, I don't know. You'd think it would take more time to hide than to flee.

I think Colter said something about wanting Reenie to hide until the cops come, so maybe he called them in one of the split seconds when he was off-screen?

1 hour ago, AnimeMania said:

Velma has white hair and Teddi has dark hair.

Thanks! 

[Dowel Jones]

3 hours ago, preeya said:

Tea bags for gunshot wounds??

I don't know about that and the British Army connection.  Would the proper British soldiers use tea bags?  Ghastly!

Pretty high body count for this episode.  Great cell coverage out there, though.

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

Oh, and is it usual to leave your parachute in a pile in the woods? That's not littering? And aren't they expensive? Are they single use/disposables?

No.  No.  Yes.  No.  A sport rig like that would be about $8,000-10,000 complete, so unless Colter was tossing away the reward money, he better go back and get that.  However, it would be difficult to carry the parachute and rig around while you scour the woods, so I can see dumping it temporarily.  

I can't wait to see Colter cast that fly rod with his gunshot wound in the shoulder.

[shapeshifter]

8 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

Pretty high body count for this episode

I lost count of the bodies. 
Seemingly the writers did too.

 

8 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

Great cell coverage out there, though.

Right???
Maybe the writers figured the audience for this show would not know what satellite phones are?
To be fair, I only know that sat phones do exist —
and only because of outdoorsy TV dramas.

 

10 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

am not exactly sure how the bad guy could figure out where they were hiding beneath the cabin floor

The Gollum-esque bad guy(Peter Stormare/Valtz) seemed to be an incarnation of a fairytale ogre, so having supernatural abilities to sniff out prey?

 

10 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

how they got under the cabin

Colter must have picked up a Floor Board Penetrating Suit at Dicks Sporting Goods that doubles as his I’m A Good Guy form-fitting jumpsuit. 
Or…
they didn't prep and shoot a key scene with a loose floorboard through which Coulter and Hank escape to the crawlspace, replacing that scene with cost-cutting countless repetitions of Coulter using a finger to his lips to shush and calm the brother into sneeze-less quietude while the injured Gollum-ogre Valtz stomped around above their prone bodies.
Not only would this save production costs, but it used the trope of repetition to build suspense: 
We know Coulter is going to shoot Valtz, not vice versa, but it builds the anticipation by suggesting the danger of the opposite happening.

Edited April 29 by shapeshifter

[AnimeMania]

There was no need for the bad guy to kill all of the witnesses. Reene has pictures of him and there is tons of his DNA (blood) at the aerial outfitting company's office where he attacked someone and was shot, in the plane he stole, all over the dead bodies, and inside every cabin he searched. There was no way he could clean up the crime scenes. The only problem is nobody called the police to report that a crime has been committed so that they can collect some evidence, not even the Ranger from the Ranger's station and he should know better.

[fastiller]

I'll never be able to think of Peter Stormare as anything other than the Werner Herzog-esque documentary director who became besotted by Parker in Leverage, so it was tough for me to see him as the BIG!BAD!MAN.

9 hours ago, possibilities said:

When Colter was running through the woods, I kept thinking about the camera person doing it backwards and in heels... I mean backwards and carrying camera equipment.

They probably don't do it that way, but the thought amused me.

I forget what film it was, something that was at least partially filmed in the desert... about 10 or so years ago I read a story about the crew rigging a regular chair with  four broomsticks to make something like an old style carrying chair/litter where the camera operator faced backwards, carried by four crew people, filming the actor walking towards the camera.  I'm also intrigued by how they film running in the woods set pieces.  These days I bet drones are used a whole lot.

[Raja]

5 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

I don't know about that and the British Army connection.  Would the proper British soldiers use tea bags?  Ghastly!

Perhaps not in the barracks but for a daily combat ration package it is one less piece of gear kit a soldier would have to hump I guess Tommy would say yomp to brew his tea.

[Silver-hyren]

8 hours ago, possibilities said:

Though how they got under there when they didn't have time to exit the cabin, I don't know.

I mean, Coulter can put a shirt on in the time it takes to blink so . . . 

I was facepalming so hard when Gollum walked into the office, asked about a client, and Gus just immediately started blurting out all of Victim of the Week's details without at least attempting to confirm this very strange man's identity first.  Not sure to what degree Gus' clients expect their privacy to be protected but that just seems like a massive safety issue.  

[buttersister]

The scene in which Colter TV-magically ducks and the bad guy shoots at and misses he and the sister? So reminded me of similar scenes from back in the day (Starsky & Hutch, any number of cute leading men as cops/detectives solving crimes shows) that I laughed and changed the channel. They’d schedule fewer leading man shirtless scenes, too—more of a treat, less of an admission ticket.

Writing’s not very good. They can stop teasing me with interesting tertiary characters that are tragically underdeveloped and underused.

[AnimeMania]

2 hours ago, fastiller said:

I'll never be able to think of Peter Stormare as anything other than the Werner Herzog-esque documentary director who became besotted by Parker in Leverage, so it was tough for me to see him as the BIG!BAD!MAN.

Make sure you never see him in "American Gods".

[TheCathedral]

2 hours ago, fastiller said:

I'll never be able to think of Peter Stormare as anything other than the Werner Herzog-esque documentary director who became besotted by Parker in Leverage, so it was tough for me to see him as the BIG!BAD!MAN.

 

He will always be the German guy from the Big Lebowski to me!

 

This was a poorly written episode, there's so much plot for a 40 minute show. But the scenery really is breathtaking.

What's the body count for the season so far? Colter has been around so many murders in 10 episodes, he would be constantly on the news IRL lol I think that the episode Chicago was the only one without any casualties.

So Velma is the one with glasses? They need a Great Dane as their pet! Is Colter the Fred equivalent? 

[Snazzy Daisy]

Colter Shaw's survival skills and readiness are on full display.

It’s so convenient for this case (and Colter) to have Gus McMillion as an owner of an outfitting company and he has planes. Does Colter convert his iPhone into a SAT phone? He seems to be carrying many essential things in that little backpack of his.

Colter shooting a bad man dead through the gap of floorboards, that’s badass! 🔥

This episode showcases more stunts and actions from Colter, just like I am hoping for. I like it despite its various plot holes.

Reenie’s comment about office work being boring and being interested in the field work - is she being flirty or are they setting her up for a new adventure in S02?

Anyway, Reenie has some serious stalker vibes when it comes to Colter. Velma and Teddi may need to remind her about boundaries. 🤦🏻‍♀️

[shapeshifter]

44 minutes ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

Reenie has some serious stalker vibes when it comes to Colter.

Admittedly, I wasn't paying close attention to the show, but I didn't sense that the writers were channeling "Stalker!" into Reenie. 
I just noticed all the closeups of Reenie had flattering lighting, angles, and expressions — making her look cute as a bug's ear.
But I guess that could be setting her up for either One True Pairing with Colter or to be Surprise Evil Stalker.
Option 3 would be to kill off Reenie so Colter can be Tragic Hero.

ETA:
The client this week seemed to be a close family friend of Reenie. Did she call the Dad "Uncle" in that way some people do with godparents, etc.?
Regardless, she had a personal investment in the case because of who was lost.

Edited April 29 by shapeshifter

[MissLucas]

All I want to know is: does Rennie have a Tardis? She shows up at whatever godforsaken place Colter is camping and I can't remember her ever explaining how she got there.

Looks like Justin Hartley did the parachut jump himself?

Colter should start wearing pauldrons. I was actually multi-tasking when he got shot. I knew before I looked that it must have been a shoulder wound.

Tea bag thing seems real - for minor wounds. Black tea because of the tannins.

[Raja]

15 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

The Gollum-esque bad guy(Peter Stormare/Valtz) seemed to be an incarnation of a fairytale ogre, so having supernatural abilities to sniff out prey?

I was thinking a terminator as he kept on moving with his wound, presumably without  tea bags to help.

[Quickbeam]

No offense to the actor but the Valtz dialogue was laughably bad. My husband noted that last week we got no shirts off scenes so this week they had to make it up with two. I do find Justin handsome but wonder how low his calorie count must be to stay that thin at 47. 
 

Great lawyer role model to my friends grinding it out in major law firms hoping to make partner. Look, you can just flit around the country rescuing people!  

[MerBearHou]

5 hours ago, MissLucas said:

Looks like Justin Hartley did the parachute jump himself?

It sure did!  I was looking closely to try and figure out how a stunt man did that for Justin or if he did it himself — anyone know?

[Morrigan2575]

On 4/28/2024 at 11:05 PM, possibilities said:

Justin H is not my type, but I see that the show is fully committed to using him in that way for those for whom he is.

There was a running joke in TWOP's Smallville page about the Producers putting a shirtless scene quota into Justin's contract because every episode there was shirtless Ollie Queen...I thought it was a CW thing, not thar I'm complaining 😍

Speaking of CW and Ollie Queen, hi less interesting Count Vertigo! Peter Stormare plays a good villain  I was surprised that he was a 1 and done guest star.

I liked this one, the show really works when it has interesting characters looking for the weekly missing person.  I think that's more of a hook than the actual case. 

 

[TheCathedral]

4 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

 

Speaking of CW and Ollie Queen, hi less interesting Count Vertigo! Peter Stormare plays a good villain  I was surprised that he was a 1 and done guest star.

 

 

I agree! He's a really good actor. Was he the biggest guest star so far? 

I feel like every villain is one dimensional tho, the writers need to do a better job with that.

[possibilities]

This is the second time Reenie's excuse for being there was that she had a personal connection to the case.

I wonder whey they didn't just make the show about a duo and make her and Colter a couple from the start, so they can travel together and stop making excuses. They could still do the banter they appear to find cute and sexy, though I personally enjoy the episodes more when that's not happening.

[Dowel Jones]

17 hours ago, MissLucas said:

Looks like Justin Hartley did the parachute jump himself?

My guess is that, while he actually stood on the foot mount of the skydiving plane, they had a fan to mimic the wind, and he jumped on the ground, photo angle being very helpful.  I am a skydiver myself, and I can attest that landing in mountainous terrain surrounded by trees is very dangerous.  Smokejumpers in the fire service use round canopies rather than squares, as you fall straight down, as opposed to travelling forward right up till landing. Not good in trees.  It takes a fair amount of skill to pilot the canopy down through unpredictable winds and land without crashing, neither of which a production company would likely risk their lead actor.  I think he did do the landing, but, again, my guess is that they let him off an unseen crane with his canopy fully inflated for the landing scene.

[Trini]

LOL - I appreciate Peter Stormare's commitment to taking typical bad guy roles and making them weird! (He'll always be Abruzzi from Prison Break to me.)

Yeah, way too many bodies in this one. Also I don't think they explained how first Body ended up at the crash site?

I did like the forest setting and Action!Colter, but not really the rest of the main plot.

I'm still not sold on Reenie and Reenie/Colter. If they really want her and Colter to be a thing, they should just get them together so it makes sense that she's always nearby.

And yeah, I was also like, "Why is there a towel in this scene??" when Colter got out the shower. (Yes, I know why)

Edited May 1 by Trini

[proserpina65]

On 4/29/2024 at 8:57 AM, fastiller said:

I'll never be able to think of Peter Stormare as anything other than the Werner Herzog-esque documentary director who became besotted by Parker in Leverage,

I'll always see him as the character he played in those Volkswagen "Unpimp Your Ride" commercials.  "German engineering in the house.  Jah."

 

 

[Beezella]

On 4/30/2024 at 1:59 PM, Dowel Jones said:

It takes a fair amount of skill to pilot the canopy down through unpredictable winds and land without crashing, neither of which a production company would likely risk their lead actor.

Phew! So I thought. Funny to me though, when asked, of course, he was an experienced jumper! I suspect the character would have claimed he was whether he had ever jumped before though.

I used to want to jump, when I told that to a college advisor he laughed and laughed and asked, "Why would you ever want to do anything that you had to accomplish perfectly the first time?"

[SilverLake0315]

I'm really tired of Reenie. The character is being used too much for my taste.

[Just Here]

On 4/29/2024 at 3:35 PM, Snazzy Daisy said:

Does Colter convert his iPhone into a SAT phone?

There are 'satsleeves', which are basically satellite modems that attach to normal smartphones, so it's possible.

On 4/29/2024 at 3:01 AM, Dowel Jones said:

Great cell coverage out there, though.

On 4/29/2024 at 5:42 AM, shapeshifter said:

Maybe the writers figured the audience for this show would not know what satellite phones are?

To be fair, I only know that sat phones do exist —
and only because of outdoorsy TV dramas.

At about the 16:40 mark in the episode (on Paramount+), Colter's phone has a stubby external antenna, so it looks like the phone he is using could be satellite-capable.

 

Edited May 6 by Just Here
for clarification and because I had a brain-fart

[mojito]

On 4/29/2024 at 10:02 AM, buttersister said:

So reminded me of similar scenes from back in the day (Starsky & Hutch, any number of cute leading men as cops/detectives solving crimes shows) that I laughed and changed the channel.

My friend and I used to call him "Barnaby miss-the-bullet" Jones. Old stiff-bodied Buddy Ebsen would tell someone to stop, and they would immediately turn around and shoot. Buddy would shift his upper body to one side or the other, and the bullet would hit the tree behind him. He was old and stiff, but he could dodge a speeding bullet!

[peeayebee]

On 4/28/2024 at 9:05 PM, possibilities said:

Did the idiot brother really plan to steal the money? I didn't understand how he got away from his kidnappers in the first place. Did they explain that? I genuinely might have been distracted, so I don't blame the show until someone else comes along and says no, none of it made sense.

I was confused, too. And what happened to the bag of money?

 

On 4/29/2024 at 6:57 AM, fastiller said:

I'll never be able to think of Peter Stormare as anything other than the Werner Herzog-esque documentary director who became besotted by Parker in Leverage, so it was tough for me to see him as the BIG!BAD!MAN.

For me it's always Fargo.

 

On 4/29/2024 at 9:57 AM, TheCathedral said:

So Velma is the one with glasses? They need a Great Dane as their pet! Is Colter the Fred equivalent? 

Yeah, I was going to say that an easy way to keep them straight is that Velma wears glasses like Velma from Scooby Doo.