Bad news, Reacher fans: season 4 now has two unforgivable plot holes
‘Reacher’ finds its punch again, though Alan Ritchson’s bruiser still has rough edges.
We need to talk about Reacher Season 4. The show’s really managed to level up this year: tighter plotting, more stylish fight scenes, and the core cast chemistry is arguably the best it’s ever been. But, as per usual, when something’s firing so well on most cylinders, the bits where it coughs and splutters are even more obvious. Episode 4, "Karambits and Pieces", brings a couple of proper head-scratchers that, to me, cross over from minor logic gaps into full-blown story-breaking territory. You can call them accidental goofs, lazy script shortcuts, or whatever you like, but it’s less ‘mystery to be solved later’ and more ‘did anyone in the writers’ room actually talk this through?’ Up to you how much you care – I might just be nitpicking – but let’s take a look at the two big offenders.
Reacher Season 4, Episode 4, "Karambits and Pieces," introduces two major plot problems that stand out in an otherwise sharp season.
The Tamara/Jacqueline Badge Fiasco
Story-wise, the group needs access to a government facility – you know, the type that scans and shreds ‘vintage’ official records, anything over a decade old. The plan: Jacob (that’s Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette) pinches an ID badge off one hapless worker, Jacqueline Reed (played by Vicki Kim), while she’s only briefly nipping out for a snack across the road. Makes sense, right? Or at least, that’s what the show wants us to believe. Jacqueline’s clearly on a quick break, probably sprinting back to her desk – she’s not off for a long lunch. So what does Jacob do when Jacqueline turns up at the facility almost instantly, blowing Tamara Green’s (Sydelle Noelle) cover? He’s actually shocked, borderline panicking, and manages to blurt out, "How fast does she eat?" as if this is the most unexpected thing in the world.
I could understand if the characters were banking on Jacqueline taking the afternoon off, but everything in the scene points instead to them trying their luck with a literal window of minutes. Surely not just Jacob, but Tamara and Russell Plum (Kevin Weisman) — who are party to this half-thought-out scheme — would have known precisely how limited their time was. The suspense of Tamara nearly getting caught rings cheap, once you realise the thrill is created by everyone acting as if lunch breaks last an hour and not five minutes.
‘Getaway Vehicle’ Oversight
Right, next up: the car. Staying off the grid’s been a theme all season, which even casual viewers have picked up on. Plum’s minivan gets repainted, disguised, the lot — the point’s hammered home multiple times. So, when Tamara legs it from this supposedly top-secret doc-shredding facility, climbs into the gang’s car, and they all drive off into traffic… Well, you’d expect first order of business would be to ditch the car, right? Maybe swap for something less ‘fresh from a government heist’?
Apparently not. Nobody seems all that bothered. The car is both the escape vehicle and the mode of transport they keep using afterwards — even getting stuck in a proper traffic jam, still in the same ride. This is after leaving a site brimming with CCTV and cops, where not just faces but numberplates will be all over the security logs. Yet, there’s not a whisper of pursuit, and everyone’s acting as if mission accomplished, time for tea.
- Christopher Rodriguez-Marquette plays Jacob
- Vicki Kim is Jacqueline Reed
- Sydelle Noelle is Tamara Green
- Kevin Weisman plays Russell Plum
To be fair, the show’s mostly excellent this season, and I’m usually happy to handwave the odd dodgy plot beat. But these two – the laughably optimistic badge heist, and the magically invisible getaway car – just push things beyond what I can reasonably ignore.