The following story contains spoilers for Reacher season 2.
When Jack Reacher returned for season 2, the hit Amazon Prime Video protagonist found himself smack dab in the middle of a conflict that was even more dangerous than his last. Not only did the murder of a former friend dredge up the past, but it forced the former U.S. Army Major to face everything he was running away from in the first season. Still, those out to do our main character harm should have known better than to miss with Jack Reacher.
Throughout season 2, Reacher has uncovered numerous secrets about his former MP unit. After finding out that his murdered friend, Calvin Franz, was thrown out of a helicopter, he's not sure who he can he still trust. Anyone on the team could have betrayed them, including former flame Karla Dixon, family man David O'Donnell, and the shifty Tony Swan. There's also NYPD detective Guy Russo and private defence contractor security head Shane Langston. As we approach the finale, audiences are getting closer to figuring out the mystery. To try and get an answer ourselves, we turned to—who else?—the fans.
Why Did Langston Kill Franz?
The theory that Langston killed Franz was confirmed in season 2, but we still don't really know the former NYPD detective's true motivations. "Langston says to Franz before throwing him out of the helicopter that he's tracking his friends," on Reddit user recalled. "How could this be?! This is 10 days earlier? No one has reunited by this point." It's later revealed that two other former team members, Jorge Sanchez and Manuel Orozco, were also killed offscreen prior to the events of season 2. All three were investigating something that threatened Langston's New Age Technologies company.
Is O'Donnell Involved?
Though it could all be a red herring, it's possible that the season 2 finale will reveal an additional double-crosser in Reacher's team. Though pitched as a family man who was having a convenient "unplugged weekend" during Franz's murder, we've never actually seen even a photo of O'Donnell's family. "Do you guys think O’Donnell is dirty?" Reddit user swaggersense asked. "I believe he was never with his family and instead was working with New Age."
Still, not everyone agrees. "I don't think any of the former team will end up being traitors: that would mean Reacher would have misread their character back in the day when he picked the Special Investigators team, and it feels like this would go against the grain of the show," another user commented. "Reacher is portrayed as excellent judge of character, past and present."
How Will Reacher Kill Langston?
After Reacher promised to throw Langston out of a helicopter in revenge, it's all but confirmed that our hero will finish the job as planned. "Will we all at least feel better about this season when Reacher throws Langston out of a moving helicopter?" one Reddit user asked. Another chimed in, "I just assume there will be helicopter." For Reacher's sake, let's just hope he finishes season 2 out strong.
Josh Rosenberg is an Assistant Editor at Esquire, keeping a steady diet of one movie a day. His past work can be found at Spin, CBR, and on his personal blog at Roseandblog.com.
