The Question Why – The episode opens with an injured Joe Pickett (Michael Dorman) watching Camish Grimmengruber (Alex Breaux) and his brother, Caleb Grimmengruber (Alex Breaux) removing his horse’s organs and drinking its blood. One of the brothers picks up Pickett’s scent before going for his gun. Grimacing in pain, Pickett removes his gun from the holster before ordering them to “freeze.” Refusing to comply, Caleb and Camish move in closer until Pickett comes under fire. Pickett fires a shot, hitting Caleb in the cheek. Camish announces only a few bullets left in his gun. Unable to pull out the broken arrow, Pickett hobbles through the woods before tripping on a log. Camish assesses Caleb’s gunshot wound to discover several teeth are missing. When he promises to make the “Government Man” pay, Caleb warns it won’t be easy. Camish reluctantly accepts his help.

Picket approaches a cabin with smoke emitting from the chimney. Rosie warns he should be there.

Marybeth Pickett (Julianna Guill) a call from Blaire asking about Pickett. She tries calling his phone when Sheridan Pickett (Skywalker Hughes) approaches. She assures her the problem is poor phone service. A call to the Wyoming Game & Fish Department produces no information. Randy Pope (Chris Gauthier) asks if she is aware of Pickett totaling the new truck the department gave him. He informs her of it being the second state truck Pickett totaled within a year. She reminds him of the “drunk elk” that contributed to the accident before voicing her concern for her missing husband. He says the department cannot trace his state satellite phone if Pickett broke it or turned it off. He suggests Pickett “crashed his horse.” Irate, she orders him to shove it. Lucy Pickett (Kamryn Pilva) pleads with her to not get her dad fired.

Pickett hallucinates when he comes through. When Rosie approaches, he believes she is his mother and then Marybeth. She suggests leaving before Camish and Caleb find him before offering to remove the broken arrow. She gives him a concoction to ease the pain. As she removes the arrow, he screams in pain.

Camish and Caleb track Pickett through the woods. Laying on the ground where Pickett previously landed after tripping on the log, Caleb sees smoke.

Crickett (Aadila Dosani) alerts Sheriff Barnum (Patrick Gallagher) of Pickett’s missing. Barnum doesn’t take Marybeth seriously. She assures him that something Pickett is in trouble. He says her overreaction is understandable with everything she has been through. She informs him of Pickett’s searching for the missing hunter, Frank Urman. He demands to know why no one told him. He promises to dispatch Deputy Shane McLanahan (Chad Rook) to Bermuda Mountain in search of Urman and Pickett.

Camish and Caleb gradually approach the cabin as Pickett wakes up. Pickett immediately searches the room as Grimengruber asks “Rosie” if she is alone. He removes a handgun from a woodpile. Caleb blocks the chimney, causing the cabin to fill with smoke. When Camish busts into the cabin, Pickett fires a shot at him. Several shots are fired before Pickett jumps out the window. Camish fires shots at him as he hobbles through the woods. Pickett looks back to see the cabin burning.

Marybeth gets a visit from Cricket. She tells her that she needs to get in touch with Nate Romanowski (Mustafa Speaks). Cricket reminds her of Nate being a fugitive. Marybeth assures her that Pickett is in trouble before suggesting Nate could find him. Cricket warns it could cost her job but she would reach out to him if she knew where he was at. Lucy asks why the police were at their house. Claiming to have spoken with Pickett earlier, Marybeth assures her he is all right.

Pickett makes his way through the woods while repeating the names of Lucy, Marybeth, Sheridan, and April Keeley (Vivienne Guynn). After seeing a body hanging in the tree, he collapses to the ground. He comes through as someone pulls him through the woods. Nate picks his limp body off the ground. Pickett wakes in the hospital to see Marybeth at his bedside.

Believing someone is in her house, Cricket arms herself with a baseball bat. When Nate approaches from behind, she swings the bat at him. She scolds him for only sending him blank postcards. He reminds her of his giving her a contact number. Opening the door, she asks him to leave. As he reluctantly walks through the door, she admits to having a date.

Pickett explains what happened in the woods. Sheriff Barnum says the body in the woods has not been identified. Pickett questions if it is Frank. Sheriff Barnum tells him that the clothes found near the body match the description of what he was last seen wearing. Marybeth questions why he put his life in danger to give Grimmengruber a ticket. She asks if he is trying to get killed. He assures her that isn’t what he was doing.

On her way home, Marybeth sees Charlie Left Hand (Sean Wei Mah) broken down beside the road. She offers him a ride to Big Horn. He warns against picking up strangers. In town, he asks the locals if they have seen his missing daughter, Marissa Left Hand (Tanchay Redvers).

Sheriff Barnum communicates with a helicopter pilot from a command post in the woods. McLanahan questions Pickett’s story. He suggests searching for Frank’s killer who is probably from Saddlestring. Sheriff Barnum informs Luke Brueggeman (Keean Johnson) that the search has been canceled. Pickett says they are not searching the right area before removing his IV. Luke warns the hospital staff won’t release him. Seconds later, Pickett is emerging from the hospital.

Sheriff Barnum tells McLanahan how Frank accompanied him to have his Irish Setter euthanized. He orders the details of Frank’s murder to be kept confidential to keep the locals calm. Luke and Pickett pull up. Pickett demands to know why the search was canceled. Sheriff Barnum and McLanahan question his story. Pickett has a flashback of what happened in the woods. When Frank’s body is cut down, a casino chip falls out of his clothes. Pickett utilizes a napkin to retrieve it. A short distance away, someone is watching the scene through a rifle scope. The episode ends.

 

Joe Pickett Review

Pickett finds himself alone and injured in the woods. The Grim brothers hunt him like prey. A shootout results in Pickett shooting Caleb in the face. He makes his way to a cabin where “Rosie” (probably Marissa Left Hand) removes the broken arrow and treats his wound. A short time later, Camish and Caleb close in on the cabin. Pickett escapes out a window as the cabin goes up in smoke.

Sheriff Barnum and Pickett’s new boss, Randy Pope don’t take Marybeth’s concerns for Pickett’s well-being seriously. She convinces the Sheriff to send McLanahan by informing him of his missing friend, Frank Urman. She eventually asks Cricket to get Nate involved. Pickett is delirious when Nate finds him. After waking up in the hospital, he explains what happened. Sheriff Barnum arranges a search party and helicopters to search the area for a burning cabin and other evidence to validate his story. McLanahan convinces him to cancel the search party. When Pickett finds out, he leaves the hospital with the help of Luke. They arrive at the scene as the search party wraps up. As Frank’s body is being cut down, a casino chip falls to the ground. No one else notices except Pickett.

The show is filled with obvious flaws. It’s difficult to take any of the characters seriously except Pickett and Marybeth. The dialogue is cringeworthy while the script is unrealistic.

The fishing and Hunting profession recently topped OSHA’s “Top 10 Most Dangerous Jobs” list. The profession has a fatal injury rate of 132.1 per 100,000 employees. The danger fishing and hunting workers face was less about lawbreakers and more about drowning, wildlife trap, and heavy machinery accidents.

Game Warden Pickett encounters more dangerous villains than Wyoming’s most dangerous animal, the grizzly bear. Oh, I almost forgot, being sarcastic, the series is filmed in Alberta, Canada.

Saddlestring Sheriff’s Department’s incompetency becomes more apparent when Frank’s body is left hanging in a tree hours after Pickett is rescued.

The episode deserves a 5.7. Get more Joe Pickett recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by clicking the link. Our onsite advertising is customizable and scalable, learn more by contacting our customer support.