Bobby — Colter’s impossibly brilliant tech guy — has been missing since Episode 9, with his place at the computer chair taken over by his cousin Randy (Chris Lee). Over the course of those six episodes, he is only mentioned twice: first, when Randy appears, and it is revealed that Bobby is dealing with a “family thing”, and then again in last week’s episode, where Colter finally asks Randy if he has heard from Bobby.At first, it seemed like Tracker was just going to be writing Bobby off, replacing him with Randy. Then it seemed like Bobby may actually have a mystery of his own, and Colter was going to have to track him down. In the end, having him just reappear, at his desk, bickering with Randy about computer setup, felt incredibly anticlimactic.
Perhaps that’s because I let my fan-theory brain run away with me, but Tracker is a show that lends itself to fan theories — just look at how they are teasing out the situation with Colter’s dad. Almost nothing is said about Bobby’s absence other than that he is “taking it one day at a time”. In some ways, this feels almost like I’ve missed an episode, one where Colter tracked Bobby down and saved him. I want to be thrilled that Bobby is back, and I did very much enjoy the sibling-esque banter between the cousins, but after being MIA for most of the second half of the season, Bobby deserved a bigger homecoming. Hopefully, we’ll get some deeper explanation to come, and some more of Bobby and Randy as a duo.
“The Mercy Seat” Is A Great Example Of Cabin-In-The-Woods Horror
Leaving Details Up To The Imagination Is A Great Way To Make It Even Scarier The main storyline in the episode is a great example of what Tracker does best – creepy and vaguely paranormal backwoods murder — and it more than makes up for Bobby’s disappointing return. It launches straight into the action, and gives Colter a chance to shine in his best environment, although I was surprised to see that he doesn’t clock a tripwire without help. Maybe he’s been spending too much time messing with crime syndicates in the big city!
What really deserves a mention, though, is how well Tracker manages to draw out the tension and the fear in this one. While some elements felt a little predictable (yes, the group of slightly strange-looking young people who just happen to be in a lonely cabin in the woods are giving me serial killer vibes), it stayed safely on the beautiful horror homage end of the spectrum, never veering into boring territory. And for once, Colter only spends a couple of shots with a gun in his hand, which is a refreshing change!
What really deserves a mention, though, is how well Tracker manages to draw out the tension and the fear in this one. The best part was that Father Ammon’s (Sean Bridgers) twisted games are never revealed in full. Amelia (Ariana Guerra) alludes to “terrible things”, and there are plenty of reports of missing people — the titular “mercy chair” — but the show never spells the horror out. Are Ammon and his boys torturing anyone who wanders into their path, shooting them and leaving them for dead? What are the “games” and gods they refer to? By not answering any of those questions, we’re left to come up with whatever horrors live in the darkest corners of our minds – and those are the most frightening.
