Episode Title: “Armies of One”
Writer: John Romano
Director: Babak Najafi
Previously on “Banshee”:
Episode 2.05 “The Truth About Unicorns”
Ever since Lucas Hood (Antony Starr) showed up in Banshee, so have more and more “scumbags,” according to Deputy Brock Lotus (Matt Servitto). And this week’s episode ups the count by one more when a Jason Statham-wannabe named Quentin rolls into town in a vintage red Jag looking for Jason Hood.
Just as Lucas hands Jason (Harrison Thomas) his brand new life in an envelope, Quentin arrives at Sugar’s bar looking to collect on the sixty-five thousand Jason stole from his boss. Lucas intervenes, a gun fight breaks out and suspicions are raised when Brock starts seeing a pattern; wherever there’s trouble in Banshee, there’s Lucas Hood.
With Agent Racine dead, Hood needs a new threat to his identity and Brock Lotus, guided by Gordon Hopewell (Rus Blackwell), is just that. Lotus already resents Hood for taking his promotion, wait till he finds out just how under-qualified Sheriff Hood really is.
While Brock is just beginning to unravel Hood’s real identity, it’s no secret to the bad guys the sheriff tangles with. When Hood finds Quentin sitting on a city bench, vicariously living through the pigeons he’s getting drunk on whiskey soaked bread, the British enforcer tells the sheriff he doesn’t fight like your average man but rather an “army of one.” In the world in which men like Hood and Quentin operate it takes on to know one, or more to the point, it takes one to fight one.
But Quentin isn’t interested in exposing Hood; he’s been given orders to retrieve the money and the boy. The extra fifty grand Hood offers him doesn’t stop Quentin from going back on their deal and kidnapping Jason. Hood senses something isn’t right and waits for Quentin on the road out of Banshee. Another fight ensures as tractor-trailers speed by, just inches away and one ends up decapitating Quentin, whose head lands in a nearby field. “Banshee” may be violent, but at least it’s creative violence.
With Hood preoccupied with Quentin and Jason, Brock sneaks into the sheriff’s place where he finds a picture of the Hopewell family in happier times. Presently, Gordon spends his nights getting drunk at Kai’s strip club while Deva (Ryann Shane) takes her driver’s ed teacher and two classmates on a joyride to hell as she careens through downtown Banshee. Looks like she won’t be getting her license any time soon.
As for the ongoing war between Kai Proctor (Ulrich Thomsen) and Alex Longshadow (Anthony Ruivivar), the two may have reached a momentary peace. Longshadow approaches Proctor with his concerns about being unseated as chief. Should Alex lose his position, the casino project both men are so invested in could come to a halt. Proctor asks for the names of the opposing council members who will likely be paid a visit by Burton (Matthew Rauch).
Speaking of the bespeckled bruiser, he makes an appearance when Kai catches Rebecca (Lili Simmons) having sex with Jason. Having spied on her uncle with a woman, yet again, Rebecca decides to emulate him with Jason, forcing him to be submissive. Unfortunately for Jason, having sex with him is not part of the deal Rebecca unwittingly made with Kai. As the two are going at it, Kai and Burton bust into Jason’s hotel room and Burton strangles him to death. Later, Burton cleans up the crime scene, revealing the lash marks on his back in between flashbacks to when he was whipped.
Burton’s past and Kai’s need to kill Jason hint at the Banshee business mogul’s sadistic side. However, the killing of Jason also feels like a somewhat contrived excuse to put Hood and Proctor at odds again (assuming Hood finds the watch he gave Jason which Burton accidentally left behind).
Fortunately, there’s enough insanity going on in this small Pennsylvania town to forgive the occasional questionable subplot. Like how about the fact that the diamonds Hood went to jail for fifteen years for stealing are fake? Job (Hoon Lee) drops this bomb at the end of the hour when he returns from New York, where he had a hard time fencing the bag of glass. He may be not be there, but Rabbit has proven once again that as long as Hood remains breathing, he’ll be there to torment him. Perhaps now Lucas and Carrie will finish what Agent Racine started – and died for.
