Episode 5 continued a storytelling trend that Tracker season 2 already established. When Jensen Ackles returned as Rusell Shaw, he found his brother after Colter went missing on a classified Department of Defense site. The brothers end up at the top-secret site together, searching for a missing person who sought out the location due to an alleged alien connection. Still, Tracker season 2, episode 2, remains realistic, with Colter refusing to believe it was aliens. However, Tracker’s history with supernatural concepts before even this explains the disappointment of “Preternatural.”
Tracker Season 1, Episode 9 Has A Paranormal Premise But A Grounded Resolution
“Aurora” Teases The Harkwood Witch
In Tracker season 1, episode 9, “Aurora,” Colter looks for a missing teenage girl, in a case with a supernatural premise. Lana Russo (Paolina van Kleef) and her friend Jamie go missing while investigating the Harkwood Witch. They believe in witchcraft, and their belief is involved in their disappearance. The girls would go to an abandoned mental health hospital in their area, where their friend, Toby (Nicco Del Rio), believes they encountered dark spirits. Ultimately, however, Colter discovers an older woman named Maeve Price (Bronwen Smith), whose brother is a serial killer, assaulted the girls.
“Aurora” teases paranormal elements, but Colter provides a grounded conclusion as to why the friends went missing (while also proving the high schoolers didn’t take their own lives because they were depressed). Therefore, Lana Russo’s case successfully adds a bit of paranormal mystique to the series while staying tethered to reality. While Lana’s friend Toby has scratches from the apparent witch, Colter doesn’t take a stance on the kid’s experience, leaving things open-ended in a way that works. How Tracker season 1 resolves the case in “Aurora” allows people to believe there was paranormal involvement but offers a pragmatic ending.
Tracker Season 2’s Paranormal Story Left The Truth About Its Witchcraft Mystery Unresolved
Colter Teases A Bewitching Conclusion
In contrast, Colter somewhat validates that Emmaline is a witch in Tracker season 2 by leaving the conclusion open-ended. While similarly chronicling a teenage girl with paranormal encounters, Tracker season 2, episode 5’s storytelling shift strays too far from the show’s premise. Colter leaves the mystery of Lana’s paranormal encounters unanswered enough not to shut anything down, but there’s an explanation for everything paranormal happening in “Aurora.” At one point, Colter even tells the detective that strange things happen at the mental hospital because it attracts odd people, not because there are dark spirits or ghosts.
Emmaline’s connection to witchcraft isn’t as dark-natured as Lana’s, but it takes the witch premise further. Emmaline is an intuitive healer who uses plant medicine to perform medical wonders. A local man tells Colter that Emmaline helped his wife, reversing her cancer and infertility. After Colter watches Emmaline perform a magical ceremony on the patriarch of the family who kidnapped her, Colter gets injured while they are escaping. Colter later reports that the paramedics say it’s a wonder he’s stable. Tracker heavily implies that Colter experienced a medical miracle when he asks the girl if she was involved.
Regardless Of The Case, Tracker Needs To Stay Grounded
Tracker Is Best When Based In Reality
Tracker Established Colter’s Season 2 White Whale Case In Season 1 (But You Might Have Missed It)
Tracker sets up Colter’s Gina Picket case in season 1, but you might have missed it because Justin Hartley’s show doesn’t make the setup obvious.
While occasional paranormal genre shifts work for the show, Tracker is best within its established premise. The series should provide an explanation for those who want the show to stay grounded, which season 1, episode 9, expertly does while experimenting with a different tone. Season 1 laid out how Colter is the most level-headed person in the room and that we could count on Hartley’s character to consistently bring others back to reality. Tracker season 2 compromises what we know about Colter, and the second half can either return to form or stray further from it.
