Home » TV & Streaming » RESERVATION DOGS Recap (S02E08): This is Where the Plot Thickens

Posted by Noetta Harjo | Sep 13, 2022 | Recaps, Representation Matters, TV & Streaming | 0

People are so weird on Reservation Dogs. In “This is Where the Plot Thickens,” Big (Zahn McClarnon) goes on a trip that brings back sad memories. 

RELATED: Reservation Dogs  Recap (S02E07): Stay Gold Cheesy Boy

Big takes his job seriously. He’s so immersed in his job that he dreams about it. And with all of his conspiracy theories, you have to believe he’s got some crazy dreams. But he doesn’t do drugs. Deer Lady (Kaniehtiio Horn) scared him straight. He’s about the only tribal cop who goes into every situation with a straight face, regardless what’s going on. In his latest dream, he’s chasing a motorcycle with two people. One of those people is Cookie (Janae Collins). She turns to smile at him before the driver rides away. 

A shipment of catfish is stolen from Rob & Cleo’s. It happens about every six months. If you recall, Big found a bunch of fish heads in a ball field in season one. Whoever is stealing the fish is cutting off the heads and leaving them in the weirdest places. Of course, everyone wants to blame the druggies in town. So Big is sent to the junkyard to investigate. 

Kenny Boy (Kirk Fox) and the boys are just sitting around. They have plans to get high later. Their local chemist (Angus Sampson) cooked up his own blend of LSD. He puts several drops of LSD into bottles of Skux energy drinks to be consumed later. When Big arrives, Ansel (Matty Cardarople) gets nervous. The chemist puts the LSD away just as Big walks onto the bus they use as an office. 

After a weird exchange of KennyBoy speaking Dine to Big and Big telling him to stop, Big asks if they know anything about the stolen catfish. KennyBoy says he didn’t steal it, but he may have a lead. As KennyBoy looks for a number, Big helps himself to a bottle of Skux. He drinks half the bottle before they tell him it has drugs. This is where the plot thickens .

Ansel decides to run away as Big tries to throw up. The drugs hits him fast and hard. He freaks out and runs into the woods. Kenny Boy finishes the bottle of Skux and runs after Big. Big hallucinates seeing his grandma and then Deer Lady. He’s so scared that he’s doing something bad. Kenny Boy catches up just as the drugs hit him hard. The two men end up crawling back to the clearing, holding onto each other. 

When they finally are able to think with a clear head, they head back to the junkyard. Along the way, Big hears a group of men chanting, “Ours!” over and over. Kenny Boy hears it too, so they know it’s not a hallucination. Although, what they see next makes them wonder if they are sharing visions. 

A group of cloaked men stand in front of a large wooden owl. They are wearing catfish heads and chanting. Big says he heard about this group on one of his YouTube videos. They are okies with connections in politics and oil & gas. It’s a secret society of white men who believe they are the rightful owners of the land. And they are the ones who stole the catfish shipment. They are performing an initiation ritual for a few of the men. The last part of the ritual is for the four men to pleasure themselves with the stolen catfish. 

Big and Kenny Boy stop them and try to arrest the group of men, but they all know Big is just a tribal cop. The leader of the group is the governor of the state. He says they are making a big mistake. These believe God gave them the land to use as they will because the Natives won’t. They also have security with them. Security takes their weapons and beats them up.

RESERVATION DOGS — “This is Where the Plot Thickens” — Season 2, Episode 8 (Airs September 14) — Pictured: (l-r) Kirk Fox as Kenny Boy, Angus Sampson as Chemist, Matty Cardarople. Copyright 2022, FX Networks. All Rights Reserved. CR: Shane Brown/FX

While Big is out, he remembers seeing Cookie one night at a convenience store. She’s sitting on a motorcycle, smiling. Big can tell that she’s been drinking and offers her a ride home. She says she’s okay and she has a sober driver. Besides, she lives really close. Big says okay and goes into the store. He sees the driver as he stumbles out of the store. He gets more concerned when he sees the motorcycle race off.

Big follows the bike and turns on his sirens. The driver pulls over. When Big gets out of the car, Cookie smiles at him. The driver says he thought Big was a real cop and drives away. Big gets back into his car and follows the motorcycle. When he catches up, he finds a wreck. The motorcycle is on fire and Cookie is lying in the road, dead.

Big wakes up blindfolded. The security guard tied them around a tree, hugging it and facing each other. Big tells Kenny Boy that he’s not a good man. He feels like a failure for not saving Cookie. He starts crying, saying he also owes Kenny Boy an apology. Kenny Boy asks if he can call Big ‘brother.’ Big says okay but not to do it in front of his friends.

They hear a gunshot and a man scream. When the blindfolds are taken off, they see the Deer Lady standing before them. Kenny Boy knows who she is and smiles. She asks if he’s being good. He honest, saying he’s not good, but he’s trying. She gives him a kiss on the cheek. Deer Lady turns to Big and he asks how she knew he was in trouble. She says Cookie told her. He starts crying and she hugs him. She tells them to take care of themselves and leaves.

Big and Kenny Boy pick up the guns and return to the big owl. The governor says they were almost done and they are having a potluck afterwards. He invites Kenny Boy to a white people’s party. Kenny Boy asks if he looks white and he does. Big radios the tribal precinct, telling them where to find him. 

Later, Bear (D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai), Cheese (Lane Factor), Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis), Elora Danan (Devery Jacobs) watch the news report about Big’s case. They are at Elora’s, eating catfish. They smile, proud of Big’s achievement. But their pride turns to disgust when they hear what the white men were doing to those catfish. 

Kenny Boy tells Big that he’s a good man. They shake hands and Kenny Boy calls Big “brother.” Big says Kenny Boy is lucky he doesn’t arrest him. Kenny Boy admits that he’s still tripping. Big walks down the road, looking back every now and then. 

RELATED: Catch up on all of the Reservation Dogs recaps here! 

Watch the Reservation Dogs on FX on Hulu.

Contact: Noetta.Harjo@geekgirlauthority.comNews Editor, Senior Contributor, and Press Editor. Coordinate breaking news, trailers and press releases. I also contribute reviews, recaps and interviews. Creator of the Indigenerd Wire, a column dedicated to the Indigenous creatives in pop culture.GGA's resident Indigenerd, a little bit rez, a little bit classy...with a love for all things Star Wars, zombies, science fiction, and Indigenous. My ultimate goal is to start my own podcast.

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