Streaming Favorite: Tracker the Pilot Episode
© CBS/Paramount+
Hi it’s me, Nutmeg. I’ve been taking some time off. My mom has been super busy and I decided that might be the best time to take a mini staycation. I was brought out of my stupor when my mom decided to re-up her Paramount+ subscription. She says that all these subscriptions are getting out of control and every streaming company expecting between $6-$9/month or more is ridiculous. She then explained it to me in terms of cat food and I’ve got to say that my food is far more important than contributing to the local economy, even if we do live near some studios. I think that all the studios should be so privileged to live near me that they should all be contributing to my upkeep. My mother says, “Good luck with that, Nutty.” That’s what she calls me when she thinks I’m saying ridiculous things.
Oh no. My mom just checked and she told me to get back on track. OMG. She’s being so mean! She said I can’t have any nip until I finish this post. I might go into withdrawals and she’ll have to send me to the Betty Ford Clinic in Palm Springs for a holiday to get off the nip. I’ll try to focus.
I just finished watching the new CBS midseason pilot, Tracker. Now, you are probably wondering why I’m writing about a male, Colter Shaw (Justin Hartley) who tracks down missing persons. He’s the hero. He does all the heavy lifting and the women are secondary. He has a female team, Teddi (Robin Weigert) and Velma (Abby McEnany) who work with him remotely. They take in stray dogs. Dogs! Seriously ladies, get a few cats. He has a female lawyer whom he had a thing with but it ended badly. Finally, there is a female police officer who first arrests him, then assists him in a rescue and he ends up in bed with…This is definitely a masculine world, peppered with femininity.
When we see flashbacks into Colter’s life, we discover his father is both the person who instructed him how to survive in any situation and also the cause of his unrest. We also learn that his family is splintered apart when his little sister stands up to his father. That one action begins a chain of reactions that leads to his father’s death, and perhaps that is why the women in Colter’s life are secondary. Because women standing up for themselves and calling the shots, in his subconscious, are dangerous. [Spoiler Alert] Even more complicated is the situation between his big brother and his father, as it is his big brother, we learn, who it seems, killed his father.
After an intense discussion and critical analysis with my mom that entailed her eating Windmill Cookies and me hitting the Nip while she was grabbing some coffee, and some very new special cranberry and chicken cat treats, we decided that Colter doesn’t trust women. Then my mom asked me why we should include this pilot on a blog that features female investigators when it is the male lead who has the power.
I’m going to be honest. I’m not entirely sure. I enjoyed the pilot. It was full of action. Colter was a hero. But, I’m not going to lie. I’m disappointed the females are such secondary characters. Then my mom brought up a grain of hope.
In the pilot, Colter gets arrested and it is his co-workers that he calls for help. While he’s in jail, it is his former lover who is a good enough lawyer to get him out of jail. Finally, his arresting officer changes her mind (probably mostly because she is attracted to him) and helps him during the final rescue of the episode. So women are helping him…but isn’t that what women have to do? Clean up messes? Are these women just the housekeepers of his life? We’re not sure. We hope not. My mom and I are hoping some badass woman emerges. Maybe it’s Colter’s mom. Maybe it’s the lawyer who got him out of any charges. We’re not sure. But we live in hope.
I’m going to hit the nip and think about the representation of women in the media. I suggest you do the same.