The second season of “Tracer” did not air.
The CBS drama enters its second season as one of the most popular shows on television. The solid but not perfect momentum from Season 1 of Tracker has continued, making the show one of the most-watched series on television.
But what does the product look like? Is it an improvement from the first year? Or have you fallen into the slump of being familiar with your second year of television?
Tracker got better and better midway through the season.
That’s not to say the show is perfect. Still, they upped the ante in many ways, giving Colt a storyline outside of the Shaw family drama.
They deliver this week’s case while continuing to focus on the best part of the series: Colter connecting with people and saving the world.
We’re breaking down the highs and lows of Trackers Season 2’s exciting start, so check it out!
Best Episode – Trackers Season 2 Episode 8 Review: “Nightcrawler”
Trackers Season 2 Episode 8 was not only the best of the season, but one of the best in the entire series.
This week’s case involving Colter, who appears to be searching for a dead man, is interesting and has the right twists and turns to make it feel unpredictable.
Lucas, the dead man, is a man who needs to fake his own death to save himself because he has some terrible information that will tarnish the political careers of local politicians.
Colter soon finds himself involved with a crooked police officer and the leader of “Night Porters,” a low-profile company that specializes in helping people disappear when needed.
But things quickly spiral out of control when Lucas breaks the rules when he returns to town.
Without Colt, his knack for being in the right place at the right time, his ability to solve every situation with quick thinking, and his unique survival skills, the outcome could have been much worse.
The hour is also noteworthy for its ending, with the Gina Pickett case coming back and Colter’s new friend Keaton providing him with someone to focus on.
Colt may finally be getting the break he’s been waiting for (of course, we’ll have to wait and see!), but Keaton is torturing the man for information, which isn’t necessarily Colt’s modus operandi.
Plus, they were given a nickname rather than the suspect’s government name, so he still has a long way to go before progress is made.
But it’s his biggest break in years, and it’s an intriguing cliffhanger as we wait for the series to return.
Worst Episode – Trackers Season 2 Episode 3: Bloodline
Billie has been a polarizing character since she appeared on Trackers Season 1 Episode 6, and she returns in this hour when she calls Colt to help a missing man from her hometown teenager.
It’s kind of like Billie’s backstory and might be better for those who like Billie as a character.
But even if you’re a Billie fan, we don’t necessarily need to delve into her history because there’s still a lot to learn about some of the main characters that show up every week.
The case starts out promising, as a talented young baseball player goes missing, and while the story could have gone in many different directions, it ultimately ends with blood donations and biohacking.
This time is strange. Even the connection between real-life couple Justin Hartley and Sofia Pernas couldn’t save it.
We need more characters – Velma
When news broke that Robin Wiegert’s Teddy wouldn’t be returning for Season 2, many wondered what that would mean for the character and Teddy’s wife, Velma.
Eight episodes into the season, the answer is still to be determined.
Velma is Colt’s handler, so while she’s not usually involved in actual case solving, the series still makes an effort to incorporate her in a way that makes her a fully formed character, in addition to providing Colt with an update on Besides the case, it still exists.
Having her team up with Reenie is a great first step, but they do very little in this regard. Instead of always being at home, she was now always in Reenie’s office, seemingly for no real reason.
They also teased that Velma and Teddy might have marital issues in the first episode of Season 2 of Trackers , but didn’t follow through at all. By now, they were separated and they hadn’t even mentioned Teddy’s name since then.
Tracker has been trying to find ways to develop everyone but Colt, but they gave up on Velma this season, which is saying something considering how little they did with her in season one.
Best Storyline – The Disappearance of Gina Pickett
On the surface, you might say, “How can Gina Picket be the best storyline before the storyline even begins?” You’re not wrong in asking that question, but introducing science Walter’s Moby Dick case gave the series some freshness.
In addition to this week’s case, Season 1 also focused on Colter’s personal drama with his family (more on that later).
While this is very interesting, it would be wise to bring in other stuff from Colt’s past to continue to add shading to his character and give the audience an overall mystery worth investing in.
Colter and Camille’s romantic relationship also adds something to the show. We’ve seen that Colt is somewhat of a ladies’ man, but there aren’t many romantic conquests beyond some minor flirting and wondering what would have happened if things were different.
Colter and Camille’s past existed before Gina’s disappearance and has morphed into something else in the years since. They seem bound by grief, and the moment Camille decides she needs to start moving beyond this pain, Colter gets her biggest break of the past decade.
The story develops slowly and isn’t a major factor so far, but it’s new and interesting.
The Missing Storyline – Shaw Family Drama
The Shaw family drama was undoubtedly one of the best aspects of season one.
We soon learn that this event lingered behind the scenes and helped shape Colt into the man we know him to be now.
Bringing in Dolly and Russell only raises the stakes, as they’re more than just Colt’s estranged siblings who he’s neglecting.
Instead, they became a tangible part of his life’s mission to better understand the deaths of his parents and father.
On the surface it’s a gripping story, but so far they’re acting like it doesn’t exist.
Aside from Russell’s appearance in Trackers Season 2 Episode 2, Colter has barely mentioned what happened at the end of last season, which was that Dory had this box of Ashton’s stuff, but no one Know.
It’s not the most riveting suspense. Still, considering how much of Colt’s existence revolves around his unresolved feelings about his childhood, you’d think he’d be more eager to get back into things.
If you were to tell the story now, you wouldn’t even realize that Colt has major issues with his past as it relates to his family and it feels like they’re almost doing everything they can to get away from it.
but why? Man, if I knew that, but this needs to be corrected in the second half of the season.
Best Guest Star – Jensen Ackles
Let’s be honest: Jensen Ackles makes everything better. That’s why this man has been on TV lately.
His on-screen presence is unparalleled and he and Justin Hartley have tremendous chemistry.
It does feel like these two are brothers with a complicated past, bickering and trying to one-up each other, but also loving and respecting each other.
His appearance this season centers on an hour-long alien in which the brothers must work together to help each other find a missing man who is embroiled in a government conspiracy.
Russell hasn’t been around for a long time, but he had a great time there, and the little tease about him and Renee dating was a great way to introduce Colt’s jealous side, since everyone doesn’t have one A small part of you hopes that Curt and Renee might try it one day?
Well, maybe not everyone, but Russell always brings some fresh energy to the show.
Ax is the accomplished, rough-and-ready yet incredibly skilled older brother who lives for fun and reminds his younger brother who’s boss when they’re out saving the world.
Overall Grade – A-
Tracker Season 2 isn’t perfect, but it’s a lot of fun.
Some of the cases may be overly complex, but they’re interesting and put Colter into some situations we haven’t seen yet.
From aliens to the paranormal to animals to the search for the presumed dead, they all break the mold and overall it works.
Everything follows Colter and continues to send him across the country and put him into these new situations, allowing viewers to continue to get to know this survivalist and career tracker.
Overall, we still need more Reenie, Velma, and Bobby. Every hour without them feels like a wasted opportunity, and they need to fix that.
This is Colter’s show, not an ensemble cast, but you have a great supporting cast and good chemistry. If you could come up with a biohacking blood bank, you could devise storylines where all these characters were in the same city at the same time multiple times over the course of a season!
Leave all your thoughts on the start of Trackers Season 2 in the comments below!
We’ll be back in the new year to discuss everything when the series returns!
Tracker Season 2 returns on February 16 at 8/7c on CBS.
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