The Outpost Review: Regarding the Matter of Garret Spears (Season 2 Episode 4)

I’m sure if you have read my reviews before, you know that I am a big fan of The CW. A majority of the television shows I watch find their home on this network, and even though they are usually geared towards a slightly younger audience, I’m okay with that.

Many of the shows that air on The CW fall into certain cliques and genres causing things to often feel formulaic — whether intended to or not. The Outpost often avoids these tropes with much gusto. The Outpost Season 2 Episode 4, “Regarding the Matter of Garret Spears,” is a shining example of this.

Over the last several years I have watched every season of Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, and Black Lightning. Between all the differences and similarities of these shows, one annoying thing always stood out to me. After an episode of major reveals and happenings, the following week or two leaves the audience with flat drama and stale fight scenes in the aftermath.

I understand this is probably no coincidence. Members of the audience can take time to catch their breath and collect their thoughts on the situation before jumping back into the thick of things. But it always feels like a letdown to me when I’m left with my hands in the air as the ball passes me by a few inches to the left — talk about frustrating!

As I said, I’ve gotten used to it, and pretty much expect it these days — not letting my hopes get up too high.

This is why I’m so feverish over this current episode of The Outpost. Not only does the show refuse to reel itself back in, it further intensifies the need for more. 

The episode starts with the unfolding drama of Garret Spears. My goodness, this man is being brutally crushed!

Although he doesn’t take much in the way of physical abuse this time around, all his beliefs are being turned upside down. Everything he once held as a stone-cold fact is turned on its head — making him doubt his every decision. I hold out the hope that he may be playing the part until he gets the right opportunity to strike a blow to his captors, but it is rather unclear at this point if this will happen.

It would be great to see Garret get to the gates of the Outpost and rally his former troops into a battle that the Prime Order has grown overly confident in. It is too early to know in any kind of certainty whether this will happen and when. This is another admirable trait of the show that other programs need to look into — being unpredictable.

Garret: I need to be alone right now.

I can’t count the number of times I think I have Talon and all the other characters figured out, outlining in my mind the path I believe they will take — just to be proven wrong. Like I pointed out with the last episode, the poor innocent Dragman wasn’t Dred’s pawn as she first appeared to be.

Similar to The 100, characters are often caught playing in the gray areas of life — where good can be occasionally evil and evil occasionally good.

As the seemingly evil Dred explains to Garret the reasons why he feels Gwynn is a “false queen,” I am ready to write it off as some delusional brainwashing technique. Surprisingly enough, the rather reasonable explanation — paired with the painting that Garret reveals — makes for a plausible case against her.

How dare they make me question the motives and believability of my favorite character! I could kiss and kick them at the same time.

Since Gwynn is not the central focus of the show, things can get quite shaken up here. This isn’t Talon going on some random killing spree,  going against her own built upon characteristics.

This is Gywnn, whose backstory is kind of hazy to begin with. We’ve seen parts of it spelled out before, but it doesn’t necessarily click together neatly.

The writers take these missing pieces and give us a “what if” scenario that is just crazy enough to work. I hope that if it proves true in the end, everyone has done their homework making an underlying purpose for it all.

Just because this may pan out to be true, remember that doesn’t make Gwynn evil. There can still be some silver lining to this cloud where the end justifies the means. Or maybe it is a lie that got way out of hand. 

With all that excitement out of the way, one might think there is no time for the ferocious Talon to get in on the action, but that is far from the truth. With all that Gywnn and Garret do for the drama in this episode, Talon and Rebb answer with action. 

Even if you gave me a hundred dollars to answer you, I couldn’t tell you which fight is more intense — Talon verses Rebb or Locuri verses Locuri. Both of them put me on the edge of my seat, but for different reasons.

Of course, we want to see Talon get revenge for the Dragman and all the trama Rebb has caused over the last few episodes, but who doesn’t enjoy a good creature on creature fight?

Parts of the Locuri fight are hard to follow with their color being just slightly different, but Michael Bay didn’t do any better with his big-budget Transformers franchise, so who can complain about that really?

The funny thing is that I didn’t even know I wanted to see this fight happen until it is already in full effect. Cheering on the creatures as they go head-to-head is as fun as it is exciting.

And the best part is that it isn’t even filler. The fight helps build trust between Talon and her newfound companion. His actions to save the Locuri makes him at least appear honorable.

I’m not yet convinced that this man is truly on Talon’s side. He says all the right things as if they are almost rehearsed. With the way Talon and Rebb’s fight ends, it will be interesting to see how the relationship between Talon and her newest “ally” unfolds.

Talon’s lie detector has to be running high at the moment, so I’m sure she won’t be buying anyone’s half-truths easily. Her connections with everyone have been tested to the limit, and the last thing she needs is another questionable friend.  

On the other hand, a slot has recently opened up for the thorn in Talon’s side. Keeping the fight personal makes things feel more at stake, and if the hero isn’t invested — neither is the audience. 

As of the current state of affairs, I’m all in.

What did you think of this episode of The Outpost? What has surprised you the most so far this season? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Outpost airs Thursdays at 9/8c on The CW.

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