Sheriff Country Season 2, Episode 3 “Ulysses” is a painful reminder that we’re only at the beginning of a new season watching emotional and exciting storylines build for these characters. We don’t mean painful in a bad way. We’re just left wanting more every week so, naturally we feel impatient for conclusions when procedurals are this addicting. But we also know good things come to those who wait. And there’s lots to look forward to if the rest of the season is as action-filled, heartfelt, and intense as this hour was.
“Ulysses” gave us more of Wes being kidnapped, motivations behind Eva’s tough life choices, and Mickey being helpless to fight the soft spot she has for them as her parents. Ultimately, there’s a long road ahead for characters who have been blindsided, those who are trying to do the right thing, and others who want to fix relationships they ruined. In one of Sheriff Country‘s best episodes yet, this hour has left us sitting with how Wes’s disappearance could be the best thing to happen to him.
MORE: Miss last week’s episode? Watch then read our Season 2, Episode 2 “Family Trust” Review HERE!
The Hard Truth About Love
As messed up as it sounds, we believe we’re right here. Because the hard truth about love when it’s real and everlasting is that pain doesn’t make the feeling disappear. Mickey’s worry over Wes in “Ulysses” is proof that she still loves her father despite everything he’s put her through. Because if she truly hated him, she would’ve turned her cheek. Mickey wouldn’t have been sick at the thought of losing him for good if didn’t want to see him again.
An undeniable fact of Mickey’s life is that her father matters to her. So, their bond may be unstable, but it’s not broken. She wouldn’t have recoiled watching Wes’s abduction tape with Eva if she didn’t care about him. So, this hour was like cold water to Mickey’s face. She can’t pretend he isn’t nothing to her because it would be a lie.
At this point, it’s clear that Mickey will never stop loving him. Admittingly, we can see he’s a good man who cares about people. We saw how he protected Molly and the missing girls in this hour. So, we want him to do the work to deserve Mickey’s affection because we know he loves her back. We saw his phone wallpaper being Mickey and Skye when he dropped it. Unfortunately, the hour ended in Mickey being unsuccessful in bringing Wes home. But we hope feeling threatened by a drug cartel will make him want to be a good father once and for all.
MORE: Everything We Know About Sheriff Country and Fire Country Upcoming Crossover
Eva Explains Herself
Some good came out of his absence in the form of Mickey and Eva getting closer in “Ulysses” and we’re not mad about it. If we’re honest, the scenes between them were the best of the hour because Eva was the one to speak while Mickey listened. Ultimately, one thing we’ve always liked about Eva’s character is that she has never asked for Mickey’s forgiveness because she knew what she did was extreme. She left her family behind and made them believe she was dead for thirty years. Before, she knew when to be quiet and take the lashings she deserved but this was different.
Why didn’t Eva back down when Mickey accused her of treating her as an undercover mission gone bad? Because it wasn’t true and Eva couldn’t let her daughter believe she wasn’t cared for. It was why she showed up to Mickey’s house in a sweatshirt after a restless night. She couldn’t stop thinking about telling her daughter what really happened after she was arrested.
Overall, we couldn’t help but feel for Eva because she looked pained retelling her life story. It may have been easy to hate her when first meeting her. But it’s also easy to sympathize with her now after knowing everything she went through. She was young, accomplished, and afraid of ruining Mickey’s life if she came back after such a big lie. In the end, Eva stayed away because she was waiting for the DEA members who knew her case to die. If she came home earlier, they would’ve made their lives hell.
Now, we can’t help but want them to eventually have a good relationship down the line. Mickey may not get a re-do at the childhood she deserved but she has a mother who’s selfless and cares about her happiness. And that’s someone she deserves to have in her life.
Boone and Cassidy
Moving forward, this case has turned extremely personal for Mickey. Honestly, we’re comforted by the fact that she has her best friends beside her to cope. Because we know she’s going to want them to help keep her head on straight. However, there are multiple elephants in the room we can’t ignore. What’ll happen now when she has to find the missing girls and her father at the same time? Surely, it’ll be tough at times to manage if she asks for her father the minute, she walks into a room tied to the Bulgarians.
Which is why we’re glad to have Cassidy as the logical one on the team when her partners are easy to distract. Throughout “Ulysses” she was the one making connections between missing files, reminding Boone to take care of himself, and validating Mickey’s fear when Eva revealed Wes was kidnapped. The Bulgarian drug traffickers are dangerous, and the team can’t afford to make any mistakes with lives on the line. Ultimately, Cassidy doesn’t have personal ties to the case or romantic feelings for Mickey. Not like Boone who isn’t thinking clearly. Currently, he feels obligated to protect her no matter the cost.
Sure, there’s nothing wrong with hiding feelings for someone but now isn’t the time to be reckless. “Ulysses” may have had these two argue for one of the first times on screen, but we felt like it was necessary. Boone needed the call-out to hear that he can’t be the hero when the team needs to be a united front. (Even if we did squeal hearing someone say that Boone should do something about loving Mickey).
Sheriff Country airs Fridays on CBS at 8pm EST.
