Cinemax’s Banshee
Season 3, Episode 2: “Snakes & Whatnot”
Directed by Loni Peristere
Written by Halley Wegryn Gross

* For a recap & review of the Season 3 premiere, “The Fire Trials” – click here
* For a recap & review of the next episode, “A Fixer of Sorts” – click here
 Love how this episode’s opening starts off completely different than any other one before it, even the Massive Attack theme itself is remixed. Really gets Season 3 going after its first episode. Nice touch.
What we see is the Proctor trucks get packed with drugs before they’re shipped off, as Kai (Ulrich Thomsen) and niece Rebecca (Lili Simmons) look on.
Elsewhere in Banshee, Carrie (Ivana Milicevic) is being pursued at work by her suitor, Colonel Stowe (Langley Kirkwood). Also, Hood (Antony Starr) and Deputy Siobhan Kelly (Trieste Kelly Dunn) are thinking of moving in together.
Best of all, we have a new addition to the cast, one that proves interesting – Kurt Bunker (Tom Pelphrey). He’s a former neo-Nazi, trying to shed his old skin, as well as remove all his old tattoos. He wants in on the sheriff’s department, having been with one in Florida. For now, he’s turned away.

At the slaughterhouse, Kai is trying to get business settled. While the place was shut down others took up the slack. Well things go sideways when one of the men insults Kai, and his niece blows the guy’s legs nearly all the way off. This causes lots of death. Seems like uncle has a problem child on his hands. All the same, that’s his own fault. He killed a man that was sleeping with her then ground his body up in front of her. Plus, he’s obviously been sleeping with her. God, she has no chance at ever being normal again.
Gordon (Rus Blackwell) isn’t feeling normal, either. He’s feeling less like himself every day. He and Alison Medding (Afton Williamson) are trying to do some work, but Gordon’s trying to adjust to everything. Being mayor’s bad enough, not to mention all his other problems.
Back with Sugar (Frankie Faison), Carrie, and Job (Hoon Lee), Hood is trying to get them geared up for their latest job. Now that Carrie knows Stowe is cooking the books at the base, that he’s who they’re stealing from, things get sticky. And Hood notices there’s something on her mind.
Job: “This ain‘t just another bad motherfucker. This the guy they send in to clean out all the other bad motherfuckers.”

Kai heads out to Amish county. His father tries to stop him from seeing his mother, but Kai goes on anyway. She’s not well, spitting up blood. Instead of letting things go on, the loving son literally carries his mother out and to the hospital. She has pancreatic cancer; a month to live. Breaks my heart, even while Kai is a sick guy. There’s likely a reason why he is that way. So it kills me to watch his mother die and he’s basically trying to do all he can, after being separated for such a long time from her, his family. He finally wants to make something right, somehow. That’s heartbreaking.
In a motel room, Carrie and Stowe meet for more sex. He’s an aggressive man, he takes what he wants. But now she decides they have to break it off, as there’s this other thing happening in her life; the heist. She makes up excuses, though we know that’s what drives the decision ultimately. Worst of all, we discover Stowe is slightly unstable. Not only a Marine, a bad ass one at that. He is unsettlingly off balance. And once Carrie heads to her car, she finds Hood’s followed her: “You really like your military men,” he quips. Part jealousy, part professional curiosity and concern.
 Chayton Littlestone (Geno Segers) is readying his Redbones for war. They fire automatic rifles, as he preaches to them. About Adolf Hitler’s madness. About Proctor, his slaughter of the Kinaho leader. He then sends men to get Kai and Rebecca. Oh, man. This is going to get intense. Also, Chayton’s younger brother Tommy (Ricky Russert) wants to take on more, not wanting others to think he’s getting a free ride being the big guy’s brother. What I worry is that this will end up with the youngest brother dead, the older one on a rampage. However, we’ll have to wait and see how that plays out.
Meanwhile, Nola Longshadow (Odette Annable) is still sticking around. She’s not as connected to the tribe like Chayton. We discover she had a troubled youth, that Chayton was a sort of saviour to her. All the same, she is not sure he’s able to take on Proctor, that he’s prepared. So there may be a diverging path between these two Native American souls; one goes one way, one headed in the other opposite direction.
Through underground tunnels, Carrie and Hood are checking out the spot for their military robbery. Everything’s being laid out, the specifics ironed, so on. Simultaneously, we see more of Colonel Stowe and his personality, his demeanour. The fact they’re headed for a big showdown with this guy later in this season is going to be explosive. You can tell by his ominous nature that this will be quite a test for the crew. Redbones descend upon the Proctor residence. As Rebecca gets out of the pool, they attack. She fends them off a bit first. Afterwards, the ever psychotic Clay Burton (Matthew Rauch) takes down the ones she can’t manage. Chayton’s efforts are thwarted already. You can never, ever underestimate Proctor, but especially not Burton. He is a beast.
Deputy Brock (Matt Servitto) is in bed with ex-wife Emily again. Hard as he tries, he can’t get away. Moreover, he’s on duty and she can’t deal with that. Per usual. A typical stock character ex-wife of a cop that can’t handle her husband’s job. So off he goes, to do that job, despite her issues.
Scouting their job, Hood gets word about the Proctor home assault. He heads to check it out, finding dead Redbones and a roughed up Rebecca. Proctor and Hood have a few words, about starting wars, instigating shit. The sheriff’s still not a friend of Kai’s nowadays. In terms of things with the Kinaho, now Deputy Billy Raven (Chaske Spencer) is getting pulled into things. So that’s bound to be messy. Up at the rez, Billy tries getting people to talk, they’re just not so eager when he’s got a BPD uniform on. Then it all kicks off once Hood starts throwing punches. We’re further introduced to some rez police, Aimee King (Meaghan Rath), which takes further inside life amongst the Kinaho. We’ve got Kinaho PD mucking things up now, unwilling to work with Hood and unimpressed with Raven returning to the rez.
At the Proctor place, Kai is getting a nurse to come in to start taking care of his mother – funny enough, it’s Emily, ex-wife of Brock Lotus. Jesus. Can things tangle up any more? You betcha. At the diner where Carrie works, the man she fended off last episode tries to cause trouble. Just as she’s almost in trouble – though is Carrie ever really in danger? – Nola arrives, kicks the shit out of the dude, again, and sits down for apple pie. Crooked Native American Chief’s sister and the Ukranian gangster’s daughter. Very fun. They do a little back and forth before having a bit of Scotch to boot, bonding over “sins of the fathers” and the like. Nice scene to tack on here.
Deva (Ryann Shane) goes to see her dad. To hang out. Although, he worries every second she’s around him. Nothing good happens to the people near him. He wants to keep her at arm’s length, as well as the fact he doesn’t want to disrespect Gordon, after all that’s happened. Even at the expense of a relationship with his own daughter.
When Deva storms out, he goes after her. But at the door is a gun clicking, ready to shoot. Who could it be? After the credits, we watch a crazy Colonel Stowe, naked eating a steak. Doing everything he can not to go completely insane.
 Love the progression here, as Season 3 is cooking with gas already in its first two opening chapters. Next is “A Fixer of Sorts” and it is not only one of the highest rated episodes of the series, it’s another favourite. Containing possibly the single best fight ever on television.