Big Sky Episode 6 recap: Does Rick survive that gunshot?

Big Sky finally returned last night with a brand new episode after its winter hiatus. The winter premiere, Big Sky Episode 6, “The Wolves Are Always Out for Blood,”  delivered some surprising twists and turns that should make the rest of the season quite interesting to see play out.

Let’s get the biggest question out of the way. Did Cassie’s bullet to the head kill Rick Legarski?  Not quite, and that might cause significant problems for her and Ronald in the future. While Rick is in critical condition, he is still alive. If he ever fully wakes up, it might be with severe limitations.

But what I found worrisome was the line of questioning posed by Sheriff Tubbs in his office. He repeatedly asks Cassie when she shot Rick, and she tells him that Rick said he would count to five before shooting her. She shot him on four. Tubbs presses her for more details. Did he move? Did he raise his gun?

We know Rick didn’t do any of those things, but he was clearly itching to murder Cassie. There’s no real resolution here, but Rick could make things messy for Cassie if he decides to spin a different story for the sheriff later, and we know he excels at manipulation.

Big Sky Episode 6 recap: Cassie and Jenny mourn Cody while Merilee deals with the truth about Rick.

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Shortly after the cavalry arrives at the All In Bar to get the girls to safety and take Rick to the hospital, they dig up Cody’s truck. How did they know where Cody’s truck was? I don’t know. It’s never said.

My best theory would be that because of Rick’s kidnapping involvement, they decided to dig up the area near the bar on a hunch Cody’s body could be nearby. Still, it was a little frustrating that the writing seemed to overlook that and just jumped to the sudden discovery.

Anyway, once Cody’s truck and body are found, Jenny and Cassie are finally forced to accept the truth about his death. Throughout the episode, they’re both forced to come to terms with him being gone and mourn his passing. Cassie is also haunted by shooting Rick and nearly succumbs to a panic attack multiple times throughout the hour.

On the other hand, we have Merilee, who has just discovered that her husband is a monster. She’s left in a very challenging and precarious position as she’s forced to contend with the fact she didn’t know her husband at all.

Toward the end of the episode, Jenny hosts a sweet memorial service for Cody to give all of his loved ones a chance to say goodbye. She even gets on stage to dedicate one of his favorite songs to him but flounders midway through when she forgets the lyrics. Luckily, Cassie swoops into the rescue to help her finish it.

The end of the hour sets up a significant shift in Cassie and Jenny’s relationship. They’re navigating uncertain waters here. How does Cassie act toward the widow of the man she was in love with? They’ve come along way since their bar brawl in the premiere. Now Jenny is shocked that Cassie is the person helping her through all of this.

And since Ronald is still out there, their work isn’t done yet. Cassie invites Jenny to come aboard and work with her to track him down. Technically the private detective agency is called Dewell & Hoyt, and Jenny is a Hoyt!

Big Sky Episode 6 recap: Ronald takes drastic measures to stay hidden.

Ronald has significant concerns now that Rick has been apprehended. The girls can recognize him if they see him, although they don’t actually know who he is. But if Rick wakes up, he can point the cops straight to Ronald. he could even cut himself a plea deal, potentially, since Ronald was the one who actually did the kidnapping.

The point is, Ronald needs to tie up all of the loose ends out there, and that means he might need to kill Jerrie, Danielle, and Grace. First things first, Ronald paints his truck to try and hide. Then he starts stalking Jerrie, photographing her while she meets with Jenny, and leaving a threatening note on her door.

Big Sky writer Maria Sten chatted with Entertainment Weekly about tonight’s episode and said that Danielle and Grace would soon be heading back to Colorado. So it sounds like those two and their actresses might be mostly done with the show thus far. This episode does have Grace planning to stick around a while longer to help Jenny and Cassie find Ronald, and Jerrie also promised to help them do whatever it takes.

But Sten said, “We all feel like maybe this is the time for [the Sullivan sisters] to go back to Colorado. We can always bring them back into the world, and with Ronald still being on the loose, no one is safe.”

It sounds like Jade Pettyjohn (Grace) and Natalie Alyn Lind (Danielle) will be wrapping up their storylines within the next few episodes, at least for now.

Big Sky Episode 6 recap: Rick opens his eyes!

One of the episode’s biggest twists comes in the final moments when Merilee is visiting Rick in the hospital. Just when you think he might be about to flatline, he opens his eyes! Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see how Merilee plays into all of this. Will she decide to stand by her husband and knowingly aid and abet a sex trafficker? Or will she be a good person and facilitate his arrest without standing in Jenny and Cassie’s way? Only time will tell!

Stray Observations

• Are these cops really so incompetent they don’t give any of these girls some protection?
• I’m starting to suspect that Ronald’s mom isn’t real and is, in fact, a figment of his imagination. I think he might have killed her a long time ago, and we’ll see her body Psycho-style before the season is over.
• What is going on between Danielle and Justin? The entire reason the Sullivan sisters were on the trip was because Danielle was traveling to visit her boyfriend. Yet they haven’t even mentioned each other in several episodes, no reunion scene in tonight’s episode, and they didn’t even stand near each other at the memorial service!

New episodes of Big Sky air Tuesday nights at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.