This post contains spoilers from Bosch: Legacy season 3 episode 9.
No one means more to us than family, but no one can cut us deeper than family. They shine a mirror on our lives and actions, and it can be hard to live with their disapproval. We saw that mirrored in several ways in the penultimate episode of the season. Family, and what we owe them, was at the heart of Bosch: Legacy season 3 episode 9, titled "Badlands." Let’s dive into the specifics of the episode.
At the end of the last episode, Vasquez (Denise Sanchez) was forced to make a move against her nephew, Albert (Tommy Martinez). She tried to warn him. She tried to get him to own what he’d done and get out of it. Albert ignored her warnings and tried to do it himself. It ended with him in cuffs, one friend dead and his girlfriend also in jail. It was what Vasquez had to do as a cop, but it did her no favors.
In the fallout, we see that Vasquez is suffering. Her relationship with her biological family is shaken. Her mother and sister are angry, and Albert is struggling in jail. She goes to visit him but can’t do much to change his fate now. But she’s also struggling with her found family in the Los Angeles Police Department. In the end, she did her job. But people don’t see her the same.
That doesn’t extend to Maddie (Madison Lintz), who has her partner’s back. She shares her concerns with Bosch (Titus Welliver), but there are no easy answers. Still, Maddie has her partner’s back. All she can do is be there and hope the healing begins.
Bosch’s mission for justice
Bosch had his hands full this week. As last week ended, Bosch found Jimmy’s (Paul Calderon) killer. He also learned that a local Sheriff’s Deputy (Chris Bauer) was involved in Jimmy’s death. The actual trigger man, Humberto Zorrillo (Manuel Uriza) is looking for his partner. He doesn’t find him, so Deputy Garrity thinks he’s safe. While he avoided Zorrillo, he can’t avoid Bosch.
Bosch finds the deputy and convinces him he needs to turn himself in and throw himself on the mercy of the Los Angeles Police Department. Bosch lets Chandler (Mimi Rogers) know he has the deputy and brings him back to Los Angeles. Garrity turns himself in for a deal, and Bosch lets Chandler know it’s up to her now.
But Chandler doesn’t have a clear field. Chief Hughes (Sophina Brown) is unhappy that Chandler did her own investigating. In order to stick it to her, Chief Hughes teams with the DEA to bring down Zorrillo. The end result is that a killer is in jail. The larger result is Chandler’s office is weakened, and justice is obscured.
But that isn’t the only target for Bosch. He’s found Finbar McShane (Michael Reilly Burke). He’s hiding in Mexico, so Bosch and his friend Gerbizs (Gonzalo Menendez) are headed to extract him. Maddie urges her father to bring McShane back alive. She doesn’t want more blood on his hands. She wants to maintain her belief in justice and in her father’s notion of justice. Bosch promises he will.
In Mexico, Bosch is committed to that promise. But when things go sideways, Gerbizs makes the decision. McShane is dead. He can’t hurt anyone else. Bosch delivers the news to a relieved Siobahn (Orla Brady), who has justice for her dead family. But Bosch can’t help feeling like he’s let Maddie Down. This season has put Maddie’s view of her father in question. She asks if the case is closed. Bosch says it is. He won’t lie to her anymore. But it’s clear the truth is weighing on both of them.
Odds and Ends
Chandler has had her hands full as District Attorney. In addition to finding justice for Jimmy, she’s been focused on justice for the diner owner. That means keeping an eye on Councilman Currey (Jeremy Glazer). He does himself no favors as he’s up to his old tricks. He brings a young man home and provides drugs. When the young man overdoses, Currey flees and calls he fixer.
The problem is someone else calls 9-1-1. The police—in this case Maddie and Vasquez—arrive just in time to save a life. This becomes a problem for Currey. It’s clear he knows Chandler is on his case and he’s planning for the future, if the need arises. But that’s a problem for another day.
Thoughts on our trip to Badlands
Our stories for the season are being wrapped up, but it’s fitting that our heroes aren’t happy with the result. Vasquez and Maddie caught the crew that was pulling off the follow home robberies. But the fact her nephew is now in jail weighs on Vasquez, who is struggling at home and on the job. It’s resolution, but it’s not a happy ending.
Bosch and Chandler found Jimmy’s killer. They didn’t send an innocent man to jail. They also had a hand in breaking up a cartel operation. But it doesn’t feel like a win. The DEA gets the glory and no doubt Zorrillo will find a way to flip on a bigger fish and avoid the stiffest penalty for what he’s done. They have Jimmy’s killer, but is it justice? It feels a bit hollow.
The same goes for Bosch and the hunt for the Gallagher family. He found Finbar McShane. He took him off the board. He brought closure for Siobahn, his client. But as he stares out into the night, we can’t help but feel that it’s incomplete. Maybe that’s the theme for this season: resolution but not closure. With one episode left, I’m starting to worry that’s how we’ll feel about the season as a whole.
Bosch: Legacy streams Thursdays on Prime Video. We’re here recapping each episode along the way!