This post contains spoilers from Dark Winds season 3 episode 4 below.
Throughout season Dark Winds season 3, there has been bitter awkwardness between Chee and Manuelito. Episode 4 of the series dives deeper into their relationships and feelings. For Chee, his feelings have not wavered since she left. He’s had no interest in moving on because of his harboring emotions for Bernadette.
For Bernadette, she is welcoming her new life as a border patrol agent, and embracing her newly formed connections, especially with Ivan and Garza. Even over the phone, I think that is something Jim Chee sensed but it doesn’t stop him from taking an eight-hour car ride to the New Mexico border. Much to Bernadette's shock as you can imagine.
Bernadette tried to be as welcoming as she could in an awkward situation. Of course, she appreciated any help given regarding Spenser Oil, but when Chee meets Ivan things take a turn for the horse. And in an act of desperation, Jim asks Bernie to come home. He doesn’t understand what she’s trying to prove out here. Now, Bernie is in too deep and she can’t walk away if more people are being hurt and trafficked.
Manuelito has a way of hiding from her feelings to distract herself from any pain that could come later. I believe that’s what she’s doing with Chee. Do I think their relationship is truly over? No, but once Chee picks his pride up from the floor and bids farewell she goes right into the arms of Ivan for the comfort of a warm bed. You have to give Jim bonus points for effort but for Bernie, it’s a little too late to do the right thing now.
The question is, is it a human trafficking ring that Bern has stumbled upon? The short answer is no. We learn that it’s a drug trafficking ring. Which doesn’t mean there aren’t humans involved. Those balls Bernadette found in Tom Spenser’s building were housing drugs.
Will the lies be too much for Emma Leaphorn to handle?
You would think all Joe’s stress would be enough to send him over the edge, but he has Sylvia Washington to contend with too. When a sheep herder is brought in for questioning it’s Leaphorn who must translate in an interrogation room. Once again, this is something she could have gotten Natalie to do, but she wanted to see his reaction to prove her suspicions true. The herder doesn’t give up a name or a face to the story but he does admit the vehicle in question that housed BJ Vines was a GMC. A common car perhaps, but none were owned by someone at the NTP whose son was murdered by BJ Vines.
When Joe comes home to a very reluctant Emma she wants to know everything from the start to finish. Joe abides and admits the ominous deed. She’s not surprised, but she is heartbroken. Maybe Vines got everything he deserved but the aftermath is tearing Joe’s world apart. It’s safe to say that he’s fine with it and that justice had to be served. Leaving him in the ravine is the best thing he could have done for the Diné people.
What I love about Joe and Emma is you don’t find this type of Native American love story on television today. Or maybe ever. The relationship may be broken with irreparable damage, but you can feel the deep love between them. Which is why it makes the heartache so much more intense. There is beauty but this is realness between them that all couples go through. Like heartache, lies, deception, and a spreading distance between two people. Hardships lie in every marriage and the story shows you how choices can impact the thing you hold the most sacred.
The gut-wrenching acting of Deanna Allison is on full display and as a fan of the show I watched in turmoil. These two are the centerpiece of the show and it’s devastating to watch them in peril, but also mesmerizing to see both Deanna Allison and Zahn McClarnon dig deep and show us the emotional depth of their characters.
Are the monsters real or a metaphor for the story?
Throughout season 3 we have seen Joe’s monster. The lines between dream and reality have become blurred. At times we’ve seen the monster in his dreams and reality like at the Bowleg cabin when Shorty was knocked out. We also learn that Suzanne had a dream about the monster. And once in custody with Joe, Halsey succumbed to this same monster. It’s unclear yet what this monster is, who it is, and if it’s an actual being or a symbolic version of fear.
It is mysticism and probably meant to keep us all guessing. The translation for Ye’iitsoh is a big thing that creates fear. It comes from oral stories of the Navajo. Which gives this season of Dark Winds such a spiritual journey.
Speaking of connections, there's one between Halsey and Budge that runs deep. All signs seemingly point to Halsey being Cata’s killer for perhaps learning too much on the farm. The theory for Leaphorn is Cata found out what they were doing at the farm and Halsey had him eliminated. A red truck was spotted at the original investigation site. Now if Bernie’s picture was spotted on the farm with many other agents there’s a high chance Budge is behind it.
We already know his connection to Tom Spenser and Tom’s connection to Chief Ed Henry at the border patrol. It’s all starting to fit like a puzzle. We’ve also learned the powder found at the chili farm was cocaine. So Bernie’s intuition about the tankers possibly carrying drugs was spot on. The oil trucks load up the drugs in Mexico and run them up to the Rez to distribute from there.
Dark Winds releases new episodes Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC Plus.