This post contains spoilers from Dark Winds season 3 episode 5 “Tseko Hasani”(Coal Mine Canyon)
The walls are closing in tighter on Joe Leaphorn. After the death of Halsey, the medicine woman comes to cleanse the station, and she can sense that’s not the only thing needing cleansing. Dark Winds episode takes us on a dark journey of repercussions and introduces us to one of the most well-known Navajo stories, The Monster Slayer.
The origin of Hero Twins (Monster Slayers) was two sons born from Changing Woman and the Sun bearer. They were born to save the people of the Diné who were being murdered by the monsters. The brothers follow a journey to the sun and go through tests and trials that require courage, patience, and perseverance to save mankind. In Christianity, the devil walks on Earth just like monsters walked alongside the Navajo. It’s a timeless tale that represents how to overcome a struggle and bring peace back into their world.
Joe Leaphorn is also having a hell of a season, pun intended. It begs the question, isn’t there a therapist at the NTP? The man has been through so much and Sylvia Washington keeps piling on. Joe can’t help but think he’s crossed a line. The line that separates monsters from men. He’s supposed to be the hero but walked the footsteps of a villain in the pursuit of justice. Does it all equal out fairly in the end? Or will this be a road that cuts Leaphorn off from the world he knew and loved permanently?
We haven’t seen the last of Mrs. Vines yet. She’s still smoking attached to her oxygen tank as Washington begins questioning if she helped get revenge on her husband for the murder of his sister. Vines was the one who took Rosemary’s fortune. Leaving the FBI agent with even more clues that point to Joe Leaphorn. However, I don’t think all the mystery is needed. Victims and their families are usually the first ones looked at if a murderer dies. The way it’s taking so long for Leaphorn to even be questioned about his whereabouts is extreme.
There’s trouble in paradise
More unsettling news comes for fans of Joe and Emma Leaphorn. Trouble is brewing for the first family of Dark Winds when Joe comes home. This season, it became an impossible task to keep Emma out of the drama surrounding BJ Vine’s death. She is living in a world of disbelief at how selfish her husband has become. Closing himself in his little bubble of guilt and lies while she’s had to carry the burdens alone. Joe isn’t the only one who has suffered and had to relive what happened to Joe Jr. And now she wants her husband out of the house. The pain is too much to bear, and nearly too heartbreaking to watch.
Before Joe even has time to take leave, Sylvia Washington shows up with a warrant to search the premises. Emma had already been through hell and back emotionally and now has to watch strangers tear apart her home for evidence they aren’t going to find. Joe can only stand there watching the Indian justice he caused.
A decision will have to be made by Emma. She has Washington in her ear threatening that she could be considered a co-conspirator if she helps Joe cover up his crimes. But Emma has been around law enforcement long enough to know when she’s being handled.
“Truth is calling deep inside my wounded heart. The truth is solid when the whole world falls apart.”
The score of Dark Winds season 3 is so on point this year. Beth Nielsen Chapman’s, “The Truth” perfectly describes the desperate emotion Joe Leaphorn is feeling.
Ivan and Bernadette are in the path of no return
Bernadette scores herself a little vacation. She wants to go check out the oil refinery in Mexico that is owned by AGS Industries. Vacation is simply a code for scoping out the place and seeing the drug operation firsthand. Alex at first remains reluctant but with Manuelito’s beauty and persistence, there aren’t many men who can say no to her. Caution is a huge necessity because they will have no jurisdiction across the border. And no backup. It’s not a smart plan in any way, but Bernadette is like a raging bull during this investigation.
When Bernadette is hell-bent on getting herself murdered in Mexico, Chee gets as drunk as he possibly can after learning about his ex’s little vacation across the border. Bernadette having another man so quickly and relying on him more than Chee is a tough pill to swallow. He ends up licking his wounds on Shorty’s couch. Yes shorty, an unexpected friendship may be materializing between the former enemies.
Ivan’s fears soon come to fruition when they are spotted and take heavy fire in Mexico. Budge and his men chase them down but they’re able to hide underneath a small ridge. Intensity was at an all-time high when Budge’s weasel found them. He ends up getting shot by Budge for his failures. Pop goes the weasel. Ivan is ready to get out of the doge. They are in over their heads without any resources to back them up. But Manuelito is on the cusp of figuring out the dirty secrets of Spenser’s operation. She’s not the kind of cop who can easily walk away from potent danger. Which begs the question, why is Ivan so willing to?
The only way to look is up
On the other end of the spectrum, George Bowlegs is still missing. Shorty admitted to a drunken Chee that he wants to live with his mom in Reno. And he’s wondering if he should push his pride to the side and let him do it. Chee gives his one-time foe some worthy advice to not make the same mistakes he did with Bernadette, and never let his pride get in the way of love.
At this stage of the game there isn’t much Joe can do but try to solve the investigation. Emma needs time to cool off and he needs to keep his distance from Washington. He takes his cruiser out to the desert to be alone and starts going through paperwork in the back. The name Jane Webb is circled as he tries to make the connection between Shorty’s ex, Reno, the toolbox, and the hunting trip. But the gears in his head come to a standstill when the whistling returns. Swiftly he rushes out of the car with his flashlight and gun. Not that you can see much in the ominous desert. The wind is brutal. The fear is strong. Then there’s a calmness. But alas, it’s only a dream.
The episode ends with the discovery that George is taking his dad's tools to sell for a ticket to Reno. We also learn that Budge might have been a former CIA operative doing wet work in Guatemala. That knowledge would explain why he can kill people and get in and out without being seen. And why a man like Spenser would hire him.
In the final moments Roger, the pawn shop owner revealed that George had been coming all week long trying to profit from the tools. He had brown on his hands and black on his nails. A light bulb went off in Joe’s head. He knows just where to find him. But will Joe's monster become another roadblock?
Dark Winds releases new episodes Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC Plus.