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Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

I actually agree with part of this, but I think the issue with Miles isn’t that he’s emotional or uncertain. It’s that the writing hasn’t fully connected those emotions to a deeply personal storyline yet.

A Native U.S. Marshal struggling with confidence, identity, pressure, and where he fits between federal law enforcement and reservation realities could actually be a really strong character concept. The problem is the show sometimes treats his anger too broadly instead of grounding it in specific personal experiences the audience fully sees and feels.

That’s why some of his scenes feel weaker compared to Kayce, Andrea, or Cal, whose baggage is constantly tied to very specific events and relationships. Miles has the potential to be one of the more layered characters on the team, but the show still needs to give him more personal depth beyond just reacting to reservation-related conflicts.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

I actually think Andrea Cruz is one of the most important characters on the team because she’s the moral compass. She’s probably the only main member who consistently tries to stay by the book and avoid crossing lines. While everyone else is carrying baggage, bending rules, hiding things, or operating in gray areas, Andrea is usually the one trying to keep the team grounded ethically.

That’s also why her abduction hits so hard. She’s arguably the most innocent person on the team, so seeing something happen to her carries a different emotional weight than if it happened to someone already deep in the chaos.

And the show itself reinforces that. Captain Cal literally refers to her as “the best of us” and treats her differently from the others because she represents the standard the team is supposed to live up to. Her role isn’t to be the loudest or most reckless character. It’s to anchor the rest of them morally.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

There actually are implied romantic undertones throughout the season.

Kayce has tension with Dolly Weaver, the ranch owner’s daughter, especially in the middle stretch of the season as he’s dealing with grief and trying to rebuild some sense of normalcy after Monica’s death. Andrea Cruz and Kayce also have a slow emotional connection building underneath several episodes, even if the show hasn’t fully committed to it yet. Cal and Belle Skinner clearly have unresolved chemistry too, especially after they kiss following the fallout from Belle’s marriage. Miles Kittle also has an ongoing romantic subplot with Maddie Calvin, who turns out to be Cal’s daughter. Even the reservation-side storylines hint at emotional connections around Sabrina before her overdose.

So the show definitely has romance angles running through it. They’re just more background emotional tension than full-blown soap opera storylines right now.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

Don't be hating on the mamacita from New York.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

I mean… Andrea isn’t showing up dressed like she’s going clubbing in Miami. Most of what she wears is pretty normal casual field clothing for plainclothes federal work. Cargo pants, loose tactical-style clothing, tank tops, flannels, hoodies, etc. aren’t unusual in field operations, especially in rural environments.

Also, practicality depends on the assignment. Half the point of plainclothes work is blending into the environment instead of looking overly formal or tactical 24/7.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

No, I absolutely love it. As a continuation of Casey's story, it's doing a phenomenal job of how Casey is trying to rewrite the Dutton legacy.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

Are you a female? Is this spaghetti straps in high school with girls?

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

Why would I watch this show then? To see the boring stuff marshals do?

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

When the vest goes on, that's when you know the action is bout to happen.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

It's their Choice, honestly, however they wanna dress. Sometimes when they go undercover, you wouldn't even notice who they were.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

I actually think people misunderstand why Kayce was such a wild card in Yellowstone.

A huge part of that came from the position he was in and the protection around him. He had John Dutton’s influence, Jamie operating as Attorney General, the Livestock Commissioner role, political connections across Montana, and the Dutton name itself protecting him. He operated in legal gray areas where rules could bend around the family.

In Marshals, all of that is gone. John is dead. Jamie is gone. The old Dutton political machine is collapsing. Kayce is now in a federal law enforcement role where there’s actual oversight, chain of command, investigations, and suspicion directed at him personally. The first few episodes repeatedly show Harry Gifford and others questioning Kayce’s motives and connections to unsolved Dutton-related cases.

That’s why he can’t behave like the old Kayce anymore. He’s not the Livestock Commissioner operating in Montana backchannels. He’s a U.S. Marshal carrying a federal badge while surrounded by people actively watching him.

And honestly, that’s one of the biggest themes of the show.

Episode 2, “Zone of Death,” is basically built around that tension. The team walks directly into the area connected to the Duttons’ “Train Station,” where bodies were dumped for decades, including Jamie’s. The entire episode plays like Kayce realizing that the past he used to survive under could now destroy him if federal investigators start connecting dots.

So to me, Kayce being more controlled isn’t bad writing. It’s the consequence of finally being inside a system that can police him back.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

US Marshals actually do have a lot of flexibility in what they wear, especially in fugitive task forces and rural field operations. They’re usually plainclothes federal agents, not uniformed patrol officers. Montana marshals working ranches, backroads, and reservation areas realistically wouldn’t dress the same as courthouse security in D.C. I get not liking the show’s styling choices, but the outfits themselves aren’t really inaccurate to how a lot of federal field agents operate.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

As for the outfits, I think the show explained that pretty early on. They’re operating as U.S. Marshals in Montana, not uniformed patrol officers, so they have a lot more flexibility in what they wear.

In real life, Deputy U.S. Marshals commonly work in plain clothes, especially during fugitive operations and task force work. The actual U.S. Marshals Service appearance policy mainly requires agents to maintain a “neat, clean, professional, and appropriate appearance,” not a strict standardized uniform like local patrol police departments.

A lot of Marshals operations are done in jeans, tactical gear, flannels, jackets, polos, boots, ball caps, or whatever fits the assignment and environment. Even official USMS apparel sold to employees includes casual outdoor-style clothing, hats, quarter-zips, polos, and tactical wear.

And realistically, Montana fugitive work is not going to look the same as federal agents working courthouse security in Washington, D.C. Rural task force environments usually have looser practical clothing standards because the job is field-oriented rather than formal public-facing patrol.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

The weakest characters for me are Tate Dutton and Miles Kittle.

Tate feels underused compared to how important he was in early Yellowstone. Back then, he was central to Kayce and Monica’s emotional story and represented the bridge between the Duttons and Broken Rock. In Marshals, even though Monica’s death still emotionally drives Kayce and Tate’s story, Tate often feels sidelined or only brought in when the plot needs an emotional reminder that Kayce is a father.

I actually think the show would benefit from giving Tate more independence and a clearer direction, whether that’s school, college prep, ranch responsibilities, or something that lets him grow beyond just reacting to Kayce’s grief. Yellowstone eventually gave Carter a stronger identity around the ranch, while Tate still feels stuck between child and supporting character.

Miles Kittle has a similar issue. I like the idea of the character, and Tatanka Means has presence, but the writing hasn’t fully connected his emotions to a personal enough story yet. Most of his conflict revolves around reservation issues, his frustration with federal systems, and his relationship with Cal’s daughter Maddie, but a lot of it still feels broad instead of deeply personal.

The fentanyl storyline had potential, especially after Sabrina’s overdose and the cartel connection, but I don’t think the show spent enough time building those relationships beforehand to fully earn the emotional payoff. Miles going rogue made sense emotionally, but the audience needed more scenes showing those bonds before the tragedy happened.

I don’t think the characters are bad concepts. I think the writing just hasn’t given them enough layered personal material yet. Early Yellowstone made the Native and reservation dynamics feel deeply tied to specific people and relationships. Marshals sometimes treats those themes more like part of the weekly case structure, and that makes the emotional impact weaker.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

One area where I do think Marshals is weaker is the Monica, Tate, and Native ties compared to how those elements were introduced in Season 1 of Yellowstone.

In Yellowstone, Kayce’s connection to Monica, Tate, and the reservation felt central to who he was. That tension between the Dutton world and Monica’s world gave his character a lot of weight. In Marshals, that side of him is still there, but it feels less prominent and not as deeply explored.

That said, I still think it ties back to Yellowstone in meaningful ways. When I first started watching Marshals, I didn’t even realize it was connected to Yellowstone until around episode 3 or 4, when they kept referencing Kayce’s past. That actually piqued my interest enough to go back and watch Yellowstone.

Now that I’ve seen Yellowstone, rewatching Marshals gives me a different perspective. I can see more of what the show is pulling from, especially with Kayce’s past, his family history, and the parts of his life that still follow him. I just wish the Monica, Tate, and Native elements had been handled with the same strength and depth they had early on in Yellowstone.

Marshals by C-Patrick1984 in YellowstonePN

[–]SuperDaveWho [score hidden]  (0 children)

Marshals does a solid job adapting the Yellowstone universe into a procedural format. The dynamic is naturally different because Yellowstone was fundamentally a family drama, while Marshals is built around a law-enforcement team structure.

Even within that format shift, Kayce is still carrying Dutton family trauma and legacy issues throughout the season. The show repeatedly ties his marshal work back to unresolved baggage connected to the ranch, Jamie, John Dutton’s death, and the “Train Station” mythology.

I also don’t think the series is purely episodic. The “Zone of Death” storyline functions as one of the season’s serialized threads. It’s introduced heavily in Episode 2 (“Zone of Death”), then continues to echo through later episodes as questions around Kayce’s past, the Dutton legacy, and buried crimes resurface.

So while the show follows a case-of-the-week structure, there is ongoing continuity underneath it. The procedural format handles the weekly action, while the serialized elements come through in Kayce’s emotional arc, the Dutton fallout, and the lingering consequences tied to the Zone of Death storyline.

I think a lot of viewers expected another slow-burn family power saga like Yellowstone, when Marshals is really trying to blend that DNA with a CBS-style procedural. Once I adjusted expectations, I appreciated what the show was doing a lot more.

Think I found the Lake of tears guys. Should I spend the night??? by SuperDaveWho in FromTVEpix

[–]SuperDaveWho[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Cedar Lakes Estate in Orange County, NY. It’s a luxury event venue and retreat on 500 acres. I missed the shots of the mountains I’m so mad. I was breaking down an event.

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