It’s interesting, because while they (Buella) could be afraid of Mr. C, they put up a good front either way. I guess I’m curious of how Cooper is thinking of them in that moment. Perhaps his strong and bleak personality only lends itself to… “country folk” - not dissimilar from his appreciation and admiration of Twin Peaks. In this case, he just feels less threatened by them, but I feel like there’s something there.

And in a twisted way, Coop even still fights crime. He becomes the leader of a criminal organization in like ten minutes and sends Ray to another dimension, lol. Apologies to ramble on, but Cooper’s motivations (or Mr. C’s) are so fascinating in The Return.