Tom Weaver may be behind bars, but that’s nothing compared to the mental prison Kayce builds for himself in this week’s “Marshals” (Season 2, Episode 2), as he begins to seriously worry that his worst nightmare is coming true — he’s finally becoming his father.
And that fear is only compounded by this week’s fugitive, a former deputy who’s now scratching names off his hit list after getting fired from his job. But it’s his fiercely loyal son whom the Marshals ultimately have to take down, and Kayce is able to deescalate the situation by speaking from the heart. “He was flawed, but you loved him anyway,” Kayce tells the man’s son. “There’s no shame in being loyal to family, but just because he marched through hell, that doesn’t mean you have to become the Devil. Let today be his legacy, not yours.”
In case you couldn’t tell, Kayce is really talking to himself here — or at least he should be — as he remains haunted by John Dutton’s ghost. The only comfort Kayce is able to find this week comes from Thomas Rainwater, who assures him that he’s nothing like his father. And even though Tate will likely never “escape unscathed from all the death and despair” that comes with being a Dutton, Rainwater tells Kayce, “Just guide him to the road you think will be best for him.”
Well, that’s easier said than done, according to showrunner Spencer Hudnut. Kayce is having to make decisions for Tate’s future while simultaneously coming to terms with his own past, which will make finding a path forward much more complicated. The question is: Will Kayce ever tell his son the truth about the grandfather he idolizes so much?
“It’s a really good question,” Hudnut tells TVLine. “I think Kayce is still wrestling with his own relationship with John. Also, the more Kayce gets away from John’s death, the more Kayce has to struggle as a single father, the more he actually understands John. This season, while Kayce is wrestling with how to guide Tate into manhood, he’s also wrestling with his own relationship with his father. Tate has endured so much, so to come clean and sort of drag down one of Tate’s heroes is something Kayce would never do.”
That said, expect lots of father-son tension in the coming weeks. As Hudnut reminds us, “Tate’s a senior in high school. He’s a 17-year-old boy who is about to become 18, and he thinks that turning 18 automatically makes him a man.”