Prime Video’s ‘Ballard’ continues its journey with LAPD Detective Renée Ballard, who is taking on cases no one seems to touch. In the previous episodes, we are introduced to her newest enigmas: the death of the councilman’s sister, which might be the work of a serial killer, and the death of a John Doe who was last seen carrying a baby. One of the volunteers in the Cold Cases Division, Samira Parker, is a former cop who worked on the John Doe case and suspects that the deep corruption within the system stunted it. While Ballard has first-hand experience of what Parker means, she still has to find concrete evidence of the malpractices before deciding on her next course of action. Episodes 3 and 4, titled ‘BYOB’ and ‘Landmines’, delve deeper into the dilemma, and on the way, bring up many more clues to unlocking the grand mystery. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Ballard’s Investigation Keeps Running Into Dead Ends
Episode 3 begins with a montage covering the daily lives of every member of the Cold Cases Division before they begin their job. Ballard unwinds through swimming, her father’s legacy. Ted Rawls makes compelling business arguments while on his morning walk. Martina struggles to find peace at home, while Laffont enjoys a pleasant morning with his partner. Meanwhile, Colleen prays in the church, her mind still stuck on the death of Yulia and that heartbreaking experience in the morgue. Back in Paradise Cove beach, Ballard walks back home to discover that her grandmother, Tutu, bought her a Build-Your-Own-Board surfing kit, and remarks how eagerly the protagonist used to follow her father when he used these to make one of his own. However, Ballard turns down the gift, not ready to bring herself to do what he did.
Back at work, the Laura Wilson case grows colder, with Laffont discovering that a prime suspect, Harmon Harris, is dead. Before Ballard can even comment on the fact, she is summoned by Captain Berchem, who hands the Cold Case division their new, emergency case: The death of Nick Thatcher, a 2006 incident that still finds relevance due to the prolonged activism of Nick’s sister, Raquel, whose recent arrest sparked enough media attention for the journalists to target the Chief of Police, and Ballard is tasked with taking the trouble off his back till the truth is revealed. As such, she assembles her team on the new case and, while going through the case files, makes a startling discovery: while all of Nick’s fatal injuries are on the left side, he has a suspicious injury on his right eye, suggesting premeditation.
As the investigation continues, Ballard ignores the calls of Ken Chastain, her former partner, but has to travel to the evidence center to assist Parker, as the latter does not have a police badge. Here, she comes across another shocking fact: the bullet wasn’t just held back from analysis; it was taken out of the evidence entirely, under the signatures of Officer Charlie Grant, who was once a partner with Laffont. While Parker seems to grow more confident in her theory, she ends up in an argument with Ballard, who wants her to return to her profession as a cop and streamline the search process.
The Cold Cases Division Solves a Fraternity Murder
Meanwhile, Martina discovers that the last person to have a fight with Nick, Kyle Barnett, is presently at a reunion party in a golf club; as such, Ballard and Laffont decide to pay him a visit. The two boys were members of a fraternity brotherhood and best friends with two more, Dan Gibson and Joey Lucas. With all three of the living members in one place, the detectives conduct individual interviews, soon realizing that they are hiding something. The team decides to grill Joey, seeing that the other two are lawyers, and they find success. Nick confesses to seeing a book near Nick’s body, which he now believes might have played a part in the murder. Furthermore, he says that the trio hid the book in their fraternity house, as it contained questionable things from their past.
Ballard’s quest for information leads her to the fraternity house, where she discovers a scrapbook called the “Body Count Book.” Here, she finds the four men’s dehumanizing collection of pictures and reviews of every woman they have ever slept with, providing a disturbing insight into their minds at that time. The protagonist notices a missing page in the book before calling Lucy Duncan, the last person to have slept with Nick. However, their conversation introduces a new character to the fray. Meredith, Nick’s girlfriend, whose page is mysteriously missing from the book. Accordingly, she is summoned, and while she initially claims to have no connections, Ballard and Parker convince her to tell the truth; that night, she found the book, tore off the pages, and then hit Nick with it, eventually pushing him to his death in the struggle.
Forces From the Inside Seek to Ruin Ballard’s Case
With the Thatcher case behind her, Ballard brings her focus back to the murder of John Doe, with her journey taking her to the house of Charlie Grant, who is now a retired cop, who reveals that his signatures were forged, further complicating the case while yet again pointing to the direction of foul play. As they exit the house, Ballard is once again subjected to remarks about her previous case against the officer who assaulted her, and is disappointed that Laffont doesn’t back her up either. Meanwhile, Parker struggles to reconcile with her former life, seeking guidance from her father, a retired cop, who tells her the importance of being vigilant, as someone has to watch the watchman.
Ballard continues to avoid the surf boat, but her situation at work doesn’t seem much better, as she encounters Chastain in a severely inebriated state. He apologizes profusely for not having her back during the assault investigation, but his guilt is rejected by Ballard for being a selfish exercise, with her ultimately walking away. Once back in action, she pairs up with Laffont to visit Adam Lennox, a witness in the Laura Wilson case. Here, the man reveals that he knows for a fact that Harman is not responsible, as at the time of Laura’s murder, he was with his partner. The two wanted to keep their gay relationship off the police’s radar, and Lennox, at that point, his student, eventually covered for them. However, in recounting his statement, he adds a new detail. According to him, the blue van that was stalking the site was a Ford. This narrows down the search from thousands to hundreds.
Back home, Ballard converses with her grandmother, who tries to open her eyes to the fact that she is stuck in a suffocating cycle. This lines up with the detective’s previous conversation with the therapist assigned to her for psychiatric evaluation, who considers the Cold Cases division to be an echo of the trauma Ballard had to endure. Taking both perspectives into account, the protagonist carves her own way and finally decides to begin work on the surf boat, showing her first steps in reclaiming agency and moving past her fears. However, unbeknownst to her, the enemy draws nearer, as Manny, the officer who acts as a mole in the police force, tries to charm Martina, hoping to find a mainline to the division that is digging up dirt on his yet unknown boss.
A Bullet and a Blue Van Drive the Investigation Forward
Elsewhere, Martina makes another breakthrough, with the help of her friend, a digital artist, she uses the photos of the bullet to create an accurate 3-D render, and the team brings it to Freddy the Firearms investigator, who finds a match to a person named Javier Fuentes, who is currently in prison for engaging in cartel activities. However, the joy of discovering new leads quickly disappears when Laffont brings the news of Ken Chaistain’s death. The protagonist’s former partner seemingly passed away in a car accident. Instead of grieving him, Ballard buries herself deeper into work, refusing to acknowledge the fact that another important person in her life has gone away. At night, while working on the surfboat, she has a heartfelt conversation with Aaron about her father’s passing when she was just fourteen.
The next day, she teams up with Parker to meet Fuentes, and the meeting uncovers new grounds. He seems to know John Doe, revealing him to be a man named Luis Ibarra, who worked for the Cartel. As the team reorients their efforts to the new lead, Rawls approaches Colleen, offering her help in locating Yulia’s parents, as one of his employees has connections in Kyiv, Ukraine. Following this, the team finds a van that fits the bill the most: a 1995 blue Ford van belonging to a man with a stalking record. However, given that his records are sealed, Ballard is forced to pay him a personal visit, out in the woods. Rawls accompanies her, and the two eventually have to give chase to the man before he rushes out, threatening to shoot. While the duo manages to restrain him, he turns out to be a dead end, and the search for the owner continues.
Ballard Mourns a Friend and Former Partner
Following the intense sequence, Rawls makes his way to Jake’s house to watch a football match, where the councilman advises him to hold back on discussing cases till there is a definitive lead. While he seems to trust Ballard’s process, Officer Nelson has other ideas, as he asks Rawls to personally inform him of any meaningful updates in the case. Elsewhere, Martina goes on a date with Manny, and he gradually introduces the idea of participating in the Cold Cases Division, hoping to extract information. Meanwhile, Ballard, Laffont, and Parker hang out in a bar, where the latter states that the Mexican government has confirmed that John Doe is Luis Ibarra. She further reveals that the baby seen in the video is indeed Ibarra’s, although there has been no update on their status.
The following day, Ballard makes her way to Chastain’s funeral, where she runs into Robert Olivas; however, this time she has allies who stand against him, in the form of Laffont and Parker, who also join the service. The trio pays their respect as a host of people discuss Chastain’s contribution to the profession, as both a serious officer and a humorous teammate. Laffont empathizes with him, finding himself in the same position of responsibility as his predecessor. Meanwhile, Ballard meets with Chastain’s wife, who describes his final few months as a state of living guilt. She reveals that he once heard Olivas talking about assaulting another partner, which led him to believe in her. Hearing this, Ballard finally tears up, acknowledging the loss of a good friend who, in his final few days, was empathetic to her suffering.
The Mastermind Finally Comes Out of the Shadows
Elsewhere, Colleen gets her share of bad news as Rawls updates her on Yulia’s parents, revealing that they were killed during the conflict and the entire town was leveled. Hearing this, Colleen breaks down, having failed to provide any closure to them or Yulia whatsoever. Later that day, Parker and Ballard prepare to negotiate a deal with Javier Fuentes, who is accompanied by his lawyer. The man promises to provide information on who killed Ibarra in return for protection and reduced time. When his conditions are met, he reveals that the culprit is indeed a cop, one who is called Montana in the Cartel. He says that the cop specializes in trafficking guns and drugs and is infamous in the underworld for his bad temper, and has participated in a police raid, acting as a triple agent.
At a diner, Ballard, Parker, and Laffont try to track down the culprit. Their search soon narrows down to six likely candidates, all of whom were involved in a drug raid Javier vaguely referenced. Here, the name of Anthony Driscoll stands out, as he not only matches the physical description but also has a record of substance abuse, which led to his quitting. The final detail turns out to be his name, Anthony, which connects to Tony Montana, who Parker describes as a Cartel icon, and likely the inspiration for Driscoll’s cover name.
With the cat out of the bag, the team prepares for a big showdown. While Parker feels pumped at finally bringing the corrupt police force down, Ballard weighs the gravity of their actions in light of her previous attempts at challenging the system. Soon, the ex-cop confirms her fears, the officer who assaulted Ballard is none other than Robert Olivas. Despite perpetrating such activities, he continues to walk free and emboldened, showcasing how hard the uphill battle is for the protagonist. The scene then cuts to Manny, who sits down with Anthony Driscoll, who finally makes his appearance in the game.
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