Banshee Recap Season 3 Episode 5: “Tribal”

In the latest Banshee recap, Hood and company are pinned down in the Cadi by Chayton and the heavily armed Redbones gang.

By Michael Stets — Staff Writer

The Cadi is the old Cadillac dealership that serves as home to the Banshee Police Department. But, thanks to the Redbones gang, it has turned into Assault on Precinct 13, the John Carpenter classic, due to being pinned down and trapped in their own headquarters by the gun wielding and maniacal Redbones.

This week’s episode begins right where last week’s left off, the Redbones—using the stolen arsenal from Camp Genoa—are opening fire on the Cadi. The Deputy responsible for killing Tommy Littlestone, Billy Raven, is inside. Chayton wants him, along with Proctor.

“You have Billy Raven and Proctor in there. Send them both out and we will spare the rest of you.”—Chayton warns Hood.

The episode was one of the tensest in the shows three-season history, and “Tribal” was shot almost entirely in one location. Proctor isn’t the only guest in the building either. ADA Alison Medding, Proctor’s lawyer Jackson Sperling, former Neo-Nazi Kurt Bunker, and two Redbones gang members, join Hood, Brock, Siobhan and Billy.

Hood manages to get to the emergency button, which brings down the metal gates to protect the building. Lacking man power, Hood hires Bunker–who applied for the deputy position weeks prior–on the spot. Medding, who is African-American, takes sever umbrage to his presence, after he takes off his shirt to tend to a cut and reveals all of his swastika and Nazi tattoos.

Bunker’s former life as a white supremacist is the least of their worries though, as Chayton and the Redbones are coming fast and furious. Proctor’s lawyer is demanding that his client be released, and Proctor reminds Hood how he saved him from getting killed by Rabbit in a similar situation not too long ago.

Things are quiet for a little while, but the Redbones cut the power to the building. Hood and Siobhan manage to start up the generator in the basement and restore power, when one of the Redbones unloads on the gates of the building with an unmounted M61 Vulcan, which pierces the metal and everyone is forced to hit the deck and take cover.

Unfortunately, Sperling thought this was a good idea to steal the keys and attempt to free Proctor from his cell and he caught a bullet in the back of the head as he got the keys into the lock, which projected blood all over Medding who was next to him. The sequence got crazier as Medding was grabbed by the Redbones prisoner and started to get choked.

Proctor frees himself from confinement and walks right past Medding getting strangled. He has a second thought and goes back and kills her attacker. Raven uses cover fire through the gaping hole in the security gate for Hood and the Sheriff successfully takes out the Redbone manning the Gatling style gun.

“This isn’t the first time this has happened you know? One army of guys with machine guns would be bad enough, but two? That is just something else.–Brock says.

In one of the best moments of the episode, well, it is always a great moment whenever Hood and Proctor share the screen together, the Sheriff approaches Proctor who is behind a gate which is about to get pulled off the hinges by a truck. The dialogue is curt and to the point, but it’s depth is much greater. They admit they have a score to settle with one another, but for now they are on the same side.

“Are we going to have a problem?–Hood asks Proctor.

Blended in to this scene was the only other location of the episode: Proctor’s house. Where his mother lay in her death bed while Emily was reciting the “Our father” prayer. Proctor, of course, was headed home to see her before Hood tried to take his life at the Savoy in last week’s episode. The sound of Emily’s voice saying the prayer as the Redbones were breaching the gate to bum rush the Cadi set a very eerie tone.

“Everything you touch turns to blood.”–Brock tells Hood.

Hood and Proctor hold down the fort and Hood grabs two grenades off the Redone he killed and blows up the truck outside. Brock tries to arrest Proctor when he sees him armed and Hood and the Deputy get into a heated argument about it. Obviously, Brock has tons of built up resentment from Hood taking the job he was supposed to get, on top of strongly disagreeing with how the Sheriff runs the town. When Brock tells Hood that being good at killing people doesn’t make him the right guy for the job, the Sheriff reminds him that he is pretty good at it also.

Down in the basement of the Cadi, Bunker tries to hold it down as that door is breached and he nearly gets killed, but Medding kills the Redbone with a shotgun to save his life. Proctor is allowed to leave at his own risk per Hood, much to Brock’s chagrin.

“What we had, was any of it real?–Siobhan asks Hood

In the midst of the craziness, Hood and Siobhan continue their conversation that began prior to the Redbones attacking the Cadi. Hood comes clean on all she asks about his criminal past and he reassures her that their relationship was, in deed, legitimate. Trieste Kelly Dunn and Antony Star showed once again they had strong chemistry in these types of scenes, there connection was strong in the very early stages, and now the depth added by the despair and skeletons in Hood’s closet coming to life, is accurately portrayed by both actors in a fantastic scene.

Raven makes an awful decision to try and reason with Chayton and eats an arrow in the chest for his efforts. Siobhan saves him from eating another one which would’ve most likely ended his life. She tries to aid Raven to safety and Hood comes up to assist, but she tells him she has it and to go help protect the basement from being overrun. Now without a gun, Siobhan grabs a machete from the evidence lockup, which comes in handy because she kills an attacking Redbone’s member with it.

“I still think I would’ve been a better Sheriff than you.”–Brock tells Hood

Back in the basement, Brock begins with a cliche speech on “if he doesn’t get the chance…” and Hood tells him to stop doing that. In one of the few moments of levity in the episode, Brock tells him he still thinks he would’ve been a better Sheriff than him. Matt Servito has been awesome this season and Brock has gotten a much bigger role than in Seasons One and Two. We’ve seen him screw his ex-wife, kill a Neo Nazi in cold blood, disarm and choke out a Redbone in the Savoy. Servito plays it perfect and has been one of the best parts in Season 3.

The episodes climax is very, very sad one. Hood returns upstairs to find Chayton, who has Siobhan by the neck. Hood knows the danger and places his gun down and pleads with him to let her go. The Sheriff gets hit from behind and knocked to the ground by another Redbone. Laying semi-conscious on the ground, he helplessly watches Chayton snap Siobhan’s neck and end her life instantly.

Proctor returns home, but it’s too late, his mother has already passed before he had a chance for a final good bye. Ulrich Thomsen, who has been out standing as the resident criminal king pin on Banshee, like Servito playing Brock, has shown a new depth this season also. Seeing Proctor sobbing at his mother’s death and the inner family tension with his father this season has brought greater depth to his character also.

As Hood comes to, Chayton has left the Cadi and he holds Siobhan’s dead body and his arms and begins to weep. The episode closes with Hood sitting on the steps of the destroyed Cadi while the State Police are there sorting out the mess, and body bags are being carried out. Hood stares blankly ahead with a steely resolve and uncontrollable rage lurking inside of him, seemingly hellbent on revenge. His life’s purpose is now to find Chayton and kill him. That and nothing else.

Writer of “Tribal,” Adam Tarcum and director, OC Madsen, really put forth one of the most action packed and intense shows in Banshee’s history, with the majority taking place in one location to give it a unique, isolated and desperate feel. Trieste Kelly Dunn will be sorely missed and she was one of the few who brought out the good side of Hood and kept him somewhat grounded. Yes, he has Carrie, who fully understands him, but that leads to his past life of crime and dangerous places. Siobhan represented a new and bright future for him, and now she is gone.

Sidebar: with Nola (Odette Annable) and now Siobhan getting killed off the show, Banshee is lacking some serious eye candy going forward.

We are now half way through Season 3, and if these first five episodes are any indication to what lies ahead, we are in for total carnage and bedlam the next five weeks.

Bonus:

The post-credits scene showed the door of Siobhans trailer banging open and closed. Perhaps to signify Hood has gone and collected the FBI file on him that was in her possession.

Music:

The song playing at the end of the episode is a cover of the song “You Are My Sunshine” by Jamey Johnson, Twiggy Ramirez, and Shooter Jennings.

The song playing during the credits is called “Dream Big” by Nils Lofgren.