One of Walker’s best decisions was making Trey Barnett (Jeff Pierre) a Ranger. It was great whenever he was put into action in the first two seasons. He was always stepping up and saving people, so it made sense that he would join the Rangers with Cordell Walker (Jared Padalecki) and Cassie Perez (Ashley Reyes). So why undo that with a silly insubordination charge? Cordell is insubordinate all the time.
Even Captain James (Coby Bell) seemed surprised that Trey was terminated. He was so mad earlier in the episode that it seemed like he would be fine with how it turned out, but the loyal, kind man is still in there. We just haven’t seen him since Cass let slip the term “Grey Flag” in front of him.
It brings up the question of why James is so mad. As I said, it’s pretty typical for Cordell to go rogue. While he’s been annoyed, he’s mostly brushed it off as that is who Walker is. But now he’s coming down hard on his rangers. It’s already clear that there is a mole in the Rangers, and he must know this, so Cass and Cordell breaking his trust like that was a big blow to him. But Cordell, at least, he knows he can trust. They used to be partners. Cass is a bit newer, so being cautious of her would make sense. Trey has saved James on countless occasions. Plus, he’s not in the know about Grey Flag. He was stuck between Cass and Cordell, hiding something from James. And now it has cost him his Rangers spot.
This could have to do with the bigger picture of Grey Flag. Walker’s old marine unit is being hunted down and killed. It’s unclear if James knows that or not. But maybe someone on the inside doesn’t want Trey on the Rangers because that’s more protection for Walker. That’s the only conclusion to the termination. If being insubordinate (and minimally) is big enough to get a ranger fired, why hasn’t Walker been fired? It seems like an overaction.
But now, what does Walker do with Trey? They have him shining golf clubs in the promo for the next episode. Granted, Trey has a lot of professions he can fall back on. He’s skilled in many areas. But this was such a great move for his characters. It kept him in the action and helping people. It would feel weird for him to fall back to medicine or counseling. That’s just sending his character backward. Did the writers think it wasn’t working having three rangers instead of two? Trey never got a partner. Was this always supposed to be a short-lived thing?
On many occasions, it has felt like the writers weren’t sure what to do with Trey’s character. He was Micki Ramirez’s boyfriend for a big chunk of the series’ beginning. But the writers were right to utilize him in bigger ways. But now they are fumbling again.
If it’s all part of the Grey Flag story, fine, we can wait to see how that all plays out. But they need to find something for him to do in the meantime and fix their mistake.
Walker will return on The CW on Feb. 16 at 8 pm ET/7 pm CT.
