With all that has happened over the course of the past three seasons, there isn't much the titular town of Cinemax's Banshee hasn't seen. But at the start of the fourth and final season, the once-quaint Pennsylvania burg has found itself playing host to something new: a dark and terrifyingly brutal serial killer. While slashers of all sorts have populated nearly every corner of television for years, this new killer has gone and done something the others were lucky enough to avoid: This one has made a personal enemy of Lucas Hood (Antony Starr).
Bloody and entertaining like nothing else on television, Banshee has made a name for itself by drawing a line well beyond what most other programs would consider the absolute limit, and in doing so has attracted a rather vocal and devoted fan base. Although it's something of a change of pace for what is essentially an action-oriented crime show, a murder mystery involving a serial killer is actually a pretty good fit for the pulpy series. And after a major character fell victim to the town's newest predator in last week's season premiere, the search for the killer has given former sheriff Lucas Hood a newfound sense of purpose (and a reason to trim the impressive beard he was sporting throughout much of the hour).
In an exclusive clip from this Friday's 'The Burden of Beauty,' Hood finds himself confronted by the new-ish sheriff in town, Brock Lotus (Matt Servitto) and his deputy Kurt Bunker (Tom Pelphrey). The topic on this occasion is the question of whether or not Hood plans to take the law into his own hands and to dish out a little vigilante justice for the death of his friend. Hood's quick to assure Brock that he's hanging around a local watering hole on account of his parched throat, but the truth comes out, and Hood reveals he's there to put eyes on a potential suspect.
The scene features the kind of hard-boiled dialogue familiar to fans of the show, with Brock stressing exactly what's at stake, while Hood suggests approaching the suspect wearing a badge and a uniform all but guarantees a foot chase. Beyond the back and forth, the short clip also illustrates the difference in what, exactly, the two men want: Hood's on a quest for vengeance (as noted by the vintage muscle car Brock can't help but pay a compliment to), whereas Sheriff Lotus is eager to prevent more young women from falling victim to vicious serial killer.
The exchange takes full advantage of the relationship between Hood and Brock, while also pointing out how very different the power dynamic is now that the latter has the ol' tin star pinned to his uniform. But there's something else present in the characters' interplay that is distinctly Banshee: It's another sign of how much fun the series has pointing out and often wholly embracing tropes common to the genres on display in any given episode. Here, the show tacitly acknowledges Hood's vengeancemobile while not so coincidentally placing him in a situation where he's likely to put it to good use. Of course, whether or not he does, quite literally remains to be seen.
Next: Banshee Shakes Things Up in The Final Season Premiere
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Banshee season 4 continues on Friday, April 8 with 'The Burden of Beauty' @10pm on Cinemax.