Warning! Spoilers ahead for Ozark season 4 part 2!
The Ozark series finale makes a clever nod to season 1 and Ruth’s deep roots on the show with the bobcat Easter egg in Ozark season 4 part 2. The last seven episodes of the Netflix hit crime drama are as much about Ruth’s character as they are about the Byrdes, with Ruth’s past resurfacing in haunting visions mostly involving her deceased family members. Ruth’s singular bobcat sighting is an exception with no Langmores seen, but long-time viewers know that the bobcats hold significant meaning for Ruth.
After the shocking murder of Ruth’s cousin Wyatt in Ozark season 4, part 1, Ruth begins part 2 bent on revenge. Tipped off by Jonah and Charlotte, Ruth follows Wendy and Marty to Chicago ready to avenge Wyatt’s death by murdering Omar Navarro’s nephew and the newly minted cartel leader, Javi. Normally level-headed and pragmatic (albeit short-tempered), Ruth is nearly delirious with sleep deprivation and mad with grief when she sees two bobcats through her rearview mirror, slinking across the street in downtown Chicago. By the time she gets out of her car, they are gone.
The Easter egg references the bobcats that Ruth’s uncles, Russ and Boyd, obtained in Ozark season 1. Purchased with money stolen from Marty, the bobcats are a significant early story point for Ruth, with their captivity being a physical manifestation of Ruth’s limitations in life, both through her family and her involvement with the Byrdes. The bobcats’ reappearance in Ozark season 4 part 2 speaks to Ruth’s freedom from those cages and also suggests that she, like the bobcats, is headed down the wrong road.
One of Ruth’s greatest adversaries in Ozark has been the idea of the “Langmore Curse” that damns her entire bloodline to a life of criminality and failure. This acts as the first cage Ruth feels she is trapped in, the bars behind which she is existentially locked when the Byrdes arrive in the Ozarks. Over the course of the series, the Byrdes appear to offer Ruth a way to best the Langmore curse, however, she finds by the series’ end that they have only created another cage for her. Ozark season 4, part 2 sees Ruth finally free from both cages, having gained financial freedom, gotten her record expunged, and seemingly having extricated herself from the cartel. Thus, her release mirrors the release of the bobcats in Ozark season 2.
Ozark’s season 4, part 2 Easter egg may also have a deeper meaning, however. While Ruth’s vision of the bobcats may refer to her freedom, Ruth sees the bobcats in the middle of downtown Chicago—obviously out of their natural habitat. This could allude to the idea that, like the bobcats should be in the wild where they are free, Ruth should likewise return to her newfound freedom in the Ozarks. Another interesting angle is that there are two bobcats and, as Ruth’s other visions have been focused on Wyatt, this could imply that she will soon join Wyatt in death, finding freedom with him in the afterlife.
All episodes of Ozark season 4 are now available on Netflix