Colter’s Ongoing Case Mystery Explained

We first catch up with Colter in his Airstream. He gets out of bed, makes breakfast, and sits down at his table, where he hesitates before opening a little brown book containing summaries of his cases. Unlike the other pages we glimpse, which are marked “completed” in the right-hand corner, one dog-eared page is not. And it appears to be the second or third page in this particular entry, given this passage begins with ellipses. The page reads:

…and is ongoing.

Attempted to talk to couple — no answer, no one on site — 2 attempts. Follow up call with M three days later. This time M was more willing to talk. Told me he was home that night, and they talked about plans for the next day. She left. Reported seeing him in a car.

WHOSE CAR WAS IT?

Season 4, Episode 1 never picks up that thread again — not even after Colter solves the case of the week. As of now, we have no idea who the couple was, whether “M” is someone’s initial or simply shorthand for “male,” or who “she” might be. Or, for that matter, who owns the aforementioned car.

But perhaps we shouldn’t be expecting answers anytime soon. When TVLine spoke to Reid ahead of Season 4, he revealed that the writers were toying with the idea of a larger mystery that could play out across the season.

“Could there be a much longer, season-long bad guy or ghost that he’s chasing?” Reid said. “Does he encounter something in one of the cases that uncovers a darker secret or, like, a sort of boogeyman that’s out there? That’s another thing we’re toying with.”

And that wasn’t all Reid had to say about the possibility of Colter carrying the weight of a case beyond a single episode. In the very same answer, the showrunner spoke about wanting this season’s cases to leave Colter with more “emotional scars,” and exploring what happens when the rewardist doesn’t save the day. And it would appear this “ongoing” case is one potential example of that.

“What we’re trying to do is have him take on a few more scars,” Reid said. “Like, does he not always win? Does he fail? What does that look like? Does he make a mistake and it costs someone their life? So those are definitely places we’re going this year…. It’s not always going to be a happy ending.”

How do you expect Colter’s “ongoing” case to play out over the course of Season 4? And did “Tracker” feel any different to you now that production has moved to Los Angeles? Grade the season opener via the following poll, then leave your theories and full reviews in a comment below.