The Marshalls Season 1 finale aired on CBS on Sunday, May 24, and it pushed Mo into full action-hero mode. In the episode, he killed an assailant by driving a knife blade into his chest, then fought alongside his U.S. Marshals cohorts in an explosive gun battle with assassins.
The turn was a sharp one for a character who had spent more than 45 episodes of Yellowstone and Season 1 of Marshals as Chief Thomas Rainwater’s loyal right-hand man and enforcer. Mo Brings Plenty said it was "about time" to show another side of Mo, adding that being a protector sometimes means taking drastic action. He also said, "That's my tradition," and explained, "I don't want my opponents grabbing my braids. If that happens, that's a sure sign that something is going to go down."
That physicality helped sell the scene. Brings Plenty said he had wrestled in school and once bucked horses and bulls for a living, so being tossed around was nothing new. He also called the fight a great choreographed stunt and said Mo would fight "tooth and nail" no matter what. In the moment where Mo kills, Brings Plenty said the character is a traditionalist who "will always try not to take life" and is "almost asking for forgiveness" in doing so.
The finale did not stop with Mo. Belle Skinner and Pete "Cal" Calvin checked out a trailer home during their investigation, found a dead man inside, and then had a pickup truck pull up with a driver who smirked at Cal before driving away. Two gunmen then aimed at Belle and Cal and opened fire, and the scene cut away before their fate was shown. The episode was packed with plot twists, explosions and major cliffhangers that will not be answered until Season 2.
Brings Plenty said the action was "exciting" and "awesome" and said it was great to work side-by-side with the marshals. Season 2 is expected next fall, which means the final image left by Sunday’s episode is not just suspense for suspense’s sake. It is the show making clear that Mo is no longer only the man standing behind the fight. He is in it now, and the next season will have to live with that.
