After watching the fourth episode of Billy the Kid, one question kept echoing in my mind—who really was Billy the Kid? To me, he wasn’t just an outlaw or a fugitive; he was a product of the systematic failure of American society. Billy was forced into rebellion because, in a world owned and controlled by the rich, that was perhaps the only way a boy like him could survive. Yes, he could have turned his life around, but fate never gave him that chance. He had killed people, so by the law, he was indeed a fugitive. But if Billy was to be branded a criminal, then men like Catron and Garrett were far greater offenders who deserved to be behind bars too. The truth was that the powerful manipulated the system, twisting laws and narratives to serve their own interests. Billy, on the other hand, despite being an outlaw, carried an honesty and integrity that even his enemies couldn’t deny. It was this quality that made people trust him and made them willing to risk their lives for him.
In the previous episode, we saw Billy ambush Garrett—not out of the need to do so or to defend himself, but just because he wanted to make a statement. He didn’t want Garrett, or the world, to think he was scared or on the run. Garrett was hellbent on catching Billy, but I believe what happened between him and Emily became the highlight of episode 3. Garrett made a move on Emily, and I also thought that she was inclined to get intimate with him. But then she suddenly backed out and told him to leave. Garrett felt embarrassed, but the damage had been done. Catron had played his cards well. He didn’t like the fact that Edgar, his assistant and Emily’s husband, had told him that he didn’t want to work for him. I believe he was the one who killed Edgar, though we don’t know yet if there’s a further twist in the tale. Billy was running out of options, and he didn’t know what he should do, where he should take his gang, or how he could survive the wrath of a system that wanted him behind bars at all costs. So let’s find out what happened in episode 4, and if Garrett was finally able to catch Billy.
Spoiler Alert
Did Emily suspect her father of killing her husband?
To be frank, I didn’t understand how Emily didn’t suspect that her father could have had a role to play in her husband’s death. How could she take him at his word and believe what he told her? It was pretty evident that Catron and Emily didn’t see eye to eye. He was a controlling man who wanted Emily to lead her life the way on his terms. I don’t think that he approved of her marriage either, as he would have wanted to marry her to a more powerful family that would have furthered his agenda. Emily decided all of a sudden that she didn’t want to be a teacher, and her father couldn’t have been more elated. I personally think that Catron was the kind of man who looked down upon such professions. He was a man who loved being in power. He wanted to have the reins in his control. And so the moment he got to know that his daughter wanted him to find a job for her, he decided that it was time Riley was made to resign from his position as the manager of the House. Emily became the new person in charge who looked into the daily affairs of the house.
In the previous episode there was a moment where I sensed that Emily felt a strange connection with Garrett. He also acted upon the hints she gave and tried to get close to her. But the moment he made a move, she backed out. In episode 4, Emily told Garrett that she wanted him to look into Edgar’s case and find out if his death was actually a suicide or a murder. That meant that she didn’t think that her father could have gotten Edgar killed. The way Garrett looked at her when she asked him to look into the matter, I felt that he knew something about the case. Obviously, if Catron needed to have somebody killed, the sheriff of the town needed to be on board with the plan. Garrett didn’t think it was wise to tell Emily the truth, and rightly so. Garrett didn’t want to mess with Catron, which was why he was ignoring the wrongs that he did. Another thing that I sensed during Emily and Garrett’s conversation was that there was a romantic spark between them. Garrett came forward and apologized for whatever had happened between them the other night, and Emily told him that he didn’t need to. But then she gently placed her hand on his arm. A gesture that startled Garrett too. I have a feeling that they will get closer to each other as time passes, and Garrett might end up telling her the truth about Edgar’s demise.
Did Garrett finally catch Billy?
Garett caught one of the members of Billy’s gang named Charlie, and he asked him to sever all ties with Billy and join their side. Charlie told Garrett that he was thankful for his offer and that he just wanted to lead a normal life, and he didn’t want to get involved in this mess that had become way too big now. But Charlie was an honest and trustworthy man. He told Billy about Garrett’s offer, and at that moment I guess Billy realized that he was running out of ways to keep his gang safe. Billy felt guilty at times. No matter what he tried to do, somebody from his gang had to bear the consequences. He told Dulcinea that he didn’t know what he was doing, which was probably why gang members like Brown had started to question his plan. They were not wrong in doing so, because Billy himself didn’t have a clue about what he was doing or how he would keep everybody safe. Yes, he had Jesse by his side, but he too was dealing with his own trauma. Every day one or the other member of the gang got killed, and their strength was dwindling. But then, finally in episode 4, Garrett got the better of Billy. He caught Billy and his gang while they were hiding in a farm shed somewhere in Texas. Billy tried his level best to get his gang to escape, but this time he failed. It killed him from within to lay down his weapons and surrender to the law. But he had no option, he had to do it if he wanted to live. There were some who wanted to kill him the moment he came out of the shed, but Garrett didn’t let them, as he had given him his word. It will be interesting to see what happens next, if Billy is able to find a way out once again, or if the society that branded him a fugitive shall see the end of him.
