In the previous episode of Billy the Kid season 3, Billy was shot by Garrett, but we were never shown if he actually died or not. I speculated that a miracle might happen and he might survive, purely based on the fact that there were 3 more episodes to go before season 3 ended. In Season 3, Episode 6, we finally learned Billy had once again lived up to his reputation and defied death. In my humble opinion, Billy the Kid is one of the most underrated series out there and deserves a much larger audience. I believe the makers should consider releasing the entire season at once instead of dropping one episode per week, primarily because watching the whole season in one go creates a far greater impact. I might be wrong, but as a viewer, I feel a certain disconnect when I have to wait an entire week, especially for this kind of series. That said, I’ve been quite fascinated by how each episode continues to peel back the layers of Billy’s complex personality and sensibilities. The man was much more than an outlaw: he was a symbol of hope and defiance. There was a reason why so many people, even those who were older than him, followed him blindly. At times, they knew that he was asking them to walk into danger, but they still rode alongside him, no matter how risky a plan was. Billy, over the years, had earned that respect. The irony was that he was branded an outlaw by the authorities and considered a threat to civil society, but he was much more honest than any officer of the state. He was a man of his word, somebody one could depend upon. There was a reason why people like Catron wanted him dead. Catron knew that no money could buy Billy’s integrity, and that’s what made him a threat. So let’s find out what happened in episode 6 and how Billy survived.
Spoiler Alert
How did Billy survive?
As we saw in the previous episode of Billy the Kid season 3, Garrett shot Billy twice in front of Pete Maxwell. Pete presumed that Billy had died, as who could even entertain the idea of being shot twice and surviving? Pete told Garrett to leave before the Mexicans who worked for him came and burned him alive. Pete knew what Billy meant to them and to what extent they could go in order to avenge his death. Garrett left the scene, and just moments later, a miracle happened. Billy gasped back to life, and the Mexicans took him to a remote and discreet location to get him treated. Pete couldn’t believe his eyes, but he knew that in order to keep Billy safe, he needed to keep his survival a secret. But soon, rumors started to spread that Billy was alive, and that infuriated Garrett, as he didn’t know what else he could do to hunt down the most wanted fugitive. He went back to interrogate Pete, and he even threatened him to tell him where Billy’s body was hidden. But Pete didn’t open his mouth, and he just told Garrett that Billy had died in front of them and that the Mexicans had taken his body to bury him with dignity. Deep down, Garrett knew that Pete wasn’t telling the truth, and so he took all his Mexican workers into custody and took them to the police station for interrogation. But how could he imagine that the people who were ready to die to save Billy’s life were going to tell him where they had hidden him? Pete went to meet Dulcinea, and he told her that Billy was alive. Dulcinea wanted to see him, but Pete told her that they needed to be extremely careful, as he didn’t want the authorities to get a whiff of what they were up to. After 2 long months, Billy recovered, and Dulcinea finally came to meet him, with their baby girl, Sophia. Billy was elated when he held his little girl in his hands, and he felt quite overwhelmed at that moment.
What happened between Garrett and Emily?
Catron called Garrett to his office and asked him what exactly had happened at Pete’s house and why there were rumors about Billy still being alive. Garrett narrated the entire scene to Catron and told him that the Mexicans had taken his body and possibly they will turn it into some kind of shrine. But Catron very bluntly told Garrett that without proof he couldn’t take the $50000 reward that was on Billy’s head. Garrett lost his temper, and he told Catron that he didn’t know what it took to be in the field, hunt fugitives like Billy, and put one’s life at risk. Catron laughed at Garrett’s naivety and told him to leave his badge behind, as he did not think that he was fit to serve as the sheriff of Lincoln County any longer. Straight after that, Billy went to Emily’s house and told her what her father had done. Emily knew what Garrett wanted at that moment, how he wanted to let out all that rage, and so she had her guard up. Garrett wanted to hurt Catron in any way possible, and he knew that since Catron was such a powerful man, he didn’t have a lot of options. So Garrett revealed to Emily that he had an informant who’d told him that Edgar’s death was not a suicide. Garrett said that Catron hired a man and ordered him to kill Edgar and make it look like a suicide. Emily asked him if he could let her meet his informant or at least tell her his name so that she could confirm the intel. That’s when Garrett tried to force himself on Emily and told her that she needed to give him something if she wanted that information from him. Emily had a gun on her, and she pointed it at Garrett and asked him to leave. Garret clenched his jaw and left her place. He went to his office to collect his things when a reporter arrived at his doorstep and asked him if the rumors he’d heard about Billy being alive were true. A drunk, defeated, and agonized Garrett told the journalist that he would write a book about his hunt, and the world would know how much effort he put into making Lincoln County a safer and better place to live in. But no matter what Garrett did, he had no choice but to accept his defeat at the end.
Why Did Billy Break Jesse Out Of Prison?
Billy got on his feet, and the first thing he told his gang members was that he wanted to break into the federal penitentiary and bust Jesse out. Billy said that he had a plan in mind, but to execute it, he needed Jesse to ride alongside him. Since Jesse was the key to the secret plan, other gang members agreed to Billy’s proposal, though they knew that it was probably the most risky thing they had ever done. One of Billy’s gang members, George, went to check out the penitentiary and get an idea about how they could break into it. George met a man named John Selman, who seemed a bit friendly in an otherwise hostile environment. George got to know that John knew Jesse, and in fact, Jesse had saved his life back in the day. George gathered all the information that he could, and then he went back to inform Billy about what he had found out. George told the gang that Jesse and the other prisoners were assigned various tasks, for which they were taken out of the prison for a few hours every day. Jesse and a bunch of other prisoners worked as laborers on a road construction project.
George explained that their best chance was to help Jesse escape during those hours, as breaking into the heavily guarded penitentiary was nearly impossible. Billy and the gang agreed, and they launched an all-out attack on the prison guards. Jesse was elated to see his friends come to his rescue. Though Juan, Billy’s gang member, got shot and succumbed to his injuries, Jesse was able to escape. Billy told Jesse that he had a big plan in mind, and that he would need his skill and expertise. The episode ended on a cliffhanger, and we never got to know what the plan was. If I have to guess, Billy will try to take down Catron, as he was the real problem. Moreover, in episode 6 we saw how scared Catron was of Billy, even when he was such an influential man. Catron told Emily that Billy’s reputation preceded him and the man had a knack for pulling off miracles. Moreover, I think Catron will lose Emily’s support, and she will take revenge on her father for killing her husband. Maybe Emily becomes the snitch, and she sides with Billy and gives him all the information he needs to take down the big man. It will be interesting to see how things pan out for Billy in the subsequent episodes and if he is able to execute his secret plan successfully.
