Crime TV Heroes: ‘Longmire’ season 5 and the saga of Walt
We do spend a lot of time discussing villains on CarterMatt, and it’s easy for us to understand why: There’s just something so entertaining about discussing them! Yet, at the same time heroes do still need a lot of fun, and that’s what this Crime TV Heroes series is all about. We’re diving into what makes some of these people so heroic, and where their stories can go from here and what sort of challenges can await them.
For our leading man of “Longmire” in Walt (played wonderfully by Robert Taylor), there’s a lot to discuss since he is almost the classic Western hero transported to the present-day. He doesn’t always do the right thing in terms of what is black-and-white, but his heart is always in the right place, he fights hard to put the bad guys away, and he’s as loyal and kind a guy as you’re going to see front a team.
Why he’s so heroic – It’s easy to count the ways here, from the number of crimes he’s solved to the way in which he cares about some of his friends. Given that we’ve seen many dirty cops out there, Walt is a clear indicator that being a hero is about how you carry yourself outside of work just as much as how you carry yourself on the job. Walt’s got a knack for literature, cares about the tribal communities, and wants to be there for his daughter Cady when need be. He wants to make those around him proud.
What he can learn – Walt’s not a perfect man. Sometimes he can develop tunnel vision in the thick of a crime, or other times he can allow himself to get so consumed by his demons that he can be distant and even aloof. Just ask Vic during most of season 4. He needs to learn that sometimes, it’s okay to be vulnerable, and in the thick of an investigation, sometimes it is okay to be a little more familiar with modern practices. No technology will ever replace good police-work, but at times Walt can be overly rustic and he needs to be okay with handing this off to some more tech-savvy people in the Sheriff’s office. It’s okay not to carry the world on his shoulders.
What we’d like to see from him – We were hoping for a new love interest before season 4, and we may have that now with Donna, presuming how long Ally Walker remains on the show. Seeing Walt handle a romantic relationship is always interesting, and we’d also like to see him be put up against some more fish-out-of-water situations where he is tested as a crime-solver and a person. We know he has a firm grasp on this land, but what happens when someone introduces a few new tricks that he hasn’t seen before? While we’re not sure if the anti-police sentiment of 2016 makes it into Wyoming, season 5 will be a challenge more than ever for Walt to prove to everyone that he is a hero to be respected, and not someone who can be at times reckless on the job or invested in vendettas.
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