Reacher not taking Duffy's badge with him while leaving Zachary's house in Episode 5 could have been a costly mistake 

Reacher Season 3 has been so far studded with twists and unexpected deaths. The new chapter sees more of a smart Reacher than a strong one who is always one step ahead of his enemies.

While dealing with dangerous criminals like Zachary Beck and Xavier Quinn and their associates, one small error can be fatal, which has already been proven by the death of DEA agent Steven Eliot and the French maid Annette (who was working undercover for the ATF trying to blow open Beck's operations). Considering the severity of these parameters, Reacher making costly mistakes like leaving federal evidence behind is a bit absurd.

In Season 3 Episode 5, we see that Reacher picks up Susan's DEA badge, which she dropped while fighting off Quinn's men in the warehouse. Later, Reacher stuffs himself inside his bed at Zachary's mansion, and when he goes to his rendezvous with Agent Villanueva, he leaves it behind. What appeared to be a major loophole in the plot line could also have been a result of Reacher's present state of mind, troubled by the increasing pressure of an undercover operation.

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Reacher did not take Duffy's badge with him in Episode 5 and it could have cost him his life

Reacher Season 3 Episode 5 opens with a tense, armed face-off between Susan Duffy and Villanueva and Quinn's men at one of Zachary Beck's tubing facilities. Like he always does, Reacher reaches the spot right in time to have their back.

In the rush of the moment, Duffy's DEA badge falls off her, and Reacher was smart enough to spot it and pick it up. However, when he was back at Zachary Beck's mansion, Reacher struggles to find a place to hide the badge but ends up stacking it inside the pillowcase - quite an uncalculated move on his part (especially considering his quick wit and presence of mind).

On the other hand, we have Villanueva waiting for him about 40 yards south of Beck's fortress, where they plan to catch Cooper (Richard Beck's bodyguard) off-guard and kill him. While Reacher goes on to his night mission of killing the man who murdered Agent Eliot, Zachary Beck initiates a thorough search of all his staff's rooms upon Quinn's orders.

Unfortunately, the French maid Annette (hired by Zachary Beck) gets her cover blown in the search, and it turns out she is operating as an undercover ATF agent. On returning to Zachary's house, Reacher finds the air filled with tension.

As he goes into Beck's room, Reacher finds him waiting with the formidable Paulie and other men. In a tense exchange of words between Reacher and Beck, it is eventually learned that there was a mole (Annette) in the house. We thus leave a sigh of relief as Reacher almost saves himself from blowing his cover owing to an unexpected mistake. He rather saves himself from being butchered by Paulie to death.

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Reacher Season 3 Episode 5 is the bridge between the first and the second part of the story. Though Reacher's mistake (of not taking Duffy's badge with him) appears to be a plothole, it can also imply the consequence of what he has been through so far.

Leaving the 110th Special Investigation Unit, losing his own brother and other close team members have already got him in a mentally weak spot, as seen earlier on the Prime Video show. However, his thirst for vengeance still got him going and tracking down Xavier Quinn - like he always did with his other enemies. But this time, it feels more intense, and we will have to wait some more hours to get to witness what Reacher's face-off with Quinn would look like.

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