Marshals Season 2 Episode 4 Ends On A Deadly Cliffhanger For Two Main Characters

Spoilers to follow for "Marshals" Season 2, Episode 4, "Blast Radius."

"Marshals" Season 2 just delivered the first episode of a two-parter that has immediately placed Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes) and Andrea Cruz (Ash Santos) in mortal danger. The appropriately-titled "Blast Radius" ends with the duo venturing into a barn only to be caught in an explosion that looks as though it could have deadly consequences.

"Marshals" Season 2 started with what might be the most disappointing episode of the whole series. But since then, the show has at least tried to give the long overlooked Tate Dutton (Brecken Merrill) a storyline. "Marshals" Season 2 even introduced a decent villain in Episode 3, though he's nowhere to be seen in the fourth hour. Instead, Pete Calvin (Logan Marshall-Green) and his Marshals catch up with an old enemy: Rudy Carpenter (Braxton Hale).

This serial bomber showed up out of nowhere in Season 1, emerging from the bushes as Pete and Kayce went to rescue rancher Tom Weaver (Chris Mulkey) after his helicopter crashed on a mountain. It was one of the most unintentionally hilarious moments in the show, with Carpenter materializing out of nowhere, sticking around for a brief scene before then disappearing, seemingly never to be spoken of again. By the end of the season, however, Pete decided he'd better track down this pyromaniac, but once again, he let him slip through his fingers. Now, Carpenter is back. Or at least he was before he decided to take himself out by detonating one of his explosives. The question is, did he take Kayce and Andrea with him?

"Marshals" Season 1 began by wasting an action vet guest star in Chad Michael Collins. The "Sniper" star masterminded a bombing on the Broken Rock reservation, but he wasn't the only ordinance-obsessed villain to fall afoul of the Marshals in Season 1. In Episode 4, "The Gathering Storm," Kayce Dutton and Pete Calvin venture into the Montana wilderness after Tom Weaver's helicopter goes down. As they approach the crash site, Rudy Carpenter emerges holding a pistol. The Marshals get the better of him, and he drops his gun, revealing that his life fell apart after losing his job and now he "lives off the land." But Pete and Kayce are forced to let him go as they have more important things to do.

In the Season 1 finale, Cal hears that Rudy Carpenter has been sighted at a motel and stakes out the address with Andrea Cruz and ​​Belle Skinner (Arielle Kebelle). However, he's once again forced to let Carpenter go after Kayce's cabin comes under fire, and he and the team are needed to provide backup.

In "Blast Radius," this slippery serial bomber crops up once again. After Kayce and Andrea bring in a criminal, he reveals he has information on Carpenter's whereabouts. Turns out, he's a top 15 wanted fugitive and is planning a major attack. Thankfully, the team tracks him to an abandoned barn. But when Kayce and Andrea close in, Carpenter reveals a remote detonator and takes out the whole building before the Marshals have a chance to escape the blast radius. Kayce and Andrea are thrown into the air, and a title card reading "To be continued" appears.

Is it likely Rudy Carpenter managed to take out both the "Marshals" lead and a main character in "Blast Radius?" Absolutely not. But Andrea Cruz might be in trouble. Throughout the episode, we see Kayce Dutton and his Marshals colleague growing closer after having shared some faint chemistry in Season 1. "Marshals" seemed to be introducing a love triangle last season, whereby Kayce grew close with Ellyn Jameson's Dolly Weaver while also sharing an intimate moment with Andrea under the stars. In the Season 2 premiere, however, Dolly was dispatched, raising the question of whether Kayce and Andrea might get together this season.

"Blast Radius" all but confirms that Andrea is Kayce's new love interest. The pair spend the first part of the episode executing warrants and taking down wanted men, all of which begins with Kayce sending the dreaded "You up?" text to see if Andrea is game. While the pair are yet to share any romantic scenes, it's obvious that "Marshals" is working towards bringing these two together.

All of this doesn't bode well for Andrea now that she's been caught in Carpenter's explosion. Putting Kayce's latest love interest in mortal jeopardy would be par for the course on a show that has already killed off his wife, Monica Dutton (Kelsey Asbille), and girlfriend. Having Andrea injured in the explosion would both keep the tragedy coming and be a decent way to leverage Kayce's new relationship for some dramatic tension. It seems incredibly unlikely that Andrea won't make it out of this one alive. Still, there could be some major consequences that put her and Kayce's future in jeopardy. For now, we'll have to wait for the second part of this double-header to find out.