The Runway
Episode 8 of Outer Banks begins with Ward and John B fighting around the ship until John B grabs a jet-ski on deck and races away, narrowly missing Ward firing a harpoon gun at him. Desperate to know the truth, he heads straight to Lana’s house and asks what happened to his Father. It’s here the truth is finally revealed and the night of his disappearance, Big John and Ward were on the open sea and they argued over the percentage cut for the treasure John found. Unfortunately this fight lead to Ward pushing John and killing him, subsequently dumping him at sea. John made it to shore though and this is where he spent the last moments on Earth carving the Redfield inscription on the compass for John B to track the gold down. Only, Scooter happened to find Big John’s body and the compass on the beach and as it turns out, Ward and Scooter were working together after stealing his Father’s map. Ward meanwhile impales his own shoulder and heads to the police station, spinning the story that John B’s dangerous and the one responsible for hurting him. It’s something that Sarah certainly believes too, although Ward and John B’s situation out at sea certainly causes him to start acting erratically around her. Meanwhile, Pope and Kie fall out over John B, with Pope questioning her faith in the mission and just where she was when Big John died. It’s a tense moment and one that sees JJ jump in and pry the two apart. In the morning, John B arrives at Tannyhill but finds the gold completely gone. Even worse, Cameron Construction units happen to be outside the house as a big warning sign that Ward is definitely the one who’s taken the treasure. Pope heads off to a job interview later that day but once there, he gets talking about the gold. It’s enough to get some ideas going in Pope’s head and he hurries over to John B and the others, mentioning the airstrip and the plane. While John B and the others watch from afar, Sarah questions her Father over the boxes he’s loading onto the plane and just why they’re suddenly flying to the Bahamas and leaving their family behind. The group watch this unfold and John B immediately drives onto the airstrip, determined to stop them and avenge his Father as Ward forces Sarah into her seat. After a tense chase down the runway, Sheriff Peterkin arrives and arrests Ward on charges of killing Big John. Only, Rafe appears soon after and shoots the Sheriff in cold blood, saving his Father but also turning the gun on both Sarah and John B, which is where the episode ends. With a tense climax and plenty of unanswered questions hanging over this one, Outer Banks really starts to ramp up the tension as this drama reaches fever pitch in its third act. There’s a lot of good character drama here and the shocking climax with the sheriff being shot is certainly an unexpected development. With the truth surrounding John B’s past coming to fruition and a tense airstrip chase at the end for good measure, Outer Banks delivers another good episode here as we fast approach the climax to our tale.
