ruth.

maybe its some cultural bias or something...but i think the show is just a lot better the less they focus on the local white trash element.

i think between seasons 2 and 3...the show wrestled with what it wanted to be. and season 3 won out.

i understand the focus on the local types early on when the show was trying to craft a lane. but now they shouldnt be anything more than additional texture imo.

im cool with them as sparse elements like the darlene appearances, frank cosgrove jr (technically not local), the casino and stable sales, etc.

but you have all of these intelligent/calculating/manipulative characters engaged in a game of multiplayer chess with/against each other. and their motivations/maneuvers propel the storyline in the most realistic/interesting directions.

ruth still being the loud, unsophisticated, impulsive, and perpetually ornery malcontent just stuck out like a sore thumb this season. especially when you consider the stakes involved and incentive for her not to act that way (which she has been made painfully aware of multiple times).

just running around cussing at everybody all day while everyone else pretty much operates in a particularly deliberate way with the consequences of their every word and action in mind (even the byrde kids)...

iono mayne. maybe the creatives feel like they still gotta keep her true to type in order to maintain her identity. but you figure there woulda been some more growth/adjustment with that character.