The 'Undeserved' Hatred of Reacher Fans for This Character is Perfectly Explainable

Summary:

• While the Reacher TV series has introduced fans to many interesting characters, not all of them are equally beloved
• Many viewers feel that the writers use Frances Neagley, portrayed by Maria Sten, a little too much
• However, they may have expanded her presence in the story to avoid an entirely different narrative problem

Although the Reacher TV series has only aired two seasons, with a third currently in production, the show has introduced viewers to a wide range of colorful characters.

Some of them were incredibly charismatic and instantly won the hearts of countless fans, while others were completely despicable and gave the audience incredible satisfaction when they finally met their demise.

However, while some characters were supposed to be positive and make viewers root for them to succeed, they elicited completely opposite reactions from fans.

A Lot of Fans Are Not Very Fond of Frances Neagley

Frances Neagley, portrayed by Maria Sten, is one such case, as for some reason many fans don't like her at all, despite the fact that the actress delivered a pretty good performance and has been a part of the series since the first season.

Apparently, the problem is neither Sten's acting skills nor the character herself, but rather that the show's creators tend to overuse Neagley, which damages the audience's perception of the series' main star, Jack Reacher.

While she plays a fairly minor role in the original novels by Lee Child, her presence in the show has been significantly expanded, possibly to better adapt the story to the TV show format.

In the books, a lot of the narrative takes place inside Jack's head, which wouldn't have looked very good on screen, so the writers had to find a way to give some of it to another character, and they chose Neagley.

The Writers Traded One Problem for Another

Unfortunately, such a decision created an entirely new problem, undermining the whole "lone wolf" aspect of Reacher.

Many fans believe that the character is at his best when he is alone, so when he teams up with others, Jack suddenly becomes less interesting and intimidating, downgraded to a simple "muscle" of the group.

When Neagley is around, Reacher acts much dumber than usual and is given little chance to really shine, making him feel less like the main character in his own show.

In light of all this, fans are expressing concern about Frances returning in the upcoming third season of the series, especially considering that she wasn't present in the original novel, Persuader.

Reacher season 3 is expected sometime in late 2024 or early 2025, although no official release date has been announced.

Source: Reddit