The one thing that we’ve come to learn from Ozark is that it’s not wise to underestimate Ruth Langmore, which is what the Byrde’s have been doing unfortunately since they met her. Of course when Marty and she first met she wasn’t exactly the tough as nails character that she is now as she was still under the influence of the two older men in her life and was bound and determined to look after the other two young men in the family since apart from being a badass, Ruth does have a heart of gold, even if she doesn’t necessarily show it all the time. As Patrick Phillips of Looper states though it does appear that a seismic shift is in the works since Ruth’s alliance with Darlene Snell, one of the most ruthless individuals in the series thus far, will pit her firmly against the Byrdes since the Byrde’s and Snell don’t really get along. On top of that though Julia Garner’s indication that Ruth is trying to get her independence back is a shift that’s needed for the character since she’s not all that great at being subservient to anyone, even if it does keep her paid. It certainly doesn’t keep her or anyone she cares about safe, since safety around the Byrde’s comes at a high premium that she can’t necessarily afford. Even a dalliance with Wendy’s brother wasn’t enough to really turn her around in any big way since he happened to be kind of a pain in the backside as well. At this point it does look as though season 4 will see Ruth standing side by side with Darlene and an eventual war breaking out between the two factions. But it’s also possible that there will be a twist in there somewhere, since allying with Darlene isn’t really as safe as it might sound. Just ask her husband….oops.
Jacob Snell didn’t even make it out of season 2 since Darlene proved to be more dangerous and deceitful than even he could predict, and the one thing that Ruth isn’t is stupid, which means that there has to be another angle that she’s going to try and work. Julia Garner’s prediction does sound as though it could be accurate since Ruth gaining her independence back could be a big up for her and a serious boost to her character’s confidence, but a life spent under the psychotic thumb of Darlene Snell doesn’t sound like a life that she might enjoy, and given that Ruth doesn’t always like doing what she’s told and Darlene has killed those that are rude and those that go against her wishes it’s bound to be a partnership that’s based on the mutual understanding that Ruth could be replaced at any given time, unless she manages to get the drop on Darlene. Personally I’d love to see that since despite her resourcefulness and cunning, Darlene is kind of an irritant that needed to be dealt with a while back, though she’s also a necessary irritant that’s helping to drive the story. Should season 4 see her and Ruth ally with one another it does sound feasible that they would take the fight to the Byrde’s before a parting of the ways would occur.
As much as Julia’s prediction could come true, trusting a Snell has never done anyone much good. At some point Ruth might need to go out on her own and make the kind of alliances that are really going to help her out instead of keeping her down. As a character she’s definitely smart and capable enough to survive on her own, but dealing with Marty and Wendy at the same time is a bit tricky, which is why she might need Darlene for a short time before she can really go out and do things for herself. Ruth is the kind of character that you don’t think much of in the beginning of a show since she did appear kind of foolish and even as though she might have been thought so little of that she was just some innocuous character that would show up for a while and then somehow fade into the background. The pleasant surprise with Ozark is that she turned out to be even tougher than anyone was willing to give her credit for initially since in the screwed-up world that the Byrde’s occupy she’s been able to hang with them and learn enough to augment the toughness of character that she already possessed. At some point it’d be nice to see Ruth get back to being who she was before Marty Byrde started using her as his errand girl, especially if it means that she’ll be a real contender when it comes to who’s in charge and who carries the real weight around the show. Brian Tallerico from Vulture has more to say on the topic.
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