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‘Ozark’ and as the most shocking death of its ending had already advanced us

Who noticed? Did Julia Garner’s character Ruth deserve better?

      Spoilers for ‘Ozark’ below

      The second half of the two-part finale of ‘Ozark’ was always going to be dramatic. Ruth’s eyes filled with rage and pain were the kind of indication that someone was going to pay for the death of her cousin Wyatt’s. That someone is Javier Elizonndro (Alfonso Herrera Rodríguez), but who knew that the bullet he put through him would also seal his fate? Us! Us! And chances are you will too, if you like rap music.

      We’re not saying you need a Ph.D. in hip-hop, but if you’re a fan, you’ve probably paid a little more attention to the soundtrack of Ruth’s pain as she chased Javi through the Ozarks. Still, the clues were laid long before that.

      An early scene shows Ruth (Julia Garner) and Wyatt Langmore (Charlie Tahan) hanging out high on the roof of their trailer playing an exciting game of ‘say the name of an album, say your favorite song’.

      While we can’t imagine Ruth or even Wyatt with Taylor Swift’s ‘Red’ album, it did indeed make the list, along with Nas’ ‘Illmatic’. It would be easy for the mention of ‘Illmatic’ to get lost among ‘The Chronic’, ‘Red’ and ‘Sticky Fingers’, but it has more relevance than the rest.

      ‘Illmatic’, one of Wyatt’s picks, turns out to be the same album that holds Ruth together as she flutters through unspeakable pain and fury during this chase episode called ‘Cousin of Death’. Remember that, keep it close in your hip(hop)pocampo.

      Throughout the entire episode, we go through a lot of songs from that album. ‘Represent’, ‘Life’s a bitch’, ‘One more time for your mind’, but ‘NY state of mind’ is the only song that appears, and twice.

      charlie tahan as wyatt langmore, julia garner as ruth langmore, ozark season 1

      At some point, Ruth stops for coffee at a restaurant (chasing down cartel bosses can be back-breaking work, you have to have something to keep your brain sharp). During this scene, she reminisces about her childhood with Wyatt as the “New York mood” is broadcast through her headphones.

      He meets rapper Killer Mike and they have a short but profound conversation about hope and the cruelty of life. At the end he tells her: “You should take it easy on your coffee”, to which she replies ‘Me? I never sleep.”

      Over there! Just there. That is the culminating moment of Ruth’s foretold death. She blinks, she even sneezes and you’ll miss it but she’s there. One of the most important lines in the lyrics of ‘NY state of mind’ is: “I never sleep, because sleep is death’s cousin.”

      By itself, it doesn’t mean much. Mere coincidence, but ‘Ozark’ creator Chris Mundy is too smart for that. Like the episode title, the song, and this random scene with Killer Mike, it’s left a trail of clues that lead to Ruth’s blood-soaked white dress.

      At this point in her life, Ruth is in pain all the time (you know, when she’s not spitting up blood). Only after she finally gets her revenge on Javi does her tense feeling relax within her and she can fully accept Wyatt’s death.

      a pensive looking ruth langmore, played byjulia garner, in ozark

      She begins to make plans for the future, clears her criminal record, and takes over ownership of the Missouri Belle casino. She even starts building the dream house of hers that she and Wyatt talked about in one of their “impossible dream” conversations.

      Why the hell not? She had more money than before Wyatt’s death now that she inherited the Snell-Langmore estate thanks to Wyatt’s marriage to Darlene Langmore (née Snell, played by Lisa Emery). Ruth is, to quote a line from the series, “a bloody redneck success story” and she begins to feel it too, gaining confidence in herself and her future.

      Just when she begins to feel safe from reprisals, just when the dangerous side of her life has disappeared (asleep, so to speak), Javi’s mother, Camilla Elizonndro (Verónica Falcón), shoots her dead.

      By letting her guard down, she becomes more vulnerable and gets killed for it; ergo sleep is death’s cousin. ‘Death’ is Wyatt and she’s the ‘cousin’ in case you need to knock yourself over the head with that analogy. She is pure perfection, subtle, smart, understated perfection and we love it.

      ‘Ozark’ is now available in full on Netflix Spain.

      Source: Fotogramas

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