'Big Dogs' Ending Explained: Renny's psychological and physical breakdown and McKeutchen's overwhelming guilt
Amazon Prime Video's dystopian drama 'Big Dogs' gave us quite a few punches at the end of the season, leaving us to question whether there will be a Season 2 or not. In this gritty and grimy crime drama based on Adam Dunn's books, we are introduced to an America we haven't seen before (or rather, not yet). The society has disintegrated into fragments after the collapse of the economy. There are those who are financially secure, and there are those who aren't. Law and order has broken down, situations are precarious and people are doing whatever they can to protect themselves.
Needless to say, corruption and crime are rampant. In the middle of all this chaos, police officer Santiago (Manny Perez) has a new partner at work, the silent and brutal Everett More (Michael Rabe) who would rather operate on his own terms. They have to track down a seedy underground network, handled by a crime syndicate that wants to take over the city of New York. At the front, the local frontman of this crime syndicate, Reza (Tony Naumovski) instructs Renny (Michael Richardson), a fashion photographer to step up his game as a drug dealer. For the first half of the season, Renny maintains a smooth demeanor as he moves drugs around and sleeps with practically every woman he meets.
However, the armor begins to crack as the NYPD gets hot on his trail. Renny has enough stress going on in his life, as his mother, who has Alzheimer's, barely recognizes him at times and he still has dreams of his father. Santiago catches hold on Renny and realizes that he is just a misguided youth. However, More demands that Renny should be used as bait to capture the drug lords even though Santiago is wildly against it. They conduct a sting operation, which goes awry as Renny begins to see hallucinations of his father, who keeps telling him to 'let go'. More goes on a shooting spree and kills one of the men 'Baby', who works for the crime syndicate.
The scene is a bloodbath and Reny becomes traumatized by it, increasing McKeutchen's (Brett Cullen) guilt further. More is fired with immediate effect, though towards the end of the last episode, it's clear that he has some agenda of his own, leaving the space open for Season 2. McKeutchen visits a broken Renny in hospital and is filled with guilt for using him as bait. He remembers his son who died in the war and breaks down. Yet, throughout all this, a woman named Baijanti Divya (Pooja Mehseni) gives ominous voiceovers and making a quick appearance on the television. She will return as her part is not done yet.
It's not the end of 'Big Dogs' clearly, and the show might just return for the next season.