'Ozark' Season 1 and 2 Recap: Everything you need to know before you start binge-watching Season 3
Make way for more mayhem as 'Ozark' Season 3 premiere will be packed with shocks and surprises. Jason Bateman — who essays the lead role of Marty Byrde — dropped a few hints on where Season three could lead to.
Teasing a time jump, he said, "We pick up about six months later." What's more, the official summary of Season 3 reads, "It's six months later, the casino is up and running, but Marty and Wendy are fighting for control of the family's destiny. Marty preaches keeping the status quo." It further says, "Aided by an alliance with Helen and drug cartel leader Omar Navarro, Wendy plots for expansion. But when Wendy's brother Ben comes into town, everyone's lives are thrown into chaos."
However, there's a lot to remember from the plot of Season 1 and Season 2 as it last aired back in 2018. If you need a recap, here's all you need to know before you start binge-watching the new season.
Season 1
The series begins with a financial planner, Marty Byrde, who gets caught up in a money-laundering business. When he relocates his dysfunctional family to the Ozarks, drug cartels, FBI agents and family drama spiral his life out of control. When the Snells get involved with the cartel, they kill Camino Del Rio (Esai Morales) for a mere racial slur. Not just that, they soon murder Pastor Mason's (Michael Mosley) pregnant wife too, leaving the baby on their doorstep.
Dangerous and witty, Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner) cleverly makes her way into the Byrde family and helps Marty run his business. Suspecting that her uncles are informants for the FBI, she kills both Russ (Marc Menchaca) and Boyd (Christopher James Baker). In the end, the Byrde family decides to run away but then comes together in hope of surviving the storm.
In a two-minute recap, Netflix shared a clip where Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner) talks to her dad Cade Langmore (Trevor Long) and tells him the entire scenario.
Season 2
Marty promised he would build a casino and he delivers. Wendy, meanwhile, charts an evil route when she orders the murder of Cade Langmore, leaving the audience shell-shocked. She navigates through all her questionable decisions by telling her husband, "I don't care if you think it was right. It was a good decision, and I did it for the family. What did you do for our family today?"
Throughout the season, female characters grow in power as compared to their male counterparts. As usual, Ruth Langmore delivers the same pizzazz and vigor while making her way into the narcotics underworld. Darlene Snell (Lisa Emery) is the ruthless villain you will fall in love with even as you see her mercilessly murdering her own husband. In the end, Wendy overpowers her husband's decision to flee to Gold Coast and takes the ropes in her hands.
In a three-minute clip, the Season 2 recap has been summarized: "The Byrde family drama ramps up as their money-laundering operation in the Ozarks region grows more powerful and complex, drawing them further into the criminal world."
Season 3
All set to watch the third season? Here's the official trailer.
"The Byrdes are back in business and the stakes have never been higher. As tensions mount surrounding their new casino, The Missouri Belle, Marty and Wendy struggle to balance their family's safety with the growing success of their money-laundering empire," the caption reads.
The clip begins with the narration, "Sometimes when you don't move forward, you die." Right at that moment, Wendy pulls a gun at Marty. In another scene, when Marty asks Wendy to pull out of their initial plan, she tells him, "There's nothing we can do now, we're committed." With more arguments and disagreements, it seems like this season will have a lot of friction between the pair. Wendy has gotten stronger, will she beat Marty to get what she wants?
Get set to watch 'Ozark' Season 3 as it premieres on Netflix on March 27, 2020.