Adirondack S3

**Adirondack S3** is the fifth episode of the second season and the 15th overall episode of **Rutherford Falls**.

## Short Summary

Reagan and Terry work as TV cultural consultants. Nathan and Bobbie seek a campaign donation.

## Full Summary

Holt prepares to sign a document. He's sitting at a table with several other people. Before her can sign, Remington comes in and stops him, saying it's Chief Nightpipe's land. Holt says his name isn't on the deed. Chief Nightpope says white men think a piece of paper means they can own Mother Earth. To Nightpope, the trees are his grandmothers and grandfathers and they're not for sale. Holt says Nightpipe Jr. must not have gotten the memo because they just came to terms. Chief Nightpope asks his son what he's done. Birch says he had no choice. Remington says Holt is a monster and Nightpope's tribe are the keepers of the land. Holt tells him to get a lawyer. Eileen drops the blanket that's wrapped around her, revealing that she's wearing a suit, and says he already has.

Reagan watches this on a laptop and scoffs. She tells Terry it's so offensive and dumb. She doesn't understand why people, especially Indians, love the show. She wonders why they're even watching it. Terry says the producers contacted the Minishonka Nation for guidance on one of their episodes. He wants to do it and then use that to get them to come film on the reservation, leading to other productions filming there. He's taking Reagan with him first to consult.

Nathan tells Reagan that Deirdre is due in six months and he wants to be ready, so he's already started reading some books. He's in awe of the female body. What they do it heroic, but also gross. Reagan suggests letting Deirdre do the birds and the bees talk when the time comes. Nathan says the kid will learn about sex the same way he did, watching Cinemax on mute after his mom went to bed. Jeff brings Reagan her coffee and Nathan asks how Reagan is feeling about her set visit. She doesn't feel great. Nothing in it is accurate. She also wants Nathan to know she's probably going to see Josh while she's there. Nathan says that's fine. Him ruining Nathan's life actually turned out to be good for Nathan. Nathan thought that things were going well with Nelson though. Reagan says they are and she and Josh are just friends. Nathan notices that Jeff got new coffee sleeves, which Jeff sarcastically says is huge for him. The sleeves say "Vote Feather Day." She's pulling out all the stops to get votes. Reagan found one of Feather's flyers in her bagel this morning. A bus passes with her face on it. Nathan says Feather has so much money and he doesn't know how he and Bobbie are supposed to compete with her. Reagan wishes she could help, but she has to go to a set and explain that a Native man in 2022 would not wear a loin cloth to his office job. Nathan realizes how he can raise money. He can go hit up Rutherford Inc. They'll want to support Bobbie.

Terry takes pictures on the set. Reagan's shocked that he's so excited. Terry agrees that Native representation is almost always a hate crime, but Adirondack is asking for their guidance. He'd rather help them get it right than complain from the sidelines. Reagan says they just want them the rubber stamp their show to keep Boomers happy and watching. Terry says when he was a kid, all he had were Indians played by Italians, getting shot off their horse by white cowboys. If he had seen their people portrayed with dignity, maybe he would have nailed his Last of the Mohicans audition. Reagan's surprised he auditioned. Terry and Reagan gush over seeing Christopher Meloni and Mariska Hargitay's parking spaces. They take a selfie with the signs.

Nathan shows Bobbie Rutherford Inc.'s office building. They're excited to get back at them for what they did to Nathan. Bobbie says it'll be like this super old show, Scandal. Nathan says they're just trying to get a campaign contribution. He's sure they'll get it. Bobbie would love to try to seduce someone if Nathan needs. Nathan says they just need to find Kaitlyn and she'll hook them up. Bobbie says if she doesn't, they should threaten to tell her husband she's been having an affair with the president. Nathan says no.

Reagan walks around the set, pointing out that all their items are from different tribes and regions and one of them is from a craft store. The assistant director leads them to Cox Whitley, the showrunner. He welcomes them to the set. Terry introduces him to Reagan and says she runs the cultural center, which will be available for rent if he wants it. Cox mispronounces her name and says his dad was actually Ronald Reagan's ambassador to Austria. Reagan wants to jump right into her notes. Cox tells her he's not the one who handles script notes and says he'll send over his co-executive producer.

Rye Whitman, who looks exactly like Cox, comes to see Reagan and Terry. Reagan starts to go over her concerns with him. Terry takes Native depictions on television very seriously. They're looking forward to working with the Adirondack team, but it's not acceptable to portray a Minishonka ceremony in this way. Terry's certain he'll make the right changes. Rye says they knew the scene would be contentious, which is why Reagan and Terry are there. They're a big family on the set and they want to get it right.

Nathan and Bobbie enter Kaitlyn's office and are surprised to see Melanie at the desk. Nathan asks if Kaitlyn will be back soon and Melanie says Kaitlyn is no longer with them. Nathan asks if she OD'd because she popped adderall like tic tacs. Melanie says she got fired. Melanie claims not to have had anything to do with it, but Nathan's suspicious. Bobbie says they're running for mayor and they and Nathan start making the pitch to get a donation. Melanie says the company is severing all ties with Rutherford Falls, so they won't get involved. Nathan is shocked. Melanie says they paid $13 million to a company for rebranding and will soon be called ZüVis. Nathan and Bobbie say that's a weird name. Melanie says it's nonsense, but it sounds like it means something. Nathan says he's happy for them to be moving on. Bobbie says the company owes its existence to Rutherford Falls. Nathan says it would be great if they supported the campaign. Melanie's not swayed.

Holt is drinking at a bar when Agent Phillips comes in. Holt says Phillips is out of place there. Phillips has Holt arrested, but Holt says he'll be out by breakfast.

Cox calls cut and says he's coming in with notes. Terry is fascinated by seeing the prices, but Reagan is less impressed. She is also annoyed by the plot holes. Terry tries to get Reagan to see the bright side. Reagan gets a text from Josh asking if she's punched anyone on set yet and if she's good to meet up. She eagerly says yes because she wants to get out of there. Reagan asks Terry if she can leave a little early. As she walks away, Reagan gets a text from Nelson saying she got a package and he put it in her office, where he noticed her desk was messy. Reagan replies only to Josh. Amber hands Terry his new pages and Terry asks if she can have the second AD get him a new set of cans. Terry flips through the new pages.

Terry goes to what he thinks is Rye, but is actually Alden Whitmer, the producing co-executive producer. Terry says their issues with the script were not addressed. The ceremony scene is still in there. Alden says that's why they changed it to a sacred smoke ritual, so it's less specific to the Minishonka. Terry says they didn't change any of the elements, so now they've invented a fake Indigenous custom. Terry wants them to cut it. Alden says it's what makes their lead, Remington, realize what's missing in his life. It's what will justify Chief Nightpipe later adopting him and making him part of the tribe. Terry is shocked. Alden says it's TV, so sometimes you have to fudge things to make it work. He says after those tweaks, they have a green light, right? He walks away before Terry can answer. The assistant director says it's a wrap and call tomorrow is at 7:00.

Reagan approaches Josh at a diner and they can't figure out if they should hug, shake hands, or fist bump, so they do them all. They make awkward small talk and then leave together.

Nathan tells Terry he can't believe they weren't able to get a donation. Nathan wishes Kaitlyn were still there, because she would have done it just to make Nathan go away. Terry says all white people do is work in their own self interests. Bobbie says Melanie is South Asian, but Nathan tells them to let Terry have it. Bobbie wonders what they would do on Scandal. That gives Terry an idea. When your enemy mistreats and betrays you, you're no longer obligated to follow their rules. You have to announced your presence with a mark so deep is scars. Terry leaves to get some sleep. Nathan's going to change their tickets so they can stay an extra day. Bobbie's going to Uniqlo. Nathan says after that, they have an old friend to visit.

Reagan tells Josh it's a ton of steps because she's not married and doesn't have children, but she's eventually going to get her own land. Josh doesn't understand it, but it sounds messed up to him. If Reagan says that at home, she's pushing against tradition, but she agrees that it sucks. Reagan thanks him for letting her vent and for listening. He says it's part of his job. He has something he wants Reagan to see.

Josh and Reagan enter the Natalie Ball exhibit. He introduces Reagan and Natalie. Reagan's a huge fan of hers. Natalie asks if she's in town for the show, but Reagan explains she ran away from consulting on Adirondack. Natalie says her mom loves that show and Reagan's dad does as well. They don't understand why. Natalie offers to show Reagan around.

Nathan and Bobbie go to see Kaitlyn. Nathan says he has a way they could help each other right now.

Bobbie asks Kaitlyn what she's been up to, aside from vaping. She says she's getting into cryptocurrency. Bobbie tells her not to do it. Nathan says they need dirt on Rutherford Inc. She knows lots of things, but she signed an airtight NDA. Nathan never signed one. They were probably relying on his blind loyalty to the Rutherford name, but Natalie says they never told him anything important. But the oversight could work to their advantage.

Reagan had such a great day being in a place where no one knows her. Josh likes to think someone there knows her. Talking on the phone is nice, but it's not the same as hanging out. He's missed her, like missed missed her. He was an idiot and shouldn't have screwed them up for a moderately-successful podcast. Reagan wonders if he'd still feel that way if the podcast had exploded. Reagan says it really sucked. Josh made a choice. They live in different places and have different lives. Reagan thinks she just needs to go home because it's a better fit.

Nathan, Kaitlyn, and Bobbie enter Melanie's office. Nathan makes his pitch again to get money. If she doesn't, some nasty things will come out about Rutherford Inc. Melanie reminds Kaitlyn that she signed an NDA. Bobbie says she did, but Nathan didn't and back when Kaitlyn had Melanie's job, they talked all the time. They could have discussed anything. Kaitlyn knows that Melanie knows what she knows. Melanie agrees to call someone in lobbying, but Nathan says she can do better and she'll be using all of her power to fund and support Bobbie's campaign.

Reagan walks on set and is horrified by what she sees. She questions Terry about it and he delights in how horrific it is. She was right. They were never going to listen, so his only choice was to make it so offensive that no one would be able to ignore it. Reagan says that's brilliant. Terry tells Amber the dream catchers need more jewels on them and the extras saging the tepees need to be louder. Cox passes them. Reagan asks about his plan to bring production to Rutherford Falls. He says some things are more important than money. Not many things, but some things. Reagan is impressed and wonders if it'll work.

Maureen Ortega from WQVQ reports on the photos Josh posted from the Adirondack set. He was alerted by sources close to the production. The production is drawing ire from Indigenous communities across the nation. Sharice Davids says there's no excuse for something so offensive as a Native American ceremony with a sexy Pocahontas telling "Woo-Woo" on the back of a stuffed buffalo while smoking a sage bundle. It's unacceptable. Nelson brings in Reagan's jacket, which he had cleaned and pressed. There was an Easter Egg Reese's in the pocket and it's September. Reagan asks Nelson to stay at her place for the night. She's really happy to see him. He's happy to see her too. He wants to watch the documentary about carbon offset slave traders in Ecuador. Reagan would feel weird making out during that, so Nelson says he's free right now.

## Cast

### Main Cast

* Ed Helms as Nathan Rutherford
* Michael Greyeyes as Terry Thomas
* Jana Schmieding as Reagan Wells
* Jesse Leigh as Bobbie Yang
* Dustin Milligan as Josh Carter

### Guest Stars

* Mimi Gianopulos as Kaitlyn Farrow
* Dallas Goldtooth as Nelson
* Monica Padman as Melanie
* Jon Barinholtz as Cox Whitley/Rye Whitman/Alden Whitmer
* Shawn Parson as Holt
* Stephen Schneider as Remington
* Natalie Ball as Herself

### Co-Starring

* Charlie Morgan Patton as Amber
* Ernest David Tsosie as Chief Nightpipe
* Kahara Hodges as Eileen
* Kathleen Kenny as Assistant Director
* Jesse Bush as FBI Agent
* Noah Anselmo as Birch
* Dave King as Barista Jeff
* Stephanie Escajeda as Maureen Ortega

## See Also

 **#02** | "The New Curator"
 **#03** | "Aunt Sue"
 **#04** | "Land Back"