Monster at the Gate

**"Monster at the Gate"** was the first episode of the first season of *Joe Pickett* and the series premier. Though originally broadcast on Spectrum Streaming in the fall of 2021, its Paramount+ re-debut was in May 2022.

## Synopsis

On his first day as game warden in Saddlestring, WY, Joe Pickett finds himself in an unexpected situation with a local poacher.

## Plot Summary

A young Joe Pickett runs through the woods, being chased by his angry father, George Pickett. As he falls over a steep incline, adult Joe Pickett wakes up from the bad dream. Joe sets out on his warden duties to inspect a fence torn down by a wild animal. A shot from his pistol scares the animal away. A man on a four-wheeler approaches as he collects his supplies to repair the fence. The man tries to convince Joe into getting the state to cover the repair costs by saying Vern would have done it. Joe says the State is responsible for all damage caused by elk. They hear a gunshot off in the distance. The bullet hit flesh, so Joe leaves to investigate what happened.

Joe drives through the woods and finds Ote Keeley standing over a dead elk. Ote is hunting elk out of season. The dead elk is “meat for the pot.” Joe tells Ote he didn’t have to kill a trophy to fill your freezer. Ote is shocked when he threatens to write him a ticket. Joe arrested the Wyoming Governor Budd for fishing without a license. Ote is worried about a suspension of his professional outfitter’s license, which will take his family’s financial support. Joe asks him for his driver’s license and insists on writing the ticket.

As Joe reaches for Ote’s wallet, Ote lunges forward and grabs his pistol. He points the gun and threatens to kill him. Joe refuses an offer of walking away in exchange for not writing a ticket. Joe wrestles the pistol away from Ote. He points the gun at Ote and asks if he wants to leave his kids without a father. Joe has a childhood flashback of holding a pistol pointed at his father while he sleept. Joe puts the gun away and writes Ote a ticket.

Joe has another flashback, standing on a mountaintop. He hits himself in the head, takes in the view, and counts down from three. Joe returns home to find his wife, Marybeth Pickett sitting on the porch. She asks about his battered face. They will soon be a two-income family when she chooses between a rodeo clown and a tractor doctor. She has a law degree. She receives a phone call from her doctor. He sings his daughters, Lucy and Sheridan, a song before they go to sleep. He has a flashback of his fight with Ote. Joe returns downstairs and finds MaryBeth sobbing because she is pregnant. Her dream of going back to work and getting her life back is over.

A few months later, Joe and his family visit the Saddlestring Community Plaza farmer’s market. Marybeth stops in at a booth to ask how she can make new friends. A man suggests divorcing Joe. Sheridan knows her cat is not coming back. They meet the former game warden, Vern Dunnegan at a booth. He is working with a company to bring a pipeline through Saddlestring. He broke up with his significant other, Sandy. Ote tells the locals about taking Joe’s gun. Game wardens are killed more often than any other law officer. Vern suggests bending a little to avoid pissing off people like Ote. Joe doesn’t agree. Joe bumps into Ote and they have a brief stand-off. Joe tells Ote to call during business hours if he has any complaints.

Joe has a flashback while monitoring a herd of buffalo. He tells his brother, Victor Pickett his plans of going out west. They can hear the Wyoming wind blow from looking at a Grand Teton National Park poster. He can still hear it. A call from Vern sends Joe to the Bouvier Sister Emu Emporium. They need an emu named "Hey You" moved back outside. He opens the bedroom door to a screeching emu. The sisters give him a quilt to drape over Hey You’s head. Joe wrestles Hey You through the house and out the front door while the Bouvier sisters watch. He suggests they keep their door shut from now on. They are surprised he did so well after what they read in the Saddlestring Roundup newspaper about his struggle with Ote.

Marybeth meets Ote’s wife, Jeannie Keeley at the doctor’s office. She offers to take a look at Jeannie’s eviction notice. Jeannie initially refuses but eventually accepts the offer when Marybeth says she will read about celebrities going through menopause. She says landlords cannot give evictions to children under the age of 14. Jeannie can remain in her home until the landlord figures it out. A nurse escorts Marybeth to an examination room. She hopes Joe is okay after reading the newspaper article about Ote. She reads the newspaper article.

Julie Scarlett is a school bully. She calls Lucy “country weird” and grabs her book out of her hands, calling it boring. Lucy agrees, the book looks boring, but only if you can’t read. April Keeley laughs, so Julie turns her attention on April. She tells her friends that April is wearing her secondhand jacket.

Jeannie reads the newspaper article about Ote and Joe. She angrily tosses the newspaper in the trash, where she finds April’s jacket. She demands an explanation of why she threw it in the trash. She throws the jacket at April when she admits to not liking it anymore. She scolds Ote for shooting off his mouth in town. He tells her to not worry, he has a plan.

Lucy asks Joe what’s wrong when he returns home. Marybeth is not in a great mood. He asks Lucy to keep Sheridan outside for a bit. She suggests telling her she looks nice. Marybeth is on the phone with her mother when Joe walks in. He says you look nice. She grins and says I don’t have time for it right now. They prepare to go pick up her mother, Missy in Jackson Hole. Her husband was recently arrested.

Ote, Calvin, and another man are on horseback. Ote discovers a large disco ball in the woods and stops to look at it. Nate Romanowski shoots an arrow in his direction. Ote pulls his gun while Nate reloads his bow with another arrow.

Joe and Marybeth discuss the newspaper article. Joe admits that he let his guard down and it is not really a dangerous situation. People who grow up around violence, sometimes have a hard time recognizing danger when it comes, Marybeth says. He promises to do better and not die. They arrive at Missy’s house. She asks him to be nice to her mother. Missy claims that the federal government took her lover away, therefore she's entitled to a glass of wine. Missy scolds Marybeth for marrying a park ranger. Marybeth defends Joe.

While getting ready for bed, Joe admits he was wrong about not trusting her more. He didn’t tell her because he was afraid, she would think less of him. His dad’s voice tells him to not look weak. He nearly killed Ote. It is okay to be angry, it doesn’t make you dangerous.

Joe dreams of walking on glass and a woman pleading with him to open the door. George cocks his gun and points it directly at young Joe. He fires his pistol as adult Joe awakens. He has a flashback of running through the woods, with his father in tow as he gets a glass of liquor and a cookie. Young Joe falls over a steep incline and listens to his father yelling. The racket woke Missy. He finishes off the alcohol and crams the cookie in his mouth.

Sheridan tells Lucy about her bad dream. Missy says she was not at her best last night. He responds, “Apology accepted.” It was not an apology, Missy clarifies. Joe asks Sheridan about her dream, where she talks about a man. Joe gets a gut feeling and grabs his guns to head outside. He finds Ote’s horse stranded and a trail of blood leading him to Ote's dead body, thrown on top of a pile of wood. Marybeth comes out with a rifle. She asks why Ote is here. Joe admits he was wrong about things with Ote not escalating.

## Cast

### Main

* Michael Dorman as Joe Pickett
* Julianna Guill as Marybeth Pickett
* Sharon Lawrence as Missy Vankeuren
* Mustafa Speaks as Nate Romanowski
* Skywalker Hughes as Sheridan Pickett
* Kamryn Pilva as Lucy Pickett
* David Alan Grier as Vern Dunnegan

### Recurring

* Leah Gibson as Jeannie Keeley
* Benjamin Hollingsworth as Ote Keeley
* Julian Black Antelope as Warren Crowshoe
* Cassie Dzienny as Sadie Pickett
* Kyle Mac as George Pickett
* Jacqueline Robbins as Violet Bouvier
* Joyce Robbins as Vivian Bouvier
* Zebastin Borjeau as Young Joe Pickett
* Dennis Corrie as Local Man
* Autumn T. Dang as Nurse
* Malik Elassal as Calvin Mendes
* Vivienne Guynn as April Keeley
* Oliver Mandelcorn as Young Victor Pickett
* Evie Marsten as Julie Scarlett
* Owen Crow Shoe as Kyle Lensegrav