Warning! This article contains spoilers for Reacher season 3's epsiode 6.

Alan Ritchson's Jack Reacher carries himself with an air of stoicism. However, beneath his calm demeanor, there is always a calculating intensity that he carefully projects based on the situation he is in. For instance, in Reacher season 3, he does not bother going all-out with his strength and brutality when he bashes Angel's head on a table. He realizes that since someone like Angel could cause him no harm, he does not have to use all his strength against him.

In Reacher season 2's ending arc, however, the character was pushed to his limits, which forced him to tap into a deeper well of rage and raw power. Even in one of season 1's last few episodes, Jack Reacher went full military mode to take down his enemies before ruthlessly eradicating them one by one. The character has seemingly been relatively calm since the season 1 sequence, but season 3 finally gives another glimpse into what he is truly capable of.

Reacher Unleashes His True, Violent Self In Season 3, Episode 6's Woodland Massacre

He Paints His Face With Mud & Mercilessly Kills His Enemies

Moments after Xavier Quinn learns the truth about Reacher's covert operation, Reacher realizes that his cover has been blown. Therefore, before Quinn's men can do anything to him, he breaks out of Zachary Beck's mansion and drives as far as he can until his car breaks down. Before Quinn's men catch up with him, Jack Reacher processes the seriousness of the situation and prepares to go all-out with Quinn's men. With what follows, he goes full military mode by rubbing mud on his face to camouflage himself and perfectly blend himself with his dark forest surroundings.

Quinn's men seem to stand no chance as Jack Reacher sneaks up on them one by one. Instead of merely shooting them dead, Reacher shows no qualms about killing them in the most brutal ways. The most vicious kill in this action sequence is when he wraps the wire from a winch mounted on an ATV around a villain's neck, making him experience a slow, painful death as the winch slowly pulls the wire.

Since Reacher has been undercover almost throughout season 3, he holds back from unleashing his true potential. However, with his cover blown, he returns to his old ways.

Reacher Last Tapped Into His True Self During Season 1's "Reacher Said Nothing"

Season 1 Was The Last Time He Went Full "Military Mode"

Reacher has not felt the need to fall back to his extreme military methods in a long time. The last time he sported camo face paint and ruthlessly took bad guys with a razor-sharp hunting blade was in season 1. In Reacher season 1's episode 7, "Reacher Said Nothing," the Alan Ritchson character intentionally made his whereabouts known to the villains before taking a trip to an army surplus store. With face paint, a hunting blade, and a blackjack sap at his disposal, he headed to the location of the imminent confrontation with his Desert Eagle.

As the showdown began, Jack Reacher snapped one guy's neck before ruthlessly slashing another bad guy's throat with his hunting knife. He used the same knife to stab one of the men in the chest before lashing out at another and using him as a shield to avoid getting hit by Dawson's bullets. Although Dawson initially managed to overpower him, Reacher took him down in the swimming pool by shooting him dead with his Desert Eagle. In both scenes from Reacher seasons 1 and 3, the character taps into his military training and puts his unrelenting aggression on full display.

Reacher Season 3's Version Is Even Darker Than Season 1's

Reacher Intentionally Makes The Villains Suffer In Season 3's Episode 6

Although Reacher is scary in both the seasons' "military mode" sequences, his season 3 version is far darker. As soon as he enters the woods in Reacher season 3's episode 6 and camouflages himself using mud, a switch seems to go off in his head as he relies purely on his cold-blooded instincts and cares little about the men in front of him. What makes the Reacher season 3 sequence even more chilling is that the overarching story perfectly builds up to it. Almost throughout the season, Jack Reacher bottles his anger and primal instincts to ensure he does not blow his cover.

After enduring a lot of emotional and physical damage, Alan Ritchson's Jack Reacher shows how cold and vicious he can be to those who dare to stand in his way.

He even takes a massive blow to his face from Paulie in Reacher season 3's episode 5, which brings out his previously unseen vulnerable side. Owing to this, when his cover is finally blown in episode 6, it almost looks like he feels a sense of relief that he can finally take out everything he has been holding back. After enduring a lot of emotional and physical damage, Alan Ritchson's Jack Reacher shows how cold and vicious he can be to those who dare to stand in his way.