In season two, after the death of Daniel, the fifth member of the Reservation Dogs, the group began stealing, plotting, and saving money to fulfill his dream of going to California. The plan took a detour when the gang broke up and everyone had to find their own way. Elora ran off with the Rez Dogs' mortal enemy, Jackie (Elva Guerra), Bear received ancient wisdom from Spirit (Dallas Goldtooth) in the holiest of porta potties, Willie Jack discovered her lineage in a prison visiting room, and Cheese spent time in a boys' home, while never forgetting his pronouns. Realizing they were stronger together, the Rez Dogs reunited and reached Cali, where, with their feet in the sand and the waves crashing in front of them, they said goodbye to Daniel.
This season, the Rez Dogs are stranded in Cali and must find their way back home. After they return to Okern, Elora considers going to college, Bear encounters a conspiracy theorist named Maximus (Graham Greene), Willie Jack becomes more involved in healing her community, and Cheese, well, still lives with his grandmother who is not his grandmother. Meanwhile, the aunts, uncles and elders investigate their pasts and try to heal old wounds.
The cast also includes tribal agent Big (Zahn McClarnon), cannabis-loving Brownie (Gary Farmer), physics-obsessed Bucky (Wes Studi), the enigmatic Deer Lady (Kaniehtiio Horn), Bear's mother Rita (Sarah Podemski) and her cousin Teenie (Tamara). Podemski), Willie Jack's father Leon (Jon Proudstar), Daniel's mother Hokti (Lily Gladstone), medicine man Old Man Fixico (Richard Ray Whitman), junkyard prophet Kenny Boy (Kirk Fox), gum-smacking Bev (Jana Schmieding), and horseless rap duo Mose (Lil Mike) and Mekko (FunnyBone).
Hailed as a breakthrough in Indigenous representation on television, Reservation Dogs entered more than 180 critics' year-end lists in its first two seasons, was recognized as AFI Television Program of the Year two years running, and won two Independent Spirit Awards, a Gotham Award and a Peabody Award. The series was one of seven programs recognized by the Television Academy in 2022 as part of the Television Academy Honors, recognizing exceptional programs and their producers who have used the power of television to drive social change.
Watch the trailer for the third and final season of Reservation Dogs below.
