'Tracker' Is So Good Because It Is Unlike Any Other Procedural on CBS

Published Aug 13, 2026, 8:13 PM EDT Michael John Petty is a Senior Author for Collider who spends his days writing, in fellowship with his local church, and enjoying each new day with his wife and daughters. At Collider, he writes features, reviews, recaps, and conducts interviews. In addition to writing about stories, Michael has told a few of his own. His novella, The Beast of Bear-tooth Mountain, was released in 2023. His Western short story, The Devil's Left Hand, received the Spur Award for "Best Western Short Fiction" from the Western Writers of America in 2025. Michael currently resides in North Idaho with his growing family. It's clear that the role of Tracker's "rewardist" Colter Shaw was just the kind of part that Justin Hartley was born to play. With some exciting action moments that pull from his time on Smallville to some meaty character drama that echoes his work on This Is Us, there are a lot of reasons to believe that Tracker is, in many ways, the culmination of Hartley's career thus far. The actor has masterfully adapted the Jeffrey Deaver character to the screen and given him new life on network television. But there's one thing in particular about Tracker that makes this show stand out: the masterful balance between the show's standalone adventures and Colter Shaw's mysterious history. 'Tracker' Excels at Balancing Standalone and Mythology Plots The longer many procedurals go, the harder it can be to balance the overarching plot with the specific events of standalone episodes. In the case of many productions (and this is particularly true of genre shows such as The X-Files or Supernatural), elements from the show's greater mythology will end up bleeding their way into what would've otherwise been a standalone story. In our streaming age of serialized television, finding week-by-week productions that tackle new concepts and/or ideas in each episode rather than pulling from the same threads can be challenging. Tracker has been compared to shows like Reacher in the past because of its basic premise, but that comparison ultimately falls short since the Prime Video series takes one Jack Reacher novel and spreads it out over a whole season. Meanwhile, the CBS drama takes us to a new location (and a new mystery) in each episode. And that's part of why it works so well. As a sort of anti-procedural, Tracker's weekly adventures are always engaging, and best reveal more about who Colter Shaw is as a character than anything we've learned of his past via flashbacks or family dialogue. This isn't to say the overarching plotline isn't important, it certainly is, but Tracker wisely follows the unspoken rules of network television by dragging these ideas out over time and letting fans digest them over longer stretches. Of course, that extends to the characters themselves also, as it gives Colter time to chew on any new information before directly confronting it. For Tracker, that time is vital. When compared to many of the well-produced serialized shows out there, such as Reacher or Jack Ryan, this might make Tracker sound dull on the surface, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Even in episodes like Season 1's "Into the Wild," which have nothing to do with the show's central plot, Colter's near-fatal confrontation with Peter Stormare's Las Vegas mob enforcer makes the episode as vital and engaging as any other. What makes Tracker exciting isn't an all-entangling plotline, but rather the character of Colter Shaw. Sometimes, Colter's cases overlap slightly with his muddied family history, and when that happens, it's always done with tact. In the case of the Season 1 finale, "The Storm," this happens because of a family friend, Lizzy Hawking (played by Hartley's former This Is Us co-star, Jennifer Morrison), whose mother was seemingly having an affair with Colter's father, Ashton (Lee Tergesen). But although Lizzy reveals some of these dark family secrets at the very end of the episode, most of the plot doesn't touch on this at all. Colter's primary focus throughout is finding Lizzy's missing daughter, and that's exactly what he does. This idea that Colter aimlessly wanders America in search of other people's loved ones and possessions is what makes the show so compelling. The mysterious mythology behind his character often takes a backseat. What might've been the industry standard over a decade ago now feels like a quirk, but it's one that Tracker rocks well. Shaw Family Drama Is Necessary, but Not the Main Point on 'Tracker' Image via CBS Though we meet Colter's mother, Mary Dove Shaw (Wendy Crewson), at the very beginning of the series, his siblings are largely strangers until the show establishes its structure in Season 1. The final batch of Season 1 episodes introduce us to Colter's sister, Dory (Melissa Roxburgh), and then former Supernatural star Jensen Ackles is revealed to be the adult version of his older brother Russell. The episodes where the show delves deeper into Shaw family history are undeniably entertaining. For three seasons, the mystery surrounding what really happened that night Ashton Shaw died has been a quiet throughline in the series. But that isn't the key point of the show. Tracker first establish the type of man Colter Shaw is on his own before introducing his biological family. Audiences get to see him working with his "found family," especially in Seasons 1 and 2. This includes his handlers, Teddi (Robin Weigert) and Velma (Abby McEnany), expert hacker Bobby (Eric Graise), Bobby's hacker cousin Randy (Chris Lee), and his official legal counselor Reenie Greene (Fiona Rene). For Colter, and Tracker as a whole, these are the people who matter most. Yes, the family drama is a necessary component, especially as it helps inform us of who Colter is and where he comes from. But the series has purposely branded itself as a case-of-the-week type of show for a reason, and that's still where it's strongest. What makes Colter an electric protagonist is not simply where he came from or how he amassed all his impressive survivalist skills, but rather what he does with them. In this case, he's made a career out of helping others. Naturally, this means that Tracker would focus most on that very idea, and when it does, it always stands out. 'Tracker's Emphasis on the Job Best Reflects Its Lead Character Perhaps there's an even clearer reason as to why Tracker's complex mythology takes a general backseat to the standard jobs that Colter takes week after week. Maybe the reason Tracker is structured in this way is that it more accurately reflects how Colter Shaw himself compartmentalizes his life. We know that Colter doesn't allow himself to get too attached to those around him, even when he works with them on a weekly basis. The series structure of Tracker itself reflects the type of person Colter is. There's no denying that Colter cares about the people in his life. But, even with that care, which Colter extends to strangers he's hardly met, that personal interest only extends so far. For the most part, Colter keeps people at arm's length, leading him to remove any possibility of emotional disappointment. Whether intentional or not, it creates an atmosphere of mystery that surrounds Tracker, one that holds long-term questions just beneath the surface. The show itself proves to be an accurate extension of the Colter Shaw character and thrives when leaning into his psyche — not just as a part of each episode's plot, but as a part of the series' structure as a whole. Tracker Release Date February 11, 2024