Red Dead Redemption - Life On The Farm

Harry McDougall

It's been driving me nuts but I finally figured it out. Remember how I said the name Harold McDougal was familiar? Well I finally placed it. The name Harold McDougal had me thinking Harry McDougall, from the awesome anime series Outlaw Star. A series that completely deserved a second season, and no, Angel Links does not count.

So Marston get to return back to the ranch and live with his family. Except the ranch is falling apart. Since Marston is done being an outlaw, again, he needs to fix the place up. We're introduced to Marston's wife Abigail, their son John "Jack" Marston Jr. and Uncle. We never learn Uncle's real name, but Marston treats him like a lazy bum. Uncle was in charge of the farm so the rundown state of the place is his responsibility.

This is where Marston's connection to the McFarlanes comes in handy. Marston and son head on down and purchase some cattle to get the farm going again and maybe grow it into a ranch.

Let's cover Jack first. I get that Jack has been through a traumatic event, but that kid really does know how to whine. Marston tries his best to make up for lost time with the boy and all he can do is complain. But he switches on the drop of a hat. First he's happy to be hunting, then he complains that his dad will leave them again, then he's happy he's spending time with his dad, then he's complaining that he was taken. Every event with Jack works that way, it's really annoying and makes the kid fairly unlikeable.

When Jack tries to take on a grizzly part of me wished the bear would eat the kid, but I like Marston and I was really rooting for him to take back his old life. The music around the farm is even more foreboding then the music in Blackwater. Still has me worried about the future.

Uncle's missions prove that he really is a lazy bum. He complains a lot and I never liked him from the moment I saw him. There's a cattle herding mission, which I lost 200 honor for stopping a train robbery apparently, and I get to capture some horses with him. The guy remained pretty unlikeable.

Then there's Abigail, the wife of John Marston. I like her, she has sass. She has Marston scare crows away from the corn silo, but the best part with her is when Marston receives a request of Bonnie McFarlane. Abigail is a little jealous. Bonnie needs corn since her crop went bad. The ride down there and back is fun. Listening to Abigail and John banter back and forth feels natural, fun and has a touch of love in it. These two make a good couple. It was also cute to see Bonnie a little down that Marston has a happy marriage.

It's hard to tell how much time passes but I get the feeling that a couple of months go by, I could be wrong. This is an interesting section of gameplay as Marston isn't killing people, he's just living a normal life. He just wants to take care of his family and make a life for them.

This section, it's obviously setting up something, something very, very bad.