Warning: MASSIVE SPOILERS for Ozark Season 3
The ending of Ozark season 3 saw Marty (Jason Bateman) and Wendy Byrde (Laura Linney) consolidate their power and fall in even deeper with Mexican drug lord Omar Navarro (Felix Solis), but it cost the life of Wendy's younger brother Ben (Tom Pelphrey). Meanwhile, the other criminal elements in Osage Beach, Missouri banded together against the Byrdes and this includes Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner) walking away from Marty to up with Darlene Snell (Lisa Emery).
Ozark season 3's ending upended the tenuous facade Wendy and Marty Byrde established as pillars of the Osage Beach business community, along with their teenage children Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz) and Jonah (Skylar Gaertner), who are all in on the truth about the family business. But Marty's lack of trust in Wendy caused him to spy on her activities, which fractured their marriage in the first half of Ozark season 3. Meanwhile, Wendy looked to further the Byrdes' standing with Navarro, who was losing a war with a rival cartel. With the help of the drug lord's lawyer Helen Pierce (Janet McTeer), Wendy tried to purchase a second casino Navarro could use as a "legitimate" front - a plan Marty opposed since his operations at the Missouri Belle riverboat casino was being closely audited by the FBI and their new agent, Maya Miller (Jessica Francis Duke).
But the real troublemaking wildcard was Wendy's brother Ben, who is dangerously bipolar. Despite Wendy's best efforts to hide her family's criminal life, Ben learned what the 'family business' was. Worse, after falling in love with Ruth, Ben went off his meds and ignited a firestorm of problems that made him a liability to not just the Byrdes' business but also the Navarro cartel as well. Tragically, Ben had to be eliminated, which broke apart the Byrde family. Ozark season 3 ended with a shocking cliffhanger that reshuffled the show's labyrinthine status quo heading into season 4.
Why Ben Had To Die And What It Cost The Byrde Family
Ben's death and the sequence of events leading to his execution is the most heartbreaking part of Ozark season 3. Ben was a happy and friendly face when he first arrived in Osage Beach, although his presence was automatically a problem. To keep him from finding out about the Byrdes' criminal enterprises, Jonah was given the job of minding his fun-loving uncle. But Ben had eyes for Ruth and he eventually broke through her hard outer shell and won her affections; unfortunately, he couldn't make love to her while he was on his medication so he stopped taking them, which turned Ben into his 'real' self, who was violently dangerous but still an emotional wreck.
Worse, Ben saw Marty get abducted by Navarro's men, which clued him into his sister's true life of crime. As Ben got more unstable and ruined a major charity event staged by the Byrdes, Marty and Wendy had her brother committed - until Ruth took pity on Ben and broke him out of the asylum. But as far as Helen was concerned, Ben's truly unforgivable act was showing up at her house and telling Helen's daughter Erin (Madison Thompson) the truth that her mother is a lawyer for a Mexican drug lord. Helen marked Ben for death and, despite Wendy trying to whisk him out of state, Wendy realized she can't control her desperately sick brother. Wendy made the impossible choice and called Helen herself; leaving Ben alone at a diner, Wendy couldn't watch her baby brother's execution at the ends of Helen's hitman Frank Nelson (Nelson Bonilla).
Ben's death changed everything for the worse. It made Jonah despise his mother when he found out that she let Helen kill his uncle. It also ended Helen's trust in the Byrdes, which made her move against their business. Finally, losing Ben and listening to Wendy lie about and try to justify it was the last straw for Ruth, who broke away from the Byrdes for good. The lone bright spots are that Marty stepped up to emotionally his wife and Tom Pelphrey delivered an unforgettably heartwrenching performance during Ben's final episodes. Nonetheless, Wendy essentially killed her brother and she'll never be the same.
Helen Tried To Steal Marty And Wendy's Business - And She Lost
Helen reluctantly relocated to Osage Beach to work closely with the Byrdes, at Navarro's request, but she had problems working with Wendy and Marty. Making Helen's life difficult was trying to keep her own teenage daughter Erin in the dark about how she really makes her living. Ben outing Helen's real job to Erin finally ended her relationship with the Byrdes and she went behind their backs to cut them out of their business; Helen even got a Missouri state gaming license to take the casino away from Marty and Wendy and lied to the FBI that Marty wanted to turn state's evidence against Navarro. Helen even briefly got Ruth to agree to work for her if Marty and Wendy were out of the picture.
Helen made these moves with Navarro's blessing but once the Byrdes realized Helen was now their enemy and planned to kill them, Marty and Wendy's only recourse was to make themselves more valuable to Navarro to force the drug kingpin to chose them over Helen. The Byrdes used Marty's with the FBI and video Jonah had of the rival cartel performing a hit on American soil to get the U.S. Government on Navarro's enemies' tails. It worked: since the Byrdes helped Navarro win his drug war (which saved his children in the process), Omar chose Marty and Wendy's value over Helen's. Incredibly, Navarro had Helen shot in the head right in front of the Byrdes' eyes in Ozark season 3's ending. Marty and Wendy now truly belong to Navarro, for better or worse, and there's no longer any escape from out of his grip.
The Byrdes Broke Their Family But Ruth Got Hers' Back (And More)
Wendy allowing Ben to be killed may have been a sacrifice to keep the rest of the Byrdes alive, but it also ruined the family unit they'd worked so hard to maintain. Jonah was so angry about Ben that he went to Helen's house with a shotgun and tried to kill her. However, the crafty lawyer talked her way out and clued Jonah in on how it was really his mother who made the final call that killed his uncle. This could lead to Jonah never trusting his parents again, although Marty and Wendy ended Ozark season 3 without realizing how hurt and furious Jonah truly is.
Ruth is arguably the most valuable player in Ozark and her defection is a major loss for the Byrdes. Ruth loved Ben and she was already resentful that Wendy ordered her father Cade's (Trevor Long) assassination at the end of Ozark season 2. The fact that Marty allowed Frank Cosgrove Jr. (Joseph Sikora) to nearly beat Ruth to death when she was supposed to be considered "untouchable" by the Kansas City mob also broke Ruth's trust in the Byrdes, but Ben's death was the final straw.
At the end of Ozark season 3, Ruth ended up getting her family back thanks to the bizarre union between the Langmores and the Snells. When Ruth's cousin Wyatt refused to speak to her earlier in Ozark season 3, he was taken in by Darlene Snell and they ended up becoming lovers. When Ruth broke from the Byrdes, Darlene saw the chance to restart her heroin business and forge a new family of "locals" against the Byrdes. Darlene took it upon herself to get revenge for Ruth by shooting Frank Jr.'s in the groin with a shotgun before brokering a deal to have the Kansas City mob supply her heroin. Now, with Ruth and Wyatt in her fold, Darlene has staged a comeback with a new family that has united the Byrdes' enemies to bring them down.
The Ozarks Will Be A Hostile Place For The Byrdes In Season 4
Ozark season 3's cliffhanger ended with Marty and Wendy literally embraced by Omar Navarro but when they return to Osage Beach, they'll find nothing but hostility in all directions in Ozark season 4. The Snells and the Langmores have ed up with the Kansas City mob to oppose Navarro's proliferation of drugs in Missouri. It will be even harder for Marty to launder Navarro's money through the casino since the FBI is now out to get him because they believed Marty reneged on a deal to testify against Navarro and go into witness protection. And their son Jonah wants answers from his parents about why Ben really died. Marty and Wendy sacrificed Ben and did everything they could to keep the Byrde family alive but in Ozark season 4, all of their efforts may have cost them everything they built thus far.
Ozark season 3 is available to stream on Netflix.