Why CBS’s Reacher Replacement Tracker Is Finding Streaming Success on Paramount+

A different kind of mystery

Like Reacher, Tracker sends its central character across the country and into trouble. But Colter Shaw is not an ex-military figure tackling one localized mystery over a season; he takes jobs finding missing people and earns reward money.

The CBS series is a procedural, with most episodes built around a fresh case. A few stories stretch across two episodes, while the standalone format gives Colter new situations to handle each week.

A hit from its premiere

The series is now in its fourth season, which has only just begun. Its return has helped place it among the most-watched titles on Paramount+.

Colter’s changing cases

Colter’s work can take him into military-related situations, particularly when his brother Russell, played by Jensen Ackles, appears. Russell returns each season, and his Season 4 appearance is imminent.

Other cases bring Colter to small towns to help families search for missing loved ones. The new season is also set to explore failure, an idea the show has touched on only occasionally.

From books to streaming

Tracker draws on Jeffery Deaver’s novels about Colter Shaw, especially the first book, The Never Game. The television series also uses material from other books to develop the Shaw family story.

Viewers can start with the current season without extensive knowledge of earlier events, though the first three seasons offer a chance to follow the show’s development. Tracker airs Sundays on CBS and arrives on Paramount+ the following day.