Characters Who Deserved Better Fates

Red Dead Redemption 2 is filled with heartbreak, where characters undeserving receive horrid fates that fans wish they could have changed, or at least, wish there could have been some other way. With so much death and pain facing the tamed west of Red Dead Redemption 2, it’s time to open old wounds and look to some characters who didn’t deserve their fate.

Whether it’s a favorite gunslinger, or a simple bystander that meant no harm, plenty of characters fans meet in Red Dead Redemption 2 didn’t receive a fair bullet, and instead, obtained a fate that should have turned out differently if they were decent folk in decent times.

Spoilers ahead for Red Dead Redemption 2!

8

Arturo Bullard

Shot and Killed by O’Driscolls

• Killed in: Icarus and Friends (Chapter 6)
• Portrayed by: Asa Somers

A lover of aviation, Arturo Bullard means no harm to anyone, and he meets Arthur Morgan expecting the gunslinger to be a new student of his who wants some flying lessons in his hot air balloon. Little does Arturo know that Arthur is trying to free John Marston from prison, and Arturo ends up trapped in the middle of the chaos, where bullets fly overhead and his air balloon is the only thing keeping him alive – and around for this mission.

Arturo is unfortunately killed during the chase, as he is fatally shot by the O’Driscolls. It’s a real shame, as this is a character that didn’t feature much but left lasting impressions for his humor and his innocence, and he definitely didn’t need to die in a gang feud when he was just doing his job by providing flying lessons.

7

Sean MacGuire

Killed in an Ambush by the Grays

• Killed in: A Short Walk in a Pretty Town (Chapter 3)
• Portrayed by: Michael Mellamphy

Surviving torture from bounty hunters after the botched ferry job in Blackwater, Sean MacGuire proved his mettle and his devotion to the Van der Linde gang as a youthful spirit – only to wind up with a bullet lodged in the back of his head after a fatal ambush from the Gray Family when Arthur, Micah, Bill, and Sean walked through Rhodes.

Sean’s death was the direct result of the gang’s meddling in the squabble of two feuding families, the Braithwaites and the Grays, and while Sean was an outlaw, he did not deserve to die like that – rotting and getting cold in a dirty street with a bullet in the back of his head with his whole life ahead of him.

6

Karen Jones

Most Likely Drunk Herself to Death

• Killed in: Unknown
• Portrayed by: Jo Armeniox

Karen Jones was the youthful and bright spirit of the Van der Linde gang who would often wish to ride with the male outlaws to join them on heists and other robberies. Karen liked to have fun, and her wild spirit was heightened when a gun was in hand, or a bottle of booze. Sadly for Karen, the latter quickly took over her life after the loss of her love, Sean MacGuire.

Too much death surrounding the Van der Linde gang made Karen seek comfort in alcohol, and throughout the majority of the late game, she’s found in a drunken slumber, slurring her words and finding more booze to consume. Whether Karen was killed by Susan Grimshaw, or simply scattered to the wind and died as a result of her dependency on alcohol is not known, but she deserved better than whatever she ended up with.

5

Jack Marston

Joins a Cycle of Revenge After Killing Edgar Ross

• Portrayed by: Josh Blaylock

Jack Marston had a hard childhood, and it was far from normal. Jack was raised in a gang of outlaws but sheltered mostly from the crimes of the Van der Linde gang. This sheltered life was an attempt to make Jack live with some sense of normalcy, but all it did was make him an avid fan of literature who couldn’t fish, couldn’t hunt, or hold a gun.

Yet, when the U.S. Army came to Beecher’s Hope to kill his father, John Marston, and tie up any loose ends with the Van der Linde gang, Jack swore revenge on the man behind it all by killing Edgar Ross. Now, Jack Marston remains the last member of the Van der Linde gang, roaming a tamed West in 1914 as the killer of a retired Bureau of Investigation agent, instead of what he deserved, which is a peaceful life as a son and a writer.

4

Abigail Marston

Her Dreams of a Peaceful Life are Stolen From Her

• Fate: Dies at 37, and is buried alongside her husband.
• Portrayed by: Sophia Marzocchi (RDR), Cali Elizabeth Moore (RDR2)

Abigail Marston had a poor upbringing, and during her time of homeless survival, she became a prostitute and eventually fell in with the Van der Linde gang. Abigail soon fell in love with a foolish young man, John Marston, and the two even had a son together. Abigail dreamed of a family of her own, and with John and Jack in her life, she really thought that she could escape from gang life and live out their days as peaceful farmers and ranchers.

While Abigail did get her dream for a few short years at Beecher’s Hope, the land her husband bought and built just for her, it was stolen by the Bureau of Investigation. Poor Abigail had to sit as a captive, hoping that not only would her husband kill their old gang members, but he’d come home safely. Even after doing all they asked, the U.S. Army still killed John, leaving Abigail a heartbroken widow with no dreams, until she died just 3 years later.

3

Hosea Matthews

Shot in the Back by Agent Milton for the Van der Linde Gang to Witness

• Killed in: Banking, The Old American Art (Chapter 4)
• Portrayed by: Curzon Dobell

Agent Milton had given the Van der Linde gang more than enough chances to escape, but the robbery of the Saint Denis bank was the last straw. Hosea was captured by the Pinkertons while trying to run a distraction for the gang as they robbed the bank, and Agent Milton proved how the time for deals and conversations with Dutch was over, as Hosea was his captive.

Milton allowed Hosea to walk a few steps before fatally shooting him in the back. What’s worse, is that Hosea didn’t even want to do the Saint Denis bank job and just wanted to escape to save everyone. Hosea was more of a thief than a killer, and while his death is heartbreaking, and it led to Dutch’s downfall, at least he can move on to the next life with his late wife Bessie.

2

Lenny Summers

Shot and Killed by Pinkertons While Escaping a Heist-Gone-Wrong

• Killed in: Banking, The Old American Art (Chapter 4)
• Portrayed by: Harron Atkins

Lenny Summers was one of the youngest members of the Van der Linde gang, and he rode with them after he became an outlaw to avenge his father, who was killed by drunken men for no reason at all. Lenny may have killed before, but he was still inexperienced when it came to gang life, and Arthur always saw him as a younger brother, perhaps a protégé that he wanted to take care of and teach the ropes of this life.

Yet, after Hosea’s death and a panicked escape from the Saint Denis bank, Lenny is shot and killed by Pinkertons with no way to save him. Lenny dies of his injuries immediately, and the ongoing chase means that there is no time to mourn this poor soul who had his whole life ahead of him.

1

Kieran Duffy

Kidnapped and Beheaded by the O’Driscolls

• Killed in: Horsemen, Apocalypses (Chapter 4)
• Portrayed by: Pico Alexander

Kieran was the last recruit of the Van der Linde gang, only inducted because he was their captive who helped them ambush an O’Driscoll camp and then saved Arthur’s life. Yet, this wouldn’t be an action that the O’Driscoll Boys would let go, and while Colm, their leader, might not know their names, the O’Driscoll Boys certainly know when one of their own has betrayed them, which is why Kieran gets the worst of it.

Kieran is kidnapped in the night at Shady Belle and has his eyes gouged out and his head removed, only to ride back into Shady Belle as a warning to the Van der Linde gang that the O’Driscolls are coming. Kieran didn’t deserve this mutilation, especially when he was no killer, and just wanted to help with horses and find a place to call home, and people to call family.