Fandom Friday: Braeden a Fierce Warrior that was Redeemed in Teen Wolf's 5th Season

Happy Friday!

I was thinking about how awesome Braeden was during the 5th season of Teen Wolf. When Braeden returned for seven episodes, I was so happy because I felt like her character was wasted and sidelined in most of the 4th season. It was disappointing because in that season, she went from being a fierce mercenary to being nothing more than a love interest. She was hired by Derek Hale to track down Kate Argent but after she was injured yet healed she didn't continue with the case, instead it was just her and Derek in a relationship living together in his loft.

It was so irritating that this awesome character was reduce to simply being a love interest especially when her character was so much more than that. She did get a few cool scenes but that's about it which was why I was so happy with her storyline for the 5th season. Braeden returned to Beacon Hills (her and Derek had left at the end of the 4th season) to finally stop the Desert Wolf (who was Malia Tate's mother). What I found interesting was that in the 4th season final episode "Smoke and Mirrors", Braeden mentioned that when she was a U.S. Marshal she had pretty much became obsessed with tracking down the Desert Wolf. She must have become so fixated that she either lost her job or quit and then most likely became a mercenary so she could take up the case full time along with other cases.

(Teen Wolf season 4 episode 12 "Smoke and Mirrors")

So when Braeden returned for the 5th season to help Malia stop the Desert Wolf, I was so onboard for this storyline. It was a more compelling plot and I thought it gave Braeden a purpose again going after the elusive Desert Wolf. I like that she was back to being this smart, resourceful, butt-kicking confident character. For instance, I thought her use of the pistachio shells to alert her as to where the Desert Wolf was in the McCall house was brilliant in the 19th episode The Beast of Beacon Hills. This was the Braeden that I wish was shown more of in the fourth season of Teen Wolf.

I loved everything about her 5th season plot especially that showdown between Braeden and Malia vs the Desert Wolf in the 19th and 20th (Apotheosis) episodes, that was fantastic. Since Braeden was not in the sixth and final season of the series, I did like that her story ended in the fifth season with her finally closing the case of the Desert Wolf.