99th Ranger is the seventeenth episode of the 5th Season of Walker, Texas Ranger. It aired February 8, 1997.
Texas Ranger Walt Cobb is killed in a shootout following a sting operation on a chop shop and upon his death, a new Ranger must be recruited. There are two candidates to fill the vacant position: State Trooper Santiago Perez and Brookdale Police officer Roberta "Bobbie" Hunt, and Trivette and Walker will be in charge of the respective two applicants' field evaluations (Perez shadowing Trivette and Hunt shadowing Walker, respectively). However, while Hunt is in the middle of her training, she has to contend with the continuous harassment of her violent ex-husband, Russell Stafford. The harassment becomes so bad, Hunt nearly gives up her dream of becoming a Ranger, but Walker is able to convince her otherwise.
Tropes seen in this episode:
- Artistic License – Law: In this show, according to the Texas charter, there can only be 99 Texas Rangers and anyone who has plenty of law enforcement experience in any Texas agency is eligible to apply for the vacant position in the event a Ranger retires or dies in the line of duty. In reality, the majority of the 118 Texas Rangers hold the rank of sergeant. There are 101 sergeants, 7 lieutenants, 8 captains, and 1 senior captain who serves as the Chief of the Texas Rangers.
- Asshole Victim: Bobbie and Russell have a one-on-one duel after he invades her house, ties up her mother and claims he killed Angela. He attempts to stab Bobbie with his knife, but she turns the knife against him and he is stabbed to death.
- Big Bad Ensemble: Russell Stafford and Grady Lomax.
- Bound and Gagged: When Bobbie returns home after busting Lomax, she finds that the power is out and her mother is tied up.
- The Cavalry Arrives Late: After the Lomax bust, Walker drops Bobbie off at home, but as he leaves, he notices Russell’s car parked outside her house and hurries back to help her, but Bobbie was easily able to dispatch him with all the martial arts techniques she learned from him, and when she thinks that Russell killed Angela and she starts grieving, Walker found her hiding in her bedroom closet during the whole ordeal.
- Cut Phone Lines: When Bobbie returns home after the Lomax bust, she find her mother tied up, and not only are the phone lines in the house dead, but the power has been cut!
- Domestic Abuse: This occurs on some occasions in this show. Bobbie was a victim of this at the hands of Russell. Since his Private Investigation business went out of business, Stafford started doing cocaine and drinking alcohol, and then started abusing Bobbie and Angela and taking it out on them. After Stafford was sentenced to six years in prison, Bobbie had since divorced him, changed her married name back to her maiden name and gained full custody of Angela.
- Extremely Protective Child: Along with being Mama Bear to Angela, Bobbie is this to her mother, Millie Hunt.
- Just Got Out of Jail: As if the Domestic Abuse towards Angela and Bobbie wasn’t enough, Stafford killed a man outside of a bar one day by beating him to death and was sentenced to six years in prison.
- Mama Bear: Bobbie is this to Angela. She also qualifies as an Extremely Protective Child towards her mother, Millie Hunt.
- Not Now, We're Too Busy Crying Over You: After killing Russell, Bobbie starts to grieve for Angela when she thinks he killed her, but Walker found Angela hiding in her bedroom closet.
- Pursue the Dream Job: The premise of the episode has Texas DPS Trooper Santiago Perez and Brookdale Police officer Bobbie Hunt applying to the vacant Ranger position after Walt Cobb was killed in the line of duty, and was nearing retirement, to boot. Ultimately, it's Hunt who earns the job, upon which she resigns from the Brookdale Police Department for her new position. Perez continues to be on the Highway Patrol and hopes to apply again for another vacancy within the Rangers in the future.
- Special Guest: Jeff Kober as Russell "Rusty" Stafford, Damian Chapa as Texas State Trooper Santiago "Santos" Perez and Tammy Lauren as Roberta "Bobbie" Hunt.
- Title by Number: "99th Ranger".
