Chapter 3 Summary: The Checkerboard

[Spoiler Warning: This page contains detailed plot points from Chapter 3 of Badlands. Proceed only if you have read through this chapter or are comfortable with full spoilers.]

Summary

Agent Corrie Swanson and Supervisory Agent Sharp drive through a surreal landscape of bizarre rock formations called hoodoos, deep into the remote badlands of the Navajo Nation. Sharp explains they are in an area known as the Checkerboard, a patchwork of federal and Navajo land, and that a Navajo Nation Police detective sergeant will liaise with them. He formally hands Corrie the lead on the case, which she welcomes as a much-needed break from the tedious probationary work of a new FBI agent.

They arrive at the film crew’s base camp, a shade tent and RV parked among the geological oddities. Corrie interviews the director, Luke Desjardin, and the cinematographer, Alex Bondi, confirming the drone-spotted remains are human and recent. Bondi provides a GPS location approximately a mile away, accessible only by a cross-country hike. The Evidence Response Team (ERT) arrives, led by the self-important evidence specialist Cliff Gradinski, who immediately takes charge of the group. Corrie feels a flash of irritation but suppresses it. As the team prepares to hike to the remains, Sharp declines to join them, citing his formal blue suit, and waits in the shade for the tribal police liaison.

Key Events

• Corrie and Sharp drive through a labyrinth of hoodoo rock formations and spot a lone Navajo woman watching them from a primitive log hut.
• Sharp provides context about the Checkerboard land ownership pattern and confirms that a Navajo Nation Police detective, Sergeant Benally, will be joining the investigation.
• Sharp officially assigns Corrie as the lead agent on the case, a significant responsibility for a probationary agent.
• Corrie interviews the film crew—director Luke Desjardin, cinematographer Alex Bondi, and an intense man named Cobb—learning the drone exhausted its battery during an emergency landing near the remains.
• The ERT team arrives under the supervision of Cliff Gradinski, whose condescending manner immediately rubs Corrie the wrong way as he preempts her authority to brief the team.
• Corrie shoulders her gear for a mile-long cross-country hike to the remains, while Sharp stays behind at base camp.

Character Development

Corrie Swanson: This chapter firmly establishes Corrie’s status as a newly minted FBI agent still in her two-year probationary period. Her eagerness for significant field work is palpable; she is grateful to escape “cold case reviews and endless interviews with stupid, unhelpful witnesses.” Her internal reaction to Gradinski’s power play—recognizing her own irritation and deliberately suppressing it—shows professional discipline and self-awareness. She is depicted as physically prepared for the desert environment, contrasting sharply with Sharp’s formal attire.

Agent Sharp: Sharp remains a figure of droll, understated authority. His sleepy, half-lidded eyes and deadpan humor (“the fun part of the drive”) provide a calm, almost paternal counterpoint to the harsh environment. By formally handing the lead to Corrie, he acts as a mentor who trusts her capabilities. His refusal to hike in a blue suit is both a practical and character-defining moment, reinforcing his role as a supervisory observer rather than an active field participant.

Cliff Gradinski: Introduced as the ERT supervisor, Gradinski immediately projects an air of self-important competence. His physical description—a thin figure with a satisfied, superior expression—and his act of taking over the briefing before Corrie can speak mark him as a potential source of professional friction.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

• Otherworldly Isolation: The landscape is repeatedly described in extraterrestrial or infernal terms—“dark side of the moon,” “the place where… God had dumped all His leftover rubbish.” This reinforces the setting as a place removed from normal rules, where a bizarre crime could fester unseen.
• Contrast of Authority: The chapter visually codes different styles of authority through clothing. Corrie’s practical desert gear (hiking boots, CamelBak) contrasts with Sharp’s impeccable blue suit and Gradinski’s bureaucratic efficiency. This suggests varied approaches to the same grim task.
• Micro-Colonialism and Jurisdiction: The “Checkerboard” land pattern is a literal, physical manifestation of a complex, contested history between the U.S. government and the Navajo Nation. The arrival of the Navajo Nation Police liaison underscores the layered jurisdictional reality that will underpin the entire investigation.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 3 serves as the critical transitional sequence from the discovery of the remains to the active federal investigation. It transports the reader and the protagonists into the story’s core, isolated arena. The chapter does the necessary procedural work of establishing the chain of command, introducing new supporting characters (like Gradinski and the off-screen Benally), and setting up immediate logistical challenges. More importantly, it grants Corrie official ownership of the case, fully launching her character arc from probationary agent to lead investigator. The tension seeded with Gradinski’s arrival hints at internal team conflicts that could complicate the external mystery.

Study Questions and Answers

1. What does the Checkerboard land pattern reveal about the setting’s history and its potential impact on the investigation?

Answer: Sharp explains the Checkerboard is a result of a “long story about land appropriation,” where alternating square miles are federal land and Navajo Nation land. This jurisdictional patchwork requires the FBI to liaise with the Navajo Nation Police, introducing a layer of legal and cultural complexity. The need for a tribal liaison like Sergeant Benally underscores that the investigation cannot proceed through federal authority alone; local relationships and knowledge will be essential.

2. How does the exchange between Corrie and Gradinski at the tent foreshadow potential conflict within the investigative team?

Answer: Despite being the “agent in charge,” Corrie is preempted by Gradinski, who immediately calls the team to attention and begins issuing orders. Corrie’s internal reaction is one of “mildly irritated” suppression, not open confrontation. This moment establishes a power imbalance where a support specialist challenges the lead agent’s authority from the outset, foreshadowing future clashes over procedure and command during the evidence-gathering phase.

3. Analyze the significance of Sharp’s decision to stay behind while Corrie leads the hike to the remains.

Answer: Sharp’s decision, masked by a joke about his impractical suit, is a deliberate act of mentorship. By physically removing himself from the scene, he forces Corrie to fully inhabit the role of lead agent without a supervisory safety net. It transforms the case from a supervised exercise into her direct responsibility, testing her ability to manage personnel like Gradinski and make critical on-site decisions under the pressure of a setting sun.

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