In a last-ditch effort to plead for his life, Marty shows Del a vacation flier for the Lake of the Ozarks that Bruce had given him earlier in the day and claims that it is an optimal location for money laundering due to its separation from federal law enforcement.
He eventually purchases the Blue Cat Lodge, a boating resort run by Rachel Garrison, and the Lickety Splitz, a local strip club owned by Bobby Dean.
Their cash is initially stolen by Ruth Langmore, a young woman belonging to a family of local criminals, but Marty negotiates it back from the Langmores and hires Ruth as a dishwasher at the Blue Cat, going on to enlist her aid in his money laundering schemes and developing a close, familial bond with her as a result.
Marty's activities draw the attention of FBI agent Roy Petty, who has tailed him from Chicago and is working undercover in the Ozarks.
When Del's lieutenant Garcia realizes little progress is being made, he begins spying on Wendy and the children and catches them in their home as they prepare to flee the Ozarks with identities Marty had arranged for them.
Concocting another plan, Marty tells Del that he will work with the Snells to build a riverboat casino to launder the rest of the money.
While Wendy begins to establish important ties with the Kansas City mafia, her increasing disregard for Marty's input on decisions strains their relationship further.
Wendy's brother, Ben Davis, shows up in the Ozarks and begins living with the Byrdes, soon forming a romance with Ruth.
Marty is able to negotiate his release by promising to turn FBI agent Maya Miller to their side, despite knowing that she is incorruptible.
Marty forms an uneasy partnership with Maya, who offers him a chance to work for the FBI in exchange for serving prison time.
Their relationship is further strained when Wendy is forced to divulge the nature of the Byrdes' activities to Ben, who witnessed Marty's kidnapping.
Javi begins frequenting the Ozarks as the cartel's representative in the deal, jeopardizing the Byrdes' attempts to secure Navarro's immunity.
Ruth discovers the bodies and arrives at the Byrdes' home with a shotgun, threatening to kill Marty unless he identify Wyatt's killer.
In 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022, Jason Bateman was an Emmy nominee for Outstanding Lead Actor In A Drama Series for his performance as Marty Byrde.
[10] New York Times TV critic Mike Hale described Marty Byrde as a "middle-aged anti-hero" fueled by "a sense of unkept American promises".
He further lauded the character's personality, writing: "Ozark uses Marty’s voice-over musings about hard work and the wages of parenthood to give the appearance of gravitas, but the show’s through-line is really just his resourcefulness in the face of gruesome, cartel-style justice."