by Lee Padrick, January 31, 2013
Justified S1E4
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
A Public Service Announcement to all Webelos: Maintain and/or replace your shovels.
After last week's rather flat show, this episode offers up what Justified does best. Non-stop, well-written action. And a poor sap that somehow perseveres. You have seen this episode before. But its fun, nonetheless.
Dewey is persuaded by his Florida kin to "make his bones" and deal with Messer's betrayal. So a few gunshots and a fight scene later, Dewey is tracking an injured Wade Messer through the Kentucky woods. While dazed and confused. Well, more dazed and confused that Dewey already is. After Messer finally bleeds out undiscovered, Dewey has completed his task. He is now facing a decision on whether to work for Cousin Darryl or to demote him.
Boyd is still busy dealing with the responsibilities of a local crime lord. He is playing both sides of the law, offering information to Raylan in return for unfettered continuation of his nefarious enterprises. Boyd gets a face-to-face with Cousin Johnny, who is now partnered with Hot Rod Dunham. And Boyd is collecting bodies for Mara's mysterious plan.
Raylan is continuing his relationship with Allison, and their time together has an effect on the Deputy Marshal. Raylan uses the young boy working behind the bar as a way to stir up Darryl and his brother by playing the role of social worker, as he removes the youngster from the Audry's environment.
Art is travelling to Detroit to meet with some colleagues about the death of Sammy Tonin, and the tip from one of the Canadian drug dealers about a "Kentucky Lawman's" involvement in the murder of Nicky Augustine. Art's success with his investigation will play a major role as the season progresses. In Art's defense, he is vetting the man that will likely replace him when he retires, so it is understandable for him to show curiosity.
This penultimate season of Justified is moving toward some major changes in the show's world. And episodes like "Over The Mountain" offer what is great about the way Justified is written. In lesser hands, "Over The Mountain" would not likely work. But this great team of writers and actors take the familiar and turns it into something that comes across as excellent.
Random Thoughts:
- Tim was in this episode! And running from a dog!
- Raylan appears headed for dark, troubled waters.
- Another Vasquez sighting. Not good for our protagonist.
- The return of Hot Rod Dunham. Can Steve and Wood Harris be far behind?
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 31, 2014
Justified S1E3
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
"Good Intentions" is an appropriate name.
This episode offers a neat, tidy hour of television. It did not slow this season's story, but it felt a little flat. Granted, a "flat" hour of Justified is often much better than most serialized series, but this transition episode was reminiscent of several episodes in early Season Four. Although last season came together in the second half, so the writers get the benefit of the doubt.
Raylan is again pushing limits of authority. While he is living in Monroe's confiscated mansion, he is sexing up Allison and being accosted by angry big guys. Raylan turns the angry big guy on Wynn Duffy, and the threat is eliminated. This tendency to get adversaries embroiled in violent confrontations is likely not conduct becoming of a U.S. Marshal. Especially when Art is looking into the Sammy Tonin thing, with Vasquez hanging around the office. Raylan's self-destructive choices continue to lead to a darker future. And considering his troubled past, this can't fare well for the trigger-happy protagonist.
Boyd, on the other hand, is trying to balance the mechanics of distribution with his attempt to ascend to the top of the Harlan County underworld. And he is doing a poor job of it. His fiancee is in jail, and he is sexing up Mara, the mail order wife of his rival, Paxton. And there is the not-very-interesting character of Sheriff-wannabe Mooney. The cliffhanger of Cousin Johnny on the phone promises to quicken the pace of Boyd's story.
Meanwhile, Dewey is trying to hold together his business, AND maintain curb appeal. His Florida cousins have smelled fear and money, and have settled into Audry's. Dewey is the ultimate mark, so his bumbling of dealing with this week's revelation that Wade Messer is skimming money for Boyd does not bode well for his longevity.
This episode offered a good, tight stand-alone story, but did not offer much in terms of the season arc. Like a beautiful Chamber of Commerce day on Tuesday. Nice, but not a lot going on.
Random Thoughts:
- Was hoping that the Raylan-Rachael roommate pairing would be sustainable.
- No Tim?
- Vasquez hanging around suggests that he may have a larger role to play this season. Like investigating a certain Deputy Marshal.
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 27, 2014
True Detective S1E3
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
As True Detective moves along this season, we see that Hart is not bound as tightly as he appears.
Over the past few episodes, Hart and Cohle have offered us a buddy film: a cerebral loner and a gregarious straight man. But behind the facades of the two protagonists lies something much different than outward appearances. Cohle, who has come across as a tortured soul, seems to be perfectly content with his place in the world. Hart, on the other hand, is struggling with responsibility and middle age as he desperately tries to appear as the typical family man.
Last episode's church mural leads Hart and Cohle to a tent revival that is led by a fire-and-brimstone folk preacher, played by Shea Whigham. Whigham's portrayal yields an Elvis impersonator that lords over his "flock," a collection of down-and-out country misfits. Hart and Cohle attend a tent service, where they pit nihilism versus a Southern Baptist view of the world. An amusing and entertaining debate ensues, and we learn more about Cohle's worldview.
Later, Hart comes home and finds that Cohle is there talking with his wife, after returning a borrowed lawn mower and taking care of the Hart family's lawn. A not-very-subtle argument takes place, with an angry Hart chastising Cohle for "mowing another man's lawn." Mrs. Hart still seems to have her eye on Cohle, even going through the trouble of arranging a date for the loner with one of her friends. The date goes OK for Cohle, but Hart loses it when he sees his mistress on a date with another guy, and drunkenly confronts and attacks her potential suitor later that evening.
The 2012 interviews are a welcome break in the dark world of 1995, as the older Hart and Cohle individually interview with the detectives. Cohle appears to still be the prime suspect in the modern-day crimes, but you can't help but wonder if he is actually a suspect or a means to get into the killer's mind. The cliffhanger this week is a shot of prime suspect Reginald LeDoux, who Hart and Cohle see walking around his property in a pair of tighty whiteys, a gas mask, and carrying a machete. How's that for a parting shot?
No episode next week, as HBO breaks for the Super Bowl, but True Detective will be back on February 9th.
Random Thoughts:
- When a drunken Hart visits his mistress' house, he carelessly runs over a girl's pink bicycle. Is this related to the death of Cohle's daughter? Was Cohle the drunk driver of the vehicle that killed his daughter?
- Mrs. Hart's booty call in the middle of the night was odd. Or was she really checking up on the whereabouts of the philandering Mr. Hart?
- Cohle's speechifying on his nihilism is fun to watch. But it borders on teenage emo diatribes. Its fun to watch McConaughey toe that line while spouting the viewpoint of the average troubled teenager. So far, he is pulling it off.
- "I think its safe to say that no one here is gonna be splitting the atom, Marty" - Cohle. I almost choked on my tongue.
- "Its been that way since one monkey looked at the sun, then looked at the other monkey and said, "He said give me your f-ing share!" This dialogue is as good as anything on television.
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 23, 2014
True Detective S1E2
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
HBO has a real winner in its stable.
The dark, chilly buddy-cop show should not work. This genre has an exhaustive legacy, so another cop thriller about a brilliant, troubled introvert and his rambunctious local-boy-made-cop would be expected to yield a watchable "been there, done that" product.
But True Detective delivers. And much better than you would expect. Powered by the performance of Matthew McConaughey. McConaughey is a hot ticket right now, coming off accolades for Dallas Buyers Club. And he continues his renaissance here.
Detective Rust Cohle is an intense man. Thanks to the flashbacks/flashforwards, you get that he is a divorced man who lost his young daughter in a traffic incident in front of his home. This event likely led to his divorce. You don't yet know whether he may carry more responsibility for his loss. After his daughter's death, he became an undercover narcotics officer, and he obviously took a few drugs. Maybe took many drugs, since he is suffering from the effects years later.
Cohle is also not happy that the politically-charged investigation of the murder of Dora Kelly Lange. Because of the right Reverend Billy Lee Tuttle, Cohle and Hart must navigate an anti-Christian-crimes task force. And Cohle expresses himself above his pay grade, leading to conflict with the task force members and his boss, Major Quesada (Kevin Dunn). But he extracts information during the investigation well, using pressure point moves and hitting people with toolboxes to gain the intel he seeks. His methods lead to Lange's diary.
Hart is occupied with his extramaritial activities, his job, and his home life, leading to conflict along the way. He, as suspected, is sleeping with a young court clerk. And he is having difficulty with his in-laws. And his wife. Cohle instigates a confrontation between he and Hart, by chiding Hart on his appearance after spending the evening away from home. Which leads to a physical altercation where it is strongly implied that Cohle would not suffer the short end of the stick.
Hart and Cohle follow clues in Lange's diary to an old, burned-out church. Where they find a mural on the wall of a woman with deer antlers. Stay tuned.
As I mentioned earlier, this show should not work. But through the first two episodes, it does. Carried by the considerable acting talent of McConaughey and Harrelson. Both actors are demonstrating how compelling television can be, in the capable hands of two A-listers. But the writing and pace are top shelf as well, and its just fun to sit back and watch these two great actors delivering a fresh perspective on a tired trope. This is "great show" stuff.
Looking forward to where this show will lead this season, especially considering it should progress as a mini-series.
Random Thoughts:
- No Clarke Peters this episode.
- I like Kevin Dunn as the hard-ass boss.
- The flashback/flashforward is really working for me. And in a better way than Orange is the New Black.
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 15, 2014
Justified S5E2
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
Manuela cooks a mean iguana, its very tender.
Raylan has to spend this episode bailing Loretta out of a jam, because she has gotten caught up in a drug deal with Hot Rod Dunham (remember him from Season 2?), and things have gone south. And Boyd is trying to evade imprisionment as he works on springing Ava from her incarceration.
This episode of Justified hits just about all the marks that we have come to expect of a good episode of this show. Great writing, pacing, and dialogue. And fun characters. I firmly believe 10 years from now this show will be in writing textbooks as an example of how to do things right on television. This episode was just so much fun to watch.
Loretta, as mentioned earlier, has gotten sideways with Hot Rod Dunham, and she and her boyfriend are on the run from Hot Rod's enforcers, played by Steve and Wood Harris (real-life brothers playing TV brothers). Yep, Eugene Young and Avon Barksdale are on this episode of Justified.
Raylan comes to the rescue and settles Loretta's debt to Hot Rod, without firing a shot. Or at least a shot from a firearm. He does get to whack Steve Harris in the head with a shovel and fire off an awesome threat to Hot Rod.
Raylan: "I'll kill four of you before you even clear your weapons, and I'll take my chances with the other two. And you see this star? That's gonna make it legal. Now, do we have an understanding here?"
That is classic Raylan and this kind of dialogue is what makes this show so great. Because you know he means it, and can do it. Luckily, Hot Rod (who, if I remember correctly, has never been on the wrong end of Raylan) understands Raylan's threat and makes a good decision to forgive Loretta's debt. Then, as Raylan is taking Loretta home, he realizes that Loretta has gamed him and everyone she has come in contact with. He shakes his head and grins like a proud adoptive father. Oh, and Raylan develops an attraction to Loretta's social worker, the lovely Amy Smart.
Meanwhile, Boyd is being extorted by Mara, the mail-order bride of Paxton, who Boyd beat severely last week. She wants $300,000 to disappear, or she can implicate Boyd in Paxton's beating. And Officer Asshole (is he the Sheriff now, since Shelby stepped down last season?) is hot on Boyd's trail, trying to get Mara to identify Boyd as the man responsible for Paxton's beating. Boyd is also trying to get Ava out of jail, but I noticed a spark between him and Mara. We'll see where that goes this season.
And the Florida Crowe's are now in Harlan County to visit Dewey. And to serve as this season's Big Bad.
Lastly, Art is looking into the murder of Nicky Augustine. Seems the death of Sammy Tonin has piqued Art's interest, so Raylan will likely have to answer for his orchestration of Augustine's demise last season.
The chess pieces are moving into place, and with the announcement this week that next season will be Justified's last, the writers have an endgame in sight. This season will play a major role as the bridge into the final season, so it will be interesting to see where all of our favorite characters are at this season's end.
Random Thoughts:
- Nice throwback to Arlo and Hot Rod's history.
- Is this love interest/social worker on the up-and-up? I dunno, I sense something hinky going on with her.
- Will Art cover for Raylan when he finds out the truth about the death of Nicky Augustine?
- Paxton's out of his coma. More trouble ahead for Boyd?
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, Janaury 15, 2014
The Blacklist S1E11
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
After a holiday break, The Blacklist is back for .... well, not much.
After a satisfying two-parter with "Anslo Garrick," I settled in for epic The Blacklist. The first red flag was the episode title. "The Good Samaritan Killer" made me roll my eyes, but I had visions of a blacklister that contracted to kill other blacklisters for favors, instead of money.
The opening scene with the mother and child, and the guy giving her the drugged coffee? "She must be a secret agent person or something," I said to myself. Nope, she is the victim of a case-of-the-week serial killer, and Liz must find the killer and bring him to justice because .... (in my best movie trailer voice) "This time, its personal!" Give me a freakin' break. The serial killer is a Dexter-ish ER nurse who deals with domestic violence victims and tortures and kills their abusers.
Meanwhile, our Man-of-the-Hour-With-Style-and-Power is running around killing all the folks that were involved with his capture by Anslo Garrick. He is even cheesily killing folks to Johnny Cash's "When The Man Comes Around." Can you tell this episode isn't working for me?
After he exacts revenge on all the Garrick mercenaries, and after Liz tracks down the Good Samaritan (named because he leaves his victims barely alive and calls 911 to save them? Really, who dreams up this stuff?) and shoots him before he can creepily torment his immobile elderly mother some more, we get a reconciliation of Red and Liz. Seems they have made up and will get back to catching blacklisters next week.
If that was the case, why did I have to sit through this week's episode? This was not my favorite The Blacklist episode. Seems this show is in a perpetual state of taking a step forward-a couple of steps backward.
Finally, we now know who the mole is. The show threw us a twist, making us think it was Aram. I was floored, but Aram as the mole was very believable. Then, the show pulled that rug out from under us and identified Grey as the mole. Grey?!? So Red kills Skinny Pete, and the whole mole (sorry, I giggled when I typed that) thing is settled. Except that the mysterious Grey is now dead. And I was hoping for a Grey-flashback episode later in the season. Well, there's still Dembe.
I have mentioned it before, but the premise of this show could be much more fulfilling if it was a 12-episode season, versus a 22-episode season. With a shorter season, we could skip some of these filler episodes where nothing happens and advance the season's arc at a more coherent pace.
I look forward to getting this train back on the tracks next week.
Random Thoughts:
- Tom wants to interview for a teaching gig in Nebraska. Good riddance! But if he won't go to work at his job in D.C., he probably won't work in Nebraska, either.
- Ressler is back at work and walking with a limp. C'mon, he would have lost that mangled leg in real life!
- Still don't trust Meera, the CIA chick.
- The scene where Liz threatens the wife beater in the hospital was so superfluous. I think I actually screamed at the television.
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 14, 2014
True Detective, S1E1
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
We are all living in pessimistic realism.
HBO's new drama series, True Detective, is a show pairing two cops as they track a serial killer. This genre has been done to death, right? Well, maybe not. If Criminal Minds had one too many drinks at the bar and found itself in bed with The Wire, the offspring may look much like True Detective.
This new anthology offers us two A-listers as the leads, as Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey star as Det. Martin Hart and Det. Rust Cohle, respectively. Hart and Cohle. Get it? Say it again, then. And this is where familiar ground ends.
Hart is your archetypal southern family man, a go-along get-along cop. Cohle is the aloof loner, who just happens to be a brilliant detective. Hart has a pretty wife, two kids, and lives the American Dream in a three-bedroom house. Cohle lives in a spartan one-bedroom apartment with only a mattress on the floor and a cross on the wall. Except he is not religious; he uses the cross to meditate and ponder his own godless existence. And he battles an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.
These two Louisiana CID detectives pull a murder scene, where a young prostitute has been murdered and left posed in some kind of serial killer fantasy crime scene. With deer antlers. You have seen this stuff before. Literally.
But what you have not seen, at least in enough depth, is the effect that investigating crimes such as this has on the detectives. Hart has to drink himself to sleep; Cohle has to buys some Quaaludes off of a criminal informant. Sleep is a valuable commodity to those folks working the front lines between the psychotics and the rest of us. And sometimes, some of that psychosis can rub off on those front line grunts.
The show vacillitates between 2012 and 1995, and the depositions of Hart and Cohle, taken by detectives investigating a murder much like the one that former partners Hart and Cohle investigated and allegedly solved 17 years earlier. As the season progresses, the story of what shaped these two men into what they are today will evolve. And further development of McConaughey's Cohle will be fun to watch.
McConaughey and Harrelson bring some world-class acting chops to this show. You have seen good actors with great scripts working other shows well, but this show (at least the pilot) is bordering on 'masterpiece'. These two guys, within minutes, have you invested in Cohle and Hart, and you forget all about "Mr. Alright, Alright, Alright" and Billy Hoyle.
HBO appears to have hit another home run with this series, as it ranks up there with contemporary fare such as Rectified and Top of the Lake. Its one of those shows that is made for binge watching; waiting a week between episodes just seems patently unfair.
Random Thoughts:
- So Hart isn't a faithful family man. How long before Cohle has Mrs. Hart over to his apartment?
- Love the cinematography! Rural Louisiana looks both beautiful and depressing.
- McConaughey's weight loss from Dallas Buyers Club is obvious, but his gaunt appearance sells his portrayal of tormented Cohle even better.
- Michelle Monaghan's role as Hart's wife seems pedestrian, compared to the other well-written characters in the show.
- A Clarke Peters sighting as a local preacher!
What did you think?
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by Lee Padrick, January 8, 2014
Justified - Season 5, Episode 1
WARNING: This review contains spoilers.
Justified is back for its fifth season, and we're going to Florida!
The Elmore Leonard-inspired serial drama kicks off in fine fashion, as a time jump has occurred and Raylan is now a father. Trouble is, his ex-wife and baby girl are now living in Florida. The show throws us into Judge Reardon's (Stephen Root) courtroom where Dewey Crowe (Damon Herrimon) is suing the Marshal's Service for his mistreatment at the hands of Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens. A humorous exchange between Dewey's attorney and Raylan, as the protagonist is held to account for his past sins. Judge Reardon grants Dewey a $300,000 settlement, and we have a new owner of Audrey's, bought from one Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins), who is in need of quick cash to try to spring his betrothed from incarceration for the murder of Delroy (a former owner of Audrey's). Harlan County must have a "six degrees of separation" thing happening at the local cathouse/bar.
Boyd meanwhile is trying to work a drug deal that goes badly when he gets shot in the ear. So he calls up a women's tennis-watching Wynn Duffy (Jere Burns) and they head to the Motor City for some facetime with the head of the Tonin gang. Except Sammy Tonin, the heir of the organization after Theo skipped the country, has lost his mind and is holed up in a blighted building with sex dolls and a chainsaw-wielding torturer. You want an explanation? All we get is "that was last week." There are some shades of Season Three's Quarles in that scene. Some real freaks in the Tonin organization. Picker (from Season Four) offs Sammy and the Chainsaw Massacre because of a debt owed to some Canadians that are organized more than the government allows, and we have a great scene where Boyd and Duffy lose their northern suppliers of illicit substances.
Boyd is desperate to get Ava out of jail, so he visits Paxton (from last season's Harlan Swingers Club) and even begs for help. Until Paxton makes the fatal mistake of insulting Ava, then Boyd pistol-whips the man to death (or something close to it). And Boyd lets the witness to this savage beating, the mail-order bride of Paxton, walk away. Don't know where Boyd's story is going this season, but I expect it will be darker than what we've seen previously. Maybe I need to go back and watch previous seasons, but Boyd's storyline had some holes in it. I'll just chalk those up to "that was last week."
Meanwhile, Raylan has been assigned temporarily to Florida to track down some of Dewey's family members in regard to a missing Coast Guard guy. Raylan works with his old boss (Matt Craven) and a local deputy marshal (David Koechner) to track down Darryl Crowe (Michael Rapaport), who hangs out with his dimwitted brother and his tramp-stamped sister Wendy (Alicia Witt). The episode devolves into a case-of-the-week, as Raylan and his marshal friend track a Cuban sugar smuggler named Elvis, who gets shot by Raylan. Imagine that? Raylan shooting someone.
These estranged Crowes will be coming to Harlan to pay Dewey a visit this season. Which means they will get sideways with Deputy Marshal Givens.
There was some hinkiness in this episode, but I'm confident most of the wrinkles will be ironed out as the season progresses. Justified consistently delivers some of the best writing and dialogue found on television today. I look forward to where this great show will go from here.
Random Thoughts:
- No Rachael, Art, or Tim this week.
- What's up with Cousin Johnny? Looking forward to seeing what he's doing now.
- Raylan is quite the technophile, as he watches Netflix and Skypes!
What did you think?
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