Early in “Nobelesse Oblige”, Ty Walker tells Boyd that he’s “just a weather vane”, that he “doesn’t make the wind blow”. Later on in the episode, Sam Elliott’s Avery Markham delivers a chilling monologue to Ava about being more than a token that “can be threatened or hurt to just to keep a man in line”. The underlying point comes across in both cases: certain people are pulling the strings in certain places, and if you want to survive in this fading county, you must take the initiative and fight for what you want. You can’t let the power struggle dictate where you end up; you must participate.
Justified “Cash Game” Review (6×02)
27 JanEven in episodes that mainly serve to introduce new characters and to set up the storylines for the remainder of the season, Justified is one of the few shows that can still deliver hours of television that are just as–if not more–entertaining than their other efforts. “Cash Game” flies by on the wings of its dialogue, delivering a classic episode by doing what it has always been doing: giving wonderful actors and actresses impeccable dialogue and watching the magic unfold.
Justified “Restitution” Review (5×13)
9 Apr“You’ll never leave Harlan alive.”
With that, so ends the penultimate season of Justified. It’s been a shaky one, but at the end of it all, it served its purpose as a set-up to what should be an explosive final season. “Restitution”, like the rest of the current season, is not without its bumps, but it’s a satisfying way to close off various storylines and introduce intriguing new ones.
Justified “The Toll” Review (5×11)
25 Mar“I may not know a lot about a lot of things, but I DO know how to blow shit up.”
Boyd Crowder, with the ultimate evidence that smoking kills. Aside from that moment–which is just plain awesome–this episode is ripe with crackling dialogue, sustained tension, and interesting character development, and it looks as if Justified is really shifting into gear for the season 5 endgame.
Justified “Weight” Review (5×10)
19 MarHarlan’s never really contained a hierarchy of criminals so much as a jumbled mess of ’em.
Sure, you have the smart, calculating Boyd Crowders and the not-so-smart, not-so-calculating Dewey Crowes of the world, but in this type of environment, who’s to say who wins? Unpredictability is dangerous, and it’s questionable whether someone like Boyd Crowder is any better off than Dewey Crowe when it comes to handling rapid-fire decisions and outpourings of emotion.
Justified “Wrong Roads” Review (5×09)
12 MarWell, Justified is back, ladies and gentlemen.
After a bit of a stumble, we’re back in fine form tonight; this is mostly due to the fact that everyone’s back in Harlan now, allowing for sharper interactions and increased tension. One of the major problems of season 5 so far has been a feeling of detachment, a lack of forward momentum that seems to be hurting the show a bit.
Justified “Whistle Past the Graveyard” Review (5×08)
4 Mar
“You’re both under arrest, because you’re a fugitive…and you’re a dick.”
Justified can still bring the humor, but while this line is, for me, the funniest of the episode, it also encapsulates all of the problems of “Whistle Past the Graveyard”. There’s an ambivalence here that’s creeping throughout the show, and this episode in particular stumbles a bit in that department.









