By Jeff Michael Vice
JUSTIFIED – Live-action drama developed by Graham Yost, based on characters created by Elmore Leonard; rated TV-MA; airs Tuesdays on FX; 60 minutes (approx.). Episode 5.9: “Wrong Roads” (original airdate, March 11, 2014). Directed by Michael Dinner; written by Dave Andron and Leonard Chang (8 out of 10)
The story so far: After one high-profile shooting too many (mostly criminal types), trigger-happy Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens has been re-assigned. He’s gone from his home in drug-infested Miami back to his now, more-overrun-by-drugs childhood home in eastern Kentucky (specifically, Harlan County). Once again in semi-familiar territory, loose cannon Raylan butts heads with his new co-workers and his new, no-nonsense boss, Art Mullen. He also has an uneasy reunion with his estranged family members, as well as his childhood friend, Boyd Crowder, who has become a local drug kingpin.
In this episode:Still planning to vacation in Florida while on suspension, Raylan instead finds himself in Memphis, where he’s partnered with Miller, a semi-disgraced DEA agent. Boyd, fresh off his Mexico misadventures, returns to Harlan to await the arrival of the Florida Crowes and his seemingly ill-fated heroin shipment. He also has a brief face-to-face with his imprisoned girlfriend, Ava, who has an important favor to ask of him.
After the season’s first outright dud (last week’s “Whistle Past the Graveyard”), “Justified” returns to form with an extra-long (75 minutes) potboiler of an episode that’s filled with tense moments and weighty plot developments that are sharply contrasted with the welcome dark humor and character quirks that fans of the show have come to expect.
Finally there’s some progression in the already tiresome, Ava-behind-bars subplot, even if it still seems a little too reminiscent of Netflix’s excellent “Orange is the New Black.” Ava not only gets Boyd to agree to supply the prison with heroin – thus keeping her safe and making her a major “player” there – she also gets him to dirty his hands with a seemingly unrelated other matter.
With all that on his plate, Boyd tries to mollify another of his partners, the increasingly impatient Winn Duffy, and has to contend with Jay and Roscoe, two of Memphis drug lord “Hot Rod” Dunn’s men, who have their own proposition.
Perhaps the most interesting story thread concerns Raylan, whose spiraling life and career is paralleled with that of the hard-drinking Miller, gamely played by Eric Roberts. Together, they try to track down Dunn, and notify him that a few of his men met an untimely end while trying to double-cross Boyd and company in Mexico.
More than a few characters (at least one of them recurring) meet their end in this episode. The performances are customarily strong, though Roberts is a standout. In fact, the Raylan-Miller relationship is so interesting that you kind of hope it continues into future episodes. (SPOILER ALERT: The episode’s ending sort of leaves that up in the air.)
Executive producer Michael Dinner directed, and fellow executive producer Dave Andron co-scripted the episode, with series veteran Leonard Chang, which explains why “Wrong Roads” is filled with so many memorable quips and exchanges. The better ones in this episode include:
“Can I ask you a question?” “Ain’t gonna be much of a conversation if you don’t” (Raylan, then Kayla, a prostitute)
“(Those guns) jam so bad you could spread ‘em on your toast.” (Miller)
“You thought you’d come to Memphis and kick the hornet’s nest.” “ … And have some ribs.” (Miller, then Raylan)
“You come up with a name for it yet?” “Yeah, a ‘This Place Sucks.’” (Wendy, then Kendal)
“I tell you this: Killing an old man in a nursing home isn’t on my bucket list.” (Boyd)
“Could you send up a new pot of coffee? Because this one tastes like my ass on Sunday.” (Winn)
“Miller, would you call this a herd, a gaggle, or a flock of assholes.” “I would call this the United Nations of assholes.” (Raylan, then Miller)
“Actually, we have a job opening. You shoot this man in the face and take 10 percent.” (Boyd)
Overall rating: 8 out of 10
CAST:
The regular characters: Timothy Olyphant (Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens), Walton Goggins (Boyd Crowder), Nick Searcy (Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Art Mullen), Jacob Pitts (Deputy U.S. Marshal Tim Gutterson), Erica Tazel (Deputy U.S. Marshal Rachel Brooks), Jere Burns (Winn Duffy) and Joelle Carter (Ava Crowder)
Guest stars: Steve Harris (Roscoe), Wood Harris (Jay), Jacob Lofland (Kendal Crowe), Michael Rapaport (Daryl Crowe, Jr.), Eric Roberts (Miller) and Alicia Witt (Wendy Crowe)
Jeff Michael Vice, aka Jerk-bot, can be heard reviewing films, television programs, comics, books, music and other things as part of The Geek Show Podcast (www.thegeekshowpodcast.com), as well as be seen reviewing films as part of Xfinity’s Big Movie Mouth-Off (www.facebook.com/BigMovieMouthOff).