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Last Night's 'Justified' Ruined a Perfectly Nice Couch

By Dustin Rowles | TV | March 26, 2014 |

By Dustin Rowles | TV | March 26, 2014 |


Anyone who saw the previews for last night’s episode last week, or who has been reading the tea leaves for a while pretty much knew what was coming with concern to Justified’s current A-plot. Art’s been on his way out for a couple of seasons now, and he and Raylan have an unworkable relationship, so somebody had to go. A little too conveniently, perhaps, Art became the victim of a gunshot wound meant for Alison, delivered by Daryl, but ultimately blamed on Kendall, who has done an insane character reversal over the course of the last two episodes.

Not only was that plot-turn a little too narratively convenient, but even within the episode, the investigation into the possibility that Theo Tonin was behind the shooting was little more than a stall. Even if Tonin wanted to take out Art, how would he know that Art was at Alison’s preparing to take her to a safe house? Of all the places that one of Theo Tonin’s men might track down Art, the apartment of a woman he was protecting seems one of the silliest.

Two good things came out of that plotline, however. Rachel was named interim chief, although even there, it doesn’t exactly work. Rachel is smart, and she’s tough, but she doesn’t suit the position. She doesn’t have the commanding presence, or the ability to even check Raylan’s wildness. But the other good thing to come out of it was the exchange between Daryl and Raylan at the elevator, which was one of those classic Justified dick-swinging exchanges that draw us so hard to the series. But if Raylan really isn’t going to kill Daryl, it leaves open the possibility of a conclusion that won’t be exactly satisfying, unless of course Kendall kills Daryl, in which everybody wins.

Meanwhile, in prison-land, Ava has gone from the bottom of the prison hierarchy to the top, and apparently, that comes with free ice cream. Who the f*ck needs heroin when there’s ice cream? But without Boyd, Ava feels even more disconnected from the show now, and it’s very hard to give a damn.

At least Boyd gave us something for which to cheer by extricating himself from a very difficult position with a pack of cigarettes loaded with explosives. “I don’t know much about anything, but I do know how to blow shit up.”

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That was fun. It also puts Boyd in a position of power over Duffy and, it would seem, gained him the respect of Katherine. You have to figure that those two will be working partners in the not-too-distant future. They’ll make a right nice duo, and it’s the most exciting prospect in this season (and hopefully well into next) so far.

There’s still two episodes left, which unfortunately means there’s likely two more episodes left of Daryl, and Alison, and Art on his death bed, and Wendy Crowe sticking up for her lousy no-good son of a bitch of a brother.