“Wrong Roads” didn’t just feel like classic Justified, it felt like classic Elmore Leonard. Let’s get to it.
Raylan takes what amounts to a working vacation this week. We see him talk about visiting his daughter in Miami, then he’s on the phone booking a plane ticket…but for Memphis, not Miami. This is another useful reminder that no matter how cool Raylan Givens is (the amount is “very”), he’s still the kind of asshole who would rather shoehorn his way into a DEA investigation than visit his daughter. But damn is that investigation fun to watch. Raylan teams up with DEA agent Alex Miller (Eric Roberts), a character that showrunner Graham Yost has described as “the Ghost of Raylan Future,” which is a very apt description.
They’re tracking down Hot Rod Dunham, owner of the worst beard on television. They cross paths with Jay and Roscoe (Wood and Steve Harris), who after subduing another DEA agent are on the trail of Boyd. Lots of intertwining stories tonight, all culminating in a standoff at Audrey’s, where Jay and Roscoe naturally quote King Lear to Raylan and Miller, because Justified has the most literate bad guys around right now.
I like the dynamic between Raylan and Miller a lot. Miller’s relationship with Hot Rod, nicely summed up by a scene where a dying Hot Rod sips from Miller’s flask, is what Raylan and Boyd might look like in twenty years. And I bet Miller’s boss feels much the same away about him as Art does about Raylan. Is it enough to make Raylan reconsider the way he operates? Doubtful. As Art, who is 100% sick of Raylan’s bullshit, so eloquently puts it, “You’re never gonna change, and I’m the dumbass losing sleep over it.” I admire Justified for staying true to this falling-out; most shows would have just glossed over the dissolution of Art and Raylan’s working relationship, but Justified is showing the very real consequences of being an asshole.
Speaking of assholes, how’s all your moms, readers? Burn. But seriously: the Crowes. I don’t know who told Daryl Crowe that he’s ready to hang with the likes of Boyd Crowder and Wynn Duffy, but they were seriously wrong. Personally, I’m getting sick of the Crowes; Dewey already grated on me, but he’s downright lovable compared to the rest. Wendy might be the worst mother on TV right now, and Daryl and Danny are thoughtless bullies. Danny gets run over by Dewey tonight, which sets him on the warpath. The preview for next week’s episode shows him charging at Raylan, which didn’t work out for the last guy from Florida who tried it (spoiler alert: Raylan shot him and got transferred to Kentucky). I’ve said it before: Danny Crowe’s death will be very, very satisfying to watch.
Season five might not have the breathless momentum of season four, but I’m actually okay with that. It’s more about the characters, in much the same way that season two was (although Daryl Crowe Jr. doesn’t hold a candle to Mags Bennett). After last week’s filler episode, “Wrong Roads” gets Justified back on track, and is setting the season up for a hell of a finale.
A Few Thoughts
– I’m gonna miss Jay and Roscoe. Hammer and Anvil!
– The prison subplot is starting to wear a bit thin. Mainly cause you can only watch Ava get shit on for so long
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