Justified Season 3 - Page 10

He's definitely not putting on an act.  We know he's off his meds, and we've seen in his mind that Helen is there.  For it to all be an act at this point would make the scene with Helen totally unfair audience manipulation and this show wouldn't go there.

 

Boyd was knocked unconscious (his head hit the handrail, didn't it?) and the single shot fired wasn't from a shotgun so we know it wasn't Johnny.  However, Johnny right away was yelling to the cops that Quarles did it.  The question is, did Johnny say that because Quarles now had Boyd or did Johnny say that because he needed to protect the actual shooter?  Also, if Johnny was conscious and had a view of the situation how did he not kill Quarles himself?

Boyd was definitely still on the ground unconscious when Raylan got there.

 

 

anyone catch the lingering shot of the Saint Michael necklace dangling on the cops rearview mirror? It's a depiction of this painting where Michael defeats Satan.

 

 

 

 

not sure why they included that

Johnny still seemed pretty dazed when they cut to him and the gunshot happened. But assuming he did see it, and it wasn't Quarles, then Arlo might make the most sense because that's someone Johnny has a reason to protect. And Arlo was a pretty big (no doubt deliberate) loose end after locking up Ava.

 

 

Ah, you're right. Just checked it out. I guess the way the cops ran immediately up to Johnny made me think Boyd was gone.

I have a small question. When did a small time serial fuck up like Boyd Crowder become Keyser Fucking Soze? Because people sure seem upset he did stupid stuff in this episode. "How could Boyd be so stupid?" Seriously?

 

Sorry, I'm reeling a little from making a tour of the TV sites.

What? Small time serial fuck up? He's one of the more shrewd characters on the show, almost certainly the sharpest criminal mind they've portrayed - a natural leader, manipulator, and strategist. He's made mistakes, and perhaps his milieu and demeanor are misleading (in the case of the latter, probably deliberately), but more often than not is the guy playing a long game and outsmarting/outmaneuvering everyone else on the board.

Give me one example of Boyd pulling a big score.

 

He's making pocket money and his crew consists of his girlfriend, a crazy old guy, a cripple and a small number of idiots. He's not some moron by any means but even the big upset he pulled on Quarles was served to him on a plate by Limehouse.  

Well, he does have a history of robbing banks. Probably the best onscreen examples of "big scores" came last season - the robbery at the mine, the way he manipulated things in the Black Pike deal, and raiding the Bennett's drug supply, and essentially winning the small war he got into with them come to mind. But yeah, in a sense he's fairly small time. I was taking umbrage more with the "serial fuck up" part and the implication he's not smart. He's got big(er) time potential and isn't an opponent to be trifled with. 

 

Plus, what criminal enterprise on this show has completely successfully pulled off a big score? Mags is probably about the only one, and if Boyd isn't on the list, he comes the closest. It's part of the world of Elmore Leonard. I think you have to look more at the nuances of the character, and consider that given how crime is portrayed in the Leonard-verse, the metric for how smart a criminal is isn't necessarily the size of the scores but their ability to survive and stay in the game. And in that sense Boyd just doesn't read as small time serial fuck up. That's a description I'd reserve for Dewey Crowe and the like.

Edited by Dan Benenson - 4/5/12 at 1:58pm

Yeah, the mine heist that he managed to turn around on his accomplices was fairly Soze.  And he came out ahead in his dealings with the Bennets, mining company and the Dixie mafia.  Then he leaves his most dangerous foe with a couple junkies and 15 feet of chain at his disposal, and is shocked at the result.

Basically setting up Limehouse as a pseudo-good guy.  He protects women--be it the girl or the various battered women who have apparently passed through Nobles Holler--while most, if not all, of his criminal activity seems directed at protecting the Holler from outside forces (or toughening up his men to defend it).

Boyd is definitely smart, but what this episode showed was that he lacks resources. He couldn't station guards everywhere because he doesn't have the (trustworthy) men to do so. Too many of em have been killed along the way.

Was Arlo present for any of the conversations regarding the bounty on Quarles?  It's possible that his addled mind has held on to that one thing, and he decided to take the opportunity to snatch a live Quarles in order to prove to Boyd (and Helen) how useful he is.  That would also explain why it was Tom and not some random cop that got shot at the scene.  Tom knows Arlo and assuming Tom survives then he can tell Raylan who shot him in order to move the story forward.

 

If that's all true, it means a crazy Arlo is driving around with a crazy Quarles right now.  I smell spinoff!

"Dementia and Rage in Harlan County"

 

Arlo can be Hunter S. Thompson and Quarles can be Dr. Gonzo.

I still think Quarles shot the cop.

 

I also think Winn Duffy leaves the show next week. He made an enemy of Boyd, and they've got to take somebody other than Quarles out.

Don't you say it!

SLAUGHTERHOUSE

 

One hour away.

That Raylan/Wynn roulette bit might be the best scene in this show's history.

Wynn's reactions were priceless. 

Holy. Hell.

I figured that might be the reason Tom was shot as soon as Arlo said "heard a cop with a hat was shot." Love the way they tied the violence of the whole season all together, and back to the central conflict of the show, with just few lines.  Tight writing for a season that had so many different threads.

"Oh shit, it's a piggy bank!"

 

Raylan denying Quarles his arm. Just wonderful.

A definite highlight.  The gesture was perfectly underplayed.

Raylan holding the arm away from Quarles is one of the best things I've ever seen.

That really tied everything together well and on top of all the badass and/or funny shit and those last few scenes really resonated but I wish that whole dynamic/conflict - the triangle of Raylan/Arlo/Boyd - had been played up just a little bit more throughout the season. If I have one complaint about the season, it would be that; there was a lot going on and the overall focus was often the plotting rather than the underlying themes. But considering how well they juggled all those balls and how consistently great the dialogue and acting is, it's too small a complaint for me to consider season 3 anything less than excellent.

I'm thinking that the kid/hostage is going to be in therapy for quite awhile after this.

 

 

and.....

 

that's it ?

I want more episodes NOW.

 

how long til next season?

 

Nothing he witnessed as Quarles' hostage is as horrifying as attending a Christian rock concert with Corrine Mackey.

Arlo was a real shocker.  I'm trying to understand his twisted love for Raylan/Boyd.  A few episodes ago when he called Boyd "Raylan", I thought it was his love for Raylan being projected onto Boyd.  I'm thinking it's more like he wishes Boyd was his son.
 

Far too long.  But you know what would dull the agony?  FX secretly bringing Terriers back this summer.  Get on it guys.

Such an excellent finish; especially the Arlo surprise. They were building towards him committing violence out of his disease all season, but I love the suggestion that it's rooted in his hatred for Raylan and love for Boyd. Just....really well done, show. Well done.

Yeah...That ending was actually kind of heartbreaking. I expected the episode to be great, but I wasn't expecting that.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

 

I was a bit unfair to the early episodes this season, probably because the story was overstuffed in relation to last season, which was a much cleaner arc. However, the final few episodes of this season were so, SO, good. I'm already antsy for next season.

 

 

I was convinced Quarles would get a cleaver in the chest as soon as he stopped paying attention.  I didn't quite expect that.

 

I did love that Quarles wasted the reveal of the sleeve gun so that Raylan was ready for it when it happened.  I'm still surprised we never saw it jam though.

Raylan sure "disarmed" Quarles.  lol.  Him pulling the arm away from him and giving the "oh no you don't" look was definitely the highlight of the episode.

 

As much as I love the Wyn Duffy roulette scene, I still think the best scene of the season was the stand-off at the hotel room with that hired killer where Raylan just pulled the tablecloth over.  Really showcased how talented at violence Raylan is.

 

One thing I didn't understand - why did Limehouse send his right-hand man away at the end?  It was my impression that pretty much everything he did was at Limehouse's request?  Did I miss something?

 

The Boyde/Limehouse war next season should really be something to behold.  Especially with the Detroit mob now involved.

 

P.S.  How bad-ass is the Son of Raylan gonna be when he grows up?  lol.

 

C'mon.  Give the man a hand!  :-D

 

He arranged for the Oxyhouse to be robbed earlier on in the season and involved Limehouse in more than he wanted, iirc Limehouse said he wouldnt kill him so he could see the results of his actions.

Yeah, I remember that, but I thought he'd redeemed himself and proved to be very loyal.  So it seemed an odd choice that he'd suddenly be dismissed.

Limehouse holds a grudge I guess.  He endangered the hollow and had to go, an example to the others not to fuck around?

Redeeming himself meant earning the right to walk away alive and unscathed, not staying in the organization. Nothing he could do could actually undo the betrayal and chain of events he set in motion. I think that's basically what Limehouse said from the start, but he has a way of being plain spoken yet coming off as inscrutable to both the other characters and the audience. Look at how he directly told several characters he was just trying to protect his holler yet seemed to maybe have more elaborate schemes going on until it became clear last week that he really was just protecting his holler.

I assume Limehouse was dismissing him because he was the criminal link that Boyd knew about.  Through an incarcerated Boyd, he was a liability.  I agree with lev above.  I thought it was a pretty heartbreaking ending.

 

Raylan doesn't care about the reveal, and that is part of what makes it so sad.  Boyd has the love and dedication of Ava, and Arlo's dedication, and he is a piece of shit criminal.  Raylan doesn't have anything like that.  Raylan puts his life in danger for others all of the time, and he still pushes people away.  Winona, the other marshals (to an extent), his family.

 

I imagine he is going to be on a real tear next season, especially towards Boyd.

 

Great final few minutes of a great season.  Can't wait for 4.

 

 

Loved Limehouse tearing up after sending him off, that was a well earned piece of character development.

Great finale.  Maybe I should've payed more attention to the "previously on Justified" bit, but when did Raylan retrieve the planted gun from his apartment? Last I remember of it, he hid it behind the radiator or something. It also took me a moment to realize just why Limehouse was exiling Errol.  I remembered the bit about the Oxy, but that was so long ago, and the guy had been Limehouse's right-hand-man since, so I was waiting for them to reveal that he had done something else.

 

I never know when I character is dead or just injured on this show. I mean, I'm almost certain Errol and Quarles died, but I don't think it was ever confirmed. Not a complaint, but both Boyd and Ava have both been shot in the chest, so I need confirmation on these things.

 

This season has been so much about moving the pieces around, it'll be weird to start a season with a relatively clear board. I expected at least 2 or 3 episodes of marshal related standalone episodes this season, but I think the closest we came was the Gugino ep, and I wouldn't really count that. All around a tight season.

 

Bring on (a [hopefully] Gugino-infused, CGI car explosion-less) season 4!

 

Maybe, if he lives, Quarles could be Limehouse's new "right-hand-man"...*snicker*...

Edited by HypnoToad - 4/11/12 at 10:18am

Another great Quarles moment, when he's telling the kid what to say to Raylan over the phone and says something like "If you don't do what I say I'll kill you". The kid pauses and Quarles makes this attempt at a, "Just kidding, we're cool" face at the kid. I thought that was hilarious.

Edited by HypnoToad - 4/11/12 at 10:17am

I'm wondering how the Detroit Mob is going to factor into next season.  Seems they've been setting up the "mob is out to get Raylan" storyline since the first season.

another bit I loved, paraphrased -  when Quarles takes Raylan's gun...and Raylan says "I'm gonna want to get that back"...then Quarles takes the other gun Raylan has and Raylan says "you can keep that one"

Another example of the writing being so good.  Most shows would have spoon-fed the revelation to the audience by showing Raylan taking the gun back from his apartment.  Instead, they let it be a surprise-- whether you got it instantly; or, like me, if you're a little slow, and it took a bit to understand why he said that-- it's still much more satisfying as a viewer when you realize yourself, "I c wut u did thar, Raylan."

 

 

 

That was the Cartel in Florida, which we so far haven't heard a peep out of since he got threatened if he ever went after Raylan again.

 

 

 

There was a throw away line at the marshal station about the gun Quarles took from Raylan's belt being connected to Herman's Head's shooting.  Not that kidnapping a family at gun point, stealing a car, fleeing a murder scene, kidnapping a federal agent, and trying to rob half a million dollars all in front of several corroborating witnesses wouldn't be enough to put Quarles away.

Limehouse killed Quarles, so he gets the mob reward monies, yes?

The piggy bank cracked me up.  I will say, the ending is heartbreaking. Damnation, I can't imagine growing up with Arlo as my dad.

 

Also, I felt mildly guilty staring at Natalie Zea's motherly endowment.

 

And according to AV Club, that piggy-bank line was ad-libbed the day of shooting. Remarkable.