Why isn’t Everyone watching JUSTIFIED??
Granted, the show is on FX, which is known more for its crappy action movies that everyone has already seen a million times, and endless repeats of “The Bernie Mac Show” and “That 70’s Show” (and any other show with “Show” in the title), than for good episodic series. And even though it has “Damages” and ran “Nip/Tuck” and “Rescue Me” for a bunch of years, it’s still a cable channel wasteland of sorts.
But, damnit, the Timothy Olyphant series, which premiered its 9th original episode this past Tuesday, and was just picked up by the Fox network for a 2nd season, is WORTH WATCHING! Based on a duo of books and a short story by Elmore “Dutch” Leonard, the show focuses on a modern-day U.S. Marshall - Raylan Givens - re-assigned from Florida to his home state of Kentucky after a “justified” shooting death puts ole Ray in the federal doghouse.
Back in Kentucky, he’s surrounded by his ex-wife, her new husband (William “Oh, Brewster, you’re so cool” Ragsdale), an old acquaintance but new flame who killed her husband with a shotgun shortly before Raylan mosied into town, Raylan’s con-man dad (the creepy but compelling Raymond J. Barry), a family of bad-asses played by Walter “The Shield” Goggins and M.C. Gainey (Mr. Friendly of “Lost”), and a tough but sympathetic boss, brought to life by a lively Nick Searcy, an actor who has had guest appearances in more TV shows than I can count.
Amid all the continuing family drama and internal strife of Raylan’s professional career, the series has a bad-guy of the week story, which is when the “Elmore element” goes into full swing and Raylan gets to show off his cool edge and gunfighter prowess. And the guest-stars are inspired casting choices - last week it was Jere Burns, before that Alan Ruck of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” Peter Greene and a host of unknown but stellar acting talents.
People basically get shot and killed every week, there is liberal use of the words “shit,” “bullshit” and even “blowjob,” so if you like violence and profanity on your non-subscriber cable channels, this is the place to be.
But beyond that, the show is amazingly sharp-witted, with plenty of tension to keep you glued to your set. The show isn’t big on twists, and not even so much on plot - although the episodes always have strong ones - because the core of the series focus is on characters. It likes to explore the reasons why people behave the way they do, make the bone-headed, brutal choices they make, and then compellingly demonstrates how a morally ambivalent cowboy with a badge eventually brings them all to justice - or death.
So, check it out, tell your friends about it, and if you get hooked, get yourself on Amazon or to a real brick-and-mortar bookstore so you can read the Leonard books that inspired the series - “Pronto” and the sequel, “Riding the Rap.” Nobody beats Leonard for sparkling dialogue and twisty storylines.
And nothing on the air right now beats “Justified” for solid, well-written, meaty episodes of television entertainment.
Nothing.
