Justified - The Final Season (FX) (1 Viewer)

[joshEH]

"...We dug coal together."


"That's right."

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Not at all the finale I was expected, but nevertheless the exactly right finale. Absolutely loved it from beginning to end, and right up there with "Chuck" for my favorite final scene.


When Boyd Crowder came out of that barn in handcuffs, I knew Raylan was going to make it out of Harlan alive. The man who has spent his entire career walking the gray area between right and wrong was finally pushed right up against that line you can't cross, and in spite of everything pushing him over it he didn't cross it. Raylan has always been a hero who can be kind of a dick, not an anti-hero, and it was really right that the show affirmed that in its climactic moment.


And then that one last draw, against Boon. This time he wasn't the fastest, but it didn't matter because he was the truer shot. And more importantly, in the immediately aftermath, he had someone on his side and Boon didn't. When Loretta stomped down on Boon's wrist to prevent him from taking another shot at Raylan, I just about cheered. And the look on Loretta's face when she walked up to Raylan, terrified that he was dead -- if there were any justice in this world, that one shot would have earned Kaitlyn Dever an Emmy. To see the depth of feeling and child's innocent love in that moment was just breathtaking, and once again exactly the right payoff for what had been a long, tortured road between two very similar people on extremely contrary paths. After Raylan left Harlan, Loretta probably picked up the pieces of Markham's operation and continued on her way to being Mags. But Raylan did right by her, and in the crunch she did right by him, and that's a bond they'll share as long as they're both above ground. It makes me happy to know that Loretta's not completely alone in this world.


And so we had our climactic series finale, Raylan's finally wearing the businessman's Stetson from the books, and the main action has just about wrapped up at the halfway point. What followed was something that is all too rare in these attention-deficit times: a true and proper denouement. We pick up four years later and Raylan's back in Miami. He has a real, pure and functional relationship with his daughter Willa that is the opposite of the kind of relationship he had with his own father. Winona has again moved on with a more stable man in her life, who Raylan doesn't much care for. And Winona and Raylan are still completely in love with each other. Again, that all rang true to me.


Rachel, now working out of the Seattle office, tips Raylan off on a lead to Ava's whereabouts. He finds her living a quiet peaceful life in rural California. In spite of his unease at how some of the stuff back in Harlan went down, he's still ready to take her in until she reveals her three year old baby boy. Given the timeline, he's either definitely Boyd's or possibly Raylan's -- depending on how you interpret that one visit to Ava's house way back when. Either way, Raylan's not going to deprive this child of his mother, and he's not going to let Boyd muck up his life.


And so it is that we pick up with Boyd, back in prison and back preaching. Everything come full circle. And they have one last conversation, where Raylan gives Boyd the closure he needs while making sure that Ava and her son are finally safe. And at the end of the day, even after all of that water under the bridge, Raylan and Boyd still dug coal together.


Just beautiful. Not flashy, but exactly right. The perfect ending to a tremendous series. And even though this chapter in Raylan Givens's story is over, I hope now more than ever that we get Raylan Givens movies starring Timothy Olyphant down the road.

 

[joshEH]

Well, it ended with grace and sincerity. What a great finale to a great, great show.


It is tough saying goodbye, I'll admit. It started good, got extremely good, had a really great second season, had a really good third season, had an interesting fourth season (Jim Beaver!), and even season 5 (categorically the so-called "worst") was still more than solid, week in and week out. And wow, season 6 was absolutely incredible. All of the good elements of most previous seasons, plus several new ones, with none of the (small) downsides from previous seasons.


Without question some of the richest and wittiest dialogue I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing in a television drama, and they absolutely nailed that final line. Bravo.


Some more thoughts:


- Ellen May!! I absolutely loved the way those "hypothetical" bits were shot, with that weird lighting and Raylan naming the different characters one by one. Which, of course, brings me to:


- DOWN ON ALL FOURS GROOMING

"The Experts at Doggy-Style"

...Wynn Duffy, keepin' it classy.


- Boon, always goin' for the headshot, instead of the bodyshot. Nice payoff, that.


- Loved seeing Boon's slightly-smaller Stetson on Raylan's head after the duel, just as Elmore Leonard always preferred. Symbolically, Raylan was reclaiming the honor of the Old West spirit from pimps and posers like Boon, but wearing that hat as a murder trophy might actually be one of the more fucked-up things he's ever done.


A beautiful ending to a stealthily great show. Time will probably be quite kind to its legacy.

 

[Hollywoodaholic]

The hat got killed. Didn't expect that one.

 

[Quentin]

I thought the moment between Boyd and Ava and Raylan was perfect. Ava on edge, Raylan ready to blow him away, Boyd too smart to fall prey to that. It echoed the pilot when Raylan gave the Miami crook the chance to pull on him. Boyd knew better.

But, Boon does not. And, he makes the mistake of going for the head - a very western reason that men wore big hats being brought into play: they made for a great target distraction. In a perfectly shot showdown, Raylan shoots true and Boon gets Raylan's hat. And, Loretta - future pot kingpin of Harlan - steps on Boon and goes to help her friend. And, Ava gets away. Sweet. The perfect topping is Raylan taking Boon's hat as his own - a hat that Elmore Leonard approved of (he hated the cowboy hat Olyphant wore in the show and pictured Raylan in a more modern Stetson).

And then we got something that very few shows EVER give you, but something Elmore Leonard loved - the perfect denouement.

First, we see Raylan eating ice cream with Willa - echoing his comments again when Winona once asked him what he would do if he weren't a Marshall: "I guess I'd sell ice cream."

Winona and he are no longer together. I don't like it, but I get it. She is batshit crazy, and he is a stubborn ass. The whole scene was nice...and, there was an unspoken tension of whether Boyd or someone else would show up.

Then he goes to see Ava who is eeking out a living and raising Boyd's son. She wants to be free of the men who have used and haunted her, and Raylan is willing to oblige. It's a good ending for her. And, something Raylan would not have given her 3 years ago...he has grown, and he sympathizes with this woman whom he used and who was treated poorly and is now a struggling parent like himself.

And, then the final moments between old friends. We see Boyd is preaching again (of course!), we see Raylan is suspicious of it (of course!), and we also see why we loved Boyd - he IS human under that. He is hurt by the (false) news of Ava. And, Raylan is right to give it to him because the tears show us Boyd would have never given up looking for her.

And, the final moment is perfect: "We dug coal together." Yes they did.

A great show with a great ending.

 

[Quentin]

Jackie Brown

Out of Sight

3:10 to Yuma

Hombre

Get Shorty


That is, IMO, the very short list of Elmore Leonard content that has successfully transitioned to the screen (large or small). Today, Justified joins that list. If you look at ALL the movies and TV shows in history that tried to "do Elmore Leonard" that failed (I don't have the time to make that huge list), you realize how rare and good a thing this is.


Which makes a very good TV series even more accomplished. It did something that is no easy task.


It's not a top 5 series of all time. Maybe not even top 10. But, it was close. It's in the conversation. And, it is Elmore Leonard through and through. And, I'd put seasons 2 and 3 up against just about anything.


I'm glad we got a very satisfying ending. And, I'm glad all our favorite characters lived. Even Wynn!


A tip of the Stetson to Yost and the rest. I really enjoyed the ride.

 

[Doug Wallen]

WWED, what would Elmore do? I think we saw what Elmore would do. A wonderful end to our relationship with Raylan, Boyd, et al.

Couldn't have been more perfect.

The final scene was so well played with the whole emotional tie between Raylan and Boyd. Olyphant and Goggins were amazing.

What am I going to do on Tuesday evenings now?

So glad Raylan got to leave Harlan, alive.

 

[joshEH]

Tim Olyphant was on Conan last night...they had some fun getting liquored up:


http://www.teamcoco.com/video/timothy-olyphant-on-oliver-stone-the-russian-pole-dancer?playlist=x;eyJ0b3RhbCI6Njg0OCwidHlwZSI6InJlY2VudCIsImlkIjpudWxsfQ

 

[joshEH]

"Sorry fellas -- to drink in here, you need a badge or a pair a' tits."


"...Art, show 'em your tits."

 

[ScottH]

Jackie Brown

Out of Sight

3:10 to Yuma

Hombre

Get Shorty

It's probably been 25 years since I saw it, but what about 52 Pick Up?

 

[joshEH]

I know the guy deserves to rot in jail or the ground forevermore, but I absolutely love that Wynn Duffy got out of Harlan alive, with the millions to finance his endless summer in Fiji.


Plus, Boyd got maybe the last great line of the series: "Raylan, I know you haven't ever believed a word that's come out of my mouth, but I do think you've been entertained by them."

 

[Quentin]

It's probably been 25 years since I saw it, but what about 52 Pick Up?

52 Pickup is a good, albeit flawed movie. While I like a lot about it, it doesn't reach the quality of the films I listed. At least not for me.


BTW...speaking of Elmore Leonard - anyone notice that Raylan gave Tim his copy of "Friends of Eddie Coyle"? That was Leonard's favorite novel and the book that turned him onto crime stories from westerns.

 

[Walter C]

Just saw the finale, and not what I expected, in terms of who would come out alive. But somehow, I think it worked out well with the way it ended, with Boyd and even Wynn Duffy coming out alive in the end, and the flash-forward after that.

I'll miss this show when next winter rolls around. With this and "Sons of Anarchy" gone, there is almost no reason for me to watch FX anymore.

Then he goes to see Ava who is eeking out a living and raising Boyd's son. She wants to be free of the men who have used and haunted her, and Raylan is willing to oblige. It's a good ending for her.

Yeah, and I liked how she named her son after the one man who did not use her. I'd say, a little symbolic of the happy ending for Ava.

 

[ScottH]

I'll miss this show when next winter rolls around. With this and "Sons of Anarchy" gone, there is almost no reason for me to watch FX anymore.

The Americans, Fargo, Louie, It's Always Sunny, The League, The Bridge, American Horror Story are at least 7 reasons to still watch FX...

 

[Robert Crawford]

Just saw the finale, and not what I expected, in terms of who would come out alive. But somehow, I think it worked out well with the way it ended, with Boyd and even Wynn Duffy coming out alive in the end, and the flash-forward after that.

I'll miss this show when next winter rolls around. With this and "Sons of Anarchy" gone, there is almost no reason for me to watch FX anymore.




Yeah, and I liked how she named her son after the one man who did not use her. I'd say, a little symbolic of the happy ending for Ava.

Did anybody notice that Ava appeared even better looking at the end of the show as she didn't have the stress of certain men taking their toll on her?

 

[Elizabeth S]

I'll miss this show when next winter rolls around. With this and "Sons of Anarchy" gone, there is almost no reason for me to watch FX anymore.

Yup, my 2 favorite FX shows are finished now. The 2 shows were such contrasts to each other, but I loved them both. It's almost funny thinking of the way each series wrapped up and how it reflected on the whole atmosphere of each show.


All I know is that the characters I wanted were still standing at the end of "Justified". And it left me with sadness that like real life, love just wasn't enough to make things right for either Raylan or Boyd.


At least I can look forward to FX's "Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll", which starts July 16. I love Denis Leary, and the milieu of the show should be interesting for me.

 

[MarkMel]

The Americans, Fargo, Louie, It's Always Sunny, The League, The Bridge, American Horror Story are at least 7 reasons to still watch FX...

I agree with your list, but unfortunatly the Bridge is not coming back. I liked that show.


http://observer.com/2014/10/exclusive-fx-vp-explains-why-the-bridge-not-renewed-for-season-3/

 

[joshEH]

BTW...speaking of Elmore Leonard - anyone notice that Raylan gave Tim his copy of "Friends of Eddie Coyle"? That was Leonard's favorite novel and the book that turned him onto crime stories from westerns.

Yeah, definitely caught that, too. And Tim's line to Raylan in that scene was absolutely priceless:


"You read that a bunch, or you buy it used?"

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Did anybody notice that Ava appeared even better looking at the end of the show as she didn't have the stress of certain men taking their toll on her?

Yes. The hair and makeup were more flattering, but Joelle Carter also carried herself differently as Ava. After six seasons, she's finally made a life for herself without Bowman or Raylan or Boyd looming over her.

 

[Walter C]

The Americans, Fargo, Louie, It's Always Sunny, The League, The Bridge, American Horror Story are at least 7 reasons to still watch FX...

"The League" and "It's Always Sunny" are on FXX now! And as MarkMel said, "The Bridge" has been cancelled.


I tried "The Americans" and "American Horror Story" for 1 season, but had no desire to go back after that, with AHS being an annoying show. I may give "Louie" another chance.


Archer is pretty much the only show left that I watch on FX.