Margaux and I hail the return of Fargo, the best show on TV.
Trevor: Fargo was my favorite show of 2014. The first season is pretty much perfect, top to bottom. How is it possible, then, that Fargo seems to have gotten better in season two? ANSWER ME.
Margaux: Haha it’s really kinda refreshing that something like Fargo, that had every reason in the world to fail, is actually one of the better acted, directed, and written shows on TV. I mean, at the end of this seasons premiere I said out loud, “I hope I can write something this good one day.” So not only did you just a glimpse into my depressing psyche, but there isn’t too else to say other than the sound of awards getting thrown at it. Also, there’s another damn Culkin sibling? What are they, Catholic?!
Trevor: What I love most about “Waiting for Dutch” is how it just hits the ground running. Before we get to the sheer amount of plot, though, I want to talk about that opening, which was so damned Coenesque it seems as though Joel and Ethan stopped by to guest-direct it. The two men on the set of Massacre at Sioux Falls talking about Ronald Reagan, in black and white, in one unbroken, steady shot – it was masterful, not only in how it repurposed the theme music from season one, but in how it showed us the kind of respect for old films that Noah Hawley is bringing to this season. “Waiting for Dutch” isn’t filled with split-screens because “hey, they did that in the 70s,” they actually serve a purpose. It’s nice to see that all the praise from Fargo’s first season actually encouraged Hawley to outdo himself, rather than rest on his laurels (coughNic Pizzolattocough).
Margaux: True Detective season two, this is not, thank GAWD. And beyond the carryover of the theme song from season one, the return of the bleakest of dead (no pun intended) pan humor hits you in the face in the cold open, too. I loved the delivery of the on-set producer speaking to the Native American actor, “Well, I’m a Jew, so…” – I would watch that behind the scene Criterion documentary.
Trevor: And it was a nice little tease to the audience, reminding us that Bruce goddamn Campbell is gonna show up. And I don’t have to point out the foreshadowing behind Massacre at Sioux Falls.
What’s refreshing to see – thus far, at least – is Fargo’s reinvention as a true ensemble piece. Season one had a great cast, but at the end of the day it boiled down to Lester, Lorne, and Molly. Here we have Lou Solverson, ostensibly our main character, but also the entire Gerhardt clan – Otto, Floyd, Bear, Dodd, and dearly departed Rye – plus the impending arrival of the Kansas City mob, the Blomquists (Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons, both superb), who I suspect will have a Macbeth thing going on soon, and a lawyer/conspiracy theorist named Karl Weathers – KARL WEATHERS – played by Nick Offerman as a proto-Walter Sobchak from The Big Lebowski. This would fall apart in seconds with a less steady hand at the wheel. But it makes the world feel lived-in and natural.
Margaux: The Gerhardts have some of the best cinematic names I’ve heard in awhile, Jean Smart at the steely matriarch is fantastic and loved the little brother/big brother dynamic between Dodd and Rye with little to no explanation: “You’re the comic in a piece of bubble gum!” “It’s like Jupiter telling Pluto, ‘You’re still a planet!’” RIP Rye, you were hilarious while you lasted.
Trevor: Surprising, too, that Fargo would kill him off so quickly, especially since Kieran Culkin brought such life and desperation to the role. That scene opposite the judge was equal parts blackly humorous and chilling – exactly how the Coens would film it (also, having it take place in the Waffle Hut – is that a reference to The Ladykillers? If so, nice job going with the deep cuts, Noah Hawley). Also, I hope you’re ready for me to point out every single similarity I find, just like I did last season. For instance: the end credits song was originally sung by the sirens in O Brother, Where Art Thou? But Rye’s unexpected demise is, I think, indicative of the kind of pace Fargo is aiming to keep this season.
Margaux: To be fair, they tried really hard to kill off Rye, but he didn’t end up biting the dust until Meth Damon plunged gardening shears into his stomach in one of the most hilariously calm murders. Even when Hawley and Co aren’t trying to overtly call out the Coens, they still manage to channel the tone that can’t help but feel makes the Coen brothers proud.
Trevor: You know you’ve become a filmmaking institution when a huge network like FX will spend tens of millions of dollars on what it essentially a love letter to your career.
Can we talk about Partick Wilson? Vulture compared his performance to Robert Deniro in The Godfather Part II, which is pretty fucking high praise, but I can’t say it’s unearned. Wilson is fantastic, and it seems as though he’s finally found a leading role worthy of his everyman good looks that do little to hide the tough son of a bitch inside. What we know of Lou Solverson we’ve learned from Keith Carradine’s warm-but-tough portrayal – remember how he stared down Lorne Malvo – and Wilson is carrying that torch nicely. Not to mention nailing the Midwestern accent.
Margaux: I don’t know if there was enough of Wilson’s performance in “Waiting for Dutch” for me to go around declaring it’s Godfather II levels of greatness, but knowing what we know about Lou there is definitely more than enough potential for DeNiro praise. I do like the dynamic between Ted Danson, who plays Lou’s Father-in-law, Lou and his wife Betsy – it’s sort of the prequel to Molly, Gus, and Lou’s relationships from season one. Again, a nice nod without hitting you over the head with it.
Trevor: Seeing little Molly was pretty adorable too. And too bad for Christin Milioti, playing the cancer-stricken Betsy. Between this and How I Met Your Mother, it seems like she’s not destined to make it to many season finales.
I’ve been waiting for this show to come back literally since the season one finale “Morton’s Fork.” It could have gone wrong in so many ways, but Noah Hawley has proven that he deserves the benefit of the doubt. He’s no longer an unknown quantity, like he was when season one premiered – he’s now one of the best writers working in the medium. “Waiting for Dutch” was a fantastic premiere to what looks to be an amazing season. I want to go with five stars, any objections?
Margaux: Nope. My only wish is that we had more stars to give, I’m so excited to see Kirsten Dunst unleash her psychopathic Midwestern housewife. The fact that she calmly drove all the home, on the back roads because she’s careful dontchaknow, with basically dead body IN her windshield makes her by far the scariest character this season. And we’ve got multiple crime syndicates working here.
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