Fargo: Blanket
January 3, 2024 8:50 PM - Season 5, Episode 8 - Subscribe
Roy's campaign continues; Indira takes a stand; Witt tries to help.
Ooof. Did not see that coming.
Really? Even outside of Roy's mood at that very moment, it seemed like Danish was being sent in to be killed almost deliberately, perhaps to give Lorraine some crime concrete and irrefutable to hang Roy with.
posted by FatherDagon at 9:43 PM on January 3 [2 favorites]
Really? Even outside of Roy's mood at that very moment, it seemed like Danish was being sent in to be killed almost deliberately, perhaps to give Lorraine some crime concrete and irrefutable to hang Roy with.
posted by FatherDagon at 9:43 PM on January 3 [2 favorites]
Danish never actually speaks to Lorraine. First, he pulls out his phone at the gas station, but puts it back in his pocket without calling her. Then, at Roy’s compound, he ignores her call. It’s one of the most explicit “playing cowboy will get you and others killed” moments since The Last Jedi.
Dot continues to be resourceful as fuck and I continue to wish she didn’t have to be.
At least Gator is getting what’s coming to him. I wonder if we’ll see any of the consequences that are almost here—I would perfectly happy to leave his thread where it ended this episode.
posted by thecaddy at 5:37 AM on January 4 [4 favorites]
Dot continues to be resourceful as fuck and I continue to wish she didn’t have to be.
At least Gator is getting what’s coming to him. I wonder if we’ll see any of the consequences that are almost here—I would perfectly happy to leave his thread where it ended this episode.
posted by thecaddy at 5:37 AM on January 4 [4 favorites]
My bet is that next week's episode includes a scene where Roy finds Gator's body.
posted by Paul Slade at 5:53 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]
posted by Paul Slade at 5:53 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]
Gator's response to Dot mentioning his mother was interesting, and we didn't know specifically why yet, until Roy said what he did. Does he know where his mother really is? He was definitely thinking some things and not wanting to confront it ... but he did call Dot a liar.
The Danish thing was also interesting ... the urgency; the chance to do good, maybe? Or maybe just please his boss ... either way, he walked into a game played by very different rules.
posted by destructive cactus at 6:32 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]
The Danish thing was also interesting ... the urgency; the chance to do good, maybe? Or maybe just please his boss ... either way, he walked into a game played by very different rules.
posted by destructive cactus at 6:32 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]
Danish’s end was a rare sour note for me. Roy’s right, he should have been smart enough to know what was about to happen, especially after revealing Danish was behind the debate embarrassment.
Seeing the windmill from the fantasy (?) on the ranch suggests Dot knows Linda is buried there but has blocked it out.
posted by supercres at 6:42 AM on January 4 [9 favorites]
Seeing the windmill from the fantasy (?) on the ranch suggests Dot knows Linda is buried there but has blocked it out.
posted by supercres at 6:42 AM on January 4 [9 favorites]
That loooooooong tracking shot of Roy walking to the barn: wow.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 7:12 AM on January 4 [10 favorites]
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 7:12 AM on January 4 [10 favorites]
Danish never actually speaks to Lorraine. First, he pulls out his phone at the gas station, but puts it back in his pocket without calling her. Then, at Roy’s compound, he ignores her call.
Hah, I was so used to seeing him as a literal extension of her will that it never crossed my mind that the whole debate thing wasn't her plan to get back at Roy for the bank meddling, despite the two of them never speaking on screen.
posted by FatherDagon at 9:11 AM on January 4 [1 favorite]
Hah, I was so used to seeing him as a literal extension of her will that it never crossed my mind that the whole debate thing wasn't her plan to get back at Roy for the bank meddling, despite the two of them never speaking on screen.
posted by FatherDagon at 9:11 AM on January 4 [1 favorite]
Well, the election / debate scene was definitely planned by the two of them. It’s his decision to go to the ranch (and offer to flip to rescue Dot) that he never discusses with her.
(The sour note for me was that Officer Witt not saying, “by the way those guys are bad news, they shot at me.” I can understand if there’s a bit of beef between them from previous actions, but not “I hope you get shot at” bad).
posted by thecaddy at 9:44 AM on January 4
(The sour note for me was that Officer Witt not saying, “by the way those guys are bad news, they shot at me.” I can understand if there’s a bit of beef between them from previous actions, but not “I hope you get shot at” bad).
posted by thecaddy at 9:44 AM on January 4
I honestly think it was just an abundance of hubris ... Danish was used to being on the team that always won and could always intimidate the other party into backing down.
Yeah, I do think more of a warning might have helped, but also I sort of think that the urgency Witt communicated did sort of impart the grave nature of what was going on. He might have just figured that Danish and his folks would handle things properly - I didn't read "I hope you get shot at" from the discussion.
posted by destructive cactus at 11:31 AM on January 4 [7 favorites]
Yeah, I do think more of a warning might have helped, but also I sort of think that the urgency Witt communicated did sort of impart the grave nature of what was going on. He might have just figured that Danish and his folks would handle things properly - I didn't read "I hope you get shot at" from the discussion.
posted by destructive cactus at 11:31 AM on January 4 [7 favorites]
I'm sad because Dave Foley had the most authentic Minnesota accent in the whole show.
posted by Sphinx at 12:37 PM on January 4 [11 favorites]
posted by Sphinx at 12:37 PM on January 4 [11 favorites]
I assume Danish didn’t talk to Lorraine because he’d decided to do the right thing (even if he did do it in a bafflingly stupid way) and if he didn’t tell her about it beforehand she couldn’t tell him not to.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 12:50 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]
posted by Parasite Unseen at 12:50 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]
holy shit! that's my reaction to this episode. fuck!
posted by dis_integration at 3:25 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]
posted by dis_integration at 3:25 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]
Was there actually a case of name changes and shenanigans at a town hall for a Sheriff reelection debate in Minnesota?
posted by porpoise at 4:34 PM on January 4
posted by porpoise at 4:34 PM on January 4
It's clear that Danish is used to playing the heavy against politicians, and fatally fails to understand that Roy Tillman, being more of a gang boss or warlord, is in a different weight class entirely.
My personal theory on why he doesn't tell Lorraine what's up is that he actually does want to save Dot, and thinks that Roy is likely to take the deal that he's going to offer. (Again, he thinks he's dealing with a politician). He's worried that Lorraine is going to be willing to sacrifice Dot's life in order to continue her feud with Roy, and if that's the case he'd rather ask forgiveness than permission. It feels very Fargo for a pretty slimy character to get killed for his one act of real human decency.
posted by firechicago at 4:40 PM on January 4 [14 favorites]
My personal theory on why he doesn't tell Lorraine what's up is that he actually does want to save Dot, and thinks that Roy is likely to take the deal that he's going to offer. (Again, he thinks he's dealing with a politician). He's worried that Lorraine is going to be willing to sacrifice Dot's life in order to continue her feud with Roy, and if that's the case he'd rather ask forgiveness than permission. It feels very Fargo for a pretty slimy character to get killed for his one act of real human decency.
posted by firechicago at 4:40 PM on January 4 [14 favorites]
I'd been hoping to see Lamorne Morris again, but aaaargh. I'm absolutely positive his character has had to deal with serious racist bullshit at some point, but I was worried about whether he'd navigate the situation.
The debate was amazing!
I was half-watching - nerves - so it wasn't until I double checked that I noted it was Munch in the backseat of Gator's car, as I was just sooo hopeful it was Dot.
posted by Pronoiac at 12:45 AM on January 5 [2 favorites]
The debate was amazing!
I was half-watching - nerves - so it wasn't until I double checked that I noted it was Munch in the backseat of Gator's car, as I was just sooo hopeful it was Dot.
posted by Pronoiac at 12:45 AM on January 5 [2 favorites]
That loooooooong tracking shot of Roy walking to the barn: wow.
That was a phenomenal piece of acting by Jon Hamm. You could see the rage building and building with every step he took.
I think Danish had never dealt with really bad guys before and so was stupidly unaware of what he was walking into. I think we all knew he was doomed the second he mocked Roy about the election.
I'm enjoying this season immensely. The various plot strands are all coming together very nicely indeed.
posted by essexjan at 4:48 PM on January 5 [4 favorites]
That was a phenomenal piece of acting by Jon Hamm. You could see the rage building and building with every step he took.
I think Danish had never dealt with really bad guys before and so was stupidly unaware of what he was walking into. I think we all knew he was doomed the second he mocked Roy about the election.
I'm enjoying this season immensely. The various plot strands are all coming together very nicely indeed.
posted by essexjan at 4:48 PM on January 5 [4 favorites]
Can someone explain why Witt would go to Roy's farm after the altercation at the hospital? He has not been portrayed as foolish or foolhardy. He could tell that, even in a hospital--a public space--Roy and Gator were willing to use violence. Why would he go to a place with fewer protections for himself? (Other than to advance the plot and have him run into Danish later.)
posted by Apropos a pro's pose at 8:16 PM on January 6
posted by Apropos a pro's pose at 8:16 PM on January 6
Not just that - he will have made the connection that those who killed his partner and shot him in the first episode were sent by Roy. It doesn't make sense to go into the dragon's den, especially alone.
posted by daksya at 9:26 PM on January 6
posted by daksya at 9:26 PM on January 6
I think Danish had never dealt with really bad guys before and so was stupidly unaware of what he was walking into.
I think he'd probably dealt with plenty of bad guys, but only those who fought with the legalistic and political weapons he understood. Someone who was just going to flat-out fucking shoot him dead simply wasn't part of Danish's world.
posted by Paul Slade at 4:38 AM on January 7
I think he'd probably dealt with plenty of bad guys, but only those who fought with the legalistic and political weapons he understood. Someone who was just going to flat-out fucking shoot him dead simply wasn't part of Danish's world.
posted by Paul Slade at 4:38 AM on January 7
That loooooooong tracking shot of Roy walking to the barn: wow.
It made me nauseous with anxiety. Roy is the kind of demon that so much fiction wrestles with: he's recognizable as human but still so utterly alien. I sincerely hope Dot gets her wish.
And I don't particularly like the feeling of "oooh, they had it coming..." It was one of the most powerful parts of season 3 (with Ewan McGregor/David Thewlis/Carrie Coon) that the baddie, Varga gets off mostly scot free. The feeling that the noose is tightening around Roy and Gator is appealing but at the same time... Roy is such a black hole... props to Hamm but jesus. The most enjoyable psycho (as is often the case with Fargo, for me at least, there's an enjoyable psycho) is "Ole Munch" dammit but that's a wonderfully whacky character. It's funny when you compare the two, Roy and Ole, and the one might be an actual 500 year old scottish supernatural while the other, domestic creature, is more terrifying... could have had more of that - but maybe they meet at the end...
This season has not been quite as free-wheel-ingly wild, narratively, as other seasons. But the acting has been terrific all around.
posted by From Bklyn at 5:37 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]
It made me nauseous with anxiety. Roy is the kind of demon that so much fiction wrestles with: he's recognizable as human but still so utterly alien. I sincerely hope Dot gets her wish.
And I don't particularly like the feeling of "oooh, they had it coming..." It was one of the most powerful parts of season 3 (with Ewan McGregor/David Thewlis/Carrie Coon) that the baddie, Varga gets off mostly scot free. The feeling that the noose is tightening around Roy and Gator is appealing but at the same time... Roy is such a black hole... props to Hamm but jesus. The most enjoyable psycho (as is often the case with Fargo, for me at least, there's an enjoyable psycho) is "Ole Munch" dammit but that's a wonderfully whacky character. It's funny when you compare the two, Roy and Ole, and the one might be an actual 500 year old scottish supernatural while the other, domestic creature, is more terrifying... could have had more of that - but maybe they meet at the end...
This season has not been quite as free-wheel-ingly wild, narratively, as other seasons. But the acting has been terrific all around.
posted by From Bklyn at 5:37 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]
I think he was Welsh rather than Scottish, wasn't he?
posted by Paul Slade at 6:22 AM on January 8
posted by Paul Slade at 6:22 AM on January 8
Yes! Maybe Welsh and not Scottish - got thrown by the kilt, as one will. By his name and his weird, 'Werner Herzog-esque' accent he might well be ... ?? I see Munch as the spiritual brother of Gaear Grimsrud, the Peter Stormare character in the "Fargo" movie... who of course would then also not be Scottish... How about just kilt-wearing undead spirit of vengeance ?
posted by From Bklyn at 8:33 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]
posted by From Bklyn at 8:33 AM on January 8 [1 favorite]
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Ooof. Did not see that coming. Just as I was thinking how much I enjoy the Fargo mini-trope of 'actors from comedic shows playing lawyer'
posted by neilbert at 8:58 PM on January 3 [2 favorites]