Distributor: Sony Entertainment Network
Episodes: 13
Duration: 40 min (per episode)
Justified: Season 6 (DVD) – Series Review
Justified is a dramatic crime series based on Elmore Leonard’s novels Pronto and Riding the Rap as well as his short story Fire in the Hole, set in the eastern parts of Kentucky. Its protagonist, U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens tends to bend the law as he sees fit but this type of behavior isn’t appreciated by his bosses at the Marshal service nor is it appreciated by the criminals he is chasing in the state of Kentucky.
U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) has been reassigned to his hometown, the rural area of Harlan and its nearest city Lexington after a feud with the big suits at the Marshal office. Here in the country hills of Harlan, he has found a worthy opponent whom has yet to be caught. In the previous season of Justified, the series focused on the Crowe crime family – led by Darryl Crowe Jr. – during which Raylan often crossed paths with Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins) whom is easily the smartest and most dangerous criminal in the nooks of Harlan.
Although Raylan and Boyd have worked together in the local coal mines as teenagers, they aren’t on friendly terms. In his quest to capture Boyd red handed, Raylan has enlisted the help of Ava Crowder (Joelle Carter), Boyd’s fiancée, who is released early from prison thanks to her agreement of becoming the Marshal’s snitch. She finds it difficult to trust Boyd after what had transpired in the past but her role as a CI forces her to stand by his side. Boyd is hired to steal from a local realtor Calhoun Schreier (Brad Leland) but soon finds out that the money belongs to none other than Avery Markham (Sam Elliott). Raylan and his partner Tim Gutterson (Jacob Pitts) have found a new target to focus on but in the meantime Raylan is not giving up on bringing Boyd down. It is this stubbornness and his aggressive approach to the whole ordeal that might get him into trouble one way or another. Boyd on the other hand has changed his plans and intends to kill Avery and steal his plans to make Harlan great again but this means he also needs to backstab Wynn Duffy (Jere Burns) and Katherine Hale (Mary Steenburgen) whom had originally hired him to do the bank heist.
The storyline in Justified is filled with plots that keep evolving into major twists or dwindle into absolute nothing and it is this evolution that you see in the actual dialogues. Certain thought patterns are not explained well but as the viewer you grow with the plot thanks to the back and forth between all the characters. The fact that the characters are so complex and show a wide variety of opinions and morals only adds more depth into the dialogues.
Before we look into the performances of the immense range of actors in the series, I must say that personally I am not a fan of the Southern cowboy-like accent in any kind of series or movie. Despite my personal extreme dislike for the hillbilly accent, I still found the series to be extremely satisfying to watch. Aside from the intelligent dialogues, the performances of the actors may have something to do with the appeal of the series. Timothy Olyphant was an excellent choice as the loyal yet morally iffy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens. His counterpart, Walton Goggins can show the same kind of loyal yet morally unrighteousness making them seem like they have been cut out of the same wood, yet there is much more to Boyd Crowder and Walton reveals the emotional, kind-hearted yet cold-blooded intelligent side of Boyd in a scarily charming way. In all honesty, the other actors simply cannot compare to these two but nonetheless, the others are worthy cast members that helped shape the series to what it is now.
The DVD boxset includes 13 episode each lasting 40 minutes spread on 3 DVD’s as well as a roughly five minute feature dubbed as Hollywood to Harlan.
Conclusion
Justified is packed with action, drama and crime bundled in intelligent dialogues and plots that seem to evolve depending on how events pan out. The rivalry between the two protagonists is clear and while they are on opposite lines of the ethics behind good and evil, they are similar in many ways and both actors can convey a variety of realistic characteristics. This feat can only be done with a strong cast and terrific acting performances and the show lacks none of them. It may not be your average crime drama but Justified is a brilliant series that should be on your watch list.
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