by Mike Hilty, Contributing Writer
It’s been over three years since Fargo has been on the air, with Season Four getting mixed reviews. Season Five takes place in Minnesota, where a typical suburban housewife, Dot (Juno Temple), runs into the authorities. Her life is turned upside down during an incident at her home that has her coming face-to-face with a traumatic past. Meanwhile, a local sheriff (Jon Hamm) is hellbent on winning his election and administering justice in the most American way possible.
The anthology of Fargo is a sweeping story that’s dark and exceedingly funny, while offering up some great commentary on the criminal underworld and humanity as a whole. Every season, we get a new setting and an interesting story that has the audience deep in thought. The Coen brothers’ influence is visible, and thankfully, creator Noah Crawley takes full advantage of this to mimic the style that originated with their movies. Crime is a central theme in a lot of Coen brothers movies, so naturally, Fargo follows suit, showing crime, the monsters that inhabit the world, and how punishment doesn’t equal justice.
In a lot of ways, Season Five is a return to form for Fargo. There’s far less of a sprawling story, and it’s evident that there’s a clear focus with on a group of characters. This isn’t to say Season Four isn’t as good as the others; however, there is something about it that just didn’t connect with me. I appreciated the swing for the fences and that it tries to do something a little different. But in the end, Season Five is more in line with the first three. Some may say it’s playing it safe but I would say it’s going back to basics so it can continue its run as a solid show.
The two main storylines of the season involve Dot in two different ways. First, there’s the aforementioned incident. When Dot eventually realizes her past is coming back to haunt her, the show shifts to trying to talk more about the perils of individuals getting out of domestic violence situations, and these depictions are graphic.
The second story follows Sheriff Roy and his political career. He holds a ton of power in his town and contrasts quite a bit with other forms of law enforcement. It’s hard not to see some of the real-world parallels, with law enforcement selecting which laws to enforce — the show comments on how the police protects the rights of some, but not all, people. There’s a level of inspiration that Roy garners with a specific group of people, but it’s those who respond to fear-mongering, and who call for violence in the name of protecting others. Roy surrounds himself with some unsavory people, including Munch (Sam Spruell).
Ole Munch is one of the parts of this season until a big reveal caused me to back off. Fargo sometimes takes this one step too far in terms of creating much too complicated situations. It’s unnecessary, though, because it invites so many more questions about how did things happen, and in this case, what else Much has been doing with his life. He’s is a fascinating character overall, as he maintains a level of villainy that is typical of a Coen brothers movie. I have a feeling that audiences will be divided about his history.
Each season showcases individuals who are performing lights out, and Season Five is no different, starting with Temple. She’s engaging as Dot but also is shrouded in enough mystery of which I want to learn more. The writing for her character is fantastic, as her story unfolds organically without rushing too much to answer everything we want to know about the character. From the jump, we see Dot is a devoted mother, in over her head with her mother-in-law, Lorraine (Jennifer Jason Leigh), and has a bit of an edge to her that’s polite but brutal. Temple has been on a hot streak lately between this and Ted Lasso.
Speaking of hot streaks, Hamm has been on fire lately as well. He’s got three outstanding TV performances in a, row between Good Omens, The Morning Show, and Fargo. Roy represents the absolute worst in patriotism and law enforcement one can find. He’s a staunch nationalist who has a rigid way of thinking that won’t allow him to change his mind, no matter what. The politicization of his law enforcement role causes him to act above the law and settle vendettas instead of bringing people to justice. Hamm is ruthless in this role, and it’s chilling to see the range he has.
But the sneaky most valuable performer of the season might be the tandem of Lorraine and her lawyer, Danish (David Foley). Lorraine is a powerful character, wielding her money and influence in whatever way she can. In a way, she’s similar to Roy. They’re both self-starters who are loyal to their causes and relentless in their tactics. The difference between the two, though, is Lorraine has some flexibility in a way that helps the audience empathize with her a little bit more. Leigh is terrifying here, and this is the best I’ve seen her in a very long time. Foley, on the other hand, shows that he can have a mean streak in him, especially as a henchman. This is the best I’ve seen him, perhaps ever, and I hope this is the start of darker roles for him to come.
Fargo Season Five doesn’t reach the heights of the first three seasons, but I enjoyed the story, performances, and themes. It’s tighter than the previous season, and gives us some memorable characters. Temple, Ham, and Leigh in particular give electric performances, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see if they have their names read during Emmy nominations next year. Fargo pushes the envelope creatively unlike a lot of other anthology shows out there today.
Rating: Liked It
Fargo is currently streaming on Hulu
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