HomeARTSFire in the Hole: “Justified” Ends with aWhisper, Not a Bang

Fire in the Hole: “Justified” Ends with aWhisper, Not a Bang

By Alexander Wheeler
Features Editor

A few editions back, I inadvertently expressed my deepest admirations for Graham Yost’s and FX’s serialized drama “Justified,” based on the Elmore Leonard stories, in a piece that spoke about serialization and binge-watching.
In the article, I questioned the love that occurs between a viewer and the material they are watching in relation to way in which they watch it. Does watching a show on a weekly basis versus one sitting affect the way in which the audience connects with and digests the show?
After binge watching “Breaking Bad” last summer, and having witnessed the finale of “Justified” after five years of loyal and diligent viewership, I think I can finally weigh in on my own discussion.
Aptly titled “The Promise,” written by Yost and other alumni, the finale equally challenged and stayed true to the style of Leonard. Without discussing plot points, the finale accomplished the nearly un-accomplishable: it satisfied audiences while simultaneously doing well by its story and its characters.
During the day leading up to the inevitable conclusion of my favorite television series, or piece of entertainment, really, I found myself scouring the depths of the internet to see what other viewers were talking about in anticipation of the final episode. What I ended up finding was a copious amount of articles coming from various newspapers and journals, such as Variety, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and many more.
Before I discuss what those writers talked about, I find it necessary to discuss where “Justified” stands in the echelon of television. When the show first aired on March 16, 2010, the series took on a southern-style “Law and Order” procedural form before becoming wholly comfortable with tackling serialized drama topos.
As the first season drew to a close, it was apparent that this was a show that was starting to change. As various critics have often cited, the show had its (arguably) best season with its second season back in 2011 – when Margo Martindale won an Emmy for her role in the series.
Where the show had always excelled, from that season’s precedent-setting point onwards, was in the secondary character and plot department. As each consequent season aired, the pool of supporting players and exciting subplots that would occur from interactions within that pool, resulted in a fully-developed world and mythology that solely exists in Yost’s and company’s world.
While the series excelled in this way, critics cited the misuse of some of the lead characters and the slight inconsistency between seasons (see Season Five) as reasoning for why the show belongs to the higher tier of television, but not the highest tier, among television greats like “Breaking Bad,” “Mad Men” and “The Sopranos.”
As a fan, I will admit that over the course of my relationship with “Justified,” some of the seasons have been significantly better than others. However, I still find qualities and stories in each that I find entirely compelling and significantly more entertaining than anything else I have ever watched.
The first season always gets cited as one of the weakest, alongside season five. My argument for the first season is that it was a freshman series and was still figuring out how to identify itself in a crowded market. As for the fifth season, even though the main storyline failed on some level, the season was written in such a way that it laid out the groundwork for the masterpiece of a final season that was its sixth.
“Justified” has always shown its weight in the form of the slow burn; stories that have a long build and then erupt in the last few installments. In the way the final season brings the core story elements back to its roots from the first season, the series can be seen as one long slow burn storyline that soars to “Breaking Bad” heights in its victory lap.
The way Yost and his team of writers tackled the endgame for the series is worthy of innate and endless praise. The writing team had a vision for how they wanted the show to end, and it was all built on a saying they abided by: “What Would Elmore Do?”
As the series approached its conclusion, it stayed true to itself and that is something that “Justified” always had an easy time doing. “Justified” always knew what it was and what it wanted to be: a damn good story.
The highest praise I could ever give “Justified” is saying that it was uncompromising in its vision and that is what, ultimately, according to television critics, kept it from entering that higher echelon of television.
As Adam Epstein’s article about “Justified,” titled “Justified: A Neglected Rebel Amid Television’s Golden Age,” further explains, “[Justified] might not be one of the pillars of TV’s Golden Age… it too has been great – at times, even transcendent.”
Brian Lowry, of Variety, expressed his thoughts about the critical attention surrounding the series in his final critique of the finale by writing, “That sense of effortlessness, frankly, might explain why Justified was sometimes forgotten in the discussion of great dramas.”
Noel Murray from The AV Club wrote a reflection piece on the series and writes that: “The question, now that Justified is ending, is whether its approach to the crime series will spawn imitators, or if it’s destined to be fondly remembered but non-influential.” Furthermore, Murray says that, “It’s hard to copy Justified though, because the show is so unassuming.”
“Justified” has always been critically lauded– across the board– but always for its entertainment value above the rest, except for its universally-applauded dialogue. Mike Hale from The New York Times writes in his review of the finale: “Justified wasn’t groundbreaking, but it was deeply satisfying.”
Now that we all have a better working knowledge of the show and how it has been critically received, I can write about how this finale and my approach to watching the series has added to my overall experience with it.
As I wrote for The Chronicle weeks ago, “Is it unorthodox for me to binge watch “Breaking Bad” over the course of a few days or is it odd for me to want to enjoy “Justified” in solitude until the finale airs on April 14?”
Having now been through an entire series through binge and another series throughout its original run, I firmly believe that the love viewers maintain for their favorite television series can indeed be altered by the way in which they experience them. I know that was the case for me.
As much as I truly enjoyed and admired the enigma of the series that was Vince Gilligan’s “Breaking Bad,” the way in which I watched it left an insane amount of decompression and digestion to be desired, whereas I’ve had five full years to take in “Justified.”
In a way, “Justified” feels like an old friend; someone who has kept me company on rainy days and who has stopped in to check on me from time to time throughout the years. As I’ve watched these characters grow and experience things, so have I. Walter White’s journey happened in the span of five days for me. Raylan Givens’ story unfolded in front of my eyes for five consecutive years.
Even if “Breaking Bad” will be remembered as the television series of a generation and is remembered by a whole generation of television watchers, “Justified” will always hold a special place in this viewer’s heart. In the end, it stayed true to itself and it stayed true to me.
I’ve always been told that you do good by the people who do good by you. To the other two million people who stayed up last night to watch the finale with me, it has been one hell of a ride. We stuck with Raylan Givens and Boyd Crowder until the end and in turn, they did the same.

RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular

Recent Comments