Justified

5 seasons, from 2010 to 2015

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I absolutely loved this.

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The writing, the casting, the Kentucky accents, the characters, the situations the characters find themselves in, the locations, the costume design, heck, even the intro song is great. It’s been years since I’ve seen a TV series so good that I would watch it again.

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Normally the way TV series are written, there is a problem that is solved within each episode of the season and sometimes there is a problem that is solved at the send of the season. This series does that too but it goes even further to create (as not all TV shows in the 2010s did) situations that are resolved at the end of the 5 seasons. Never in this series did any situation on any of those three levels get solved in a simplistic way or in a way that I could predict.

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The writing is really exceptional. The dialog is wonderful, the way many of the characters speak made a strong impression on me, and I enjoyed the peek we’re given into the way the U.S. Marshal Service works within themselves and with other law enforcement agencies. They really do seem to be cowboy bounty hunters on federal payroll.

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There are several stand-out characters created in this show, but Timothy Olyphant, the star, shines brightest. His character, U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens, has the right amount of swagger, humility, knowledge and sexiness to perfectly offset the guy who plays his antagonist, an intense and surprisingly eloquent character named Boyd Crowder, played by Walter Goggins. They have fantastic chemistry that finally gets proper recognition in the final scene of the final episode. The long quiet look they exchange says so much.

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Another thing I like about this series is that each character gets an arc that feels honest. We don’t see things happening or people changing just because. Every sharp turn and unexpected event feels grounded and believable.

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I highly recommend this. It’s exceptional television.

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