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We're at the point in the season where we've got about five thousand different agendas flying around, and I love every one of them. First off, Colton uses his old military police ID to get a look at the gas station's security camera footage and sees a sheriff's vehicle on the scene at the time Ellen May vanished. Hoping to find her and get the job done, he lies to Boyd that everything happened as planned. Later desperate, he heads over to Shelby's and tells him not to say anything to Boyd -- but when he leaves, we learn that it was actually Shelby who took Ellen May, as he wants to know from Ellen May what information she has that could damage Boyd. Shelby, I am impressed.
The corrupt FBI guy's suicide has given Art and his crew the opening they need to take the Drew Thompson case back from the Feds, and Agent Barkley shows up to let us know he's not thrilled about that. The result of this development, though, is that a manacled Arlo is brought into the Marshal's office, and Raylan soon learns that U.S. Attorney Vasquez has offered Arlo his freedom in exchange for Drew Thompson, as Thompson could give them a shot at Theo Tonin, who you'll remember is the Detroit crime boss from last season. Raylan, as you might imagine, is not thrilled at the prospect of Arlo walking, so he takes the 24 hours he has before Vasquez gets an official green light for the deal and tries to find Thompson himself.
A lackey of the Tonin family, "Nick Augustine," played by Mike O'Malley, shows up in Harlan, and as it happens, he's an old buddy of Barkley's, and Barkley has been protecting him for years. All this comes out in front of an hilariously uncomfortable Wynn Duffy, who listens as Nick first chastises Barkley for missing the boat with Thompson and then tells him that Theo wants him alive, possibly because 30 years ago, Thompson shot Theo in the eye, stole $2 million in cocaine from him, and left him for dead on a runway in Panama. Having figured that Barkley isn't up to the task of making this happen, Theo sent Nick to contract the job out to Wynn, and the deal is sealed when Nick puts a bullet in his old chum Barkley's skull. Which makes me wonder: On exactly how many different TV shows has Stephen Tobolowsky met his death?
Wynn comes to Boyd for help in tracking down Thompson, which sends Johnny to Ava trying to sow a seed or two of discord. Meanwhile, Raylan gets Constable Bob to track down that girl Roz he stabbed in the foot in the season premiere. Having realized that Arlo didn't hire her, he asks who did, and the answer is her stepfather, a "Josiah Cairn," already known to Raylan as a scumbag from his coal mining days. Raylan uses some vehicular persuasion to get the truth out of the old man -- while Waldo Truth was plummeting to his death pretending to be Thompson, the real McCoy also had a landing mishap that left him with two busted legs. He got word to Arlo and Boyd's dad, who struck a deal with him: they'd send him to the hill people to get healed up and to have a place to hide out in exchange for the stolen cocaine. Trouble is, according to Cairn, Thompson's legs never really healed, so without any mobility, he was forced to stay among the hill people all this time. Raylan leaves Tim as a sentry but heads into the hills alone and on foot, and despite his declaration of peaceful intentions, he summarily gets taken away and shoved into a cage -- where he finds Boyd. Hee.
Although it looks at one point like they might escape, thanks to a double-cross from Josiah, they're sentenced to death -- until the woman Raylan came to see, an old friend of his mother's played by General Beckman from Chuck, intervenes. Raylan in turn talks them out of killing Boyd, and then the woman Mary lets them know that Josiah lied -- Thompson isn't there anymore, but she did catch sight of him ten years earlier, and he's in Harlan. To wrap things up, Boyd extracts a promise from Wynn that he'll get half the heroin business in Kentucky if he brings him Thompson, and he's feeling pretty good after he pays Arlo's lawyer to quash the deal -- not knowing that Wynn is on board with Johnny's plan to kill Boyd as soon as his Thompson errand is finished. Meanwhile, Raylan goes to have another chat with Josiah about his mendacious ways, only to find that he's severed his own foot to get his location monitor off. Man, is this the season of people losing their mobility or what?
Want more? The full recap starts right below!We pick up right where we left off, as Colton goes to see the gas station attendant, a young, nervous Ed Norton-looking type. Colton tells the kid about the disappearance of the "young lady" with him and asks to look at the security tapes, but the kid tells him he's not allowed to let anyone back there -- no exceptions. Sensing what Colton's about, the kid then reaches down for a gun lying in a drawer in the desk in front of him, but Colton easily tells him to stop his movement. Despite the pants-shitting expression on his face, though, the kid denies that request. So after a long moment, Colton tells him he wants to show him something and goes for his pocket. You'd think this would result in one or both of them getting shot -- I've seen the scene already and I'm still clenching in anticipation -- but Colton merely produces his old military-police ID and tells the kid the girl he's after is AWOL. I think the kid relaxes at that, but I couldn't tell you for sure because I was laughing too hard at the image of Ellen May being in the military. It'd be worse than a remake of Private Benjamin. And, of course, the story doesn't hold up under strict scrutiny, as you'd expect if it were true, Colton would have taken steps to make sure his prisoner wouldn't escape. Regardless, Colton asks if the kid can help him out and I'm still thinking that he might take a bullet as soon as his hand is a safe distance away from the gun...
...but no, we merely cut to Colton checking out the security tape as the kid keeps an eye on him. After Colton watches himself leave the scene, he sees Ellen May seem to see someone and wander off, but she leaves frame without any conclusive evidence and the kid tells Colton that the footage is from their only working camera. However, Colton then sees the top of a cop car enter the picture going in Ellen May's direction and he grimaces at how much more complicated the situation may just have become.
Raylan is at the Women's Health Clinic of Lexington and regardless of whatever emotionally demanding errands people normally go there, it must be pretty slow if he's being allowed to sit by himself. That becomes irrelevant, though, when we see Winona get out of her car in the parking lot and from what I hear about The Following, it wouldn't surprise me if we get Natalie Zea back in a rather larger capacity soon. For now though, Winona is delighted to see Raylan and when he tells her that he's been there for fifteen minutes, she points out that he missed her last two appointments. After he realizes he's screwed up a nice gesture by bringing her caffeinated coffee, they engage in a little small talk with Winona saying that she's picked up a little freelance deposition work now that her morning sickness has passed and Raylan telling her he's been making extra money doing side jobs. Winona pegs him for going behind Art's back and I'm hoping Raylan at least got some money for the chickens, but it's not like Art would approve of that either. Raylan uses the mention of Art to say that he's just put Raylan in charge of the biggest case in their office's history and Winona is impressed even though he can't divulge particulars. Just as well; she may claim no longer to be particularly susceptible to nausea, but why test her with tales of twisted parachutist corpses? Winona then says the baby's kicking and guides Raylan's hand to the right spot and mother and father share a nice moment as they remember what things used to be like between them. Raylan tells Winona that he's going to be there for her and the baby and she says that's great, confessing that when he didn't respond to her text about the time of the appointment changing, she thought he wasn't going to show. But as it happens, Raylan didn't in fact get the text, which means that as far as he knew, he showed up about half an hour late. Now that he's looked at his phone, he sees that he needs to call in and the remainder of Winona's temporary optimism drains away as she guesses he's not even staying for the appointment. But on the other end, we see that Rachel has a good reason for telling Raylan to get his ass over there -- Arlo is being led in, still in his prison uniform and shackles. I'm guessing this isn't some kind of prison family-therapy program, but we'll have to wait until after the opening credits to see.
When we return, several underlings are wheeling boxes of files in off the elevator as Agent Barkley (Stephen Tobolowsky) agitatedly rushes up to our favorite US Attorney - Vasquez -- and demands to know why he's commandeered his case files. Art answers for Vasquez in saying that his office petitioned the DoJ to take the case over from the Feds, and Vasquez adds that the reason might possibly have been the fact of that Agent Barnes who blew his brains out two weeks ago working for the Detroit outfit. Barkley tries to say they had opened an investigation into Barnes, but Vasquez informs him that the suicide taints the case and the decision has been made. As we continue to hear the argument in the background, we check in with Arlo, who observes to his middle-aged lawyer that they've got everyone "spun up." She notes that they want to solve the case rather badly and I should note that the actress, Romy Rosemont, played Finn's mom Carole on Glee, which is hilarious for reasons that I will get to in a bit. She goes on, though, that if Arlo were to become incapacitated, the deal on the table might be nullified so it'd be in Arlo's best interests to share "the name" with her. We don't yet know to what she's referring, but it's still no surprise that Arlo snaps up with a look I'd loosely interpret as "Haaaaaail, no." Meanwhile, Barkley -- getting nothing more for his arguments than Art's trademark brand of relaxed condescension -- stomps off in a huff, only to run into Raylan and accuse him of being behind "all this." Raylan, in no mood after having disappointed the mother of his child for the bazillionth time, asks what the hell Barkley is on about, so Barkley clarifies that he thinks what's going on is payback for the time he came after Raylan. "And I still think you're dirty." It's too bad that events won't allow Raylan to learn that an "It takes one to know one" sentiment would be appropriate here, but his blunt response of "Kiss my ass" at least has a documentary feel to it. Hilariously, Rachel calls Barkley back to give him a receipt for his files...
...while Raylan saunters over to Art and asks what the hell is up with Arlo. Given what a quick draw Raylan is, I'm surprised they don't disarm him so he doesn't shoot the messenger, but Art steps up and tells Raylan that Vasquez is going to make a deal with Arlo, and Vasquez clarifies that Arlo is going to hand over Drew Thompson -- and in return, they're going to let him walk. Given the fact that Arlo killed a cop who he thought was Raylan, this news obviously slaps Raylan hard in the face so Art says into the awkward silence that Drew Thompson's testimony could nab them Theo Tonin and Vasquez adds, "And if we got a shot at Theo Tonin, we gotta take it, right?" Raylan's dark answering glower suggests that there is no "we" here and his mood certainly isn't improved by the smug look Arlo throws in his direction. Raylan then takes a deep breath and it may not be the right time, but I'm impressed that his face remains so attractive when emotions are pulling it in several different directions simultaneously. Raylan finally chokes out that the whole thing makes sense -- it's "upsetting" sure, but it makes sense! Vasquez points out that Barnes may not have been the only bad apple in the FBI's orchard, so they really do need to get to Thompson before Detroit does, but Raylan then asks how much time he has. Vasquez doesn't catch his drift, so Raylan spells it out -- he's going to look for Thompson himself, so how much time does he have before the deal is official? Vasquez tells him it'll probably be twenty-four hours before the written approval comes from Washington, which sends Raylan out the door toward Harlan.
In his own trailer, Wynn Duf
fy is getting frisked by a large security type, who then asks if he has any cats. Wynn counts out a delicious pause before asking, "Do you see any cats?" I mean, I do think it's possible -- even in this small space -- that there could be a concealed cat, but that doesn't mean there are many things for which I'd trade this line delivery. The guy calls outside that it's clear and then a man enters whom Wynn addresses as "Mr. Tonin." Although he thinks this is Theo Tonin, we know better as does Barclay, who just happens to be present for the meeting and warmly greets "Nick Augustine." This is the moment I was referring to in two separate places in the description of the last scene; one, it shows us that 1) Barclay is dirty, and 2) Nick is played by Mike O'Malley, who played (plays?) Kurt Hummel's dad Burt on Glee, the guy who married Finn's mom on the show and, as such, proves that the casting people have a sense of humor. Wynn looks a bit put off by Nick and Barclay's familiarity and gets more so when Augustine casually tells him that his muscle will have to wait outside, but he complies, whereupon Nick tells Wynn that he and Barclay grew up together in the projects. In tandem, they tell a war story about Barclay saving Nick from an arrest and I swear I felt this on first viewing, but I'm getting that sense of dread I had in the first scene, which is only magnified when Nick goes on that although Barclay's bailed him out many times, he wonders how he could have missed Thompson still being alive. Barclay tells him that got by everyone, but wonders if Theo is upset and Nick responds, "Theo's talking to The Ear. You tell me." I don't know who or what that is, but my sense is that people and organizations named after body parts are not the sort you generally want in your life. Barclay says he doesn't think the investigation is going to lead to Thompson, but Nick wants to know that Barclay has it handled if it does and Barclay assures him he does -- he'll be the first one on the scene and will claim he reached for a weapon... and boom.
Nick, however, informs Barclay that Theo wants Thompson alive and Barclay drops the ingratiating smile for a second as he says that's not how it works. Nick asks how, then, it does work with a chuckle that's about as terrifying as the scarier parts of It, but when Barclay says he won't have access to Thompson once he's in custody, Nick lets us know why Theo is after him so bad -- Thompson shot Theo on a runway in Panama, left him for dead and stole $2 million in cocaine from him, which "put [him] in a jam with some very nasty people." Probably with names like "The Face" and "The Kneecap." Wynn pipes up that he might be able to help, given his knowledge of Arlo and the Crowders and Nick starts to say that's exactly why he's there, but Barclay objects. On most shows, failure to read a room wouldn't literally be fatal, but Barclay's been on this one long enough to know better. For, you see, Barclay says that while he's got it covered, it'll cost a quarter of a million dollars, prompting Nick to ask if he's just planning to take off with the money. Barclay's like -- who me? That's ridiculous! -- but Nick tells him he hears the Feds don't even have the case anymore. And given that he was sitting on that knowledge this whole scene, I wouldn't want to play poker with Nick beyond the obvious reasons. Barclay wonders where he heard that, but Nick asks, "Do you really think that you're the only guy Theo's got left in the FBI?" And with that, he pulls his gun and blows his lifelong friend's brains out, which I guess spares Barclay the trouble of figuring out whether that question as rhetorical. Also, you gotta give Wynn Duffy -- sitting right to Barclay on the couch -- credit for not even blinking as a fine spray of blood appears on his forehead. Of course, he pretty much pulled the exact same move three episodes ago, so professional pride kind of dictates that he not flinch here. Nick turns to Wynn and continues that Theo would like him to find Drew Thompson and Wynn's answer is among the acceptable: "It's not a problem."
Colton turns up to Shelby's office and asks about Ellen May, saying that one of the deputies picked her up, but after Shelby checks the blotter (with Colton uninvitingly leaning over his shoulder), he tells him there's nothing about it. Colton, freaking out a bit (and it's fitting that this show is punishing him so severely for a momentary crisis of conscience), tells Shelby he's sure that she was picked up at the Reliable gas station, but after declining a call from Boyd, he tells Shelby he just wanted to give him the heads-up that he's out looking for her. Shelby asks if he should calls him at the bar if he finds anything out, but Colton's like, maybe we'll keep this need-to-know for both our sakes? He tells Shelby he'll call him...
...and then we move to happier people, as Boyd is triumphantly telling Johnny that they have a visitor from Frankfort coming in a few minutes. After establishing that it's Wynn, Johnny wonders if maybe he's coming on a nefarious errand, but Boyd merely tells him to keep his sawed-off shotgun within reach. He adds, "You got my back, Cousin Johnny," and Johnny manages to make his reply of "Always" sound like "Stop being such a smug fucker" instead of "I am going to kill you so dead, and I am not joking." Boyd then heads to the door to greet Wynn -- only to find Colton, which wipes the smile off his face quick enough. He sits him down and asks where the hell he's been and Colton feeds him a cock-and-bull story about how he had to sleep, as he thinks he's catching something. Boyd is like, maybe you haven't heard, but part of the protocol of contract killing is a timely subsequent report? He presses Colton for details about the crime and Colton has obviously prepared them in advance, but Boyd then throws him a curveball by asking what Ellen May's last words were. Colton: "'I'm cold.'" That's a pretty good pull, Colton. I can even hear her saying that. Just then, there's another knock at the door, so Boyd wraps it up with Colton: "time I reach out to you, I don't care if it's a smiley face -- you text me back." I don't know, Boyd, there's a lot of variety in emoticons these days. Surely "we pulled off the murder" requires something with a bit more nuance. Boyd goes to the door and as Johnny puts the shotgun on the bar, I'm amused by the "pay in cash or get served buckshot" sign on the register. Boyd welcomes "Mr. Duffy," and offers him a drink, but while Wynn thinks that's a good idea, he tells Boyd they need to talk first. Boyd's festive façade cracks slightly, but he leads Wynn into the back...
...where they sit, but not before Boyd draws his gun and lays it on the table. Wynn mildly says he thought they were building a basis of trust, but it's hard to argue with Boyd's reply: "Mr. Duffy, we are not trustworthy men." Heh. Wynn says they can still build a better future together. "Remember Glasnost?" Ha! Not that that's the most obscure term by a long shot, but one of the most enjoyable things about this show is the lowlifes' command of a wide array of intelligent references. Not to be outdone, Boyd points out that Perestroika went hand in hand with it, making the point that a power restructuring would be appropriate and Wynn responds by silently pulling out a stack of bills from his inside pocket and sliding it across the table. Boyd asks "what precipitated the change in your weathervane," and Wynn's response is that he needs Boyd to help him find someone. Not sure exactly what Wynn's going to add to the effort, but I'm sure Boyd doing all the work will merely affect the price and not the fact of the agreement.
Oh, look who it is -- Roz, the girl who was so free with her late bloomers in the season premiere. She's sitting in Constable Bob's car and when Raylan arrives on the scene, Bob tells him that she tried to run, but she didn't get far with the boot on her foot. Raylan: "Well, lucky you stabbed her last time, then. Thinking ahead." Hee. Bob then drops his voice to tell Raylan
that when he caught Roz, she offered to give him a blowjob and Raylan smiles and turns away, only to swivel back and ask if he took her up on it. Bob's aghast, probably not least because of the hardware in her mouth and then Raylan greets Roz and asks how the foot is. Unamused, she tells him it hurts and adds that she just got her braces tightened and so her teeth hurt, too. Raylan: "Well, neither one of us is gonna ask you to use it much." Saving me the trouble and grossing Bob out for good measure? Love you, Raylan -- I don't care what Winona says. He asks Roz who told her where to find the bag and when she unconvincingly says it was Arlo, he counters that she doesn't know him nor the other way around. Roz tries to tell them if she reveals who it was, the guy will kick her ass, but Raylan, shockingly, is unsympathetic, so she gives up the name "Josiah." Bob recognizes him as her stepfather, adding that she and her boyfriend also strip metal for him and when Raylan asks if Josiah is home there now, Roz scoffs that she'll guarantee it, which is another one of those comments that will become clear in the fullness of time. Also, when Raylan hears that Josiah's surname is "Cairn," he laughs and says he knows him. "And yeah, he might kick your ass." He tells them to stay put until he gets back and to keep their clothes on and Roz grimaces from the mouth pain, which I have to admit I didn't need to see.
Here's the presumed Cairn, sitting out in front of his house with a dog to keep him company when Raylan drives up. Cairn asks who he is and I should mention that he is most awesomely being played by Gerald McRaney, who's got credits going back to when I was a toddler, but is best known for title roles in Simon & Simon and Major Dad, and was also recurring on Deadwood (George Hearst), which makes this another reunion on more than one level. Raylan's like, oh, come on, don't you remember that scam you tried to pull after the mine explosion in '85, taking money from the widows in an ostensible effort to prove it was the mine's fault and then taking money from the mine to cover it up? I'll admit that sounds complicated enough that he probably hasn't forgotten it. Cairn pegs Raylan as Arlo's boy and Raylan's like, yeah, you already knew that and why I'm here, so how about taking your hands out of your pockets? Cairn complies, but claims not to know what Raylan's talking about, adding that he's retired because the young people drove him out. "No values no more." Heh. Raylan notes that Cairn is wearing an ankle monitor, so maybe the people that put it on him are the valueless whippersnappers to whom he was referring and Cairn tells him he can check the records -- he hasn't left his property in months. Cairn denies knowledge of the bag and the kids and whatever else, but Raylan tells him he doesn't have time for this. "How about you and me go for a drive?" You get the feeling it's not going to be as romantic as it sounds...
...but it's still hilariously unexpected (well, aside from the fact that it was in the previews) when we cut to Cairn running alongside Raylan's car, handcuffed to something inside. Cairn complains that what Raylan's doing is illegal, but Raylan points out that impeding a Federal investigation is likewise a crime, so either Cairn tells him something worth hearing or they're crossing his tether line. Cairn gives in and tells Raylan that Thompson is with the hill people and I like the idea of "hill people" even a bit less than "people named after body parts," so I'm hoping Raylan's correct when he calls bullshit on this, especially since he's started driving again. Cairn, however, goes on that Waldo Truth wasn't the only one to land badly from that plane (from which Thompson threw him, according to Cairn) -- when Thompson jumped, he busted up both his legs. He got word to Bo Crowder and Arlo and they made a deal -- they'd get him a place at which to get fixed up in return for the cocaine. Raylan's still skeptical, but Cairn tells him there weren't many places they could take Thompson without him being discovered, but the thing is, his legs never healed properly and without mobility he's been stuck there all this time. Raylan finally believes, at least enough to check it out. He does warn Cairn as he unlocks the cuffs that if he comes back without Thompson, Cairn will be his first stop. Cairn, however, is too busy falling to the ground from exhaustion to register that. For now.
Back down the road, Raylan tells Roz she can go as he collects those keepsakes he asked Bob to retrieve for him in the premiere. Bob then tells tales of the hill people being cannibals and offers his go-bag, but all Raylan thinks he needs is one old photo. He takes off with Bob telling him it's been nice knowing him...
...and then he's driving up the hill. Later, he's waiting at a rendezvous when who should show up but Tim, who has been far too scarce this season for my tastes. Raylan thanks him for coming and Tim tells him it's his last chance to change his mind. "I'm wearin' my walkin' shoes." Heh. Raylan, however, tells him that "these people" don't take kindly to strangers, as if Raylan isn't far too good-looking for the hill people to recognize him even as the same species, so Tim sighs that he should have brought his book. Raylan asks if that's the one with monsters and magic wands, but Tim is like, um, no: "It's a Native American princess who controls invisible forest animals." Could you be more specific, Tim? Raylan asks if he's not too old for those, but Tim sighs that he was probably too young to blow the heads off the Taliban, so who knows anything about anything? Well, at least he cannot-quite-laugh about it. Raylan says that if he's not back by nightfall, Tim should call in someone with some authority...
...while Ava is packing up some of Ellen May's stuff when some hooker -- followed by Johnny -- comes in. There's not that much to this scene, so I'll keep it short: After Ava explains she's keeping up appearances for the people who don't know she ordered Ellen May's death, Johnny complains about Boyd working with Wynn and wonders if it's not going to stir up dissent in their ranks. He clearly wants to try to turn Ava against Boyd and it just as clearly seems like it's not happening, but it also won't be addressed again in this episode, so let's just move on, shall we?
Raylan makes his way through the woods and eventually, as surely he expected, he hears some coded whistles and calls that let him know he's not alone. He at least is smart enough to stop and hold his hands up in front of him before several armed hill people emerge from behind the trees, but he announces his peaceful intentions delivering his words carefully enough to indicate he thinks it's a password expression. The thing we know, he's got a burlap sack over his head and is being led to a cabin and I realize the rule of law may not apply up here, but covering up Raylan's face seems like a universal human-rights violation. Raylan's captors toss him into a large metal box, whereupon he takes off his mask just as he hears a familiar sardonic voice greet him by name. He turns to see Boyd, and damn if this isn't a clever way to get these two together for the first time in what seems like an awfully long while.
Back from the break, Boyd diffidently wonders if Raylan might have been to see Cairn recently and Raylan spits that Cairn's an asshole. They compare notes on what Cairn told them and find them very similar, but Boyd remarks that while he's not super-shocked Cairn might betray Raylan, being who he is, he's surprised Cairn did the same to him. After snarking on Boyd for that idea, Raylan notes that Arlo took the fall for Boyd, yet Boyd is out trying to screw up his deal and Boyd's defense that he's just trying to make a living is rather disappointing; you'd think he'd at least come up with a witty metaphor to mitigate his greed. Raylan wonders if he's not just a Dixie Mafia puppet, but while Boyd is not unoffended by the suggestion, he does point out that they've got more pressing concerns...
...w
hile down the mountain, Colton arrives on the scene. Tim has his gun ready, but when Colton steps out of his car, Tim compliments his boots and asks where he served. Colton grins at the potential for camaraderie...
...while back in the cell, two people who like each other rather less are trying to work together, as Raylan calls to their captors that he has a photograph that might fix the situation and that makes me hope that Tim's speculation about Raylan doing exotic dancing might actually have been the case. One of the chromosomally-challenged captors tells him he has to wait for "Cope," but Raylan continues that the picture is of his mother with one of the hill people, a "Cousin Mary." The name seems to register with the idiots, but they still are unmoved and when Raylan keeps talking, they fire a shot through the door, open it, and then drag Boyd out by the leg as he shouts that he doesn't much like Raylan's plan. Heh. Raylan starts to work his hands free as the two morons stare beating on Boyd, but the less challenged one gets cocky in taking a big swing at Boyd with the butt of his rifle, and Boyd takes advantage of the opening by kicking his legs out from under him and getting him in a headlock from behind as the dumber of the two captors (whose physique makes me think Bob might not have been wrong about his diet) yells bloody murder. Raylan gets his hands free, extricates himself from the box and disarms the moron, but just then, three men who seem to mean a lot more business, the leader of whom is the aforementioned Cope, enter and train their weapons on our boys. Raylan and Boyd try to explain that they're looking for Thompson, but Cope says that's not what Cairn told him when he called. After a bit more talk, Cope has Daniel the dumber moron cover his ears and sing some hymn, whereupon Cope tells our boys that a rock fell on Daniel when he was a kid, and although he still loves him, he'd never give him a working weapon. Since Raylan is holding Daniel's gun, this is not great news for him or Boyd and the latter collapses in frustration. You have to concede the day has kind of gone south for him.
Outside, things are looking grim, but Raylan's story about Mary comes out, so Cope asks him some questions to see if he can prove his claim of kinship. Unfortunately, Raylan doesn't know any of the answers, which makes me think he should have spent have an hour on ancestry.com before heading up the hill. Cope therefore decrees that he and Boyd will be dropped down a mine shaft to their death. Well, I'm sure they'll both appreciate the irony, even if they're not amused by it. As they walk, Boyd tries to babble his way out of trouble, but it's Daniel -- of all people -- who looked as thoughtful as he gets when Raylan was claiming kinship, who comes to their rescue, as he appears with Mary, who as I mentioned in the recap is played by Bonita Friedericy, General Beckman on Chuck. Daniel passed along the picture and Mary confirms that she sees Raylan's mother "Frances" in him. She decrees that they won't kill Raylan, "my cousin's boy," but Boyd is fair game; Raylan, however, appeals to Mary and says that as a marshal, he'll be compelled to report any crime that happens up there, and Mary sees the wisdom of letting them both go...
...whereupon we cut to Mary walking with Raylan and Boyd and telling them Thompson isn't there -- the part where he came to them to heal is true, but he left them one day. However, she saw him ten years ago at the Bluegrass Festival rubbing shoulders with the Mayor, the Judge Executive and all "those rich Clover Hill folks." You know, I didn't mention it at the time, but that client Ellen May shot -- the furry -- was the Judge Executive, according to Ava. I wonder if his crazy drugs came from Thompson? Either way, Mary tells Raylan that if he's looking for Thompson, he's on the wrong hill...
...and speaking of hills, we then cut to the boys walking with Mary having left them, and Boyd saying he never knew Raylan had hills in his blood. "I'd whistle the theme song to Deliverance if I thought you had a better sense of humor." Hee. Raylan explains that his mother was never embarrassed by her roots, but Arlo didn't like her talking about it. After a bit more talk about their fathers, Boyd suggests this is the time where they declare that the best man wins and holds out his hand -- whereupon Raylan grabs it and handcuffs his arms around a tree and given what they were talking about, I hope no one's around to tell Boyd he has a purty mouth. Raylan says he does in fact have a sense of humor -- "I know I'm laughin'" -- and takes off. Boyd calls that he doesn't like Raylan and Raylan tells him the feeling is mutual, which I feel like might be poking fun at the TCAs, at which Tim Olyphant has said that Raylan doesn't like Boyd (i.e., all of them).
Colton and Tim are bonding about wartime experiences and drawing comparisons between the places in which they fought and Harlan, and then Colton asks Tim's advice on finding someone who doesn't want to be found. In response, Tim tries to recruit Colton for the Marshal Service, but we don't get to find out how serious he is, as Raylan appears and happily tells him to put on the kibosh Arlo's deal, as they have a line on Thompson and he's in Harlan. He then tells Colton that Boyd is up the trail about a mile or so. "You're gonna need a saw." We don't see Colton's face, but with the day he's had, he can't be thrilled to hear that.
Whether by saw or not, Colton apparently managed to free Boyd with a minimum of fuss, if Boyd's bright mood as he reports to Wynn that he expects to find Thompson within a week is any indication. Wynn compliments the "impressive" work, although I wonder what he'd say if he knew Raylan was starting out from the same place, but Boyd seizes on that word choice as a prelude to asking for half the heroin business in the state of Kentucky. Wynn gives the verbal equivalent of an eyebrow-raise, but does concede that Boyd is tenacious. "I hate that in a person." Hee. Wynn agrees to the terms -- only once the call is done, he tells Johnny -- who just so happens to be with him -- that he can promise Boyd "a rocket ship and a goddamn unicorn" for now, but once Boyd delivers Thompson, Johnny will be free to kill him. Of course, if Johnny's smart, Wynn's casual betrayal of Boyd will make him question whether Wynn will play straight with him, but we may have to go elsewhere for thorough understandings of tangled agendas...
...and look, here we are back with Shelby. He opens up his home front door for Colton, who's now desperate as he obviously knows that the longer Ellen May is on the loose, the greater the chance it's going to get back to Boyd that he failed his mission and then lied about it. Shelby tells Colton that he's checked into it and one of his deputies was indeed there and he saw a girl who fit Ellen May's description get waved over to an eighteen-wheeler; since she seemed to recognize the driver and climbed right in, there was no reason to investigate. Colton gets more and more freaked out and eventually tells Shelby not to "bother" Boyd with any of this before leaving. But now, we learn that Shelby's joined the ranks of those playing a deep game, as when he enters his living room, he asks if Ellen May believes him now and she emerges from under the table. In her line of work, she at least has probably been in that position before. But I have to say, I'm impressed -- Shelby didn't make my list of people who might have picked Ellen May up, even though he was obviously present for the same conversation I thought had tipped Cassie off. I had been misdirected by the fact that Shelby been stuck in Boyd's pocket for so long that it didn't occur to me he'd take the opportunity to stab his way out. Excellent development and a prime example of the way the show manages t
o juggle myriad dark motivations at once without letting them feel completely out of hand. As Ellen May looks really bummed out at the news that Ava and Boyd ordered her death, Shelby says that he indeed figured out from the way Boyd had him pump Cassie for information that Ellen May must have something big on them. Ellen May is still shaken, and quaveringly wonders what Shelby would have done if Colton had come in and seen her, but Shelby assures her he would have shot him. "I won't let anybody hurt you, Ellen May." Even Ellen May doesn't look like she's dumb enough for those words to make her feel completely safe, but Shelby says if she's willing, maybe she can help him bring Boyd down...
...and speaking of Boyd, he's got Arlo's attorney ("Miss Gable") with him and is telling her of his disappointment in the deal. The lawyer expresses confusion, but he clarifies that he expected to hear about it from her, as he's footing Arlo's bill here. The lawyer tells him a little story about a colleague of hers breaking confidentiality in a sting operation, but Boyd turns it around, saying that he's glad to hear her only concern about leaking information to him is getting caught. Well, Boyd sure is pretty good at listening to people's meaning rather than their words. He's going to have to be at his best with it, though, with all the people out there conspiring to take him down in one way or another. He takes out a wad of hundred-dollar bills (nice of Wynn to fund this little operation) and lays out a couple as payment for getting Arlo the deal, only to add several more to the pile: "And that is for shutting that deal down." The lawyer at least keeps her dignity by sitting still for a moment, but eventually, she smiles and collects her winnings. Don't celebrate too much, honey -- if spending time with Arlo is making him appear harmless, you might want to go back and watch the end of the season premiere.
True to his word, Raylan has come back to chat with Cairn about his betrayal -- only to find his ankle monitor lying on the ground. He asks aloud, "How the hell'd you do that?" Raylan, haven't you been on this show long enough to know not to set the Props Department up like that? For, you see, a little investigation turns up Cairn's bloody, severed foot and even Raylan is a little impressed. And this means there's another ruthless man out there with an agenda, although I will concede he probably hasn't gotten far. See you week.
John Ramos is a writer and film producer living in Los Angeles. His new film, a documentary on online privacy and the sale of personal data called Terms And Conditions May Apply, recently premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in January. You can get news on it from the film's Twitter account. Also, you can email John at couchbaron@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/couchbaron, or check out his blog, "Pull Up A Chair," which he'd just love for you to stop by.
Think you've got game? Prove it! Check out Games Without Pity, our new area featuring trivia, puzzle, card, strategy, action and word games -- all free to play and guaranteed to help pass the time until your show starts.
o juggle myriad dark motivations at once without letting them feel completely out of hand. As Ellen May looks really bummed out at the news that Ava and Boyd ordered her death, Shelby says that he indeed figured out from the way Boyd had him pump Cassie for information that Ellen May must have something big on them. Ellen May is still shaken, and quaveringly wonders what Shelby would have done if Colton had come in and seen her, but Shelby assures her he would have shot him. "I won't let anybody hurt you, Ellen May." Even Ellen May doesn't look like she's dumb enough for those words to make her feel completely safe, but Shelby says if she's willing, maybe she can help him bring Boyd down...
...and speaking of Boyd, he's got Arlo's attorney ("Miss Gable") with him and is telling her of his disappointment in the deal. The lawyer expresses confusion, but he clarifies that he expected to hear about it from her, as he's footing Arlo's bill here. The lawyer tells him a little story about a colleague of hers breaking confidentiality in a sting operation, but Boyd turns it around, saying that he's glad to hear her only concern about leaking information to him is getting caught. Well, Boyd sure is pretty good at listening to people's meaning rather than their words. He's going to have to be at his best with it, though, with all the people out there conspiring to take him down in one way or another. He takes out a wad of hundred-dollar bills (nice of Wynn to fund this little operation) and lays out a couple as payment for getting Arlo the deal, only to add several more to the pile: "And that is for shutting that deal down." The lawyer at least keeps her dignity by sitting still for a moment, but eventually, she smiles and collects her winnings. Don't celebrate too much, honey -- if spending time with Arlo is making him appear harmless, you might want to go back and watch the end of the season premiere.
True to his word, Raylan has come back to chat with Cairn about his betrayal -- only to find his ankle monitor lying on the ground. He asks aloud, "How the hell'd you do that?" Raylan, haven't you been on this show long enough to know not to set the Props Department up like that? For, you see, a little investigation turns up Cairn's bloody, severed foot and even Raylan is a little impressed. And this means there's another ruthless man out there with an agenda, although I will concede he probably hasn't gotten far. See you week.
John Ramos is a writer and film producer living in Los Angeles. His new film, a documentary on online privacy and the sale of personal data called Terms And Conditions May Apply, recently premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in January. You can get news on it from the film's Twitter account. Also, you can email John at couchbaron@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/couchbaron, or check out his blog, "Pull Up A Chair," which he'd just love for you to stop by.
Think you've got game? Prove it! Check out Games Without Pity, our new area featuring trivia, puzzle, card, strategy, action and word games -- all free to play and guaranteed to help pass the time until your show starts.
o juggle myriad dark motivations at once without letting them feel completely out of hand. As Ellen May looks really bummed out at the news that Ava and Boyd ordered her death, Shelby says that he indeed figured out from the way Boyd had him pump Cassie for information that Ellen May must have something big on them. Ellen May is still shaken, and quaveringly wonders what Shelby would have done if Colton had come in and seen her, but Shelby assures her he would have shot him. "I won't let anybody hurt you, Ellen May." Even Ellen May doesn't look like she's dumb enough for those words to make her feel completely safe, but Shelby says if she's willing, maybe she can help him bring Boyd down...
...and speaking of Boyd, he's got Arlo's attorney ("Miss Gable") with him and is telling her of his disappointment in the deal. The lawyer expresses confusion, but he clarifies that he expected to hear about it from her, as he's footing Arlo's bill here. The lawyer tells him a little story about a colleague of hers breaking confidentiality in a sting operation, but Boyd turns it around, saying that he's glad to hear her only concern about leaking information to him is getting caught. Well, Boyd sure is pretty good at listening to people's meaning rather than their words. He's going to have to be at his best with it, though, with all the people out there conspiring to take him down in one way or another. He takes out a wad of hundred-dollar bills (nice of Wynn to fund this little operation) and lays out a couple as payment for getting Arlo the deal, only to add several more to the pile: "And that is for shutting that deal down." The lawyer at least keeps her dignity by sitting still for a moment, but eventually, she smiles and collects her winnings. Don't celebrate too much, honey -- if spending time with Arlo is making him appear harmless, you might want to go back and watch the end of the season premiere.
True to his word, Raylan has come back to chat with Cairn about his betrayal -- only to find his ankle monitor lying on the ground. He asks aloud, "How the hell'd you do that?" Raylan, haven't you been on this show long enough to know not to set the Props Department up like that? For, you see, a little investigation turns up Cairn's bloody, severed foot and even Raylan is a little impressed. And this means there's another ruthless man out there with an agenda, although I will concede he probably hasn't gotten far. See you week.
John Ramos is a writer and film producer living in Los Angeles. His new film, a documentary on online privacy and the sale of personal data called Terms And Conditions May Apply, recently premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival in January. You can get news on it from the film's Twitter account. Also, you can email John at couchbaron@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/couchbaron, or check out his blog, "Pull Up A Chair," which he'd just love for you to stop by.
Think you've got game? Prove it! Check out Games Without Pity, our new area featuring trivia, puzzle, card, strategy, action and word games -- all free to play and guaranteed to help pass the time until your show starts.