Justified (TV Series) The Lord of War and Thunder (2010) User Reviews

All in the family

[Mr-Fusion · 8/10 · 22 November 2016]

The crime-of-the-week formula is put on the back burner for the first real character episode in the show's run. It's here that we finally meet Arlo Givens, who, despite his outward appearances of being an old codger, is just a conniving thug; and the root case of Raylsn's disdain for his upbringing. Olyphant does a tremendous job with this, a seething barely masked by his usual charm. With just a few dialogue passages, we know why he was so quick to split town as a boy, and why he still wants to now.

One line that perfectly encapsulates the father-son relationship:

"I got you out of jail. At the *very* least, I'll get you back in."

Olyphant delivers it perfectly.

This is a great episode because it really puts the Marshal under the microscope and starts to really develop the characters in Harlan. It's just fascinating to watch.

8/10

The beginning of the greatness...

[amsterdam-92719 · 8/10 · 20 February 2022]

Most of the previous episodes have been pretty formulaic in the 'police procedural' mold. While not bad, these are simply not in the same league as the 'home' shows dealing with Harlan County and it denizens. Childhood friends and family of Raylan are developed in a very realistic way around him while he keeps his smart-ass attitude and good looks unruffled. And then his mask slips for a second or two, revealing that extra dimension that shows him to be human, and not just another character.

The pilot introduced us to Boyd Crowder and left viewers with little but revulsion for a violent, ignorant lying hillbilly. Having watched this series before, I can say that it doesn't take long for him to be turned into a likable antagonist. We know he isn't going to straighten out. We know he isn't going to repent of his earthly sins and perform contrition. But he does become a likable, conniving, charismatic rogue - albeit one surrounded by abject idiots (ahem, Dewey Crow) as henchmen!

We all know he is going down, but many of us root for him to get just one of his schemes to work before it happens!

This episode introduces Arlo (Raylan's father) and his aunt/stepmother Hellen. Of the two Arlo is the more important to the plotline, though Hellen is shown to be a (if not THE) reason Raylan isn't Arlo version 2.0.

Arlo is a lifelong criminal - though looking at his home, truck and material possessions not a very successful career. Dope, bootlegging, thuggery, grifting, outright theft - nothing is really off-limits for him. Violent and short-sighted, one can imagine why there is little that is shown to be his rewards for decades of crime.

But when not around his son, he is shown to be a fun-loving, funny man's man. Guys like him, and you can imagine that in his salad days having women falling for him too - though maybe not quite the sort that you'd bring home to meet mom!

He is a real character. A great drinking buddy, a good friend yet still a horrible husband and father. There aren't many saints or devils walking the earth, but there are millions and millions of deeply flawed 'good old boys' (of every ethnicity), and this show has real knack for creating and then expanding on these 'bad, but not quite evil' men.

Justified develops these characters as well as any show or movie I can think of. Arlo and Boyd are simply the top of the heap for this show in that respect.

Justified--The Lord of War and Thunder

[Scarecrow-88 · 9/10 · 2 June 2013]

"Just be careful…12 gauge has a helluva kick."

This episode allows us to get a real glimpse into the uneasy relationship between Raylan and his long-time criminal father, Arlo (Raymond J Barry; this is perhaps the role of his career). Arlo's wife, Helen (the sister of his deceased first wife and Raylan's mother), rents a house to a supposed small businessman named Stan Perkins (Eddie Jemison). Stan is actually dealing Oxy with a lot of stash missing; presumably Arlo or Helen (or both) took most of it, leaving a small portion to implicate Perkins and not them. Raylan is respectful of Helen (Linda Gehringer) for what she did for him as a child when Arlo would become impossibly hostile a father, providing him a refuge in the very house Stan now rents, knowing about the hidden compartment in the wall of a certain closet. Stan and Helen have a rather heated confrontation not long after Arlo kneed him in the testicles the night the old coot trashed the rental property (Arlo claiming three months rent Stan hadn't paid). Stan's cousins rough up Helen when she pulls a knife on him! Arlo then retaliates on Stan's cousins in a diner with a bat! It seems Arlo had a heart attack, but Raylan could very well uncover a scheme by his father involving the batch of Oxy that had been thieved from the hidden wall compartment. Meanwhile, in a subplot, the US Marshall Office is staking out the home of a fugitive's wife, with Raylan and Rachel believing he's hiding out in her home. With several days of surveillance under their belt and no visible sign of his presence, Art is getting restless, so Raylan decides to impersonate a gardener so he can perhaps earn the trust of the fugitive's wife and get a peek in her house. Raylan not only succeeds in the role of gardener, but he fingers his father for the Oxy theft, knowing the proceeds of the "hillbilly heroin" is buried somewhere. The tensions between father and son will be inflamed thanks to Arlo's criminal behavior (he even challenges Raylan to find his drug money and implicate him), with Helen trying to build a bridge that may forever be toppled by the long-term discord and opposing sides of the law they both have. This episode really is a step forward in developing characters over the series; Boyd will be getting out of prison soon, Winona emerges working for an attorney in the divorce proceedings of Ava and Boyd (excusing herself because she was once associated with Raylan), and Raylan has a conversation with Boyd's relative, Johnny (David Meunier) with baseball used to get inside info on Stan. Johnny would be another character of considerable importance in stories involving Lexington and surrounding territories as the series progresses. Raylan and Ava have a steamy encounter in a cheap hotel after a conversation regarding their relationship (will it just be sexual or is there about to be a genuine romance and something of more value down the line? Obviously answered down the road when the two go their separate ways, at this point Ava and Raylan were hotly involved). Natalie Zea looks might appetizing in her tight-fitting court suit, as Winona, immediately telling us that there's just one of many reasons Raylan was hung up on her. Barry is quite an actor; in turns suspicious, explosively temperamental, manipulative, derisive, charming, and even likable, this is the kind of complex role an actor of a certain caliber can chew the fat of.

Dig it!

[bobscla · 10/10 · 25 April 2010]

OK. I don't usually post reviews. I was very psyched about this series as it was advertised like crazy all over Los Angeles. It seemed like everywhere I turned there was a billboard or bus with ads for this series. I watched the opening episode and was impressed. I was looking forward to adding another solid episode to my line up. I have to admit that the subsequent episodes did not impress me as much as the first one. They were OK but they didn't draw me in. I have to admit that I missed one or two shows. I actually just happened to catch the Lord of War and Thunder. I wasn't planning to watch it. I am very happy to report that it did not disappoint. In fact, it has drawn me back into the series. I know have this show set to record on my DVR. Keep up the good work!