Like all first episodes we are introduced to the cast and, as is usually the case, their eccentricities. Fargo is all about the unconventional and the bizarre. After a history lesson about gangs of immigrants and ethnic groups inhabiting the same space, where they ritualistically exchange one child each, we finally meet a group of black people who join up with some Italians. The blacks, led by Chris Rock's character, are bankers (possibly loan sharks) who are trying to get their enterprise off the ground. The Italians (ersatz Mafioso) are opportunists, led by an old guy and his son. We are also introduced to a redheaded hospital nurse who is a psychopath. She has that Fargo accent. She's from Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes you know. Things are in motion and I will watch the second episode to get more traction.
97 Reviews
Not amazing but still interesting
landonvb28 September 2020
Solid performances from the entire cast so far have been really intriguing and will keep you watching. A few funny moments here and there and the strange atmosphere is still there like the pervious 3 seasons. Although it does feel slower and some viewers may lose their interest in it, but it's overall a solid episode.
Threads have been pulled to start another spiraling downward turn
ha77y73ad9711 May 2021
Like all other opening episodes it all starts with a murder and as this draws all of the characters in from the innocent by-standers to the guilty parties this can only pull in all of these to one crazy downward spiral.
Compared to the other 3 series this was gripping but not ground breaking in the introduction of these characters. Moving away from Minnesota into Kansas City which was always going to be the case after seasons 2 &3s involvements is going to be great to see how these are built to be where they are in the 70s and 00s.
After 30 minutes of setting up the frame work for the series i would have liked the reveal of Ben Whishaw and Jason Schwartzman character to be drawn out even just a couple of episodes keeps the story moving quickly is the idea! Chris Rock as ever charming and never seeing him in a gangster role before will be interesting to see if this pays off. The only connections to Fargo, Minnesota is the nurse who maybe in it for her own gains or someone looks to take over from the shadows, who knows!?!
Compared to the other 3 series this was gripping but not ground breaking in the introduction of these characters. Moving away from Minnesota into Kansas City which was always going to be the case after seasons 2 &3s involvements is going to be great to see how these are built to be where they are in the 70s and 00s.
After 30 minutes of setting up the frame work for the series i would have liked the reveal of Ben Whishaw and Jason Schwartzman character to be drawn out even just a couple of episodes keeps the story moving quickly is the idea! Chris Rock as ever charming and never seeing him in a gangster role before will be interesting to see if this pays off. The only connections to Fargo, Minnesota is the nurse who maybe in it for her own gains or someone looks to take over from the shadows, who knows!?!
Poorly written. None of the surreal elements nor subtle irony of the first three seasons
random-7077830 September 2020
Wow, welcome to Fargo for the middle-brow audience. What a disappointment so far. This was bound to happen. My guess is this will be the last season of Fargo.
What happened to the subtlety and irony that made this show an intelligent and very entertaining viewing? It is all gone.
Also the historical context is simply wrong on so many levels. Yes there were in the 1910-20s nativist reactions to Italians, but this was very minor compared to late 19th century prejudice against Irish, which was a holdover from British anti Irish attitudes. It is just not credible to see an Italian American turned away from a hospital in the Midwest in 1950's. A country club, maybe, a hospital, no. There are also quite a few other anachronisms.
Also the historical context is simply wrong on so many levels. Yes there were in the 1910-20s nativist reactions to Italians, but this was very minor compared to late 19th century prejudice against Irish, which was a holdover from British anti Irish attitudes. It is just not credible to see an Italian American turned away from a hospital in the Midwest in 1950's. A country club, maybe, a hospital, no. There are also quite a few other anachronisms.
Great start to Season 4 - Can't understand the low ratings
jeremytempler26 October 2020
Boring? Dreadful? Hell, no.
Captivating, well filmed, intriguing - hell, yes.
I never review stuff but I'm making an exception here because...
Well, because of all the negative reviews, which are way off mark.
Watch the show before you review it, please.
This is a true story..
aboalhyjaa29 September 2020
You cant actually love or hate a whole season just by the first episode! We must give the season some time.
But. To be honest, some of it was really bad, bad italiano accent, bad sense of humor and really some bad scripts. If it wasn't for the goos cinematography and clothing i would rate the episode 5 stars.
Lets hope it will be better by the next episodes.
Give the POC a chance to shine and share their experience!
usernames-2852213 October 2020
All the people who are disappointed or continue to say that the writers are trying to introduce a "pc" story are clearly not people of color and couldn't possibly understand why this season and these episodes are just as good as the first seasons. It's so disheartening to see so many bad reviews simply based on the story line being one that is more relatable to black/non-white people. I found this first episode to be very thoughtful in how they broke down the way the different races approached trying to create their way in America under the oppression of a society that has labeled them as "less than." I think it's hard for some to watch and truly see how POC were (and still today) treated with such disregard that they themselves had in-fighting to be the "second" citizens after white Americans. I will say that Chris Rock wouldn't have been my first choice for a serious role like this; Especially after seeing Woodbine's stellar performance in season two. I hope they tie his character into this season in some way. I think more people should give this season a chance and realize that the three prior seasons may have been something they can relate to, whereas this season is to show a different type of experience for other Americans. And if I'm being honest, season 3 wasn't that great to me so I guess we all have to face disappointments from this series.
Let's see where it goes
Ashitaka13729 September 2020
But i hope it doesn't become just a succession of scenes depicting how America was in those years while forgetting to tell an interesting story. It's better when History revolves around the story line. The show Godfather of Harlem with Forest Whitaker and Vincent D'Onofrio, did a good job telling a story in History.
I enjoyed it.
bigoldbillybob29 September 2020
Not every season of Fargo needs to be cast out of heavy metal. This episode was more flexible, almost as it was made of plastic. I'm willing to extend credit to this franchise if they'll loan me a season as solid as this episode was. I'm banking on a good season.
Not as good as seasons 1-3 but will give it a chance.
orr-543931 October 2020
I believe FX knew season 4 was not that good so released the first 2 episodes on the same night in hopes to capture a following. I found episode 1 not that great for the same scene kept repeating several times. This season has gotten off to a slow start and some what boring but will keep watching hoping it gets better.
Not a good start
Hitchslapped8 October 2020
The episode was horribly boring and Chris Rock simply can't act. None of the characters seem particularly interesting. I will give this season another shot and watch episode 2 but I somehow doubt I'll change my mind.
Great base to build on
westhoff_justin28 September 2020
Not too much happens in this, but this episode gives a history to this era of Fargo not seen before in this series. The characters are interesting so far and I'm excited to see where it goes. Especially Orietta Mayflower.
I give this episode a 6 based off of casting
BruceWayne310 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Please stop casting non Italians as Italians. It is a disgrace. You need some Italians in your shows? Call me and my cousins. I'm sure you can find some ex soprano actors who would love to be in this series. So lazy. Such a let down.
This is not Fargo
ondoin28 September 2020
Woke how?
tobe_199119 October 2020
I get that it does not feel like Fargo previous seasons or the movie, but in what way is this Woke? Believe me, I hate the PC movement, they have ruined a lot of franchises, yet here it's a story about Italians vs blacks, with some interesting women protagonists. I think Fargo is one of the best TV series made in these last years. It's always a delight to watch it. So far it hasn't disappoint (unlike True Detective), so I will watch all the season before I made a final judgment.
Amazing, bad reviews are misguided.
dakotakessler-7786329 September 2020
Show is great so far. Storytelling and cinematography are amazing like always. The bad reviews are all people claiming it's being too politically correct. This show is not trying to make a statement, the oppression displayed is just historically accurate as this is 1950.
Cohen Brothers' Genius Will Keep Me Watching
WarrenPiecz28 September 2020
The Cohen Brothers often weave elements into their stories that are never explained, or seem to be an inside joke to them, like the whole U.F.O. thing the first couple seasons.
The first two episodes of Season 4, then, seem to me to be almost obviously over-acted and filled with disappointingly stereotyped characters of various ethnicities. "Fargo"'s magic has always been the interplay of unique characters, of one bad decision spiraling into universal quagmires. If we hadn't seen this in previous seasons, I wouldn't have noticed their absence so much in season 4.
Which leads me to ask if this is intentional....some sort of zany Cohen ploy to make us think this season is heading into banality, only to zing us a couple episodes from now? I sure hope so, because other than the merry Miss Mayflower, I'm not getting a hopeful vibe....for example, I think Jason Schwartzman was unconvincing to the point I'd say he was mis-cast.....unless the Cohens have something up their sleeve.
On a personal note, this was filmed in Riverside, IL, and it was awesome to see places I pass every day be brought to life in a different light.
The first two episodes of Season 4, then, seem to me to be almost obviously over-acted and filled with disappointingly stereotyped characters of various ethnicities. "Fargo"'s magic has always been the interplay of unique characters, of one bad decision spiraling into universal quagmires. If we hadn't seen this in previous seasons, I wouldn't have noticed their absence so much in season 4.
Which leads me to ask if this is intentional....some sort of zany Cohen ploy to make us think this season is heading into banality, only to zing us a couple episodes from now? I sure hope so, because other than the merry Miss Mayflower, I'm not getting a hopeful vibe....for example, I think Jason Schwartzman was unconvincing to the point I'd say he was mis-cast.....unless the Cohens have something up their sleeve.
On a personal note, this was filmed in Riverside, IL, and it was awesome to see places I pass every day be brought to life in a different light.
I give it a 10 because it's worth it.
Amirali_R28 September 2020
See, the reason I'm giving it a 10 is that Fargo is trying to give us something different this time, which is not bad at all. Despite many of you, I still believe that it was great. In addition to that, we saw an amazing directing and music combination.
A little weird even for Fargo, but promising
salle-503087 October 2020
Overall not a bad start to a new season. Love the retro setting (season 2 was my favorite) Writing has a lot of Fargo flair, but at times almost goes too over the top for its own good. Jason Schwartzman is perfect, and such a natural fit for the series. As far as the political undertones go, they are definitely not as pandering or hamfisted as some of these reviews are saying, but not as subtle or interesting as past seasons. Excited to see where things go!
A very disappointing season. Terrible casting, many inaccuracies and slow
maragachi30 September 2020
Here we go again how a decent series fall off a cliff. This season is very slow, the characters are grossly inaccurate not to mention the horrible miscast of Chris Rock as a head of crime organization. He can not deliver the needed acting so far in the two episodes. I keep waiting for him to crack a racial joke.
And to have the head of a crime syndicate to go to a national bank to pitch a Credit Card idea (started by Diners Club in the 50's just as a reference) for the first time and the dumb bank executive obviously decades behind the intelligence of the crime boss, just doesn't see it. That makes a lot of sense!!! At least if it was entertaining, I could tolerate the gaffs and none sense, but the problem is that IT IS NOT remotely entertaining. Slow as hell................
A Warning
glenhammond12 July 2021
There are elements here of what made the first 3 series so successful. The opening episode is cinematic and sets you up well for the series
However, Chris Rock is definitely a miscast. He's too wooden, nothing about him is menacing or unpredictable. He's neither warm or funny either. His role/performance diminishes the series
The other miscast/crappy character is the brother Gaetano from the Italian family. Just smiling wildly and opening your eyes wide doesn't make for a performance. He's really poor.
Timothy Olyphant - amazing as ever. Ben Wishaw is also excellent.
The ingredients are there - just don't expect the tremendous episodes of the first 3 series.
However, Chris Rock is definitely a miscast. He's too wooden, nothing about him is menacing or unpredictable. He's neither warm or funny either. His role/performance diminishes the series
The other miscast/crappy character is the brother Gaetano from the Italian family. Just smiling wildly and opening your eyes wide doesn't make for a performance. He's really poor.
Timothy Olyphant - amazing as ever. Ben Wishaw is also excellent.
The ingredients are there - just don't expect the tremendous episodes of the first 3 series.
A mess
muhammadshafei28 September 2020
Fargo was outstanding in how it used to focus on connections, meaning, and interconnection between characters, events, and scenes.
This season has been the opposite. Two episodes in and the show is as collection of uninspired dull scenes. It seems forced and an afterthought.
This season has been the opposite. Two episodes in and the show is as collection of uninspired dull scenes. It seems forced and an afterthought.
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