Recently, I binged the first four seasons of Fargo in anticipation of this new season. For the most part, I really enjoyed them! The first three seasons worked so well for me because the protagonists of each season were just normal people who got into bad situations and just kept digging themselves into a deeper hole throughout the course of the season. On the other hand, Season 4 strayed far from this formula by following two rival gangs and was significantly worse for it. I remained interested in Season 5 since it appeared to be a return to form for the show, and thankfully, it absolutely is! Though Season 5 (like most Fargo seasons) peaks with its first episode, it is still an incredibly engaging 10 episodes of TV. 

Like most Fargo seasons, the cast of Fargo Season 5 absolutely kills it! Juno Temple’s Dot is possibly my favourite Fargo protagonist, and perhaps even my favourite character in any season of the show. Her Dot reminds me of Kirsten Dunst’s Peggy in season 2 in the sense that they are both incredibly likeable characters played by incredibly likeable performers who get placed into a bad situation and whom you just want to see get a happy ending. Unlike most Fargo protagonists, Dot isn’t immediately set up in the first episode, but that slow burn of getting to know her personality, backstory, and struggles makes her all the more endearing. Another actress I’ve always really enjoyed, Jennifer Jason Leigh, works wonderfully here and brings a unique element to the season. Her character is initially presented to us as somewhat unlikeable, but as the season progresses, we learn there is far more depth to her than could’ve been initially perceived. This results in some truly excellent scenes with her and Jon Hamm’s Roy Tillman.

Similarly to both aforementioned characters, Roy Tillman isn’t given a whole lot of material in the first couple of episodes. But as we uncover more about his character, both in terms of who he is and his past, Roy becomes genuinely chilling. This is far and away the darkest season of Fargo in terms of content. Dot’s backstory is heartbreaking and there’s a raw 5-minute sequence in the episode “Linda” that will go down as one of Fargo’s best scenes. Fargo has always been dark, but it’s usually darkly comedic or more fantastical. The events of Fargo are generally not relatable, allowing the darkness to be more entertaining than tragic. However, Dot’s backstory feels so much more brutal because her experiences do happen and have happened to so many people. 

Though he’s not quite as much of a standout as anyone in our main trio, Joe Keery brings an unlikeability to his performance that is noticeably distinct from Jon Hamm’s. I am largely unfamiliar with Keery’s work (yes, I somehow have not seen Stranger Things), but I was quite impressed with him here! While you hate Hamm’s Roy for his awful actions and for being a genuine piece of shit, you want to see Keery’s Gator get his comeuppance for an annoying little bastard. Lamorne Morris is someone I know for his comedic work, and while he is not a comedic element of this season, he is nonetheless a delightful presence. While I do very much prefer the more morally ambiguous characters in this show, it’s always nice to have sweeter characters as a palette cleanser.

As I previously mentioned, each Fargo season has a similar trend of having the first episode or two being fantastic, then having a slight lull in the middle before ramping up to a truly outstanding climax. This season’s first episode “The Tragedy of the Commons” is a contender for my favourite episode of the entire series. The structure of the episode is expertly crafted, allowing for an episode that slowly ramps up and eventually becomes incredibly engaging and thrilling in the third act. This grants Dot a lot of characterization without even needing any dialogue. Episode 4, “Insolubilia”, has a remarkable sequence that contains wince-inducing moments and creates some incredibly earned tension. 

However, the last three episodes of the season are when the season truly shines. We begin to see Roy unravel slowly as a character and just when you think his unlikeability can’t be topped, he becomes more unhinged and continues to prove you can hate him more, actually. Juno Temple’s performance also continues to be phenomenal, and while I believe that her acting was at her best towards the midsection of the season, she is absolutely outstanding in every scene. Though we still have a few months left in the Emmy season, I steadfastly believe that if Temple does not win, it would be an utter robbery. 

Like the show’s prior seasons, the technical achievements of this season are excellent. It’s a beautifully shot season of TV with several shots that will stay with me. The score is excellent, with the main theme being a haunting piece that works so superbly well in the contexts that it is placed in. 

After the disappointing season 4, this season has brought Fargo back to the standard that we know and love it for. If this happens to be the show’s final season, then I’m incredibly satisfied with what we were given. 

8/10