‘Justified: City Primeval’ Episode 4 Looks for Love in All the Wrong Places… Save One — Spoilers
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
[Editor’s Note: The following review contains spoilers for “Justified: City Primeval” Episode 4, “Kokomo.”]
A common occurrence in “Justified” sees Raylan (Timothy Olyphant) sit down with someone most people would consider scary, but rather than beg off, back down, or express much emotion (beyond his trademark frustration mixed with mild curiosity), the U.S. Marshall is forced to reflect on the nature of his duties. Past bosses like Mags Bennett (Margo Martindale) and Ellstin Limehouse (Mykelti Williamson) are perhaps the best examples, given the credible moral dilemmas each local leader elicits from Raylan, but challenges of principle can come from just about anyone. Like, say, Toma (Terry Kinney), the Albanian mob boss who invites Raylan for a chat after the “accident” suffered by his nephew, Skender (Alexander Pobutsky).
More from IndieWire
Hell (and High Water) Break Loose in Chaotic 'What We Do in the Shadows' Ep. 5
'The Office' Actor Returns $110,000 in Kickstarter Donations for Never-Made Stanley Spinoff
With a pushy Norbert (Norbert Leo Butz) in tow, Raylan arrives at the meeting planning to convince Toma to let Skender tell the truth: that he didn’t fall down the stairs (like a “clumsy Jesus”), and that he was, in fact, assaulted by Detroit P.D.’s most wanted criminal, Clement Mansell (Boyd Holbrook). While aggravated assault doesn’t carry the same consequences as murder in the first degree, the cops would be happy just to get Mansell off the street. Plus, they don’t want Toma’s Albanian army tearing up their fine city (and its residents) in search of Skender’s assailant.
But Toma isn’t “concerned” with hurting the “wrong people.” He’s concerned with justice. One might think that puts him on Raylan’s side, but Toma explains, in no uncertain terms, why law enforcement can’t rectify the situation to his satisfaction. “That justice,” he says, referencing the type of justice provided by the courts, “is really no justice at all. It is only [the] satisfaction of a mandate for the appearance of order. But order and justice, they are not the same thing. […] Justice is meted out in accordance with the action it remedies. And in this case, justice requires more than the law is willing or able to provide.”
Despite Norbert’s impudent response to this eloquent assessment, everyone in Detroit seems to operate under Toma’s understanding of justice. Everyone, that is, except Raylan.
In that same meeting, Norbert gives Clement’s name to Toma. Does it go against protocol? Absolutely. Does it piss off Raylan? You bet. But Norbert doesn’t care how Clement gets got, so long as it happens. “What’s not to like?” Norbert says. “Either the Albanians lead us to Mansell, or they turn him into little tiny pieces. Done and done.” Raylan disagrees. “I have no problem getting things done,” he says. “I do have a problem rolling up on Mansell face down in a river, shot to death by some Albanian dipshits, when what we want is for the man to be prosecuted, forced to answer for his crimes, and a long period of reflection in a tiny cell.”
What Raylan is forced to wrestle with, both in this moment and in the episodes to come, is whether said period of reflection would do a guy like Clement any good. Norbert already believes it won’t. So does Toma. The rest of the local cops seem to agree, and even those on the opposite side of the law are choosing to be there because they believe it’s the better, safer option.
Just look at Sweety (Vondie Curtis Hall). Last week, he went to Carolyn Wilder (Aunjanue Ellis) to find out what his options were in regard to Clement’s murder weapon. This week, when she comes to him offering immunity in exchange for the gun and his testimony, he’s already been disincentivized to come forward. For one thing, Clement offers him an apology of sorts: He wants to use the little black book stolen from Judge Guy (Keith David) to blackmail Detroit power players. With Sweety’s knowledge of the city and Clement’s unflinching muscle, the two of them can make some serious cash — cash that can fix up Sweety’s bar, which only needs fixing to begin with because the cops tore it apart.
“I never asked the system to solve my problems for me,” he says to Carolyn. “I don’t want no part in playing their game.” And why would he? Sweety hasn’t been treated fairly by “the system” (not now, and not in the past), so why should he trust it? The courts aren’t offering to pay him back for the damage done to his bar. They’re not offering to improve his life in any way. All they’re offering is the retraction of a long-standing threat, with no promises a new threat won’t be made in years to come. There’s no justice in a legal outcome for Sweety, so he takes his chances with the illegal one — even if that means working with Clement.
So Sweety won’t testify against Clement. Skender won’t either. Sandy (Adelaide Clemens) is getting more spooked by the day, but it’s hard to imagine her bailing on Clement now. The Albanians refuse to help (and are, in fact, tearing up Detroit, one tooth at a time), while the cops don’t seem to care how the case gets closed, so long as it’s off their books. That leaves Raylan as the odd man out, though he does manage to find good company at Episode 4’s end. Carolyn, perhaps swayed by Raylan’s personal concern for her well-being (or perhaps by his “dewy” skin), befriends her overnight security guard with a bottle of whiskey. The two sit in the car together, sipping the strong stuff, wondering why they’re both “free, unencumbered,” and alone. They may not be for long, since Raylan has yet to meet an assured woman he isn’t eager to sleep with, and that sounds just fine. Maybe Carolyn will lure Raylan into Detroit’s sense of justice, or maybe he’ll pull her back from using the little black book toward her own ends. Either way, in a challenging city, they’re better off together than apart.
Grade: B+
“Justified: City Primeval” releases new episodes Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX, which are available the next day on Hulu.
(El)More Leanings:
I can’t quite read the look Raylan gives Agron (Evan Mulroney) when the Albanian enforcer compliments his headpiece. “Nice hat,” Agron says. “Stetson 10X?” Is Raylan impressed the gold-chained goon recognizes his top-shelf accessory? Is he intrigued? Or is his dour countenance an attempt to intimidate Agron, dissuading the hat connoisseur from swiping Raylan’s prized property?
Remember when Clement told Sandy to avoid the toaster last week? Turns out he was hiding the little black book in the crumb-catching tray. Pretty smart, honestly — so long as no one uses the thing and torches his lottery ticket.
“I bought this property when it was distressed.”
“Distressed… as opposed to now?”
Oh, Raylan. Always ready with the zinger.I realize Clement is kind of a knob — a self-perceived musical artist whose only actual creation is a cover song — but “Kokomo” doesn’t strike me as his type of tune. Maybe he was just caught up in the moment.
Between her walking in on Clement and Sweety dancing in the dark and her jittery, pot-smoking paranoia after Skender’s injury (“You smell that?” “What? Toast?” “No, baby. Money.”), it’s another A+ performance from Adelaide Clemens. Sandy, stay safe.
Best of IndieWire
Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
