Weekend TV: Life 2.20

When a gun law activist and political hopeful is murdered by gunfire, suspects on both side of the initiative appear.

Weekend TV: Justified 2.13

Now that Dickie's out of jail, the Bennetts plan their revenge on Boyd and his gang, but things don't turn out as they planned. Meanwhile, Loretta is missing from her foster home, and Mags wants her found.



I think I liked last season's ender better, but I like that this one has a lot of questions left to answer: What about Dickie? How's Ava? Will Winona still be there? I, for one, will definitely be there to find out.

Weekend TV: Life 2.19

An exsanguinated ME leads to the murder of a chef, but the answer might lie much closer to home. Meanwhile, Reese makes a decision about the FBI.

Weekend TV: Justified 2.12

Raylan continues to walk the line between light and dark after Helen's murder. Everyone's after Dickie, either to kill him or protect him, but Raylan's not the kind for losing...



This episode seems like it could have actually been the season finale, but I guess they're going to wrap things up as neatly as they did last season. Either way, I'm excited for whatever new episodes I can get in the future. This following clip just about sums up what JUSTIFIED is about, that no matter where they are now, these characters all came from violence, and they are steeped in it even now...

Weekend TV: Life 2.18

Crews gets a new partner in the form of the lovely Gabrielle Union, and they investigate the death of a woman who spent years writing to a convict in prison. But she may have not been the only one.

In this episode, Charlie's past as a convict is a tool he uses to understand the mentality of some of the suspects, as they are ex-cons. But his past seems to no longer affect him as deeply as it did in the opening episodes. It is a part of his past, but not a part of his present.

Weekend TV: Justified 2.11

After the failed hit on Raylan, he and Winona are under Marshall protection, but that won't stop Raylan from figuring out who was behind it. Meanwhile, the struggle for Harlan's criminal ownership heats up between Boyd and Dickie, resulting in a tragic loss.

Weekend TV: Life 2.17

Crews and Bobby investigate the murder of a decorated soldier on the LA beachfront. There isn't much in the way of noir in this episode, as the over-arching mythology in this episode is focused on the conspiracy.

Weekend TV, Weekday Edition: Justified 2.10

The seeds are being sown (so to speak) for the season finale. In the wake of Coover's death and the Black Pike deal, Mags is giving up her business, much to Dickie's disgust. Meanwhile, Boyd makes his move on Harlan County and Raylan and Winona make plans for the future.

Delayed Justification, Part Deux

This time I'm north of Toronto, on Lake Simcoe, but I will post about 2.10 when I see it. I promise!

Weekend TV: Life 2.16

When Reese starts what may or may not be a special assignment with the FBI, Crews teams with Bobby for a murder that may or may not be a crime of passion.

Bad TV Noir News

According to thefutoncritic.com, FOX has already announced some changes to its TV lineup for the fall, ahead of the network upfronts that are due next week. Among the shows that have been cancelled are HUMAN TARGET. Less than a year old, and with two short seasons under its belt, I was bemoaning the demise of this show when a revamped version came back in November. The first season was a nice 80's adventure show throwback, with a Chandler-inspired "man of mystery" at its heart. Also cancelled, with two episodes yet to air, is THE CHICAGO CODE. While not a noir, this show was developed by Shawn Ryan, the man behind the best TV noir of all time, THE SHIELD. I'll watch whatever Shawn does, including his producing efforts on the criminally under-seen TERRIERS. CODE had started to find its stride, emphasizing the duality of the undercover work in the series, so it's sad to see it go. It's very possible I may not pick up any new (non FX) shows this year. I find it may be easier to go back and watch them on DVD...

Weekend TV: Justified 2.9

All interested parties show up at Mags' "whoop-de-doo": the coal company, the Bennetts, Boyd and Ava, and Raylan Givens. What goes down from there sets up the rest of the season, as allegiances shift, power changes hands and someone has to fall...

Weekend TV: Life 2.15

Crews and Reese investigate a shady roofer's murder.



There's nothing really transgressive about Charlie's actions this episode, unless you count commandeering Mickey Rayborn's car temporarily. But Rayborn does disappear later and Crews appears to be the scapegoat, setting up another situation where he has been accused for something he hasn't done...

Weekend TV, Weekday Edition: Justified 2.8

Raylan is assigned protection duty of a coal mine representative amidst suspicions that Art knows about Winona's deception. Meanwhile, Boyd is hired as a gun thug for the coal company and starts to question the Bennetts' motives in terms of protecting the two counties.

Delayed Justification

As you read this, I am in California at the TCM Classic Film Festival. I have not yet watched the latest episode of JUSTIFIED on hulu.com, but will get it to you as soon as I can. But be patient. I understand jetlag's a bitch.

Weekend TV: Life 2.14

When the lead singer of an 80s cover band is found dead, Crews and Reese must dig through a pool of posers to find the killer.



I haven't quite come to terms with what the zen subtext means to the noir character in this series, but there's a nice scene here with Charlie thinking about his own personal mystery while listening to a zen tape about taking life. There's a certain awareness here about the nature of transgression and the responsibility that comes with it. Certainly a note about self-determination within the noir landscape.

Weekend TV: Justified 2.7

Boyd is hired by the mine to act as security while a trial against them begins. Winona has to put the stolen money back in the evidence locker, but she's going to need Raylan's help to get it there.



But at its heart, this episode is about bonding through crime. Now that Raylan is complicit in Winona's crime, it has brought them closer together, while Raylan is espousing noir philosophy in this scene:



And here, Raylan synopsizes his relationship with Boyd and how, even though their paths normally collide instead of align, there is significant history. Pay attention to that last line:

Weekend TV: Life 2.13

Recovering from his shooting, Crews (and Reese) investigate the death of an astronaut that was somehow shot but still manages to land his plane. Meanwhile, Tidwell is interested in who shot Charlie and doesn't believe that Charlie doesn't remember...



This episode introduces an actual legal transgression for Charlie, which grows out of his investigation, which was a result of his being framed for three murders he didn't commit. This suggests a repeating cycle, where transgression begets retribution, which begets transgression. If noir is the exploration of the psychology of criminals, if it is a detailing of what pushes specific people to commit crimes, this is a very important scene. It at once becomes the event to which everything has been leading as well as the fulfillment of the role everyone has been expecting him to play based on the fact that he used to be in prison.

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

And, of course, we had Sean Chercover provide an introduction for the film, and his insights were invaluable. Please enjoy...

Interview with Sean Chercover

We kicked off The Noir Series 2011 with a spectacular program featuring THE MALTESE FALCON (1941) and an interview with Shamus- and Anthony-winning author Sean Chercover. Sean's Ray Dudgeon PI novels BIG CITY, BAD BLOOD and TRIGGER CITY are classic tarnished knight tales in the tradition of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. Here he talks about his previous life as a PI, his books, and what the movies get right. Enjoy!