Fargo: Season 2 Episode 7 "Did You Do This? No, You Did!" Review

"You're a shit cop.  You know that, right?"
-Lou Solverson



The 7th episode of season 2 of Fargo picks up with the escalation of the war between the Gerhardt's and Kansas City, with both sides taking casualties.  With Otto (Michael Hogan) dead, Dodd (Jeffery Donovan) and Hanzee Dent (Zahn McClarnon) missing, and Charlie (Allan Dobrescu) in jail, the Gerhardt numbers are dwindling.  Floyd (Jean Smart) is taken into police custody and is convinced to snitch on the Kansas City Mob, which cause several successful busts on Kansas City.

Simone Gerhardt (Rachel Keller) confronts Mike Milligan (Bokeem Woodbine) for betraying her and killing Otto instead of Dodd.  Before things can turn more violent, Lou Solverson (Patrick Wilson), and Ben Schmidt (Keir O'Donnell) arrive and try to convince Mike to leave Fargo.  Simone is picked up by Bear Gerhardt (Angus Sampson), who drives her out to the middle of the woods and reveals he knows that she was sleeping with Mike and giving him information.  He blames her for the losses the Gerhardt's have suffered and kills her.  Bear returns to the compound to learn that someone has been calling all day, saying they have Dodd's location.  Bear does not respond has he does not want Dodd back.  However, Hanzee calls and tells the Gerhardt's he has found Dodd.

With the losses Kansas City has suffered, the mob decides to send up a notorious hitman, the Undertaker (Markus Parillo) to take over for Mike.  Mike and Gale Kitchen (Brad Mann) fight back, and kill the Undertaker and his men, intending to blame the Gerhardt's for the deaths.  Mike receives a phone call from Ed Blumquist (Jesse Plemons) who claims to have Dodd in the trunk of his car and is willing to give him to Mike.


What Works:

This is a really exciting episode of Fargo.  There is a lot murder and mayhem.  The episode opens with a montage sequence of people being whacked.  That's always a good way to win me over.  Plus we get the quick, but awesome, dispatch of the Undertaker and his goons by Mike and Gale.  It's all great stuff.

My favorite part of the episode was Bear walking Simone to her death.  Both of them give amazing performances.  Both characters hate Dodd's guts and they feel sympathy for the other, but Bear knows he has to kill his own niece, and Simone knows she can't get out of this.  It's rough, but beautifully shot and acted.

Another plus is Peggy (Kirsten Dunst) doesn't appear at all in this episode!  That's a win in my book.  It was also great to see Lou tell Ben Schmidt how he really feels (see the quote above).

Finally, we get a really touching sequence between Betsy Solverson (Cristin Milioti) and Karl Weathers (Nick Offerman) talking about Betsy's inevitable death from cancer, as she knows she received sugar pills and not the real medication.  It's a sad, but sweet scene and I'm glad the show runners took the time to step away from the violence and give this to us.


What Sucks:

I got nothin' for ya!


Verdict:

Another brilliant episode of Fargo, with some sad, sweet, and heartbreaking moments mixed in with gratuitous violence and amazing acting.  What more could you ask for in a TV show?

 10/10: Amazing 

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