FX’s Fargo season five episode two opens with the introduction of a new key player. Sheriff Roy Tillman (Jon Hamm) admires himself on a billboard as his voice-over drops a few pertinent facts. The Tillmans have a history in law enforcement. Roy believes Jesus was a bearded man and that women should be seen, not heard, kept pregnant and in the kitchen.
Plus, they should come to their wedding bed virgins.
It turns out he’s dropping these pearls of wisdom on a young couple. The husband is an abuser, but the wife tries to play it off that she’s just clumsy. Hubby learns a lesson the hard way when Roy has his deputy place him in a chokehold. Oh wait, the lesson didn’t sink in, and Roy tosses a cup of scalding coffee in his face to make him reconsider his actions.
Roy’s next meeting doesn’t go any better. Roy’s son, Gator (Joe Keery), who’s also a sheriff, informs him that Dot escaped, and Ole Munch (Sam Spruell) confirms it’s true. However, Ole blames Dot’s escape on Roy’s failure to warn him that she’s a tiger – not just a housewife.
Gator lists everything Ole did wrong, including shooting up a gas station and killing a cop. Again, Ole explains it went south because Dot’s a tiger, and he didn’t bring the right guy as backup to handle the situation.
Ole talks about himself in the third person, claiming he sewed up his own ear and is scarred for life, all because Roy didn’t provide key details. Also, the payment didn’t match the job, and if he continues to hunt down Dot, he’ll need a bigger payoff.
Roy drops the bombshell that Dot is his wife; she ran off 10 years ago. He was unaware of her location until her fingerprints were entered into the system. (And that’s why Dot was panicking about being arrested.)
Ole demands his original payment plus extra for pain and suffering. Roy agrees and sends him with Gator to fetch the money. However, it’s a trap as Roy has no intention of paying when Ole didn’t complete the job.
Gator’s supposed to kill him and is ready to shoot him in the back when Ole makes a move. He disarms Gator, who cries like a little boy, and then shoots the two men who were Gator’s backup. Ole takes off, and Gator’s left with a broken arm and no dead body to show to his dad.
Meanwhile, Minnesota Police Deputy Indira Olmstead (Richa Moorjani) pays a visit to Wayne (David Rysdahl) and Dot, wondering how and why Dot has suddenly returned. Dot (Juno Temple) sticks with her story that she left of her own volition because she had a rough day. Indira didn’t just fall off the turnip truck and knows there are two strangers’ DNA in the house and unidentified hair upstairs.
Wayne tries to break the tension by blaming himself for panicking over the blood and his missing wife. But she’s back now, so that’s that. Right? He’ll sign whatever Indira wants him to to make this all go away.
Dot attempts to end the meeting, but Indira’s announcement that she’ll be reviewing traffic cameras sets her off. Wayne sides with his wife and tells Indira to contact their attorney, Danish Graves, if she needs anything else.
Indira’s not the only one who doesn’t buy Dot’s story. Danish Graves (David Foley) updates Wayne’s mom, Lorraine, on the situation and she calls bullsh*t. Lorraine (Jennifer Jason Leigh) always jumps to the worst possible conclusion and thinks Dot was going to extort her but got cold feet.
Lorraine’s adamant that they need to stop all police investigations. Also, they don’t know much except the very basics about Dot. It’s possible she’s controlling Wayne and has made him her puppet in an attempt to get to the Lyon money.
Lorraine suggests a divide-and-conquer plan. Danish will question Wayne and she’ll handle Dot herself. (Oh, excellent, the much-anticipated Juno Temple / Jennifer Jason Leigh one-on-one!)
Meanwhile, Roy’s relaxing in his spa when Gator arrives with details on Dot’s new life. Her full name is now Dorothy Lyon, she’s been married 10 years, and has a nine-year-old daughter. And Koreans make cars now. That last part is tossed in because Wayne owns a dealership.
The twosome becomes a foursome when FBI agents show up. They’re new to Fargo and want to know why Roy doesn’t actually enforce any laws. He bills himself as a hard man for hard times, but he’s pretty darn soft on crime.
Roy defends his record, pointing out he’s duly elected and his constituents love him. He’ll interpret the Constitution, which was handed down by God, any way he wants. He’s the law. Period. End of sentence.
He emerges from the spa naked and continues the discussion, informing the FBI agents that the law has very little to do with his job…as an officer of the law.
The FBI agents are rendered speechless as he strolls off.
The much-anticipated meeting of the tiger and the lion takes place and it’s just as scrumptious as imagined. Lorraine doesn’t pull any punches and informs Dot she knows exactly what happened. And, in fact, she pretty much nails what really went down. Dot, on the other hand, plays the harried housewife who just needed a break fairly well. Lorraine isn’t buying what Dot’s selling and is determined to get rid of this low-class interloper. She even offers cash if Dot will just vanish.
Dot finally breaks from her “can’t we all just get along” attitude. Her voice hardens and she snarls, “Listen, b*tch. I’ve climbed through six kinds of hell to get where I am.” She won’t be run off, and if Lorraine doubts her, she should start sleeping with both eyes open.
“Nobody takes what’s mine and lives,” warns Dot.
Dot slips back into the “Minnesota Nice” vibe as Lorraine announces she’s leaving. However, Lorraine hasn’t broken eye contact with Dot since she delivered her warning. She gets in a parting shot, pointing out Dot’s skinny as a corpse.
After Lorraine leaves, Dot examines the bruises on her back in the mirror. She hurries to put on a robe as Scotty (Sienna King) pokes her head into the room to announce she’s hungry. Dot promises her snacks first, and then they’ll work on a special craft project. You know, the kind of craft project that involves yards of electrical cord, exposed wires, and crushed glass.
Scotty and Dot set up booby traps all around the house. They even place a sledgehammer above the door, ready to strike anyone who touches the ball chain. Scotty’s so into it that she asks to set up traps in her room, too.
In a homage to the original Coen Brothers’ 1996 Fargo, Wayne sits in his office and prepares to read off VIN numbers over the phone. Danish arrives unannounced for his part of the divide-and-conquer plan, so Wayne will have to wait on the VIN reading.
Danish puts Lorraine on speakerphone and after calling her son a moron, she cuts to the chase. There’s something fishy about the kidnapping/not kidnapping, and Danish reveals the police think one of the kidnappers is in a morgue in North Dakota. The officer at the gas station described a woman who looks like Dot as the woman who was kidnapped and then saved him.
Lorraine insists this all boils down to Dot wanting her money, but Wayne begs to differ. Lorraine authorizes Danish, as her attorney, to slap her son. He needs some sense knocked into him. Danish does as ordered, and Lorraine tells Wayne to listen up. She’s got a list of instructions he must follow – no ifs, ands, or buts will be tolerated.
Minnesota Police Deputy Indira Olmstead visits North Dakota Deputy Witt Farr in his hospital room, suggesting she knows the identity of the missing female. Witt describes her as a MacGyver / Rambo type and Indira’s just about to pull up a picture on her phone when Sheriff Deputy Gator Tillman joins the party. Witt and Indira share what they know, unaware of who they’re letting into their circle of trust.
Gator grabs Indira’s phone and scrolls through the photos, acting like he’s just looking at the woman in case he knows her. He deletes the photo and then plays it off like it was an accident. Indira reveals Dot’s made it back home now and is insisting she was never kidnapped – all evidence to the contrary.
Gator confirms he’s a massive jerk, vaping in the hospital room and saying he doesn’t protect and serve. “I’m down with protect, but I’m not in the service industry. I’m in the kicking ass and taking names business,” says Gator.
Night falls, and Dot and Scotty are still working on their “craft project” when Wayne arrives home from work. He’s shocked by the new setup over the door and can’t believe his daughter’s pounding nails into a baseball bat to make a weapon.
Dot insists this is all just fine and dandy. It’s their homemade alarm system since Wayne didn’t think they could afford a professional one. Wayne spots the wires on the windowsill, and Dot quickly warns him to keep his hands off of it. They’re electrified and he’ll get shocked.
Wayne’s finally at the end of his rope and, politely, sends Scotty upstairs so he can talk to Dot. They discuss his mom, and Dot insists she and Lorraine have come to an understanding. Wayne’s not sure Dot’s assessment of the situation echoes reality.
Lorraine is suing Dot, certain she’s plotting to steal the Lyon money. Dot sticks to her taking a long walk to clear her head story, but apparently she’s on the verge of losing Wayne’s trust. He loves her to death, but nothing about that story makes sense.
“Why is there a sledgehammer in the vestibule and how come Scotty’s making a zombie killer?” asks Wayne, attempting to wrap his head around what’s become of his marriage.
Dot claims she’s worried about ruffians at the door and Scotty’s tased math teacher taking revenge. The world’s gone crazy, neighbors are turning on neighbors, and they need to be prepared. Wayne is such a sweet guy that he actually accepts this as truth and suggests maybe they need to buy a gun.
Dot jumps on board that idea and ups it to two guns and a new taser. Maybe a net? Confused, Wayne has allowed himself to be drawn into Dot’s plan. But all the poor guy wants is to watch Real Housewives and play hockey in his socks with his daughter.
Dot promises him it will all return to normal, and Wayne calls her his dream come true. Awww.
About that return to normal… Gator and another Tillman minion make a pit stop at the same gas station where all the action took place. Gator goes inside to relieve himself while the other sheriff fills up. Unfortunately, getting gas is the man’s final act as Ole Munch appears out of nowhere and kills him.
Gator returns to the vehicle, oblivious to what’s going on around him. Finally, he glances in the sideview mirror and sees his partner lying dead on the ground. There’s a knife plunged into his chest, pinning in place a sign that reads, “You owe me.”
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- Fargo Season 5 Episode 1 “The Tragedy of the Commons” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 3 “The Paradox of Intermediate Transactions” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 4 “Insolubilia” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 5 “The Tiger” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 6 “The Tender Trap” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 episode 7 “Linda” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 8 “Blanket” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 9 “The Useless Hand” Recap
- Fargo Season 5 Episode 10 “Bisquik” Finale Recap
