Saying goodbye to Justified (TV show)

Tomorrow, one of my favorite shows of all-time ends for good. I don't know how many duders watch it, but Alex has mentioned it a few times. Justified will be missed. The show has featured some of the best dialogue ever on television, along with terrific dry humor as well. If you're looking for something to watch during the impending summer doldrums of television, I highly recommend giving this show a chance. It's streamable for free on Amazon Instant Video, FX NOW, etc. Seasons 2, 3, 4 (and so far, 6) are all top-notch television. Season 1 is still good, but is a bit disjointed in format until it finds its stride late. Season 5 was the only one that's sub-par (comparatively to the rest of Justified), but the final season has been fantastic so far, and the show sure looks like it will end on a high note. Tuesday, I'm pouring a nice bourbon and toasting a damn good show.

Spoilers for this season to date and predictions for the finale to follow:

They've got quite a bit to tie up here in the last episode. Duffy is seemingly hitting the road, but there's more to be played out with that. Ava's right in the crossfire as she has been all season, and who knows what Markham's going to do to her. I'd imagine we'll have a confrontation between Boyd, Markham, and Ava that Markham has little to no chance of surviving. As for Raylan, you have to wonder if this is the end for him as well. Obviously he won't stay in custody and will confront Markham, Ava, Boyd, or all of the above. Smart money is on Boyd, as this series has seemingly always been headed for a Boyd-Raylan duel. While many are probably expecting Raylan to ride off into the sunset, the ominous recurring theme "you'll never leave Harlan alive" suggests otherwise. "Happily ever after" with Raylan playing Dad doesn't really fit the show, either, so one wonders if they'll take the bold choice where the outlaw lives and the hero dies. I just really want the finale to come through however it plays out and do the rest of the show justice. Here's hoping.

Aww. I love this show!

I actually didn't know that it was in its final season. I would definitely recommend anyone to give it a try.

Justified is so, so, so so good. The dialogue is frequently astounding, and the show does the near-impossible job of making every last character someone you care about one way or another. Wish it had been more popular, then we might be getting the Wynn Duffy spinoff America deserves.

I hope Ava or Duffy get away with the money. I really want it to avoid a stereotypical good guys win on all counts kind of ending. Thinking back though, I guess each season kind of did end with their respective bad guy(s) dead.

Agreed. The character development has consistently been stellar. I'm always amazed they can make characters so memorable so quickly. This season, Choo-Choo would certainly qualify, and there's an argument for Ty Walker and Katherine Hale as well. The show has had so many excellent supporting characters from the past/present despite relatively little screen time like Constable Bob, Wade Messer, Nicky Augustine, Tim Gutterson, Dewey Crowe, Colton Rhodes, Ellen May, Glen Fogle, etc. And that's not counting the great "main" characters over the years like the Bennett clan, Arlo Givens, Art Mullen, Robert Quarles, Ellstin Limehouse, Drew Thompson, and of course, Wynn Duffy.

I'd absolutely watch a Wynn Duffy spinoff. Have him end up with the money, use it to sponsor some women's tennis prodigy, and have all these seedy, low-life characters from his past keep showing up to fuck up his high-class life. Greatness would ensue. Man, I'm going to miss this show.

Haven't seen this season yet, but Justified had some great moments over the years.

Once it's over, guess it's time to finally watch Deadwood. And Die Hard 4 again, along with Hitman?

You'll never leave Harlan alive

Haven't watched since a few eps into season 4. Don't know if I want to pick it back up again.

@toxin066: I love that song, its the only real country song I have in my collection

I just caught up on season 6 last week, it took only took me about a day and a half its that good. I am really glad it is ending on a high note.

The best show running on TV at the moment. Season 2, 4, and 6 are among the greatest seasons of television period. Up there with the best seasons of The Wire, The Sopranos, The Shield, Breaking Bad, you name it. And I'll be damned if Boyd Crowder isn't one of the best villains in any medium of the last ten years.

What I'm getting at is that my god I'm going to miss this show.

Fantastic show that I wish would get half the attention that lesser programs (although good in their own respects) like Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead get.

I tip my Stetson to you Raylan Givens

His story arc has been awesome. He's gone from supremacist to evangelist to recidivist to nihilist, and Walton Goggins has played all the roles perfectly. His sharp delivery of Boyd's lines with all the subtle expressions and "using forty words where four will do" has been utterly masterful. The scenes featuring Raylan/Boyd banter are some of the best in the history of television.

Yeah, I haven't ever quite figured out why Justified isn't well-known as an awesome show. I try to recommend it to people, and they just stare at me like they've never even heard of the show and I'm a crazy person. It's a shame, but at least the ones who give it a chance appreciate it. I'm glad to see some duders feel the same way.

I only started watching it a couple of weeks back, and I blasted through the first 5 seasons by saturday. Really enjoyed it a lot - good performances, really gripping storylines. I really appreciate that it's aware of its own silly parts and picks up on them. I've never thought of Timothy Olyphant as a particularly amazing actor, but he shows more range here than anything else I've seen of his, and he does a really good line in anger!

Season 5 did get a bit histrionic, but all the others are really good. I even like season 1 a lot more than most. It starts a bit rough, when it seems like it is just going to be a criminal of the week type show, but develops into a really great Southern Noir.

Holy hell. What a finale. The last scene with Boyd and Raylan was absolutely phenomenal. Tim and Walton weren't acting there, and it was a fitting, genuine goodbye. I'm not ashamed to say I got a bit emotional myself.

That's as good as television gets. Period.

The Mikey and Katherine showdown in the RV was one of my favorite scenes in the show. Mikey is a champ.

Glad this thread is here. There aren't many shows I've been there watching live when the last episode aired instead of coming to it later. Feels like there should be a better way to say goodbye to my pals in Harlan, felonious and otherwise. Sorry that Raylan and Winona didn't work out. I always liked her.

I haven't been able to watch it yet. I've been a fan since season 2 and it has remained on my must watch shows each season since. I'll definitely miss the writing and characters, but all good things must end.

At least it's ending on a high note.

I've been meaning to watch it, but there's so many things to see. So it's been on my Amazon wish list for whenever I know I'll have time to watch it. I still haven't even watched The Wire despite owning it... among other shows.

So, anyway, I don't know. I have a backlog of stuff to watch almost as long as my back log of games (which isn't as bad as it used to be).

That ended just about as well as I had hoped it would. I'm gonna miss the show. Man, once Mad Men ends I think I can cancel cable.

Just watched it. I wouldn't want the show to drag out too long with too many seasons, but it sucks that it's gone now. I don't think there is a current show I enjoyed watching quite as much as Justified. I really like Arrow and The Flash, and Daredevil looks good, but those are all comic book things. They don't have the same feel as Justified(I guess nothing does, really).

I really thought they had killed off Raylan for a second. I've always thought they could go either way with that. I'm glad they didn't, though.

Netflix (Canada atleast) stopped getting more episodes after season 2 :/. I really enjoyed the show, but haven't seen further than that.

I don't think US Netflix has ever had any of it on. I don't remember ever seeing it on there, at least. A lot of people would say that you've seen the best of it. I might would agree, because season 2 is great, but I really liked the rest of it, too.

I actually appreciated that. Given that it never really seemed like Raylan even wanted a normal life and actively tried to find reasons to avoid it, him and Winona not working out for that happily ever makes a lot of sense. Raylan continuing to be a marshal, even in Florida, seems a more appropriate path for his character.

That was a really good scene. The song inclusion sold it really well. Ultimately, Raylan dying at the hands of Markham's gun thug after facing down so many others would have been a bit of a disservice, so I'm glad that wasn't Raylan's end. Loretta kicking the gun out of Boon's hands was a nice touch.

I wasn't sure if I wanted a "happy ending" for Justified, but they damn sure pulled it off. Ava getting away and Raylan not getting the nuclear family was the kind of flawed happy ending that Justified does so well, because Ava arguably deserved freedom and Raylan got to still be Raylan, as he wanted to be, deep down. They made it finish so real and satisfying when it so easily could have felt cheap and fan service-y.

I'm going to go back to that final scene again. I must have re-watched it a dozen times last night. That was so fucking good. In their own ways, both Raylan and Boyd were being completely full of shit. Boyd was back to evangelizing for "good behavior" points, and Raylan completely fabricated a story to protect Ava. And yet, they both still had some fondness for each other. You genuinely felt for Boyd a bit when he believed Raylan's story about Ava's "death", when he asked "how's Florida?" as a man who will be locked away from the outside world for a long time, when he pointed out that Raylan was "looking for a reason to get off the phone" because Boyd didn't want the visit to end, and when he asked if the news of Ava's "death" was really the only reason Raylan came all the way to see him. In typical Justified fashion, they even worked in some classic banter with a Raylan wisecrack as well. To close, they tied a perfect bow on things by bringing it all back around to the very first episode.

For those who haven't done themselves the favor of watching this show, do it. If you aren't hooked by the end of season 2, I don't know what to tell you. Justified was the definition of can't-miss television. It's no longer "one of" my favorite shows. It's my favorite show.