"Reckoning" is the twelfth episode of the second season of the American

Neo-Western The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly refer ...

television series '' Justified''. It is the 25th overall episode of the series and was written by supervising producer Dave Andron and directed by

Adam Arkin Adam Arkin (born August 19, 1956) is an American actor and director. He is known for playing the role of Aaron Shutt on ''Chicago Hope''. He has been nominated for numerous awards, including a Tony (Best Actor, 1991, '' I Hate Hamlet'') as well ...

. It originally aired on FX on April 27, 2011. The series is based on Elmore Leonard's stories about the character

Raylan Givens Raylan Givens is a fictional character created by American novelist and screenwriter Elmore Leonard. Givens is a Deputy U.S. Marshal and initially appeared in the novels ''Pronto'' and '' Riding the Rap''. (''Pronto'' was adapted as a TV movie ...

, particularly "Fire in the Hole", which serves as the basis for the episode. The series follows Raylan Givens, a tough deputy U.S. Marshal enforcing his own brand of justice. Following the shooting of a mob hitman, Raylan is sent to

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County. By population, it is the second-largest city in Kentucky and 57th-largest city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 28th-largest ...

to investigate an old childhood friend Boyd Crowder, who is now part of a white supremacist gang. In the episode, Raylan is intent on finding Helen's killer but Arlo knows who is responsible and will try to get there first. Despite being credited,

Nick Searcy Nicholas Alan Searcy (born March 7, 1959) is an American character actor best known for portraying Chief Deputy United States Marshal Art Mullen on FX's '' Justified''. He also had a major role in the Tom Hanks–produced miniseries ''From the ...

Jacob Pitts Jacob Rives Pitts (born November 20, 1979) is an American television, film and stage actor. His most notable performances were as Cooper Harris in the film '' EuroTrip'' (2004), as Bill "Hoosier" Smith in the HBO miniseries '' The Pacific'' (2010) ...

and

Erica Tazel Erica Tazel (born 1977) is an American theatre and television actress best known for the role of US Deputy Marshall Rachel Brooks in the FX television series '' Justified'' (2010–2015). Life and career Tazel holds a B.A. from Spelman College ...

do not appear in the episode. According to

Nielsen Media Research Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

, the episode was seen by an estimated 2.92 million household viewers and gained a 0.9/2 ratings share among adults aged 18–49. The episode received critical acclaim, with critics praising the writing and strong acting. For their performances in the episode,

Timothy Olyphant Timothy David Olyphant ( ; born May 20, 1968) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in an off-Broadway theater in 1995, in ''The Monogamist'', and won the Theatre World Award for his performance, and then originated David Sedaris' '' Th ...

and

Jeremy Davies Jeremy Davies (né Boring; born October 8, 1969) is an American film and television actor. He is known for playing Ray Aibelli in '' Spanking the Monkey'' (1994), Corporal Upham in ''Saving Private Ryan'' (1998), Snow in '' Solaris'' (2002), B ...

) were nominated for the

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Beginning with the 18th Primetime Emmy Awards, leading actors in drama have competed alone. However, these dramatic performances incl ...

and

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series is an award presented annually by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given in honor of an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a guest st ...

at the

63rd Primetime Emmy Awards The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards, honoring the best in prime time television programming from June 1, 2010 until May 31, 2011, were held on Sunday, September 18, 2011, at the Microsoft Theater, Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, California. Fo ...

Plot

A shaken Raylan (

) arrives at Helen's house as forensics take her body. Meanwhile, Boyd (

Walton Goggins Walton Sanders Goggins Jr. (born November 10, 1971) is an American actor. He has starred in a number of television series, including '' The Shield'' (2002–2008), '' Justified'' (2010–2015), '' Vice Principals'' (2016–2017), '' The Righteo ...

) is serving breakfast to his crew when Ava (

Joelle Carter Joelle Marie Carter (born October 10, 1972) is an American actress. She is known for playing Ava Crowder in the FX series '' Justified''. Early life Carter was born in Thomasville, Georgia. Her father, Jimmy,Raymond J. Barry) loading a shotgun, intending to take revenge against the Bennetts, deducing Dickie (

) killed her. Arlo blames Raylan for Helen's death as he killed Coover Bennett, although Arlo hides the fact that he prompted Dickie and his crew to attack. Raylan questions Mags (

Margo Martindale Margo Martindale (born July 18, 1951) is an American character actress who has appeared on television, film, and stage. In 2011, she won a Primetime Emmy Award and a Critics' Choice Television Award for her recurring role as Mags Bennett on '' J ...

) about Dickie's location, as Arlo will likely kill him if he gets first. Mags says nothing but confesses that she cut off Dickie from her operations. After Raylan leaves due to a tip regarding Arlo, Mags calls Doyle (Joseph Lyle Taylor) about the escalating problem. Raylan finds Arlo in Dickie's RV and both talk about Helen before Raylan arrests Arlo for breaking in and gun possession. Arlo tries to buy his exit by detailing Dickie's possible location but Raylan has him jailed anyway. Mags and Doyle find Dickie at a cabin and Mags hit him for his actions, which could repercussions for their activities. But Dickie explains that he has a plan to get themselves out of Raylan's track: his plan involves Doyle killing Dickie's associate Jed Berwind (

Richard Speight Jr. Richard Speight Jr. (born September 4, 1969) is an American actor, director, screenwriter and producer who is known for a variety of roles including CBS TV series '' Jericho'', '' The Agency'', and the HBO miniseries '' Band of Brothers''. Sp ...

) for "resisting arrest" and avoid Raylan from finding their connections. Doyle visits Jed that night but Raylan unexpectedly arrives and forces Doyle to leave. Raylan promises Jed protection for him and his family for his testimony. Jed confesses that Dickie killed Helen as he was there but is unsure of Dickie's location. He also tells Raylan that Arlo and Boyd cooperated to steal Dickie's marijuana business. Raylan confronts Boyd about his actions but Boyd explains that as the Black Pike deal is not official yet, he can use it as his advantage to get Mags to reveal Dickie's location. He releases Arlo in order to talk to Mags, who reluctantly gives him Dickie's cabin's location. Raylan and Doyle then arrive at Dickie's cabin, arresting him as Mags betrayed him. However, Raylan knocks Doyle unconscious and forces Dickie to walk through the woods. A desperate Dickie pleads for his life but Raylan reprimands him due to his strong bond with Helen. Raylan's comments made him change his mind and instead of executing Dickie, he just knocks him unconscious. The next day, Boyd, Ava and Winona (

Natalie Zea Natalie Zea (born March 17, 1975) is an American actress known for her performances on television. Zea began her acting career in theatre. Her first major role was on the NBC daytime soap opera ''Passions'' (2000–2002), where she played the r ...

) join Raylan on Helen's funeral at her house. Mags officially signs the Black Pike deal and instructs a woman to visit Jed in jail. After the funeral, Raylan discovers that Jed changed his testimony and now claimed to be Helen's killer, forcing the police to release Dickie from jail. Dickie is picked up by Doyle and Mags, who comforts him as he cries due to Raylan's threat. Mags promises she'll take care of it.

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Reckoning" was seen by an estimated 2.92 million household viewers and gained a 0.9/2 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to

. This means that 0.9 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 2 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. This was a 16% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 2.50 million viewers with a 0.9/2 in the 18–49 demographics.

Critical reviews

"Reckoning" received critical acclaim. Scott Tobias of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cr ...

'' gave the episode an "A−" grade and wrote, "The wordless, slow-motion shots of Raylan at the beginning of 'Reckoning' are like a cold splash of water in that respect: We're suddenly reminded that Aunt Helen is not just the brassy, shotgun-toting woman chained to Raylan's father, but the person responsible for Raylan's upbringing, and her death is of real consequence to him. Add to that his part in the chain of events that led to Helen's murder and there's no escaping the guilt and grief that defines much of this first-rate episode."

James Poniewozik James "Jim" Poniewozik (; born July 12, 1968) is an American journalist and television critic. He is the chief TV critic for ''The New York Times''. Earlier in his career, he wrote ''Time'' magazine's ''Tuned In'' column for 16 years. Early life ...

of ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...

'' wrote, "In a recent ''Justified'' post, I noted how the show had developed its cast so well that it can hold my attention even without Raylan Givens. Last night's 'Reckoning' didn't change that opinion — much of it, especially Jeremy Davies' work, only underscored it. But it also emphasized, undeniably, that Timothy Olyphant remains fan-damn-tastic in this role."

Alan Sepinwall Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with '' The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He ...

of ''

HitFix HitFix, or HitFix.com, was an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information, and reviews and critiques of film, music, and television. In mid-2010 HitFix crossed the 1,00 ...

'' wrote, "This season of ''Justified'' has been one long scorpion and the frog parable, as Raylan, Boyd, Mags and so many others have tried and failed to change their natures, dragging a variety of frogs down with them. And by the end of the fantastic 'Reckoning', many of the major players have accepted who and what they are."

Todd VanDerWerff Emily St. James (formerly Emily Nicole VanDerWerff; born November 30, 1982) is an American critic, journalist, podcaster, and author. She primarily writes about television. She has written for '' Vox'', ''The A.V. Club'', ''The Guardian'', the ' ...

of ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' wrote, "In the generally terrific episode 'Reckoning', a stellar penultimate hour for what's been a wonderful second season of ''Justified'', not a single gun goes off." Dan Forcella of ''TV Fanatic'' gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "'Reckoning' was another thrilling episode of ''Justified''s stellar second season. With the little bit we saw of Loretta, she must have a big role in next week's finale. There is no reason to continue to come back to her if she's isn't going to be a factor in the future."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reckoning (Justified) Justified (TV series) episodes 2011 American television episodes Television episodes directed by Adam Arkin