S02.E01: Waiting For Dutch

[Ohwell]

Those are a must, but I have to have my Dymo label maker as well.

 

 

I can't help you with the stapler, but my circa 1979 Selectric is looking for a good home.  I also have a Dictaphone transcription machine from the same era.  ;-)

 

I also have an electric pencil sharpener from the late 70's.  That sucker can sharpen a tree branch, if necessary.  With all this stuff, I'm good to go!

[SteveAC10]

 

(Plus, didn't they deduce that wasn't the killer's shoe in the tree? I have to go back and rewatch now.)

It was definitely his. Rye was wearing very pointy white patent loafers and that's what was in the tree and he was missing a shoe in the garage scene.

[Andromeda]

I got the impression Kirsten Dunst's character is hiding something big. That's why she didn't go to the police or hospital -- she was on her way back from seeing a boyfriend or something even more creative. Clearly she's not happy being a butcher's wife, what with her lack of reaction over her husband saying he might get the shop, her self-actualization seminars, and her postcard of California on her mirror. 

 

Such a good episode, I'm hooked. 

 

The aliens thing was odd -- at first I thought it was in there so we would see Kieran Culkin's character attempt to explain what happened there on the road, but now he's dead so I guess not. The other thought I had was that it fits with the times, when Close Encounters was in the theater. Otherwise...um, not sure what's going on there!

 

I don't envy the medical examiner's task reconstructing Kiernan's fate when he gets his hands on the corpse. He was stabbed and removed the knife in the restaurant, then hit by a car on the road, then stabbed again by a gardening implement in a suburban home -- and tossed in a freezer. I wonder where else his body will end up before all is said and done.

 

I cracked up at the crime lord's business meeting, complete with all the appropriate lingo -- mergers, markets, divesting (hah!), etc. Very well done!

 

ETA: That Selectric typewriter really took me back. I was so excited to have one -- interchangeable font balls, woot!

Edited October 13, 2015 by Andromeda

[Starchild]

And even a slide show!

[shapeshifter]

That's what I thought too. In the pain, shock and blood loss from the stab wound, he was dazed and confused by the headlights and the lights from the sign from the Waffle Hut.

I thought whatever he snorted right before he went on the shooting spree was causing him to hallucinate--like maybe they were just street lamps and he was swaying and didn't realize it.

[annzeepark914]

The Northern Expansion Strategy booklet was funny and quickly set up the difference between that bunch and the Gerhardts, who clearly keep a woodchipper or two oiled and ready to go in the backyard.  With the B+/A- list casting, I can't wait to see who's playing the shadowy figure. 

 

I laughed out loud when I saw that comment about the woodchipper ready to go!  Yeah...I bet they got one--they're just the kind of people to have a woodchipper.

[leighdear]

I wonder where else his body will end up before all is said and done.

I envision a "Weekend at Bernies" type madcap romp through the snowy streets.  Hilarity ensues. 

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

Who's Going To End Up Being The Lester Of Fargo's Second Season?
And more not-quite-burning questions about the Season 2 premiere.

[pasdetrois]

Season one didn't hold my interest but perhaps season two will. I liked the first episode.

 

With paternal roots in southwestern MN I spent lots of time in Sioux Falls and have been to Luverne. It tickles me to see it again (although I guess they shot in Calgary).

 

When I got my first IBM Selectric it was like getting electricity; it was so much better than a regular typewriter. Then there was another technical jump to typewriters with mag(netic) cards. And fax machines!!

 

The 70s fashions are so clear in my memory. We all wore stretchy stripes.

 

Is there a way to find out where that VFW/bingo hall is? It has WWII planes on the wall and I'd love a closer look. Another Calgary location perhaps?

 

The Coen brothers had the "sleepy baby" lullaby in O Brother.

Edited October 14, 2015 by pasdetrois

[Armchair Critic]

I actually said aloud "no way...isn't this Children of the Sun?" as it started playing.  Perfect.  God I love this show - so glad it's back finally.  The first 20 minutes were intense and nuts.  Yay - can't wait for next eppy already, lots of story to untangle here.

 

I DVRed it, just finished watching and first thing I did was find 'Children of the Sun' on YouTube to listen to it, then I came here. I love all things 70's and I loved the first season so I am definitely in although I don't know if anyone will be able to match up to Billy Bob as Malvo.

Edited October 14, 2015 by Armchair Critic

[A Boston Gal]

What did the apprentice butcher's wife expect would happen to the not-quite-dead gangster in the garage? That he'd magically disapear, and the car damage would fix itself? Or was she formulating a master plan to fix it all while browning the tater tots?  Which explains why she was too busy to move the magazines from the kitchen chair.

 

I think Kirsten Dunst is brilliant - she really made me hate her with her little soft squeaky, "no...no...don't go out there...no..." noises.  Like nails on a blackboard, only more irritating. The poster upthread who said she was probably coming home from an illicit affair is right - why else would any sane person go through those contortions of logic about why NOT to call the police? Of course, convincing a dumb lunk of a trusting husband helps.

 

Question: What year was the first season of Fargo set? I'm trying to figure out Molly's age then compared to her six year old self in this season.

Edited October 14, 2015 by A Boston Gal

[cpcathy]

I read somewhere the first season was set in 2006. Could be wrong, though.

[annzeepark914]

I love all things 70's and I loved the first season so I am definitely in although I don't know if anyone will be able to match up to Billy Bob as Malvo.

Malvo is definitely missed!

[roughing it]

I took typing class in 1977, and you had to be quick into the classroom in order to snag one of the couple of Selectrics they had, or else you were stuck with a manual typewriter.

I haven't seen Kirsten Dunst in much of anything recently, has she always been so well endowed?

[preeya]

Question: What year was the first season of Fargo set? I'm trying to figure out Molly's age then compared to her six year old self in this season.

Season 1 was 2006 and Season 2 is 1979, as per Wikipedia.

[preeya]

I thought I remembered him seeing it in the woods, away from the road, and then after it speeds off (and upwards) then he turns and sees the car that hits him?

 

(Plus, didn't they deduce that wasn't the killer's shoe in the tree? I have to go back and rewatch now.)

It definitely was Culkin's shoe. Watch the preview on the first post.

[Matt K]

I enjoyed the episode a bunch which is good because I was worried after True Detective season 2.  That said, Jeffrey Donovan's accent was all over the place.  At one point Minnesota, another time it was Irish and other times who knows.  I liked the actor was he was in Burn Notice but man.  

[Babalu]

What did the apprentice butcher's wife expect would happen to the not-quite-dead gangster in the garage? That he'd magically disapear, and the car damage would fix itself? Or was she formulating a master plan to fix it all while browning the tater tots?  Which explains why she was too busy to move the magazines from the kitchen chair.

 

I think Kirsten Dunst is brilliant - she really made me hate her with her little soft squeaky, "no...no...don't go out there...no..." noises.  Like nails on a blackboard, only more irritating. The poster upthread who said she was probably coming home from an illicit affair is right - why else would any sane person go through those contortions of logic about why NOT to call the police? Of course, convincing a dumb lunk of a trusting husband helps.

What if Peggy found the money and was planning to leave her husband, skip town, and run away to Hollywood the next day? It still doesn't explain what she thought the explanation for the body would be, but maybe she was going to try to frame Ed. She seems deluded enough to think she could just change her identity and disappear. And it might be a reason she didn't call the police when she hit Rye if she thought the police or someone else might find the money.

Just wondering how and when the money will turn up - because it has to, right? I'll probably have a million other theories before we find out.

[violetr]

MAN that was good. I think my favorite scene was when Ed was trying to see who or what was in the garage, and he kept hitting the side of the flashlight that wasn't working properly, and it kept flashing on Rye like he was some sort of snarling monster and not a human being at all. It was very Lynchian and utterly awesome. Can't wait for more. 

[Armchair Critic]

I haven't seen Kirsten Dunst in much of anything recently, has she always been so well endowed?

I noticed right away too that her chest looked bigger. I think she may be interesting and has a whole hidden life her patsy husband doesn't know about.

[zxy556575]

The 70s fashions are so clear in my memory. We all wore stretchy stripes.

 

I totally had the same ribbed top Kristen was wearing. Never impaled anyone on my windshield while I was wearing it, though. The Selectric was the bomb. You could swap out the typeball and change the font style! Made me dizzy.

 

Okay, then.

Edited October 14, 2015 by lordonia

[shapeshifter]

The yellow print that was Molly's pajamas looked awfully familiar--my oldest was born in 1979, so maybe...

I didn't notice Kirsten Dunst's figure, but since more than one person here noticed, maybe they were telegraphing a pregnancy?

[lyric]

I haven't seen Kirsten Dunst in much of anything recently, has she always been so well endowed?

She's definitely filled out since her teen years, because yes, she's naturally well endowed.  I know this because I've seen Melancholia.  Trust.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Killing for Tyra made sense.  That girl was worth it.  Conspiracy after the legal killing of Rye for that blonde witch?  Ugh.

 

This season is off to a much slower and fitful start than last.  I am not invested in any of them.  

 

Where did the skimmed cash go?  Rye would not have been so stupid as to have it on his person.  What was the timeline with Rye meeting his brothers?  He went directly to the typewriter store, to the courthouse, to following the judge?  When did the family meeting take place?  Given the lower profits already being reflected in the books, was that partly due to Rye?  If so, why wouldn't one of the brothers bring that up and that he was weaseling out of collections at that very moment?

 

What is the purpose of the portentous friend who sees conspiracy on all things? 

 

I can't get past the blase approach to the triple murder in that small town.  It's absurd.  The killer is out and about and no bulletins or outside LE agencies were alerted?  The forensics were massive.  They don;t bring in a specialist.  Yes, NCIS was not a thing back then.  But, something like that?  Big city techs would have been there.  How on earth was Molly's daddy able to just take off and meet his buddies for a bit and still get home at a reasonable hour with his wife?  

 

So, is the meta point/theme to all of this about the nature of leadership?  Amiable folks who can read people are better than technocrats who don't show much warmth or heart?  

 

I hope we get a cameo of Malvo in dental school.  ;) 

[Babalu]

What if Peggy found the money and was planning to leave her husband, skip town, and run away to Hollywood the next day? It still doesn't explain what she thought the explanation for the body would be, but maybe she was going to try to frame Ed. She seems deluded enough to think she could just change her identity and disappear. And it might be a reason she didn't call the police when she hit Rye if she thought the police or someone else might find the money.

Just wondering how and when the money will turn up - because it has to, right? I'll probably have a million other theories before we find out.

Quoting myself because: DOH. This is BEFORE Fargo, the movie, so there was no box of money yet. I was so fixated on thinking that would be a recurring motif that I forgot the timeline. Edited October 15, 2015 by Babalu

[albaniantv]

It wasn't that unusual in 1970s Americans reported seeing UFOs, usually late at night and most often in wide open sparsely populated parts of the country, the plains, the desert. But looks like Minnesota had some activity of its own in 1979:

 

http://www.startribune.com/thousands-seek-out-artifact-from-warren-s-79-ufo/217334721/

 

A couple members of my family observed one in the 1980s in rural Pennsylvania, so I don't automatically discount the possibility that people are seeing something actual, rather than imagining or hallucinating it.

[Portia]

I'm SO in. I can't wait to see where this crazy train takes us.

I went squee over many period details. The self-correcting Selectric--like the one I learned to type on. Peggy's striped sweater--swear-ta-gosh I had that exact sweater in junior high, and I felt so pretty in it! The hideous Gremlin, like the one I first "made out"in. The Five Little Peppers book, which I remember so well, I'd bet good money that was an authentic period prop. Even the UFO sighting (or was it?) seemed very much of the time. I'll have to do a little research to see how widespread it was, but in my part of Missouri in those days there was a lot of UFO hubbub.

On a completely different note, I had no idea how much Ann Cusack looks and sounds like her sister Joan! I loved her turn as the judge.

My husband is a Noah Hawley fan, and he was delighted to learn that it was Hawley performing "Go to Sleep, Little Baby."

Edited October 15, 2015 by Portia

[ElectricBoogaloo]

LANCE! He seems like a sweet husband so what are the chances that he will end up taking the blame for this murder?

 

After the first few scenes with Dutch, all I could think about was Kramer saying, "Fredo was weak and stupid!"

 

I went back and rewatched for the UFO lights and they were way over his head and in front of him (as well as blue). The headlights of the car were yellow and came from behind him. It looked like he saw some kind of large lighted sign (not a billboard, but it looked like the shape of a man so maybe for a hotel or some other business?).

 

Peggy seems really OCD, between her stacks of magazines being "organized" and the way she immediately told Ed that the pork chops were getting blood on the counter. She is much colder and more calculating than she appears. Loved the juxtaposition of her telling Ed that she panicked and the footage of her calmly coming home. And as soon as she heard noise in the garage, she tried to distract him by offering sex. I agree that she is hiding more than just the hit and run.

 

I haven't seen Kirsten Dunst in much of anything recently, has she always been so well endowed?

I read an interview where she said that she gained weight for this role because she thought the character was a meat and potatoes kind of girl. For some women, weight gain shows up pretty quickly in the boobs (unfortunately, I am not one of them). But yes, she was pretty well endowed even in her younger days.

[OceanicFlight818]

Rye had just 1) snorted coke, 2) been sprayed in the face with bug spray (which is a neurotoxin) 3) been stabbed in the back and suffered some blood loss 4) just been through a pretty harrowing experience in general.

Pretty sure that the combination of those things could be enough to cause some hallucinatory experiences....I don't see this show turning into the X-files.

I loved the first season, and I can't wait to see where this one goes...lots of people saying there is "too much going on" or "this thing wasn't explained, and that thing doesn't make sense." Maybe we should give the show more than one episode to tell a season long story?

[RustbeltWriter]

I really enjoyed the first episode. The scene in the waffle place was really well done. It was just stark and brutal. Also enjoyed Brad Garret treating organized crime like an organized business. He may have his hands full with Jean Smart.

[A Boston Gal]

I really enjoyed the first episode. The scene in the waffle place was really well done. It was just stark and brutal. Also enjoyed Brad Garret treating organized crime like an organized business. He may have his hands full with Jean Smart.

Oooh, yes! I can imagine Garet's character as the would-be business tycoon, determined to bring organzed crime into the future, complete with presentations and overhead projections. Looks like this will be New School vs Old.

 

Edited to add: Extremely glad this show is back, and a large part of that this forum. You all are so observant and fun. :)

Edited October 15, 2015 by A Boston Gal

[Dev F]

Where did the skimmed cash go?  Rye would not have been so stupid as to have it on his person.

 

Rye didn't seem like the kind of guy who would shrewdly squirrel money away. He probably just got desperate and used it to pay his own expenses -- drugs, maybe gambling, etc. So I doubt he had much a stash anywhere.

 

Given the lower profits already being reflected in the books, was that partly due to Rye?  If so, why wouldn't one of the brothers bring that up and that he was weaseling out of collections at that very moment?

 

They did mention that Rye was short, but they also noted that local collections were low even if his shortfall was discounted. Floyd, I believe, compared their operation to "a balloon leaking air all over."

 

I can't get past the blase approach to the triple murder in that small town.  It's absurd.  The killer is out and about and no bulletins or outside LE agencies were alerted?  The forensics were massive.  They don;t bring in a specialist.  Yes, NCIS was not a thing back then.  But, something like that?  Big city techs would have been there.  How on earth was Molly's daddy able to just take off and meet his buddies for a bit and still get home at a reasonable hour with his wife?

 

I think the idea is that Lou is a Minnesota state trooper, while his father-in-law works for the county. They both surveyed the scene before ultimately deciding that the county had jurisdiction. ("This a local matter or do the state police want it?" "We do not.") Lou then left the scene in Hank's hands, and I assume he then summoned the necessary county personnel to handle forensics and the like.

[roughing it]

 

We were wondering if Kieran Culking might be "not really dead" and turn up later as a young Carl Showalter - he was really channelling a young Steve Buscemi - but I guess the deep freeze makes that pretty unlikely.

I thought he resembled Buscemi as well.  Here's a theory - maybe we will see more of Culkin.  Perhaps they will go back in time to show how previous events led up to the diner murders.  I would sure like to see more of Ann Cusack (the judge) as well.

[ALenore]

Regarding leaving the guy on the car hood, I remember this disturbing incident from several years ago.

http://articles.lati...8/news/mn-31784

 

Both my husband and I definitely remembered this. We figured out as soon as we saw Kirsten Dunst's character that she was probably the one that hit Rye.   In real life, the woman that did this was found guilty and sentenced to 50 years in prison. 

[margol29]

Ok then, did anyone else think about the butcher shop guy getting rid of a body. Just sayin. Ground meat.

[Rockstar99435]

I think Brad Garrets boss is making a mistake not taking Mrs. Mob seriously. I feel like she is going to be calling the shots, not the sons. 

 

Yeah, as soon as he said that line about her being tough but just a girl, I said, "She is going to make him eat those words."

 

I'm loving it already. I love the accents, the sets, the clothes, everything. My favorite part was the judge telling Rye the story of Job and then saying "Oh crap" when he pulled out the gun. 

[tennisgurl]

 

Pretty sure that the combination of those things could be enough to cause some hallucinatory experiences....I don't see this show turning into the X-files.

Its time to play everyone's favorite game from the 1970s: Cocaine or UFO! 

[gesundheit]

Oh wow, that was spectacular. I have to admit, I had low hopes because I don't usually enjoy Wilson, Danson, or Dunst. I already love all three of them on this series. 

 

I think I even liked this opener better than last season's. Every note of the first act was perfection. And the other acts were pretty terrific, too. While I normally bristle a bit at a show that is so extremely lopsided in male-vs-female characters, this show does so right by everyone that it's hard to judge. 

 

Maybe we'll find out that aliens abducted Rye and spit out a clone and that's who what's-her-name hit, and we'll see plenty more of Culkin later in the season on Pluto. (I AM KIDDING.)

[becauseIsaidso]

Crap!!!!! I missed it!  And I had a sticky note set up and everything!  Gonna make sure I watch a rerun of the premier before the 2nd epi rolls around.

[cpcathy]

Aww. I have often overlooked sticky notes that were supposed to remind me of something. Damn the sticky notes!

[shapeshifter]

The new season's premier was up to the quality of last season's, but I'm wondering if "series fatigue" is going to set in sooner because it will be a similar story arc but with different characters. By "series fatigue" I mean, for example: I stopped watching the still-excellent Good Wife last year when yet another election story arc began. For Fargo, it looks like once again a small town Minnesotan breaks bad by killing someone after being goaded into it by someone else. Of course, Dunst's character is not the same as Thornton's, so I'll watch a few more at least.

Crap!!!!! I missed it! And I had a sticky note set up and everything! Gonna make sure I watch a rerun of the premier before the 2nd epi rolls around.

Aww. I have often overlooked sticky notes that were supposed to remind me of something. Damn the sticky notes!

Yeah, a couple of years ago I realized sticky notes are too easy to ignore, which was a real problem for my day job. Now I put everything work-related in an online calendar with alerts. If you don't use Outlook or Apple devices, your email account should have a calendar.

Now Zap2it.com and other TV schedule sites let you create a viewing calendar with alerts.

I have a spreadsheet of TV shows I want to watch uploaded to dropbox.com. I always keep a tab open in my iPad browser with that spreadsheet. Of course, I have to edit it every few weeks. I should probably get with the new technology and use a TV website calendar.

Edited October 17, 2015 by shapeshifter

[hendersonrocks]

Poor Luverne. Brainerd and Bemidji are used to tourists, being Lake Country and Paul Bunyan-esque, but that small town isn't equipped for what might be coming its way. I typed "Luv" in Google, and "Luverne Minnesota" came right up.

 

I grew up in Luverne and was just a little kid living the dream in 1979, so this whole thing about Fargo season 2 being set there is wild. It's a wonderful small town on the prairie that's legitimately my favorite place in the world - I live in the Twin Cities now but my grandparents are still there, and I'm never more at peace then when I'm there too.

 

All that being said - the town itself is relatively key about Fargo. Ken Burns's documentary The War was set in Luverne, and that was a waaaayyyyy bigger deal - the world premiere was held in Luverne at our gorgeous old theater on main street. That a town of less than 5,000 in the middle of nowhere has had these two programs based there is kind of crazy, but The War is what people are most proud of. This is kind of just a funny thing on a cable channel that people are enjoying nitpicking. The Waffle Hut would have been the bakery, and it definitely was not open 24-7; there is not a single house even close to the style of the Solverson's; that kind of stuff. There WAS at least one black family in the area back in the late 70s - though they lived in an even smaller town outside of Luverne. 

 

Beyond my hometown glee at this whole thing, I also thought it was a legitimately awesome premiere. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Edited October 18, 2015 by hendersonrocks

[Beth64]

CSI did the taking the guy you hit and then got stuck in the windshield home, too.

Edited October 18, 2015 by Beth64

[Ohwell]

The new season's premier was up to the quality of last season's, but I'm wondering if "series fatigue" is going to set in sooner because it will be a similar story arc but with different characters. By "series fatigue" I mean, for example: I stopped watching the still-excellent Good Wife last year when yet another election story arc began. For Fargo, it looks like once again a small town Minnesotan breaks bad by killing someone after being goaded into it by someone else. Of course, Dunst's character is not the same as Thornton's, so I'll watch a few more at least.

For me, that's part of why I love this show--figuring out who's going break bad each season.

[benteen]

I was really impressed with the cold opening and how the massacre played out.  I enjoyed it and will definitely keep watching.

 

Hey, Michael Hogan is in this!  Ma Garheart and her sons remind me of Ma Bennett and her sons from Justified.

 

GREAT cast.

Edited October 18, 2015 by benteen

[ToastnBacon]

I think the idea is that Lou is a Minnesota state trooper, while his father-in-law works for the county. They both surveyed the scene before ultimately deciding that the county had jurisdiction. ("This a local matter or do the state police want it?" "We do not.") Lou then left the scene in Hank's hands, and I assume he then summoned the necessary county personnel to handle forensics and the like.

Yes, yes, and yes.

Plus, their uniforms were even county sheriff's department and state police.

I don't think it was relevant to the story to show us the crime lab responding to do their 1970s version of CSI, so I'm discounting all the upthread criticism about that.

As far as the UFO goes, I'm not making much of that, I hope it was just 1970s window dressing. The tabloids were full of that crap in the 1970s.

Also, the Billy Thorpe song, "Children of the Sun" was about a UFO encounter.

The season opener didn't disappoint me.

I'm not too sure what to say to the critics who claim it was "all over the place." It wasn't hard to follow and it was easy to see that there are three story lines, with possible a fourth story line that will merge at some point in the season.

The WaPo critic is being whiny if you ask me.

Edited October 18, 2015 by ToastnBacon

[ToastnBacon]

It definitely was Culkin's shoe. Watch the preview on the first post.

Culkin was wearing white shoes, it was a white shoe in the tree, Culkin was missing a shoe when he went into the freezer.

Edited October 18, 2015 by ToastnBacon

[Anela]

I loved it. I didn't think it was all over the place. I missed it last week, so I had to find it in the on-demand section. 

I might have to watch it again, because I was trying to figure out who some of the actors were - I recognized them from somewhere, but didn't know where: Kieran Culkin, Matt Damon look-a-like (from Breaking Bad), Ann Cusack (I thought she was Joan, at first), and I thought the one man's wife was Alyson Hannigan. 

 

I loved my electric typewriter, when I was a kid. Kieran Culkin reminds me a guy I went to school with: he looks just like him. 

I liked Kirsten Dunst. A guy on another board referred to her as "old". She's only 33. 

I like the whole tone of it - I think they do well with both the silly and the serious. 

[cpcathy]

True Detective season 2 was all over the place, and unfortunately, never had any rhyme or reason and never seemed to come together, I can already tell this is going to come together quite nicely.

[Raja]

Malvo is definitely missed!

I spent the first half of the episode convinced that he was driving the car.