Sometimes bigger isn’t better. And, this week, Co-Executive Producer Dave Andron explains why.
In the first draft, the episode’s final showdown was about swat teams. It was about tactical surveillance. Hell, it was about the whole cavalry. Yet, somehow in the final cut, it became a face-off between just a few individuals with a lot to lose and little time to find salvation. And without the hustle and bustle distractions of Lexington’s finest swarming in the nearby bushes, you could really feel those stakes and get inside the minds of each character.
Sometimes you have to scale it back, so the heart of the story can be built up. Whether it’s a big, action scene or just a moment of desperation in the life of an addict, Justified knows it’s the humanity that counts.
This week I sat down for an interview with Dave Andron to discuss the humanity in his episode, “Harlan Roulette”, and how scaling it back can actually amplify the stakes when done right.
And, oh, was it done right!
Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Subscribe to Justified
I was hooked the minute Raylan was locked up in the freezer in season 1 and he said “well sh^%t” I hope in the middle of all the drug wars the writers will remember what characters we love best. Nothing was more entertaining than Raylan’s boss chasing the bad guy on oxygen. Writers have entertained us with the bad guy stories but this show pulled in viewers because it focused on the good guys. The new hot item book is called Raylan not Eastern Ky drug lords. Please just remember how long Rockford ran and how popular it was-the main characters were never pushed aside for the bad part of the story. I lived in Eastern Ky and no matter what-the people came to a halt to watch Ky basketball-they are true to their colors. Keep our main characters true to their colors and if you want to win a few more viewers have some of the Lexington crew wear a UK sweatshirt-lol.
I love this show, it is my favorite, in fact only 1 of 2 shows I watch. this entry has nothing to do with the one I clicked on to comment. Rather it is an overall critique of the show and characters and where they are going. I’m particularly concerned about the Winona chShe is beautiful. But she’s old (I mean the character and the premise of her, not the actress). So she needs to die or just go away because nobody cares about her anymore. She no longer adds anything positive to the show because she keeps hurting the protagonist, running out on him. It isn’t even a realistically written part anymore. Women don’t do that. When they leave a man they love, they stay gone. They are smarter than to come back because they know they will have sex and it will start all over so they don’t. So I hope the writers know that and don’t bring the character back or if they do, kill her…nah just make her stay gone because if she’s killed, she stays with our protagonist haunting him, which continues the tediousness of the character. So write her out or make her piss him off royally and continuously, but end this on again off again romance BS. Old also goes to the rest of the characters in previous seasons. My gosh I was so glad when old man Crowder died and latter all of the Bennetts. i never did lcare for any of the Bennetts as characters anyway and the Ma while novel at first, got tedious real fact and outlived my interest in the series. Kudos on the new characters (and their fine acting) but I guess they will all get a bullet from Raylon (however you spell it, I’m not a tv junky and am not looking it up). by the end of the season. Especially the new/old bad guys, Duffy and Quarrels. Q is delicious. if he stays around, focus more on the pure evil and less on his angsts. He needs to be a supervillain, near perfectly evil. sharpen Duffy up too as he’s become too much of a candy butt. I see it happening now, so step it up and show his bad side a lot more. This needs to be an epic struggle where Raylon comes to within a hair of dying (not some stupid drawn torture scene either, something fast and furious) to the point that even I believe he won’t make it. so the key is new full flavored characters all the time and killing off the ones we get tired of. (so kill of Raylon’s old man as he’s another one that was novel for awhile but lame). And you’re welcome.