Yes, Malvo is far worse than those three. He’s not morally gray; he’s morally pitch black. He shares more in common with Christopher Nolan’s Joker because he really just wants to watch the world. He’s even got the impishness and quirky black comedy that Heath Ledger’s interpretation embraced. His motives for doing anything that he does are unclear, except for the fact that he looks like he’s enjoying himself. Billy Bob Thornton seems to be enjoying himself as well. I’ve praised his performance in past reviews, but really not enough can be said about taking a character that is so inherently bad and making him likable. While I’m throwing praise around, director Randal Einhorn (The Office, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) deserves a tip of the hat. A lot of the comedy tonight seemed more direct and less overly-Coen inspired, which helped keep the darker moments from bogging down the material. He especially shined in the show’s opening moments, showing the death of the “naked guy” from the series’ premiere. He expertly splices in security footage, then puts the camera in the trunk with our poor victim, which tosses around when the car crashes. Also, maybe Einhorn coaxed the performance out of his old cohort Glenn Howerton, who is still pretty unrecognizable from his most widely known role of Dennis on Sunny. The action this week is comes from Lester having to deliver the insurance policy on Sam Hess to his widow. Played by Kate Walsh, Gina Hess is an ex-stripper through and through, using that old seductive charm for a little bit of fun with Lester. Unfortunately, his appearance at the Hess home earns him a visit from the two men from Fargo, who give an almost silent shakedown before Molly comes to his rescue, which really isn’t much better for him. Lester isn’t that bright of a bulb, surely he would have the good sense not to visit the wife of the man he was suspected of having a hand in killing. That little bit of coincidence struck me as sort of dumb, even for by his standards. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for all news updates related to the world of geek. And Google+, if that’s your thing.
