By Ron Purtee
I won’t lie
to you good reader, I’m pretty new to the show. I spent the better part of the
weekend buzzing through both seasons and enjoying what I felt was a Breaking
Bad level of amazing television.
And while the
show was driven by amazing performances from Billy Bob Thornton, Patrick Wilson,
Ted Danson, Allison Tolman and the grossly underrated Colin Hanks, as well as
compelling writing, set design, etc. Something really stuck out to me about the
show. Where the heart of the show truly lied.
Now this is
where I get into MASSIVE spoilers. So If you haven’t seen FARGO yet this is
going to ruin a lot of people’s days.
Near the end
of season 2 of Fargo, Betsy Solverson, played expertly by Cristin Millioti,
succumbs to the effects of some drugs that she was given for her ever spreading
cancer and she talks about a dream she has in a voice over as we watch things
play out. We see the invention of supermarkets, and technology as a whole
increasing but the part of her dream that really got to me was near the end.
She dreamt of Lou and the family. They were all together (the cast from season
1) celebrating Gus and Molly’s son’s birthday. That’s when it hit me, and I’m
not afraid to say that I had a tear come down my cheek.
You see, the
true heart of this show is family. Plain and simple. Let me explain: during the
year time jump of season 1, Molly and Gus get married, move into a house and
Molly is very pregnant with their son. That’s when everything around them
begins to fall apart. Lester runs into Lorne again and that brings him back
into the fold.
When Lou
finds out about this he has no reservations about going home, getting his shot
gun and sitting outside of Molly and Gus’ house. He talks about protecting his
granddaughter. In that year time, they became a family, and they don’t have the
teenage angst of “She’s not my mother”. Lou sees Greta as his granddaughter.
End of story. Molly is Greta’s mom now. And that family bond is what was at the
core of this show.
So many times
on television shows, and in real life, when someone who has been married before
the family that they bring with them has serious reservations about the whole
ordeal. Yet, even when Greta and Molly meets for the first time, there is a
definite Mother/Daughter bond. I mean one of the first things Molly asks Greta
is if she’s dating or not.
I don’t know
if its because these are good hearted people with nothing but love to give, or
if its just because they are from the upper Midwestern part of the US where everyone
is nice to everyone, but it was something that was very touching to see. I think
deep down its something that everyone wants. That family life where love is the
order of the day, something so many of us are missing. A little love. That is
where Fargo pushes forward while other shows falter.
Also, aren’t
those Solverson’s amazing cops?
Ron Purtee is a comedian, podcaster, and writer who has previously contributed to ShockTillYouDrop and GeekWeek. His podcast, The Ron Purtee Show can be found on iTunes and you can connect with him on twitter at @realronpurtee
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