Chris Large/FX Aw geez!
Last week, Fargo shocked everyone by suddenly jumping ahead a year to find Lester successful and remarried, Gus and Molly married and pregnant, and Malvo pretending to be a dentist. It wasn't what anyone was expecting, but it sure did throw a whole different energy into the show for this week's episode, which upped the suspense tenfold and gave us some intense heart palpitations. With Lorne Malvo around, anyone could die at any moment, and that makes for a pretty nerve-wracking television experience.
This week, we saw Lester's continued descent into murderous insanity as he—despite how well things were going for him—was still desperate for Malvo's approval and to keep himself alive. He lied with folksy expertise when Molly asked about the elevator massacre, courtesy of Malvo, that he certainly did witness. He finally had someone to love who wasn't sort of awful and mean to him and instead of loving her back, he sent her into the office as a decoy and got her killed. RIP, Linda! (Malvo's GF Jemma also failed to make it out of the episode alive.)
At least Molly finally has the attention of the FBI, even if the FBI agents are played by Key and Peele. She looked so darn happy after finally being told that she was doing good work that we just wanted to give her a big hug.
Arguably the most terrifying moment of the episode was Malvo sitting down for pie in the diner. We thought for sure Lou was about to die, but he walked away unscathed. Malvo left, just barely missing the arrival of Molly, Pepper and Budge.
The finale arrives next week, and we'll find out if Lester and Malvo will get away with it or if Molly will emerge triumphant. We're obviously rooting for Molly, who is possibly our new favorite police officer in the history of television, but we also kind of feel like there's no way this show could end that simply. We'll just have to wait and see!
But we did manage to get a few finale teases from executive producer Noah Hawley, who described the episode as "bloody," and previewed the Malvo and Lester conclusion for fans: "Can the student surpass the master? I guess that is the question that [fans] should be thinking about going into the last two episodes."
So what did you think of tonight's episode? Who do you think will win next week? Did you read this recap in a Minnesotan accent, because that's how we read/write everything after watching this show. Head to the comments with your thoughts!