Review: Fargo, “The Useless Hand”

I was a wanderer

Far away from God

I had sorrow in my bosom

And my way was mighty hard

Then I heard that gospel story

How He came down from His throne in glory

He paid the debt

I know He paid the debt for you and me

-“Jesus Paid the Debt” (as sung by Sam Cooke & the Soul Stirrers)

I’ve written a lot throughout this Fargo season about what I’ve seen as this year’s dominant theme: the idea that in the modern America this series is currently depicting, people increasingly retreat into whatever version of reality that they prefer, treating anything outside of it as fake, dangerous, or insignificant.

But there’s been another motif running through this whole season that I didn’t really catch onto until this week’s episode “The Useless Hand.” It’s debt. This season has, to a significant degree, been about what people owe—and the lengths to which some will go to get what they feel they deserve.

I’m not just talking about Lorraine Lyon’s financial empire here, although obviously that shou…