# Fargo (2014)

> A darkly comic anthology in which each season brings a new cast into a murder-soaked tale set in and around Minnesota.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/54111

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 51
- Episode runtime: 52 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: crime, drama
- Created by: Noah Hawley
- Network: FX
- Cast: Juno Temple, Patrick Wilson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, David Rysdahl, Allison Tolman, Colin Hanks, Joe Keery, Ewan McGregor
- TMDB rating: 8.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2802850/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: brutal
- Tone: darkly comic, deadpan, bleak, tense, wintry

## What critics say

Critics and audiences broadly regard Fargo as an acclaimed anthology whose strong acting, sharp writing and darkly comic tone carry most seasons, though the fourth season is seen as a dip.

## Synopsis

Fargo (2014-2024) is an American crime anthology series created by Noah Hawley for FX. Each of its five seasons, which together run to fifty-one episodes, tells a self-contained story of malice, violence and murder in and around Minnesota and North Dakota, with a fresh cast in every season. Juno Temple plays Dorothy 'Dot' Lyon, a young woman whose ordinary life tips into chaos, while Patrick Wilson plays Lou Solverson, a steady police officer drawn into the wreckage. Allison Tolman, Colin Hanks and Chris Rock appear among the principal players in other seasons. The engine of each chapter is the collision between small, modest ambitions and violence that spirals beyond anyone's control, with crimes investigated across frozen highways, diners and quiet family homes. Stories unfold in a sharp, deadpan register where brutality and folksy politeness sit side by side. The tone is darkly comic and bleakly absurd, and the look is wintry and austere. Fans of True Detective and the crime anthology tradition will find resonance here, as will viewers drawn to black comedy with a cold northern edge. Its structure makes each season a complete story that can be enjoyed on its own while the shared tone binds the whole.

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- [True Detective (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/42264)
- [One Dollar (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/64147)
- [Unbelievable (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/77337)
- [American Crime Story (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/57078)
- [Castle Rock (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/62137)
- [The Killing (2011)](https://ember.film/tv/31678)
- [Mare of Easttown (2021)](https://ember.film/tv/95824)
- [On Becoming a God in Central Florida (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/69164)

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