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Trials and Tribulations
Season 5, Episode 2
Fargo s0502
Episode Information
Air Date:

November 21, 2023

Written by:

Noah Hawley

Directed by:

Noah Hawley

Episode Chronology
Previous Episode:

The Tragedy of the Commons

Next Episode:

The Paradox of Intermediate Transactions

CrewGalleryTranscript


Trials and Tribulations is the second episode of Season 5, and the forty-third episode overall. It aired on November 21, 2023.

Synopsis[]

Roy attempts to reset the natural order of things. Lorraine becomes increasingly suspicious.

Plot[]

Stark County, North Dakota constitutional sheriff Roy Tillman meets with Lenore Hunk and her husband Josh in a diner, explaining his philosophy that women are meant to serve under their husbands, and in return, they are to be protected and nurtured. He tells Josh that he only approves of a man striking his wife when she tries to take over his role, which is why he does not approve of Josh beating Lenore without reason. They both try to deny it, so Roy has his deputy Nugent starts to choke Josh out until Lenore asks him to stop. Roy throws hot coffee in Josh's face when he talks back and gives Lenore money, ordering her to tend to Josh and he will stop by the next day to make sure "the lesson stuck." The Hunks pass Roy's son and deputy Gator, who informs him that Dot Lyon escaped from Ole Munch and Donald Ireland.

The Tillmans meet with Munch at their ranch, who accuses Roy of not warning him of Dot's skills and threat level. Roy asks if he can track her down, and Munch asks why he wants Dot brought in. Roy explains that Dot was his wife who fled from him a decade ago, and he discovered where she lived under a new name after her arrest, claiming she owes him a debt. He asks Munch if he believes a man's actions are good if he is "pure." Munch responds that he is a nihilist and demands extra payment, so Roy sends Gator to take him to the "fixing place." In reality, Roy is ordering Gator to have Munch executed. Munch, however, realizes what's going on when he arrives at the "fixing place" and finds two men armed with shotguns waiting for him. Gator pulls his gun on Munch from behind, at which point Munch stuns him with his cigarette, breaks his wrist, disarms him of his gun, and shoots dead the other two men, leaving Gator temporarily deafened in one ear. By the time Roy arrives in response to the gunfire, Munch is gone.

Dot and Wayne Lyon talk to Indira Olmstead, who wonders about the blood on their floor differing in type from Dot's. Wayne believes Dot's story regardless and Indira leaves.

Danish Graves informs Lorraine Lyon that Dot has returned claiming to have not been kidnapped, leaving her wondering if Dot faked the kidnapping as an extortion attempt but backed out. As she orders Danish to keep suppressing police presence in the case, he wonders if Wayne is in on the scheme. She orders him to talk to Wayne while she goes to interrogate Dot.

Fargo FBI agents Joaquin and Meyer stop by the ranch to ask Roy why he isn't enforcing local law. They inform him that they are investigating his office for abuses of power, and he points out the subjectivity of the phrase "illegal" when put up against the more ludicrous and obscure local laws of the state and county before leaving.

Lorraine and her bodyguard Jerome wait for Dot in her house as she arrives home, sending him to play with Scotty as she asks Dot to sit. She states her firm dislike of Dot and her belief that she is plotting in a way that will harm Wayne, offering to pay her to leave him. Dot responds venomously, claiming to have "climbed through six kinds of hell to get where I am" and that "nobody takes what's mine and lives." A quietly surprised Lorraine leaves with Jerome. Dot looks at the bruising on her body and thinks about Roy until she is interrupted by Scotty, who she asks to help her with a "craft project." Together, they rig the house with several booby traps and homemade alarms.

Danish visits Wayne at his car dealership and puts Lorraine on the phone. They inform him that Witt Farr gave the description of a woman resembling Dot at the Revere gas station, and Lorraine insists that she was trying to scam her. Lorraine has Danish slap Wayne for her when he resists her claims.

Indira visits a hospitalized Witt and informs him of Dot killing one of her kidnappers and injuring the other, which he asserts matches her resourcefulness. Gator enters and, when he learns why Indira is there, takes her phone to see Dot's mugshot, "accidentally" deleting it before she can show it to Witt. She mentions that Dot is home and claiming that the kidnapping never happened, confusing both men. Witt expresses desire to thank her for saving his life, though Gator claims her presence put him in danger to begin with.

Wayne returns home to find Scotty hammering nails into a bat and sends her upstairs. Dot confirms that Lorraine came by but they "came to an understanding," only for him to reveal that she is taking legal action against Dot. She asserts that all that matter is the story "makes sense to us" and claims that the traps are due to the fight at the school board. She posits the idea of buying firearms and promises that things will return to normal soon.

Gator and Nugent stop at the gas station where the previous night's shootout happened. While Gator heads inside to get some snacks, Nugent stays outside to gas up their car. As soon as he's done, he's ambushed by Munch, who proceeds to kill him by stabbing him in the throat. He pins a note to Nugent's chest with the knife reading "YOU OWE ME", and disappears just as Gator comes back out and discovers the body.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Recurring Cast[]

Co-Starring[]

  • Scott Pocha as Nugent
  • Sean Depner as Josh Hunk
  • Kelsey Falconer as Lenore Hunk

Deaths[]

Trivia[]

To be added.

Season 5 episodes

01. "The Tragedy of the Commons"
02. "Trials and Tribulations"
03. "The Paradox of Intermediate Transactions"
04. "Insolubilia"
05. "The Tiger"
06. "The Tender Trap"
07. "Linda"
08. "Blanket"
09. "The Useless Hand"
10. "Bisquik"

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