After a film and five seasons of television, it sometimes feels easier than ever to define what Fargo is as a franchise. Even if putting it into words is damn tough. With each new installment, the FX anthology series keeps the brand alive in new and inventive ways, but what’s always constant is that there are killers and victims and people who fall in between — people who make bad decisions out of fear or shame, and pay the price. There’s also usually someone representing the side of light (in proud Marge Gunderson tradition, that person is usually a member of law enforcement), and there’s always a wolf lurking in the shadows, ready to pounce.
Since creator Noah Hawley began the unconventional spinoff series, the concept of Fargo has come to encompass a whole lot of other random elements: Beyond the pounds of Coen brothers film references that get dropped, there are UFOs, random vignettes set in East Germany, puppet shows, Nightmare Before Christmas needle drops, competitive bridge, fake classic films, real classic film stars (played by actors), magic, and a pretty frequent occurrence of seemingly immortal men.
Beyond all the strangeness packed into each season, though, are breathtaking portraits of humanity at its worst and also its best, with each season serving as a morality play with its own peculiar sense of justice. But the longer you spend, gazing out into the snow, the more it all makes sense.
Below, check out the full ranking of Fargo seasons as they bounce around time and space. One note — to quote another Coen brothers film, it’s not the preferred nomenclature to refer to Fargo installments as “seasons.” (Even the beanie I received during a Fargo set visit is embroidered with “Year 3.”) However, throughout this article I chose to use “seasons,” in addition to “installments” and “years.” Because while each installment is ranked individually, Fargo (unlike some anthology series) does really feel like an interconnected whole.
[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Fargo Seasons 1-5. Or Years 1-5, if you prefer.]
05. Season 4: The One With Chris Rock
Fargo (FX)
When and Whereabouts: 1950-1951, Kansas City, Missouri and the surrounding area
That’s a Real Humdinger of a Cast Right There: Chris Rock, Jessie Buckley, Jason Schwartzman, Ben Whishaw, Jack Huston, Salvatore Esposito, E’myri Crutchfield, Andrew Bird, Anji White, Jeremie Harris, Karen Aldridge, Glynn Turman, Timothy Olyphant, Kelsey Asbille
The Wade Gustafson Memorial Award for Best Character Name: For the fourth season, Hawley leaned hard on unusual first names like Oraetta and Ethelrida and Josto. However, it’s hard not to stand in awe of Doctor Senator, and not just because of Glynn Turman’s singular performance. Doctor Senator. What a name!
Best Connection to the Other Fargos: The fourth installment is a dense look at two warring crime families in Kansas City, Missouri — it is also an origin story for Year 2’s Mike Milligan (Bokeem Woodbine), as the young man known as “Sachel” Cannon would grow up to become. Hawley, in an interview with GQ, compared it to the way Year 2 chronicled the origins of Molly Solverson: “You can’t look at this year without seeing how Satchel became Mike Milligan, but the story is also about so much more, the way that all of our lives are interwoven throughout history. And yet, you can’t tell history by just telling your story or my story.”
Fargo (FX)
Analysis: There remains a lot to appreciate about the fourth season of Fargo, but something’s gotta be at the bottom of a list like this. And Year 4 falls just shy of other seasons’ greatness because there’s just one too many things going on. It’s especially disappointing because of the caliber of that cast — some huge talents who don’t get quite as much time to shine. And while Chris Rock actually proves to be a very capable actor, bringing plenty of finesse to his reactions on screen, Jason Schwartzman never feels like he fully slips into the role of mafia boss.
The best aspect of Year 4, on balance, is the way that its female antagonists, like Jessie Buckley’s demented Oraetta Mayflower and delightful lady bank robbers Zelmare (Karen Aldridge) and Swanee (Kelsey Asbille), are allowed to cut loose in ways the series really hasn’t accommodated up until now. And really, it’s not a bad season of television. Just a bit too overstuffed.
04. Season 3: The One With Two Ewan McGregors
Fargo (FX)
When and Whereabouts: 2010-2011, Minnesota
That’s a Real Humdinger of a Cast Right There: Ewan McGregor, Carrie Coon, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Goran Bogdan, David Thewlis, Michael Stuhlbarg, Shea Whigham, Scoot McNairy, Olivia Sandoval, Mary McDonnell, Hamish Linklater, Fred Melamed, Rob McElhenney, Frances Fisher, Ray Wise, DJ Qualls
The Wade Gustafson Memorial Award for Best Character Name: A lot of strong contenders here, but I’m declaring a two-way tie for Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Nikki Swango and Carrie Coon’s Gloria Burgle. Swango is a last name that sashays into the room like it knows it’s the most interesting person there, while the double-Gs of “Gloria Burgle” are deliciously humble — it’s the kind of name that makes you like a person instantly, homey and open.
Best Connection to the Other Fargos: Fargo seasons are usually interconnected in less subtle ways than the full-fledged return of a character to active duty. But the re-emergence of deaf hitman Mr. Wrench (Russell Harvard) as con artist Nikki Swango’s new associate was a great reminder of how deep a bench the Fargo universe contains. Whenever timelines and actor schedules permit, it’d be cool to see other instances of this occurring.
Fargo (FX)
Analysis: The headline for Fargo Year 3 was really Ewan McGregor’s double performance, aided by intensive prosthetics work to create two very different men whose brotherly connection has become toxic. But by the end of the season, it’s Coon’s empathetic portrayal of a small-town police chief that sticks in the memory — yet another stellar performance from one of today’s most acclaimed actors.
While there are no more loose ends than any other particular season of Fargo, though, the ending still leaves things feeling more unsettled than usual; perhaps it’s due to Nikki’s ending, as she catches a bullet during a roadside standoff that feels a little too anti-climatic. As good as Gloria’s final confrontation with the odious V.M. Varga (David Thewlis) might be, it doesn’t quite deliver the way other seasons do.
03. Season 5: The One With Jon Hamm’s Nipple Rings
Fargo (FX)
When and Whereabouts: The fall of 2019, Minnesota and North Dakota
That’s a Real Humdinger of a Cast Right There: Juno Temple, Jennifer Jason Leigh, David Rysdahl, Joe Keery, Lamorne Morris, Richa Moorjani, Sam Spruell, Dave Foley, Sienna King, Jon Hamm, Lukas Gage, Nick Gomez, Jessica Pohly
The Wade Gustafson Memorial Award for Best Character Name: Perhaps because the time period is the most contemporary to date, the names aren’t too outlandish for this installment. And while the temptation here is to honor Dave Foley’s delightful Danish Graves (Danish!), there’s just something about the luxurious roar of Lorraine Lyon that complements the equally delicious performance from Jennifer Jason Leigh.
Best Connection to the Other Fargos: Hawley very deliberately paid homage to the original film’s harrowing abduction scene in the first episode of the season. Of course, what made this sequence so enjoyable was the changes made, as we see what happens when a housewife is (to use a man’s words) “for real, a tiger.” As Hawley explained to Consequence: “To finally reach this moment where the show is a literal echo of the film, but also a game of telephone with the film, where something different happened — I think that that’s fun for the audience.”
Fargo (FX)
Analysis: Season 5 only wrapped up this week, so it hasn’t had as much time to dwell in the imagination. Yet it deserves a lot of credit for learning from Season 4 and focusing on a tighter ensemble, with some true powerhouse talent in the mix. Jon Hamm in particular is an actor who keeps proving there’s more to him than what you’ve seen him do in the past — Sheriff Roy Tillman is a nightmare of a person, a haunting force who represents a particularly toxic undercurrent of American society, made all the worse because Hamm’s performance just makes it all seem so reasonable.
However, some of Year 5’s bolder choices, like fully endorsing the idea of Ole Munch (Sam Spruell) being immortal, and a puppet-focused episode that was a literal dream the whole time, don’t feel like they’ll age particularly well. (The puppets were lovely, especially as a way of exploring the season’s darkest themes of abuse — it’s the dream aspect that’s annoying.) Still, full credit for those final lovely moments of the season, as Dot and her family find a way to make a man who’s lived forever smile for the first time.
