Some Badass Shit

The FX drama Justified  is a wildly entertaining product though somewhat flawed. The dialogue is great, but great too often. It's what makes Elmore Leonard novels laugh-out-loud thrillers, but on TV you need good, developed characters and even better actors to pull off all the smart mouthing.

Deputy Marshall Rachel Brooks is terrible. That insidious Colton, the junky ex-military henchman is a waste of space - he doesn't even hold a cigarette right. And (dare I say it) I'm tired of Boyd Crowder trying to do Hamlet in every scene.

However, every conversation Raylan has with his boss Art Mullen is priceless.

When Drew Thompson (the Keyser Soze of Kentucky) eludes authorities yet again with the assistance of a small-town whore who has major info on the Crowders, Raylan suggests bringing in the state troopers on the manhunt. Art goes off on a major rant, one for the history books:

"The first thing we're gonna do is we're gonna acknowledge that this guy's awesome...I mean he shoots Theo Tonin, fakes his own death in a spectacular fashion, pushes a guy out of an airplane while he's flying it, parachutes into Harlan County with enough coke and cash to jumpstart the economy of a small country, and then he has the balls to get a job in law enforcement not once but two times...He spends a couple of days riding around with you (Raylan) while you're looking for him. And now he's run off with a hooker that's half his age. That's some badass shit." 

Raylan echoes "That's pretty badass." The "sir" was implied. Art's point is that the Marshall's service need to be the ones to corral one of the greatest fugitives eastern Kentucky has ever known.

And that brings all the old gang out. Wynn Duffy, Elston Limehouse, some Detroit gangsters in a helicopter, and poor "small-time asshole" Johnny Crowder playing triple-agent.

It's an intricate web involving people who are incredibly cagey, yet exceptionally dumb at the same time. It's a winner and a loser all in one. In short, can't-miss television.

Fighting For Bragging Rights Since 1889

History writes that The Dakota Territory was split into two separate states because the population base had boomed so quickly in the 1880s, that the people were recognizing two separate capitals.

Some of this dynamic was fleshed out in the HBO series Deadwood, one of the best TV dramas of all-time, and it just so happened to feature Timothy Olyphant as Marshall Seth Bullock: a complicated, unforgiving lawman with an itchy trigger finger. Sound familiar?

Deadwood was regrettably discontinued after 3 seasons, but had it gone on, the matter of statehood would have surely been a central focus. On November 2, 1889, North and South Dakota were admitted as the 39th and 40th United States. But there's more to the story.

There was so much rivalry and one-upsmanship between the Dakotas that while the states were admitted on the same day, President Benjamin Harrison ordered that the paperwork be shuffled so that nobody would know which executive order was signed first.

Technically North Dakota is listed as the 39th state. Since only President Harrison and his Secretary of State James G. Blaine know for sure, North Dakota wins for the history books since it comes first alphabetically.

This is all prologue for what took place in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, last night where the North Dakota State Bison took on the South Dakota State Jackrabbits. The Summit League Championship was on the line, and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament that goes with it. It was the biggest battle for state pride since 1889.

South Dakota had the edge going in with All-America guard Nate Wolters, who scored 53 in a game earlier this season. With the season in the balance, Wolters managed only half of that number in a brilliant career-defining game on national TV.

Wolters went around, through and over NDSU, finishing with 27 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 steals. And while the Bison cut into the lead late, they never could cross the border.

So Wolters and the SDSU Jackrabbits are headed to their second straight NCAA Big Dance. And while the state has obviously been in existence for nearly 125 years, the Jackrabbits will have a real chance as March rolls on to put the state of South Dakota on the map. So to speak.

Happy Valentine's Day: A Good Day To Die Hard

The Die Hard movie series is now 25 years old. And there was a time in my life when I would have made sure I was at the theater on release day. But life changes and I'll have to wait for a window of opportunity. Life changes for everyone but John McClane that is. He's the guy that always winds up in the middle of some master criminal's plot.

According to IMDB, Bruce Willis is now 57 years old. Which in this world of personal trainers, anti-aging centers, and PEDs makes him ready for another couple installments. Unless he dies in this one - I haven't seen it yet - but I get the feeling he won't.

Willis was 30 and plucked from obscurity when tabbed to play alongside Cybil Shepherd, running the Blue Moon Detective Agency in Moonlighting. Their banter became the formula the romantic comedy crime drama like you now see in Castle or Bones. And that propelled Willis to mega-success.

There were some great films: Pulp Fiction, The Sixth Sense. And there were a lot of also-rans where the  Willis name appeared above the title. But nothing in Hollywood has ever been a more perfect fit than Bruce Willis as John McClane.

You think back to the release of Die Hard in 1988. Who possibly could have pulled that role off back then - Nick Nolte? Tom Berenger? Stallone? Maybe, but 25 years later Willis is an icon for this character.

All the Die Hard films surround Willis with an outstanding cast and very colorful arch-enemies. I will watch the first three movies just about every time they pop up on cable. The fourth one, Live Free Or Die Hard, is just a notch below though we like Timothy Olyphant as an evil cyber-genius. And Olyphant has moved on to the role that he's meant for, a bit of an icon himself.

John McClane's one-liners have taken on a life of their own. "Yippee Ki Yay" is the one that gets all the play. But if you're not a big fan of the series, I've got one thing to say to you: