Binged all 6 seasons of Justified in 10 days after hating the first 3 episodes

My buddy kept telling me to stick with it. I almost quit after episode 2 because the pacing felt slow. Then around episode 5 of season 1 something clicked. Boyd Crowder's whole speech about the coal mine got me hooked. Now I'm mad I almost missed out on one of the best shows I've seen in years. Has anyone else almost bailed on a show early only to realize it gets way better?

2 comments

2 Comments

laura_ross21d ago

That part about Boyd's coal mine speech is exactly what did it for me too. The slow build in those early episodes makes the payoff so much better once you get to season 2. I pretty much missed a week of work after I got past that first season.

sarahhart21d ago

Yeah, the coal mine speech is where it really starts to hit its stride... I had a similar thing with The Leftovers actually. Hated the first few episodes, felt like it was just misery porn for no reason. But my friend kept saying "wait until episode 6." So I pushed through, and around that point something clicked for me too. It's like the show finally figured out what it wanted to be, or maybe I just needed to trust the characters more. That slow build you mentioned is annoying in the moment but makes the payoff feel earned later. I'm glad I stuck with it because it ended up being one of my favorite shows of all time, same way you feel about Justified now.