#gaear grimsrud

[breckstonevailskier]

Fargo (1996) vs. Fargo (season 5 episode 1)

[thefutureiswhat]

I guarantee you this one's gonna end a little differently.

[scenephile]

Just total fucking silence

[tdciago]

Fargo: C and Ch

(Originally posted to Reddit on 1/20/24)

I want to point out a couple of significant things that Noah Hawley did with alphabet letters in the finale. You can reject my interpretation of their meaning, but we should at least acknowledge that they were done.

The first is the absence of the letter C, but its repeated use as a sound in a spoken phrase.

The episode title, Bisquik, leaves the letter c out of the brand name, even though we've seen the correct spelling on the box several times during season 5, and the product has been mentioned many times.

Lorraine, in her description of Roy's punishment, mentions that she's helping prisoners in cell blocks D, B, and A, but not C. Once again, the C is missing.

During the scene in Dot's house, the phrase "across the sea" is spoken three times. If we think of sea as c, this phrase becomes part of the motif that highlights the letter c in this episode. We've also had references to "seeing" throughout this season, including eye patches and complete blindness, or lack of seeing/c-ing.

One of the meanings of C is cancer, as in the big C. Roy has said, "Cancer can't survive outside of the body," and Jordan Seymore repeatedly emphasized that he had cancer, and that, "I need this cancer out of me!"

Cigarette smoking is a major cause of cancer, and Lorraine gives Roy a pack of cigarettes with the fictional brand name Original, as in "original sin."

This "gift" can be seen as paying off the Trojan horse idea that was depicted in the shot through the windmill blades, showing two buildings on the ranch configured like a Trojan horse. The blades of the windmill itself look like matches with red tips, and the windmill is a gravesite. We can associate this with the cancer-causing cigarettes accepted by Roy. They are presented as a gift (because he can theoretically use them to bargain away abuse), but they are actually something harmful, just like a Trojan horse.

Munch also mentions being approached by a man with a "wealthy horse" to be given food and two coins. This was also a Trojan horse, because the food was actually sin.

Munch's sins are like a cancer that he can't get out of him.

Now for the second unusual thing with letters in the finale.

In the space of a few minutes, we hear the words chili, cheddar, chopsticks, chocolate, chimpanzees, and choice. That's an odd assortment of words, particularly the decision to include chopsticks and chimpanzees. What's going on with all those ch words?

The letter combination ch is a digraph: "two letters used to represent one sound," from Greek di- "twice" (from PIE root *dwo- "two") + -graph "something written," from Greek graphe "writing," from graphein "to write, express by written characters," earlier "to draw, represent by lines drawn" (see -graphy)."

I've theorized that season 5 is a story being written by Gaear Grimsrud, the kidnapper and killer of Jean Lundegaard in the Fargo movie, and that he was representing himself in the narrative as two characters: Ole Munch and Roy Tillman.

Munch is the pancake lover who just wants some peace and quiet. Roy is the domineering Marlboro Man side of Gaear, who commits ruthless murders.

In the movie, another character says of Gaear, "You know, he looked like the Marlboro Man." She proposes that this may be a subconscious thing, "'cause he smoked a lot of Marlboros." And Noah Hawley described Roy's look as the Marlboro Man.

The purpose of writing this story would be to pay a debt to Jean in the only way possible now, and to gain her forgiveness and hopefully some measure of redemption.

Just as Dot (who represents Jean) gives Munch the biscuit and speaks of forgiveness, the movie theme music kicks in. The victim has forgiven the perpetrator. In the previous episode, the perpetrator literally pulled the victim from the grave, resurrecting her in the form of this fictional character, Dorothy Lyon.

The only thing left now is redemption. So Munch eats the biscuit and is apparently freed from the curse of sin. At the same time, Roy (his other half) is damned to eternal hell for the crimes he has committed.

So there is both acknowledgement of Gaear's crimes, and recognition that they deserve punishment, but also some measure of salvation in the fact that his victim forgives him.

This is my interpretation of the finale. I also believe these events are taking place, within the story, as a bardo in the afterlife, a liminal transition space in which earthly trauma and sins can be worked out before reincarnation, much like Camp Utopia was for the abused women in Linda. As Munch says, "This is the other side."

We've had various discussions before about reincarnation and cycles, and if we look back, there are a lot of hints along the way that could point to smoking and cancer. I think this is what the author is dying from.

However you interpret the finale, we should recognize that Noah Hawley was trying to convey something with his emphasis on C and Ch.

[riphimopen]

They had Gay Sex

[astralbondpro]

Fargo (1996) // Dir. The Coen Brothers

[firstaidspray]

Lucy and Gaear doodles featuring the newly shaved hair Lucy. I decided to do that to her because I am cutting my hair all off too and she seems like she also would.

[alizaisfine]

carl showalter x gaear grimsrud would be Gaerl or Caraer

[pedroam-bang]

“Police!”

Fargo (1996)

[cloppersleet]

Gaear posting 🪓

[breckstonevailskier]

Contrast: The Kidnapping of Jean Lundegaard (Fargo) vs. The Kidnapping of Dot Lyon (Fargo season 5)

I've juxtaposed the two kidnappings so you can see what's similar and what's different.

Initial entry:

What's the same: In both cases, one criminal breaks in through the back while the other comes in through the front door. In the film, Carl breaks in through the back while Gaear breaks in through the front door. In the show, Munch comes in through the back, Ireland enters through the front door.

Point of divergence:

Film: Jean just gawks at Carl like a complete idiot and doesn't react until he breaks the window. Gaear then manages to almost subdue her when he comes in, but she manages to bite his wrist and runs upstairs, intending to hide in the bathroom and try to use the phone to call 911. The kidnappers then follow her upstairs (and also so Gaear can look for ointment).

Show: Dot immediately races upstairs, and hides in the bathroom to lie in wait for the kidnappers. She even uses the yarn she was knitting with as bait to draw them to the bedroom.

Victim getting caught in the bathroom:

What's the same: In both cases, the kidnappers realize that their target is hiding in the bathroom. Upon being found, the victim tries to flee, but ends up falling down the stairs.

What's different:

Film: Jean hides in the bathroom and tries to call 911 before the phone cradle and receiver are yanked away from her. Gaear and Carl break down the door. They enter, and Carl leaves to check other rooms after initially thinking Jean escaped out the window. Gaear raids the cabinets looking for ointment. As he finds what he's looking for, he realizes that Jean is hiding in the shower. At this, Jean tries to flee, but gets the shower curtain caught around her. Unable to see, she ends up missing a step, tumbles down the stairs and gets knocked out.

Show: Dot lies in wait for her kidnappers. When Ireland opens the door upon realizing where she might be, she immediately burns his face with an improvised flamethrower made from hairspray and a lighter, in other words, giving Ireland the "Harry from Home Alone blowtorch special". 😉 She then similarly brandishes her flamethrower on Munch to keep him at bay while she tries to run, only to trip on a laundry basket and tumble down the stairs.

Subduing victim for good:

What's the same: The two kidnappers come downstairs and check on their unconscious victim.

What's different:

Film: With Jean unconscious, it's easy for Gaear and Carl to grab her and put her in their Cierra to drive off.

Show: Dot was not knocked unconscious by the fall. She plays possum until the kidnappers come downstairs to check on her. As Munch grabs her by the legs, she suddenly grabs one of Scotty's ice skates and uses it to slash Munch's left cheek and taking off part of his left ear as well. The two manage to corner her in the kitchen, and Dot surrenders only now as it's clear she no longer has the upper hand.

Real TLDR of this whole thing: Well, I'll let Munch describe it best. "You say housewife, so I bring one guy. You say tiger... that's a different guy. Cost you three times."

[thefutureiswhat]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Fargo (TV), Fargo (1996) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Lorraine Lyon, Gaear Grimsrud Additional Tags: Metafiction, Story within a Story, Prison, Cancer, Season/Series 05 

Summary:

"So," she says, looking him up and down. "You're the author."

Lorraine makes a visit.

[necrobaiting]

I think Gaear is a bit autistic . no I will not give further context he just kind of is.

[tdciago]

Fargo: Author! Author!

I've thought for a long time that what we're watching in season 5 is a story in the process of being written. My initial guess was that the author would turn out to be Scotty Lundegaard, who would be writing it as a way of providing some poetic justice for his mother, Jean, who was killed by Gaear Grimsrud in "Fargo" the movie. But I have come to the shocking conclusion that the author of this story is Gaear himself, and Ole Munch represents the author. Gaear has also reimagined his victim as a worthy adversary, and maybe an alternate version of himself. Let's go back to the first episode of the season, because whenever a mystery is resolved, it turns out that the big clue was given to us right at the beginning, but we didn't have the context to understand it. LORRAINE (to Dot): Or here's a thought. Write your own pulp fiction now that you're an outlaw. Lorraine actually refers to Dot twice as an outlaw. This was concerning to me, because I thought Dot's comment about the author Lee Child pointed to Scotty Lundegaard as the author. Lee Child's pen name was derived from a mispronunciation that resulted in his daughter jokingly being called "le child." But Gaear Grimsrud is a legitimate outlaw, and the term "pulp fiction" is ironic, because wood chips are used to make the wood pulp on which those lurid stories were originally printed. And Gaear Grimsrud knows about wood chippers. He also would know about every detail of Jean's kidnapping, and even the most obscure bits of information, such as Marge Gunderson saying to him, "It's a beautiful day." That phrase has been used twice now, once by Indira in the prowler after arresting Dot, and once by Lindo at Camp Utopia. Roy notes of Munch, "You don't talk much. I like that." Gaear says only 80 words in "Fargo" the movie. Perhaps most significant of all is Gaear's fondness for pancakes. Both Munch and Dot have been connected to pancakes. One of these characters is associated with sin, and the other with Dorothy Gale from "The Wizard of Oz." Interestingly, the town of Liberal, Kansas, the setting of season 4's "East/West," is also associated with both of those things. It is the official home of Dorothy Gale, and the site of a famous Pancake Day race on Shrove Tuesday, a day to prepare for Lent, confess one's sins, and receive absolution. Maybe that's what Gaear is trying to do here. In episode 5, "The Tiger," I was struck by a couple of things that might be clues. Indira talks about Lars blaming his gear for his poor performance. "The nine iron, the eight iron, the seven iron....Keeps thinking it's the gear. 'Maybe with better gear.'" The consecutive numbers 987 made me think of 1987, the year that the movie takes place. And the word "gear" sounds like "Gaear." As though, if Gaear were better, things wouldn't have gone so badly. At the end of that episode, Dot drives off in the Kia with dealer plates, another reference to the film. Then there's episode 7, "Linda," which I want to make a separate post about. Not only does Munch re-create Gaear's murder of Carl, but there are a bunch of references to the movie in that episode, as well as things that point us to the fact that this is very much "a long-ago story, come back to haunt" someone. I think the person being haunted is Gaear, and it's Jean Lundegaard's ghost who's haunting him. Gaear may think of his life in the same way as Munch does, rooted in sin, with no escape. The parallels between Munch and Dot increase with every episode. Since Dot serves as a stand-in for Jean, it's as though the perpetrator has come to identify with his victim, and is trying in some way to give her justice. I should also point out that Peter Stormare, who plays Gaear, also played a nihilist in "The Big Lebowski," and Munch literally says, "I'm a nihilist."

[riphimopen]

when hes a smooth smoothie 😍😍

[buscemifan]

there is no movie that feels like fargo to me. something about the setting being so unremarkable makes it feel so distinctive from every other film ive seen … there’s no elaborate locations, no nonsense … just carl showalter and gaear grimsrud serving cunt in the middle of nowhere