Justified: City Primeval Review: Long awaited return of Raylan Givens hits the mark

Raylan Givens may be a bit older, but Timothy Olyphant hasn’t lost a step as the angry US Marshal in Justified: City Primeval.

In the original Justified series, Raylan returned to his old stomping grounds of Kentucky. His connection to his colorful hometown gave him a leg up on most Kentucky adversaries. City Primeval turns the tables on Raylan.

Raylan is thrust into a new setting, Detroit. His unorthodox approach in apprehending two carjackers leads to him testifying at their hearing. The carjackers are released, but Raylan is anything but free. On loan from the Miami office, Raylan is ordered to assist Detroit PD in their investigation into the attempted murder of a judge.

Raylan finds himself squaring off against an unpredictable killer, a savvy defense attorney and keeping his teenage daughter Willa out of harm’s way.

City Primeval is another fantastic series to add to 2023’s rich slate. Raylan’s discomfort in trying to keep an eye on his daughter while hunting down Clement Mansel “The Oklahoma Wildman” (Boyd Holbrook) is a great source of tension. The dynamic between Raylan and Willa (played by Olyphant’s daughter Vivian Olyphant) is the emotional heart of the series. Vivian’s a bit wooden at first but improves as the season progresses.

Holbrook (Indiana Jones and The Dial of Destiny) is a terrific villain. Once he finds a weakness he leeches off of it. Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (King Richard) shines as the defense attorney for Mansel. Vondie Curtis-Hall (Daredevil) rounds out an impeccably cast supporting roster.

With the daughter storyline seemingly wrapped up for now, it will be interesting to see if City Primeval can keep up the momentum. Something tells me as long as Olyphant is driving the car, City Primeval’s existence as one of the best series of 2023 is justified.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into Raylan’s trip to Motor City. There may be minor spoilers. Justified: City Primeval is airing on FX and is available to stream on Hulu.

Lost in City Primeval

The series begins in a similar fashion to the original series. Raylan is in Florida, he comes across a criminal and his unorthodox handling of the criminal gets him in trouble. In City Primeval, a pair of thieves tries to steal Raylan’s car with Willa in the passenger seat. After finding the thieves have warrants in Detroit, Raylan decides to personally transport them to Detroit.

Carolyn Wilder (Ellis-Taylor) represents the thieves and uses Raylan’s violent tendencies to convince Judge Alvin Guy (Keith David, perfect casting) to throw out the charges. After the hearing, Detroit police chief Lou Whitman assigns Raylan to assist in an investigation involving an attempt on Judge Guy. What starts as one case involving a judge with a history of misdeed, turns complex with the arrival of Mansell.

Meanwhile, Raylan has to find a safe place to keep Willa. He orders Willa to stay in the hotel, but she takes after her father’s renegade antics, which forces Raylan’s attention away from the case.

City Primeval’s pilot doesn’t quite match the original serious first episode. However, that’s a high watermark as the Justified pilot is one the best premiere in tv history. The premiere comes close due to great dialogue, Olyphant’s performance, and an electric introduction of Holbrook’s Mansell.

The Oklahoma Wildman

Throughout the 6 season run, Justified featured a fantastic villain. Holbrook’s Mansell continues the trend set up by Walton Goggins, Margo Martindale, Neal McDonough and many others.

Mansell is an unsympathetic killer who takes pleasure in using Carolyn (his attorney), his girlfriend and Raylan’s weakness against him. Carolyn is in a no-win situation. She doesn’t want to represent Mansell. However, her law firm belonged to her ex-husband. She received sole control over the law firm in the divorce. Unfortunately, he left the firm in poor financial condition and some holdover clients such as Mansell.

Mansell’s girlfriend Sandy is a familiar character to Justified. She’s loyal to Mansell, but also savvy enough to preserve her own means of survival. For instance, Mansell persuades Sandy to chuck a murder weapon off a bridge. Sandy arrives at the bridge, but has second thoughts. She takes the gun to Sweety’s (Curtis-Hall) Bar and stashes it in the bathroom. Sweety is also smart enough to retrieve the gun from the bathroom and save it as an insurance policy in case Mansell goes too far off the rails.

Mansell doesn’t possess much of a conscious. However, the one thing he does seemingly care about is Sandy. After Raylan and Detective Wendell Robinson (Victor Williams) question Sandy, Mansell decides to pay Willa a visit. He impersonates a cop working with Raylan to get Willa to leave her room. Mansell’s threat is clearly designed to get under Raylan’s skin and works to perfection.

It’s too early to say where Mansell will rank among Justified antagonists. However, he certainly can spin a yarn and knows how to use others like Boyd Crowder.

Willa Givens

Raylan’s focus on Mansell is admittedly split due to the presence of his daughter. The plan at the outset of the series is for Raylan to take Willa to a summer behavior camp after she gets in a fight at school. After the attempted carjacking, Raylan takes Willa to Detroit.

Willa clearly wants to spend some time with her dad. Unfortunately, due to the serious nature of the case, Raylan essentially grounds Willa to their hotel. Willa decides to explore Detroit over her father’s orders. When Raylan tries to touch base, Willa doesn’t answer right away. Raylan’s stress level over the Mansell investigation is compounded by Willa’s stubbornness—a trait she inherited from Raylan.

Mansell’s aforementioned visit to the hotel raises the stakes quite a bit. Willa sees a different side to her father in Raylan’s exchange. Raylan orders Willa to leave the table. Timothy Olyphant is phenomenal in showing how Raylan is trying to unsuccessfully quell his rage. The two men barely get outside before Raylan roughs up Mansell and threatens to kill him. Willa watches the scene from inside the restaurant. From this scene in the 2nd episode through the end of the 3rd, Vivian Olyphant‘s performance takes a major leap.

My favorite moment in the series takes place in episode 3, Backstabbers. Raylan has to find a safe spot for Willa. Detective Maureen Downey (Marin Ireland) offers them a place to stay. Raylan quietly observes the happy household. He understands the importance of preserving this serene moment and decides to do something unselfish.

Both Raylan and Willa are angry about their current situation. Raylan wants to keep his daughter safe as well as Det. Downey’s family. As long as Willa is close to Downey’s, the family is at risk of suffering Mansell’s wrath. Willa perceives her father’s distance and willingness to send her back to Florida as her father not wanting to spend time with her. The emotions painting Raylan’s face show that’s not the case. However, he allows Willa to hate him as long as she’s safe.

Timothy Olyphant has always been great as Raylan “the gunslinger”, but he’s never been better as Raylan “the father.”

Justified: City Primeval final thoughts

Justified: City Primeval is a terrific continuation thanks to the performance by Timothy Olyphant.

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