TV Eye

Timothy Olyphant stars in Justified as a lawman with serious daddy issues.

You know a character has daddy issues when every other character that comes in contact with him asks him if he's seen his father. Raylan Givens' daddy issues must be huge then. So huge, in fact, that his father is mentioned numerous times but never seen in the pilot episode of Justified, which premiered Tuesday on FX.

Deadwood's Timothy Olyphant stars as the flinty-eyed lawman, a U.S. marshal and gentleman cowboy, complete with Stetson and boots and a holstered sidearm. If he had a horse, it would be named Lincoln. But because this is set in the present and not the turn of the last century, he drives a Lincoln as he goes about learning the lay of the land he's been plunked down in – the small Kentucky town he grew up in and is now forced to return to. It's his punishment for shooting and killing a thug in a crowded Miami hotel. The thug had it coming, and it's not like Raylan didn't warn him. His line to each of his casualties is a variation of: "Don't make me pull my gun, because if I have to, I will put you down." It's sobering advice, and I don't know why anyone wouldn't follow it. But in this world, criminals are very, very stupid, and, as Raylan promises, he's an excellent shot.

Justified has the sensibility of a classic Western dropped into a Southern Gothic backdrop. Raylan is cool and bubbles with Southern charm when necessary, but ultimately, he's something of a loner and a tortured soul. He's truly committed to upholding the law, but if that means bending the rules so that justice can be served, that's not out of the question in his worldview.

In addition to his father's spectre, Raylan is tortured by the beautiful women he can't have. First, there's Ava (Wonderland's Joelle Carter), the former high school cheerleader who always had a crush on him. When he arrives back home, he seeks her help in track ing down an old friend run afoul of the law who Raylan has been tasked to find. Ava is thrilled to see him, but she's damaged. Life did not turn out as expected for her or her former high school football star husband, who took to blaming her for their lackluster lives. After one too many beatings, Ava took matters into her own hands. She prepared his favorite dinner, and when he made the mistake of complaining about the meal, she shot her husband in the chest (she's been trying for weeks to get the blood out of the carpet). Now she awaits her trial but not without enjoying a little flirtation with Raylan. He will not reciprocate because, as a lawman, he's not allowed to become involved with the only witness to her husband's shooting. (Yup, that's the explanation.) The heat between Raylan and Ava is intense, but when it comes right down to it, he's still holding out for his ex-wife Winona (Natalie Zea of Hung and Dirty Sexy Money). She's the one that got away, leaving Raylan bereft – in that cool way that loner-types like Raylan can't help but be. On the surface, it seems unfathomable that she would have left Raylan for the ordinary man she is now married to, but apparently, she knows much more about Raylan than he (or the audience) knows about himself, and it looks like she's going to be the one (in addition to his father?) who will have to tell him a thing or two about himself whether he likes it or not.

Creator Graham Yost (Boomtown) based Raylan Givens on a recurring character written by crime novelist Elmore Leonard. Intensely moody with sudden flashes of violence, Justified also drips with wry humor that proves to be the real allure of the series. Co-stars include Nick Searcy (CSI), Jacob Pitts (21), Erica Tazel (Life), and Raymond J. Barry as Arlo Givens, Raylan's father, who, wouldn't you know, tends to run on the wrong side of the law.

Justified airs Tuesdays at 9pm on FX.

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E-mail Belinda Acosta at [email protected].