Justified: City Primeval's Biggest 'Huh' Is This Weird Character Arc
People still have a lot of questions about the new series, even though the finale was the definition of fan service.
The Justified fandom has been divided on its opinion of City Primeval, the new spinoff that wrapped up on August 29 with a bombshell finale. The eighth episode of the first season had everything: from the ultimate Raylan vs. Clement showdown to the return of one Boyd Crowder.
However, even though fans largely loved the finale, the season as a whole remains controversial at best. For instance, one Redditor decided to focus on a character that might have been overshadowed by Raylan, Clement, or Boyd: Carolyn Wilder.
According to Redditor chloe_bowster, City Primeval may have delivered the most eyebrow-raising character arc ever with Carolyn, especially if one compares the TV adaptations with the Elmore Leonard novels it is based on.
Carolyn seems to be this perfect female character who just does everything right because of course. Even when she goes low, she does it in order to do more good, because get it, she is a good person.
When it comes to her relationship with Raylan, she's just his match, deal with it, and by the way, she is crazy in love, even though there was virtually no reason for that.
"Every interaction lacks that charge or spark that should ultimately bring them together. Looking back, Carolyn spends a good chunk of the first few episodes monlogue-ing at Raylan about her version of justice," the Redditor explains. "How did she become so lovestruck in a matter of weeks without any sort of context or explanation on what brought these both together? The only thing I can think of is that it's trauma bonding."
Other fans agree that the entire Raylan-Carolyn thing feels shoehorned and unnecessary. Besides, fans feel that Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, being a great actress and delivering a decent performance in the show, still doesn't manage to live up to the bar set by Timothy Olyphant, who portrays Raylan.
So it would seem that fans believe Carolyn doesn't work as a standalone character and as a romantic partner for the hero. In the end, what we got was just a "huh," and the character only got in the way of the fans who were just there to wait for Boyd Crowder's appearance.
Source: Reddit