In The Lowdown season 2 premiere, we saw Lee Raybon (Ethan Hawke) get an award, find a case, and get reunited with his father. That’s a lot to have hit someone in a short period of time.
As we see in this second episode, “Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound,” he’s trying to take it all in stride. He’s dealing with the return of his father (Tommy Lee Jones) while trying to make progress in his case.
An unhappy reunion
As we open, Lee comes down to find his father eating cereal at the counter. His staff has fed his father, which he warns them not to do again. His father isn’t welcome. In fact, Lee is losing his cool a bit as he goes in and confronts him. The act his father played with the cops and tried to play with him was fake. He’s not quite as unaware of time and surrounding as it appeared. Instead, he was leaning on that to gain sympathy.
There’s none to be had from Lee. He makes it quite clear that the distance between them, owing to his father’s long history of con jobs and misdeeds, isn’t likely to thaw. He wants to know why his father has returned. His father shares that he read about Lee’s award, his store, and his daughter. It becomes clear that his father is there to meet his granddaughter. That’s the last straw for Lee, who heads out to follow his leads. He warns his father to be gone by the time he returns.
His father has other plans. That starts by pumping Lee’s employees for information. He wants to learn about his son and his son’s life. And he gains some information that gives him something to mull over. But he’s still not satisfied. A bit later, we see Francis (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), heading out of her school. And there is Lee Raybon, Sr., waiting to greet her. The problem is, Francis thought her grandfather was dead. This feels like yet another roadblock between Lee and his daughter.
Making progress
Meanwhile, Lee tracks down Ginger (Betty Gilpin) at the courthouse. She’s not pleased to see him. She’s been followed and harassed, and now she’s shot at someone. She doesn’t think Lee is making it better and urges him to leave the case behind. Lee is committed now and promises to do better. He and Ginger have a plan to follow.
Ginger’s plan revolves around getting an inside man. She turns to Pookie (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), a client who is in jail and isn’t likely to get out. He’s also a man with a certain interest in feet. So, Ginger slips off a shoe and convinces him to look for her missing prisoner and report back from inside the jail. It’s a big swing and a big degradation. Ginger isn’t the only one who has to play a role.
Lee drives out near the jail and picks up a calendar featuring the guards. It helps him learn a bit more about McMann (Shane McRae) and where the guards tend to hang out. It’s a strip club near the jail, and Lee heads over. There, he runs across Chili Franks (Paul Schneider), a guard who was recently discharged.
Lee makes friends with Chili under the guise that he wants to become a guard himself. He does well enough to get invited over for late-night burgers and beers. That uncovers the dark side of Chili, but he does offer to help broker an introduction to McMann. First, he wants to take Lee to get more beers.
They pull up to a remote house, where Chili says he’s going to get some beers. Turns out it was McMann that fired Chili, who is hoping that turning over Lee will earn him some points. Lee figures it out and runs into the woods just as McMann leaves the house and starts shooting. He can’t find Lee, but he does shout out something to indicate that he believes Lee, and likely Ginger, are the ones who have the missing prisoner. It opens another line of inquiry.
But before Lee can think too deeply about it, McMann opens fire again. This time he kills Chili with a shotgun. Lee witnesses it all as he’s hiding in the woods. That leaves him with more questions and a powerful new enemy.
This was another great episode. I like the addition of Gilpin and Jones to the cast and their characters. The stories here are solid.
I also like that others from the first season, like Keith David, are still around and have some interesting parts. There’s a good mystery here and still some good laughs. I’m excited to see where we go from here.
The Lowdown airs Wednesdays on FX. Check back next week as we recap all the action of the season right here.
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