This show is just flat out incredible. The "sin" writing in the scene with Tawney and the sheriff is just about as good as it gets for that kind of scene. As rbk says, this show is littered with outstanding performances, and the Sheriff is giving one of the best...and it is subtle.

I loved the jail cell symbolism when Daniel was standing outside the probation officer's office. That shot was practically verbatim of a shot we saw many times of him looking out of his jail cell window. He probably feels like more of a prisoner on the outside than the inside.

Yeah, that scene with Tawney was the first I've been interested by her in a while.

Ted Jr needs his own show or movie something. What an actor.

Also really sad there's only 2 episodes left this season

have to say i really like the opening title sequence \ theme

it's subtle

jesus, this show is good. nothing on tv right now is anywhere close to this show

I'll be heretical enough to say this season isn't nearly as good as the previous two. The psychobabble with Ted Jr. and then the nonsense at the diner are cases in point. This whole "season 3" seems more like a placeholder fraction of a season.

And say what you will about Trey, but if he's a Squidbillies fan he can't be all bad.

I love every scene with the Sheriff and how he is trying to get to the bottom of all of this.

ya sheriff is becoming my fav character.

This is my favorite main title on TV right now, and think it's a true shame it hasn't been nominated for an Emmy, considering most of my other favorites have been.

You're still being hyperbolic. I think it's running neck and neck with Better Call Saul, but this is probably my number 2 right now for the season. Fargo is on the way, so neither of those will probably be at the top for me by the end of the year.

I think this is the best season. I really dig character study and realistic interactions, though. I think a lot of it probably plays more like a really good play, but I eat up single second of this show.

The guy playing the Sheriff is one of the most subtly engaging actors I've ever seen. He could have a long career playing southern cops. Would have loved to have seen him be a part of Justified.

From looking at his filmography, he looks like his career's taking a huge jump in the next couple of years, but he has already played a lot of cops (surprised I don't remember some of them...lol). He has at least 20 separate law enforcement related credits, and been in a ton of other stuff. But this truly has been his coming out party.

Some shows you might not remember him from: The Walking Dead, True Detective, and Treme

Tend to agree. (still must watch though) Though I can't even remember half the stuff that has happened in the earlier seasons since they've all been a year apart.

Those preacher scenes were awesome, forgot about them.

one thing I love about the show is it's carried completely by the writing directing and acting.
there is no real mystery to speak of.

I mean compare the true detective season 2 thread to this one...

show just pulls u in and won't let u to with no tricks no twists no nothing.

I personally like better call saul but don't think it's near rectify in quality (bcs certainly up there with any show in purely production value n aesthetics).

Better Call Saul is not typically Emmy bait type material (only likely there because of Breaking Bad connection, and how damn good it is), but I pretty much think it's going to sweep every meaningful category at the Emmys. I wish I knew how to describe the differences, but Rectify is more like a beautiful painting stuck in some crummy museum in the middle of nowhere that no one ever sees. Better Call Saul is front and center, shouldn't have worked as a show on paper, but was absolutely brilliant. The only show that I think has been better executed over the last year or so was Fargo (which I think is one of the best executed shows I've ever seen). I'm kind of surprised BCS doesn't resonate more with you, because it hits a lot of the humor stuff you tend to like.

As I said, I think these two shows are right next to each other in quality (an apple and an orange by the way), and really how Rectify ends next week will determine if it passes BCS for my favorite show this year, as of now. I don't think it will.

To me, the guy who should become a star out of Rectify is Scott Teems (would probably be a good choice for TD season 3).

oh I liked bcs (I agree with u 1000% wrt Fargo obv that was a masterpiece) I just enjoy rectify more.

I like this season but I feel like the show has lost its sense of purpose ever since Daniel's legal troubles were over.

To me, one of the biggest parts of acting is the way people use their voices. There is no show on TV that has people using their voices better than this show. Even though the production sound mixing (usually due to shot choices) often depends on LAV mics, that sound still comes through. I could literally close my eyes and listen to the show, because I know how I want it to sound. If you're looking for a school on how to direct dialog, I think this is one of the absolute best places to look. A lot of this is on directing, too, because we've seen a lot of these people do lesser work in the past.

If I were directing a show, I'd want it to be like Rectify. That's my wheelhouse of how I'd want to do stuff. I'd focus a little more on sound, but generally this show gets where I want to see on look.

I keep going back to Abigail Spencer, but my God she is incredible in her role. Very few shows write good female characters, and this show has two of the best on TV (her and Tawney).

Again, I think it's hard to compare BCS and Rectify, because they're two such different entities. Rectify is probably the most compelling show I watch right now, but BCS with all of the good things that happened in it was the most entertaining to me (they're both really entertaining tragedies, obviously).

Over? Have you been awake through most of this season?

Not really lol.

Daniel is having more legal problems? Seems like he got off free from the murder wrap which was the driving influence of the show imo.

Trey attempted to frame him for the murder of George, and they've been eying Daniel as a prime suspect in that most of the season. The assault stuff from last season has never gone away, and Daniel's been under the constant threat of being sent back to prison for probation violations due to his lack of impulse control.

He's essentially found out that his prison just has a larger space, and that what he did was actually probably worse than letting things play out (a big part of this season has him wishing that he were either back in prison or executed, despite the end of last season being that he did that solely so that he would not have to go back to prison). The larger case is still there in the background, as the Sheriff is trying to figure out what really happened then and now. He's getting really close to uncovering a massive railroad job, but he wants to know why as well (which will be tough since the crooked Senator's had a stroke and can't communicate). While he's essentially been exonerated in connection with George's murder, his real problems are just beginning...how to adjust to life on the outside while still feeling like he's inside. This season has been legit great, since the focus is just on Daniel (and the collateral damage he's been creating since he got out) and then these larger external forces that have robbed him of both his life and dignity. Go back and watch the scene with Tawney and the Sheriff. Listen very carefully to the words she says about what happened to Daniel. That is the crux of the show and the Daniel character. Daniel's mom also got in a few words about that as well to Ted and Teddy.

rbk, if you haven't read it, I think you'd like the book Down River by John Hart. It has a vibe very similar to this show.

sweet I'll add it to my list.
I have about 50K worth of pages to read lol.
amazon one click order is the base of my existence.

when i said nothing on tv right now is close to rectify, i was just talking about the new shows currently airing new episodes, not shows like BCS that are on break.

like you guys are saying, it's hard to compare rectify to other shows. it's really different. i might like BCS better, i don't know. it's hard to say. BCS might hit you better, but rectify hits you deeper.... i don't know.

i think i'd rank seasons 1 > 3 > 2

Yes of shows airing right now, I don't think anything's close to Rectify. Hannibal's had a series of missteps this season, causing it to fall further back. Halt and Catch Fire is on the rise, but it's still not quite top tier.

I think I would go 3 > 1 > 2, mainly because Rectify is going to end up in my top 5 this year unless something really strange happens (lots of great TV by the end of the year), and I couldn't get it close to a top 5 in either of the last two seasons (both were top 10s so this isn't really a slight), mainly because of how much other good stuff was out there. I think 2 had a more satisfying arc than 1, but 1 is what got us in the door, and there were some truly great scenes in that season. Season 3, to me, just completely elevates the show, but I think I'm viewing it from a slightly different perspective than others.

I agree that the dialogue in this show is amazing, and that talk the mom had with husband and stepson was another example. As a writer, I appreciate dialogue most of all and that's why I love this show. I agree it's up there with Better Call Saul as the best of 2015, and I'd put Justified, Mad Men, Game of Thrones, Veep, Inside Amy Schumer and The Americans on that list as well, but out of all of those I think Rectify probably has the least missteps.

It's good, but cmon. Don't get carried away. It's like you're all cult members or something.

They're setting up a thing where the sheriff is trying to frame/railroad Trey, so then we'll see how Daniel reacts to that. OK fine, that's somewhat poignant. Justice and whatnot. The only problem is, it's like watching molasses drip to see them develop it, and they just spent an entire "season" on that! That and Tawnie and Ted pouting.

Also Chilltown has a point about the tension loss after Daniel's plea deal.