Fire in the Hole (Justified)

"Fire in the Hole" is the first episode of the neo-Western series *Justified*, which aired on FX on March 16, 2010. Graham Yost, the series developer, wrote the episode, and Michael Dinner directed it. The story is adapted from an Elmore Leonard story of the same name, which also features the character Raylan Givens. The episode follows Raylan, a tough deputy U.S. Marshal with a tendency to enforce his own justice. After he shoots a mob hitman in Miami, his superiors transfer him to Lexington, Kentucky, where he must investigate an old childhood friend, Boyd Crowder, who has reportedly joined a white supremacist gang.

According to Nielsen, the episode drew about 4.16 million viewers and a 1.5 rating among adults 18–49. It was the highest-rated show of the night on basic cable and became FX's second most-watched series premiere, trailing only *The Shield*. Critics praised the episode heavily, especially for its sharp dialogue and performances.

**Plot:** In Miami, Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens confronts mob hitman Tommy Bucks at a party. Raylan had given Bucks 24 hours to leave town or face being shot on sight. When Bucks draws a gun, Raylan kills him in self-defense. The shooting triggers an internal investigation, and Raylan's boss, Chief Deputy Dan Grant, transfers him to Lexington, Kentucky—a jurisdiction covering Raylan's childhood home of Harlan County. Raylan is unhappy about the move.

In Lexington, Raylan meets Deputy Chief Art Mullen, an old academy colleague, and his new partners, Tim Gutterson and Rachel Brooks. Mullen assigns Raylan to look into Boyd Crowder, his childhood friend who has become a white supremacist. That night, Boyd and his associate Jared Hale drive to an African-American church, which Boyd blows up with a rocket-propelled grenade. Suspecting Hale of being an informant, Boyd kills him in the getaway car.

Raylan connects Hale's murder to the bombing, noting Boyd used the phrase "fire in the hole" before firing the rocket—a phrase from their coal-mining days. Meanwhile, Boyd's brother Bowman is killed by his wife Ava. Raylan visits Ava, an old friend, who claims self-defense after years of abuse, though Bowman was unarmed. Boyd's associate Dewey Crowe arrives to take Ava, but Raylan forces him out and tells him to inform Boyd that Raylan wants to talk.