If you came out of the anti-climactic, then totally riveting "Fargo" Season 5 finale thinking you'd just watched 10 episodes of TV about the importance of breaking bread, you'd be correct. Episode 10, aptly titled "Bisquik," brings Dot (Juno Temple) and Ole Munch (Sam Spruell) together for a crucial dinner filled with illuminating biblical references.
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You can see why "Fargo" writer-creator Noah Hawley once wanted his critically-acclaimed anthology series to end with Season 5. Hawley crafted a deeply moving installment about sin (and its newer, perhaps Protestant form, debt) and vengeance (and it's cure-all, forgiveness). These are arguably the biggest, most foundational themes in Western culture. You don't go any deeper than this, and Hawley's writing was exquisite throughout — even if the season stumbled in parts.
We thought the raid on the Tillman Ranch would be the big "Fargo" Season 5 capper, but the climax came in the form of a biscuit. Ole Munch, who reveals he is indeed immortal due to his sin-eating days, sits down at Dot's table and time practically stands still. Read on for a plot summary, plus a deep-dive into what all that debt and Bisquik talk represents.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Fargo" Season 5, Episode 10, "Bisquik."
Gator the Sin-Eater
We open with Gator (Joe Keery), blind and alone on the snowy ground next to a spooky tree. The scene looks a lot like Ole Munch's sad flashback to his days as an outcast and sin-eater in 1500s England. Gator, of course, is something similar: Like Munch paid for the sins of the rich with his soul, Gator has paid for his father's transgressions...with his eyes, at least. (Sins of the father visited upon the son and all.) Gator fumbles his way through Roy's escape tunnel and makes it off the Tillman Ranch.
Roy (John Hamm) spits at the image of Christ in his chapel, then gets harangued by his father-in-law (who might be more evil than Roy). Oden says his daughter Karen is "soft," noting that's probably why Roy hasn't killed her yet. Does Oden want his daughter to die? Given that he sees her as nothing more than property, Oden couldn't care less what happened to her.
Dot's Happy Ending
In any case, Roy slashes Oden's throat and a stunned Karen (Rebecca Liddiard) runs off. He pursues her and is met by the barrel of Dot's shotgun. She shoots him in the gut, but the Feds open fire before she can deliver the killshot. In the chaos, Roy escapes to the getaway tunnel. Witt (Lamorne Morris) tries to stop him, but Roy stabs him in the gut and makes it out of the tunnel — only to be met by the Feds. Witt's sacrifice was in vain.
Gator apologizes to Dot in the aftermath, and she graciously agrees to bring him cookies in jail. We cut to Dot exhausted and relieved in the back of a police car, just like in Episode 1. She arrives back at the partially-burned Lyon family home and embraces Wayne and Scotty. She even gets a wink and a "good for you" from Lorraine (Jennifer Jason Leigh).
Roy Is At the Queen of Debt's Mercy
We cut to a year later. Dot, Scotty and Indira (Richa Moorjani) visit Witt's grave on the anniversary of his death. Hilariously, he had a cat named Lucky that Indira has since adopted. We learn that Wayne and Dot are jointly opening a new car dealership in St. Paul.
Lorraine pays a visit to Roy in prison in Illinois. He says his trial was "rigged," and he's appealed his conviction. Lorraine reveals that she's the single largest donor to The Federalist Society, which controls the courts. So he has no chance of finding a sympathetic judge. In maybe her slickest move yet, she's started a debt relief fund for the toughest inmates in and around Roy's cell block. They'll give Roy all the pain and humiliation he caused Dot. Lorraine slides him a pack of cigarettes and we leave Roy looking downright terrified.
'Fargo' Episode 10 Ending, Explained
Remarkably, the final 20 minutes of the season are devoted to Dot's reunion with Ole Munch. She owes him the biblical "pound of flesh" for slicing off his ear. But Munch's thirst for vengeance is gradually quenched by the kindness shown by the Lyon family.
Dot wears the same yellow cardigan she had on when Munch kidnapped her in Episode 1, giving credence to the Reddit theories that the whole season was merely Dot's dream. Our opinion? "Fargo" is a fable in which every character represents something — an idea, a particular human folly, a political movement. Whether or not the events of the season actually happened in the universe of the show is beside the point.
But you could always read what happens between Dot and Munch metaphorically: Munch is eye-for-an-eye vengeance, like the kind of tit-for-tat Roy wanted or Dot may have wanted against her murderous ex-husband. Dot is, as she puts it, forgiveness. She's buried the hatchet when it comes to Roy (softened her desire for vengeance, Munch) by covering that vengeance (Munch) with kindness (the Lyon family). Dot's new life with Wayne and Scotty was always her saving grace, or her forgiveness.
That forgiveness is also symbolized by another biblical concept: Bread, and breaking bread. Dot has been meaning to make Bisquik for Scotty since Episode 1. Munch, too, once told his "mama" he wanted pancakes. In this very episode, Dot promised Gator his favorite oatmeal raisin cookies after forgiving him. So when Munch spills his guts about all the sins of history he's witnessed (the collective horror of the Middle Ages, the slaughter of the Native Americans), a warm biscuit enters the scene to symbolize forgiveness.
In the final shot of the season, Munch smiles with a mouthful of the biscuits he and Dot made together. "Ya gotta eat something made with love and joy and be forgiven," Dot tells him as the familiar "Fargo" theme plays.
A mixed-bag season with one of the greatest final shots in TV history? Sounds like "Fargo."
"Fargo" Seasons 1-5 are now streaming on Hulu.
