FACT NUMBER ONE: Teasers are bad. They’re short and they usually reveal nothing. Not that they should “reveal” things, because blowing a major development for your show in a 15-second teaser would be very silly. But you get my drift. They’re often pointless and a waste and either frustratingly vague or boring. People should not make them. Just release the trailer.
FACT NUMBER TWO: The teasers for Fargo are good. They’re less like teasers than tiny short films. They actually do the thing they’re supposed to do — build anticipation for the season — while being both mysterious and enjoyable. Each one has gotten me progressively more excited for the season to start. Part of that is because I love Fargo and was already excited, but part is because they all capture the tone of the show — dark, funny, ominous — in a way teasers rarely do. It’s kind of incredible, really. So I guess I should amend what I said in the first paragraph: Fargo can keep making teasers. Other shows can, too, but only if they start putting this much effort into it. I’m tough, sure. But fair.
Below, please find all of the teasers FX has released for season three, which premieres on April 19. Fargo is a good show.
This is the first teaser FX released. It is also the best and my favorite. What sounds like an offscreen struggle results in an offscreen bullet striking a giant inflatable on-screen Santa, and the Santa slumps to the ground as the air leaks out in a high-pitched squeal. It’s a metaphor. I mean, I think.
Hmm.
It’s probably a metaphor.
Right?
Even if it’s not, it’s kind of hilarious.
An air conditioner is blasting, but as we zoom into and through it, we are surprised to see a snowy and cold Northern winter. But then why is the air conditioner blowing? This is also probably a metaphor. Or foreshadowing. Or maybe the person who lives there runs the air conditioner year-round during the night because the steady humming white noise helps them sleep. Whatever the reason, it is easily the most sinister air conditioner footage I’ve ever seen.
This teaser is a little longer and features our first looks at some of the cast. We’ve got:
- Leftovers star Carrie Coon as a law enforcement official named Gloria Burgle
- A near-unrecognizable Ewan McGregor as a sleazeball named Ray Stussy
- Mary Elizabeth Winstead as a recent parolee and competitive bridge player named Nikki Swango
Please consider this your reminder that Fargo is the best at names. Also, after Swango and Stussy leave, the sign on the diner flickers and says “DIE.” Okay, yes, I am ready for this season now.
This one is practically art. Perhaps a haiku will illustrate my point:
A cold winter night
A sheet blows through the forest
It’s a failed piss test
With any luck, this means the return of Lorne Malvo’s criminal associate from season one. You remember that dude, right? Sold surveillance equipment and clean urine out of a van? Dressed like a hobo? Yeah, him. I loved that guy.
The other character played by Ewan McGregor in season three, Emmitt Stussy, is described as “the parking lot king of Minnesota.” Here he is licking a stamp. Fargo is so weird. I love it.
You know, you watch this clip and see Gloria Burgle struggle with the automatic doors at the grocery store, and your first thought is probably something like “Wait, is… is she a vampire?” Then you push that thought out of your head because, like, why would she be a vampire?
Then you remember there was a dang alien spaceship in season two.
You heard it here first: Gloria Burgle is a vampire.
Or an alien.
Or a vampire alien.
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s official. Fargo is back and we have
air
conditioner
intrigue.
Well this one is just a solid visual gag. What a delightful show. And a violent one.
What a delightful, violent show.
