Fargo S1E10 (Finale) - "Morton's Fork" Recap

Lester heads into his Insurance company and looks over yet another dead wife. He then heads to Lou's coffee shop and orders food and drinks for him and his wife. He feigns needing to use the restroom before sneaking out the side door and calling with a voice/accent change to call in the sound of gun fire. Lou informs Lester a man had come asking for him and that he didn't like his demeanour.

Molly is called regarding the murder and arrives on the scene with the chief. Lester comes in and puts on quite the show of a grieving husband. Molly tries to ask if there's any connection to the murders in Las Vegas. Lester is about to be escorted out but asks if he can say goodbye, which the chief gladly allows. He tries to retrieve the tickets to Mexico from his jacket pocket but Molly tells him he can't touch the body.

Malvo is listening in on the investigation with his police scanner and grabs some knives in a cabin in the woods.

Pepper and Budge are at the station and are filled in on the finding of the tickets and the fact that the gunshot was close-range to the back of the head, execution style. Lou provides Molly with an alibi for Lester but does let her know about Malvo stopping by, asking about Lester. He was driving a Red BMW but he can't be certain his face matches the blurred surveillance footage of Malvo that Maolly shows him. She asks him to call Gus for her and say it's going to be all night. He says he'll do better and get his gun and sit on their front porch to make sure his granddaughter is safe.

Pepper and Budge are brought into the interrogation room to ask Lester some questions. They try to ask about Malvo but Lester won't talk without a lawyer, shouting that his wife is dead. Molly warns him that Malvo's not going to stop.

The following morning, Gus finds Lou on his porch and is horrified to learn of the new murder and the threat of Malvo. Gus tells Lou to keep an eye on his daughter while he goes after Molly. Gus calls Molly and warns her to be safe and not leave the building until Malvo is dead. He tehn hits the brakes to avoid hitting a wolf and notices a red BMW near a cabin in the woods. Gus pulls around the side and sneaks closer on foot. He sees Malvo come out of the cabin and drive off in the car. Gus sneaks into the cabin.

Molly updates the Chief, who says he's quitting after this since he doesn't have the stomach for it. He tells Molly he didn't see before but does now that she has the right instincts to take over and asks her to think over the idea of doing so after she has had the baby. She says she will and they discuss the plan they have to trap Malvo. What they don't know is that he is parked right outside. He calls the office pretending to be an FBI chief and uses it as a way to get the names of the agents. He then calls FBI, pretending to be Budge and cancels the back-up Budge had just called. He then heads to a dealership to get a new car.

Lester is told he's being let go and that Agents Pepper and Budge will drive him home to protect his safety. Before leaving, Lester tells Molly that he's not the monster she thinks he is. He's dropped off by the agents, who stay put to guard him from outside. Molly later tells the receptionist who had unknowingly spoken to Malvo that she's heading out but to call her when back-up arrives.

At Lester's home, Pepper and Budge spot a black car roll up and they approach with their weapons drawn, ordering the driver to step out. They find the car salesman inside with his hands duct-taped to the steering wheel. Malvo comes up from behind and shoots Pepper in the head and Budge in the throat. As Malvo reaches the car, the salesman asks him to spare him, saying he has a little girl.

Malvo heads for the house and Lester sees him coming. He tricks Malvo into thinking he's in the bathroom but then he gets caught in a bear trap set up by Lester, who comes up from behind and shoots at him. Malvo throws something hard at his face, causing Lester's nose to bleed, thus echoing the show's premiere and their introduction. Lester flees into the next room and Malvo shoots at him through the door. Lester shoots back but then all goes quiet. After a moment, Lester goes back in and finds that Malvo has gotten out of the bear trap and follows the blood trail down the stairs and outside where he finds that Malvo has driven off.

Malvo arrives back at his cabin and begins tending to his leg wound. It's quite nasty and it reaches all the way to the now-exposed bone. Once he re-sets it, he spots a wolf outside. Gus then reveals himself, with his weapon exposed. He tells Malvo he's figured out the riddle he had presented to him and when Malvo asks for the answer, Gus fires at him multiple times. Malvo doesn't die at first, but stares menacingly at him with blood coming out of his mouth. Gus fires more shots and finally, Malvo dies.

Later, Molly and other law enforcement arrive on scene. Gus shows Molly inside and points out a case in which Malvo has several labelled cassette tapes. Molly pulls out the one with Lester's name on it, plays it, and hears the call Lester had made to Malvo asking for help right after he killed his first wife.

2 weeks later, Lester is pursued by local law enforcement, fleeing on a snowmobile in the woods. Lester crashes onto the open frozen lake and begins running while the officers shout at him to stop. The ice begins to crack beneath his feet and he falls through it.

Molly gets a call informing her of Lester's death and then she heads into the living room to join her family who are sitting watching television. Gus tells her he's going to be receiving commendations for his bravery. His daughter says he's not brave and cites his fear of spiders. He responds by saying that Buzz Aldrin was afraid of spiders and went into space. Gus tells Molly she is the one who should be receiving the award but she is fine with it, reminding him that she gets to be chief.