Tims phone call to Colt, in which he pretends to be researching a story that features this precise situation, is a master class in layered storytelling. Both men know exactly whats going on, with each using the charade as a way to scope out the others position. But they also maintain the fiction because it offers a rare opportunity to discuss openly wartime horrors that only they can comprehend. Plus, like all great Justified scenes, their conversation is riotously funny, as when Colt demands to be played by a young Gerard Depardieu in the movie and suggests his character could beat up a couple Rangers. Tim retorts that this isnt a fantasy, because, like Raylan, hes willing to play along with lowlifes to get what he needs, but he never lets Colt forget whos in charge.
