Sometimes that which you fight the most is exactly what you need to happen. Though it may look like some futile uphill battle, like The Myth of Sisyphus, American author Chuck Palahniuk once wrote, Find what you're afraid of most and go live there. If you can make your home from and become supremely comfortable among those things that once made you panic on a deep, instinctual level, you can roll with anything. I certainly wouldnt consider Dickie Bennett to be Raylan Givens greatest fear, however, conquering that which he avoided the entire episode led him to a greater sense of self in which he sacrificed neither his attempt at dissuading the court from pardoning Dickie nor his refusal to pander to what he sees as a flawed system. Raylan spent this episode doing what he could to make sure Dickie isnt released from prison as hes in a position to file a federal suit for the treatment he received while being broken out by the prison guard and nurse whom tried extorting him out of his inheritance which Limehouse has already claimed as his own. Unfortunately since Raylan killed the culprits which arent already incarcerated and ineligible to use against Dickie, hes essentially guaranteed his freedom unless Raylan can find some evidence or testimony that indicates him as guilty of a crime, like say, murdering his Aunt Helen. The one individual that could attest to Dickies involvement in the shooting refuses to dishonor the family contract his kin had struck with the Bennetts generations prior unless his dear, sweet grandmother does the same, which she definitively will not do even for all the milkshakes in the state of Kentucky. Ultimately Raylan realizes his only resort is to plead his case to the loveable Judge Rearden, whom has been conspicuously clothed this season, though Art did give a shout out to his past penchant for speedos. After some creative brainstorming with the owner and bartender of the establishment he now bounces at, Lindsay, all Raylan can think to say to the court is that Dickie actually should be released, just so Raylan can throw him right back in prison once he sheds more blood. That is, after all, Raylans job, and he does loving doing it. Raylan had been not exactly afraid, but certainly adverse to the very idea of having to convince a group of citizens of what is clearly true that the murderer of his family should remain behind bars. I cant blame the man for not wanting to do that which would seem so easy for a law enforcement officer to do since it is fairly insulting to have to convince people of what should be self-evident. Dickie gets his pardon and is set to be released, which doesnt sit too kindly with Boyd, whos eager to extinguish Dickies life for nearly taking Avas, nor with Limehouse, who much prefers avoiding the possibility of Dickie attempting to recover his family fortune. The poor faux-hawked bastard cant catch a break. But for the moment both these men, as well as Robert Quarles, and all of their respective henchman, have their attentions fixed on the results of Harlans election for country sheriff. Despite foiling Sheriff Napiers attempt to plant oxycontin in his competitor, Shelbys truck, the incumbents challenger, backed by Boyd, who is in turn in cahoots with Limehouse who is also backing Quarles and the Sheriff (Limehouse clearly shouldve gone into politics), lost the race only to win by default after Harvey, the kindly county clerk whos actually taking orders from the head puppet master, Limehouse, announces that because Sheriff Napiers estranged sister, Hanna, is still technically on his payroll despite being fired, he is ineligible for the election. Not only is this significant in the long run because it secures Shelby and Boyd as having the Sheriffs office in their pocket (for at least the next three months) as opposed to Napier and Quarles, but its immediately pertinent as it directly sends Quarles off the deep end. The ol Albino deer, as Lindsay describes him, starts chompin on the oxycontin because, as he tells his right hand man, Wynn Duffy, when Duffy coyly suggests leaving Kentucky, he has, nowhere else to go. And just when he thought his night couldnt get any worse, Quarles is confronted by a young man, Donovan, who turns out to be a close companion of the male hustler Quarles beat to death or, as Quarles later puts it, did what he could for him, then set him free, creeptastic. This scene was a very compelling development out of left field not just because turning a gun on someone for revenge or otherwise is inherently dramatic, but because it saw Quarles relaying the very disturbing tale of his first murder at the age of fourteen. Apparently the fair appearance of Quarles that has been repeatedly commented on as a point of comic relief and ridicule helped his heroin addicted father pimp his young son out for drug money until the day a man named Theo gave the poor kid the opportunity to kill his abuser, which Quarles seized upon. This added quite a few extra layers of pathos onto the character as well as something close to irony as Quarles is now using a different form of the same opiate his tormentor abused. The scene closes with Quarles embracing the young man (played exceedingly well by True Bloods Marshall Allman), both men in tears. Anyone watching this season of Justified, however, shouldve known such a genuinely vulnerable and human moment from Quarles would only foreshadow a more sinister one. And once again Im horrifically delighted by the absurdly and acutely aware facial expressions of Duffy throughout the entire ordeal. See, clearly Quarles is in a bad way because Im pretty sure thats the only way you can work up the balls to confront Raylan Givens in the bar hes a bouncer at so you can kindly let him know you intend to put a bullet in his head very soon. I guess being stoned doesnt hurt either. The similarly inebriated Raylan calls his bluff but the situation is diffused by Lindsay and her shotgun. I think the writers of Judstified have a real thing for blondes with rifles. Although this standoff only teased at the draw down duel weve all been dying to see ever since Quarles revealed his Taxi Driver styled hidden handgun mechanism earlier in the season, it succeed in achieving the palpable tension such an incident inspires as well as letting the audience know how close to the boiling point these two mens tolerance for each other are reaching. My only minor complaint of Guy Walks Into a Bar is that although it was acknowledged that Ava has now fully seized control over the Harlan prostitution business, the details of which relating to the ethical conundrums Ava now faces with her new responsibilities were not explored. Hopefully if this cant be explored in these final three episodes of Justifieds third season, they will be next year. The episode ended on a very ominous note as the audience watched quick cuts of close ups of Quarles stripping naked and snorting oxy before heading into the bathroom with a tied up Donovan struggling very desperately while reciting some very eerily militaristic words about refusing to give up despite insurmountable odds which also reminded me of that damned Greek and his very heavy boulder. The fact that Boyd and Limehouse are now in the positions of power Quarles, who once stood so tall and proud and confident and intimidating, failed to acquire, and Quarles is a broken and bitter man exiled to a land he neither belongs to nor desires to belong to, sets up nearly all the pieces for what can only be one of the most intense and bloody showdowns of Justified yet. As Quarles is clearly on his way out, Im sure hell do everything he can to take out those who packed bags for him along the way.