"Fugitive Number One" is the eleventh episode of the sixth season of the American Neo-Western[1] television series Justified.
It is the 76th overall episode of the series and was written by executive producer Taylor Elmore and Keith Schreier and directed by Jon Avnet.
The series is based on Elmore Leonard's stories about the character Raylan Givens, particularly "Fire in the Hole", which serves as the basis for the episode.
The series revolves around the inhabitants and culture in the Appalachian Mountains area of eastern Kentucky, specifically Harlan County where many of the main characters grew up.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 1.96 million household viewers and gained a 0.6 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
The episode received extremely positive reviews from critics, who praised the RV fight scene, writing, performances, directing and emotional tone.
At the office, Art (Nick Searcy) comes back from leave to take over Marshal operations in Kentucky, surprising Rachel (Erica Tazel).
Ava and Zachariah have made it to a rescue station in the mountains with the money, intending to escape in the coming days.
Boyd dons a police's uniform and then immediately kills Carl in the room, warning the hospital staff that there's a shooter, allowing him to escape.
In March 2015, it was reported that the eleventh episode of the sixth season would be titled "Fugitive Number One", and was to be directed by Jon Avnet and written by executive producer Taylor Elmore and Keith Schreier.
[5] FX executives delivered notes on the episode, particularly the scene where Mike played "Pachelbel's Canon" in the RV to annoy Duffy.
The original plan was for Duffy to kill Mike to put him out of his misery, deeming it "the most compassionate thing that Wynn does in six years."
Everybody, the DP, everybody, we all kind of created that together, the incredible stunt people, Jonathan [Kowalsky], who plays Michael or Mikey, it was just all such a wonderful ballet we all did together.
'"[7] In its original American broadcast, "Fugitive Number One" was seen by an estimated 1.96 million household viewers and gained a 0.6 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research.
Seth Amitin of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.7 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "Justified's final season is turning into a solid ending for the series.
"[11] Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "'Fugitive Number One' was another fabulous episode, loaded up with all the things that has made this final season, and Justified as a whole, such a pleasure to watch.
Plenty of scenes this week would be the easy standout of another episode, or season, or even series – the hour was like a gourmet meal where the delicious courses kept coming somehow without filling up anyone's appetite.
"[13] Kyle Fowle of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Somehow, some way, Justified has managed to up the ante with every passing episode of its final season.
"[14] Matt Zoller Seitz of Vulture gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Justified continued its winning streak with 'Fugitive Number One', a wrenching hour that killed off major characters and seemed to set the remaining major players on rails leading to some horrendous final showdown.
"[16] James Queally of Los Angeles Times wrote, "I'd be remiss if I didn't spend most of this review praising 'Fugitive Number One' for what it was, another arresting stanza in what's proving to be a masterful sendoff for Justified.
"[17] Sean McKenna of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.6 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "It now really seems less and less likely that Justified Season 6 will find a happy ending, and I'm nervous and excited to see who will be left when the final dust settles.
I enjoyed the episode greatly overall, but when all was said and done the lasting image in my mind was the one visual you never want a viewer to have: a roomful of writers who know where they want to go, but who can't quite figure out how to get there.