A Geeky Guy's Guide to The Lowdown

For the past couple of summers, I was lucky enough to find some cool shows to scratch my itch that still exists from watching, and loving, Justified many years ago. It started with Banshee, which is a ridiculous and ridiculously entertaining caricature of a cop/crime show and continued last summer with Duster, a really cool and nostalgic show that reminded me of The Rockford Files and Starsky and Hutch from the 1970s.

This summer, that show was The Lowdown. Unlike the other two, my wife joined me on this ride. While all three are incredibly different, they are all character driven, have some cool twists and are just flat out fun. And I just realized that three of the four also happened to feature Keith David.

The Lowdown, which is set in modern day Oklahoma stars Ethan Hawke as, Lee Raybon, a "truthstorian" (his made up word for a person who keeps track of the truth). Lee owns a bookstore and writes for a free physical magazine/newspaper. Neither of his ventures are very successful. He's obsessed with the truth and by living by the code that if you have a "normal" life, you are wasting it. He has no qualms about putting himself, and sometimes other people, in danger because he'd rather "die living than just existing". This means this unqualified guy gets himself into some very weird and dangerous situations. He's like a detective who is not working for anyone except "the truth". Lee is loser, but damn it he is a very lovable loser.

The story centers around the mysterious death of a very rich writer who happens to be the brother of the favorite to be the next Governor of Oklahoma. Lee does not believe the death was a suicide and he spends eight episodes trying to prove it. And each episode is incredibly fun!

While the mystery itself is enough to Justify (see what I did there?) to watch The Lowdown, there is so much more to it. The characters are all fantastic! In fact, all of the side characters had a Better Call Saul kind of feel. So many of them could have stood on their own. Keith David plays Marty Brunner, a detective and head of security for the would-be Governor Donald Washburn, played by Kyle MacLachlan. Both he and Kyle MacLachlan do a superb job in their roles and create very compelling and interesting characters. But Lee's daughter Francis played by Ryan Kiera Armstrong (from Skelton Screw) steals every scene she is in. I think she is supposed to be around 13 and she is phenomenal. I really think we are going to see big things from this talented young actress in the future. There is also some comic relief provided by rapper Killer Mike (from Run the Jewels), Lee's bookstore employee Deidra played by Siena East, and his "bodygurads" played by Cody Lightning and Jude Barnett.

The last three characters I mentioned also embody one of the other highlights of the show. The Lowdown is written and directed by Sterlin Harjo. He is the genius behind Reservation Dogs which is one of the most amazing television shows ever produced. Harjo is a native American who does an amazing job bringing deep Native American characters and stories to life. Their inclusion in this show are not token throwaways. The Native culture plays a pivot role in the story and makes it even better!

Although the show moves a little slow, there is not a wasted second. The Lowdown is one of my favorite watches in a while. But I do warn you, Lee is a down on his luck for a reason. He makes really dumb choices, so be prepared to yell at him for being stupid from time to time.