‘Justified’ season 6, episode 10 reaction: Joelle Carter on Ava’s big move

How do you know we are getting near the end of “Justified” this season? It is really as simple as the fact that we are seeing some of the characters start to make big, shocking moves. For example, could you see Ava Crowder a year or two ago shooting Boyd and getting away from both him and Raylan with oodles of cash in hand? We couldn’t, and that is what made this particular installment so crazy-intense to watch.

So why did Ava do this? Was it something that was always a part of her plan? That is not a simple question given all that she has been through, and it is therefore not much of a simple answer. Nonetheless, we do have some new comments about it courtesy of Joelle Carter’s new interview with TV Guide, where she explains that there was a part of her that felt torn apart over what her character chose to do in this situation:

“I think Ava’s been waiting for a moment like this that she could take advantage in a subconscious way, and it’s taken the journey to here to get her to the point where she can actually do it. If this had happened at the beginning of the season, I’m not sure she would have taken the risk, but because of everything that’s happened, she’s just desperate. In the moment, this is the only way out. It was sad. I thought there should be more of a moment for Boyd and Ava right here, but now I understand that it never could be because everything just had to happen. It wasn’t thought out in any capacity.”

What makes this move to us so interesting is that in choosing herself rather than either Raylan or Boyd, Ava puts herself on her own separate plane. Given that nothing is ever so easy on this series, at some point she will most likely have to face these men again … and that should be crazy.