Eating the Blame

"Eating the Blame"
Fargo episode
On a fateful day in 1987, after running out of gas in a deserted snow area, Stavros Milos finds a strange briefcase.
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 4
Directed by	Randall Einhorn
Written by	Noah Hawley
Featured music	Jeff Russo
Production code	XFO01004
Original air date	May 6, 2014 (2014-05-06)
Running time	50 minutes
Guest appearance(s)
Bob Odenkirk as Bill Oswalt Keith Carradine as Lou Solverson Oliver Platt as Stavros Milos Gordon S. Miller as Dmitri Milos Carlos Díaz as Young Stavros Eve Harlow as Young Helena Adam Goldberg as Mr. Numbers Russell Harvard as Mr. Wrench Glenn Howerton as Don Chumph Joshua Close as Chazz Nygaard Gary Valentine as Deputy Knudsen Chantal Perron as Cindy Peter Breitmayer as Ben Schmidt Barry Flatman as Wally
Episode chronology
← Previous "A Muddy Road" Next → "The Six Ungraspables"
Fargo (season 1) List of Fargo episodes

"Eating the Blame" is the fourth episode of the FX anthology series Fargo. It was written by series creator and showrunner Noah Hawley and directed by Randall Einhorn. The title refers to the Zen Buddhist kōan of the same name.

In the episode, Lorne Malvo (Billy Bob Thornton) continues to torment his employer Stavros Milos (Oliver Platt), making him go through biblical plagues-like events. Meanwhile, Lester Nygaard (Martin Freeman) desperately tries to escape the hitmen Mr. Wrench (Russell Harvard) and Mr. Numbers (Adam Goldberg). It establishes a direct link between the series and the 1996 film of the same name it is based on.

"Eating the Blame" received critical acclaim, and was seen by 1.70 million viewers.

In a flashback to 1987, the Milos family runs out of gas along a deserted highway in winter. Stranded and heavily in debt, Stavros Milos prays for help. Stepping outside the car, he finds a briefcase of money buried in the snow and takes it as a sign from God. In the film Fargo, the suitcase had been buried there by Carl Showalter, who was later murdered without having revealed its location to anyone else.

Nineteen years later, Chumph, disguised as a plumber, tells Stavros that everything appears normal in his pipes, and suggests the shower of blood is similar to a biblical plague. Stavros grabs Chumph from his neck and tells him off. Chumph tells him he is crazy and leaves, while Stavros worries about what Chumph said. Outside, Lorne Malvo was watching from a distance. Gus Grimly spots Malvo by Stavros' house and arrests him. He informs Molly Solverson, and when she requests to go to Duluth, Oswalt refuses her and goes instead. Malvo produces identification as "Frank Peterson," a Lutheran minister from Baudette, and has an alibi. Molly learns Malvo's name and calls Grimly, but Malvo (as Peterson) has already been released.