Though Fargo 's ambitious fourth season struggles to maintain momentum, fine performances and a change of scenery make for an engaging -- if uneven -- departure from the series' norm.

Four seasons in and Fargo is still as strong as ever, a sprawling gangland feud delivered with bravura filmmaking. It’s a lot to get your head round but, skilfully played by a pitch-perfect cast, it’s well worth the effort. Noah Hawley's anthology series is back with Chris Rock and Jessie Buckley in Season 4.

Season 4 may not go down as the best year of “Fargo.” The structure lurches a bit, episode to episode, and the cast can’t collectively hit the highs of prior seasons’ players. (In part because they’re not asked to, given the dour tone.) But Hawley’s choice to evolve beyond his established structure is as necessary as it is invigorating.

Fargo has lost its footing in Season 4, succumbing to stylization and caricature and gratuitous over-plotting, and effectively wasting a tremendous cast. We’re left with a weak story and a few banal monologues about race, money, and Life In America. But the nice thing about an anthology series is that once a season is over, it’s really over.