While initially touted as a modern day western with a twist, the gripping FX series turned out to be much more than that.

The story of a U.S. Marshall banished from Miami to the back hills of Kentucky where he grew up after the justifiable killing of a Miami drug lord was just the tipping point and instead it revealed a lawman who only shoots when necessary and whose history with Kentucky's crime families ensnare him in a world of lawlessness.

Based on the short story by Elmore Leonard "Fire in the Hole," the series follows Deputy U.S. Marshall Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) as he side-steps the investigation into the Miami shooting and tracks down the White Supremists responsible for a series of bank robberies and vandalism. During his investigation, he runs across a childhood friend Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins) with ties to the recently widowed Ava Crowder (Joelle Carter), who shot her husband for beating her one too many times, and his notorious crime lord father Bo Crowder (M.C. Gainey). As the first season unfolded, all three of the Crowders figured centrally in Raylan's professional and personal life. As the first season concluded, it was only fitting that Boyd, Ava and Bo would be just as pivotally intertwined and would ignite a gun battle worthy of the O.K. Corral.

In addition to the cloying Crowders, prominently featured in Raylan's life are his new boss, Chief Deputy Art Mullen (Nick Searcy), Assistant U.S. Attorney David Vasquez (Rick Gomez), Deputy U.S. Marshall Rachel Brooks (Erica Tazel), Raylan's ex-wife Winona Hawkins (Natalie Zea) and her new husband Gary Hawkins (William Ragsdale).

With adventures ranging from a wayward dentist hiding out in Los Angeles making a break for the Mexician border, an art forgery scam involving a collection of Hitler paintings, and a convict holding the entire U.S. Marshall's office hostage, U.S. Marshall Raylan Givens has his hands full. As if the demands of his job were not taxing enough, he has got the U.S. Attorney breathing down his neck to find out if he is too quick to pull the trigger and whether he has breached his ethical duties by getting involved with a witness to one of his shootings. Throwing in the hovering threats and dastardly dealings of the Crowders, Raylan has indeed gone from the frying pan to the fire.

It was also a nice twist of fate that Boyd Crowder remains a constant thorn in Raylan's side, hanging around the fringes of Raylan's life espousing religious zealotry that does not appear to be as legit as he would have Raylan believe.

Walking a fine line between all these competing forces trying to pull him into the deep morass of violence, Raylan as portrayed by Timothy Olyphant is a mixture of Southern charm masking a seething rage that unleashes with sudden ferocity when pushed to the brink.

Coming off of its highly successful and critically lauded first season, the creators and cast of "Justified" were invited for a special screening and Q&A at the Chinese Mann Theater in Los Angeles on June 10, 2010. In attendance for the screening were executive producers Graham Yost and Elmore Leonard, along with director Michael Dinner and cast members Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins.

It was a night of high excitement and jubilation as the pilot episode was specially screened before Emmy voters and fans alike. While the fans were clearly ecstatic, it was hard to say who was more happy to be there: Walton Goggins who plays Boyd Crowder on "Justified" or Elmore Leonard, world renown author of the short story "Fire in the Hole" that inspired the television series, for both beamed throughout the presentation with obvious glee and pride. More sedate and calmly sipping his wine was star Timothy Olyphant who also clearly relished the lavish praise the show has earned.

During the Q&A, Elmore Leonard was quick to share that when he first read the pilot script, his immediate thought was "god, this is really good!" In fact, he thinks "Justified" is the best thing on television in a long time. He also said he was not displeased by the fact that they changed the original story ending either, as the choice to not kill off Boyd Crowder has turned out to be one of the more captivating continuing storylines of the entire series. The wayward former White Supremist turned religious convert and evangelist is a role of a lifetime and Walton Goggins has relished every moment portraying such a complex and intriguing character. He said regarding that the stuff that Boyd gets to say, I just pinch myself. He also really appreciates how the show got the depicture of the South right by having the characters so richly drawn.

Timothy Olyphant also commented that while the show is thought to be violent, it is not as violent as it could be. It is not about leaving a trail of dead bodies everywhere his character Raylan goes. It is about showing characters who are capable of violence, yet the audience never knows exactly when they will strike. For example, Raylan never pulls his gun unless he has too. Executive producer Graham Yost also shared the fact that Raylan is the angriest man his ex-wife Winona ever knew really resonated with the audience. Here was this seemingly benign, gentle man and yet the person closest to him was revealing his darkest secret: a caged anger just waiting to be unleashed. Amidst the drama of each episode, the show strives to simultaneously tell the story of Raylan Givens going home and why does a person like him choose to become a lawman. It is that little bit of mystery that hooks the audience.

As to both Natalie Zea, who play Raylans ex-wife Winona Hawkins, and Joelle Carter who plays Ava Crowder, both Tim and Walt shared that they admired how much both brought to their roles. Walt also candidly admitted that Joelle scared the s**t out of him with the ease in which she wielded a shotgun. Tim was more circumspect with his choice of words and merely said that Joelle grounded the character of Ava such that it humanized her in a wonderful way. He also commented that Natalie was unpredictable from take to take during filming, which was equally fantastic. He even commented to Graham, If you dont write for her, youre an idiot, which was instrumental in expanding her role from a minor role to a recurring role on the series.

Returning to the unique relationship between Raylan and Boyd, there is a fascinating dynamic of familial tensions throughout the series as both men must conquer the long shadows and influence of their fathers. Raylan chose to embrace his destiny as a lawman and Boyd has vacillated between criminal endeavors and religious zealotry. But in the end of the first season, it was all about Raylan and Boyd working together to survive; their bonds of friendship clearly eclipsing any negating their daddy issues and their polar opposite career paths. Walton shared that he felt the season finale did a fine job of being both satiating yet teasing by portraying two sides of the same coin: Raylan got out, but Boyd did not. It also nicely set up Justified for the second season which promises to peel back more layers on these complex and stimulating characters, and the difficult choices they are forced to make.

Justified airs on FX and has been renewed for a second season which will air later this year or in early 2011.