Sterlin Harjo on The Lowdown
Editor’s note: This piece contains spoilers for The Lowdown.
Since Bogie first popped the collar of his trench coat and roamed the gritty streets of San Francisco, America has been captivated by film noir — its style, swagger, attraction, and dark mysteries. Over the past seven weeks, Sterlin Harjo's The Lowdown has embodied these elements, delivering satisfying closure with its first season finale on November 4.
Plot and Characters
The latest FX series, co-created by the mind behind Reservation Dogs, follows Lee Raybon (Ethan Hawke), an unconventional citizen journalist determined to expose Tulsa’s white-supremacist elite. In the episode "The Sensitive Kind," Lee highlights femme fatale Betty Jo Washberg (Jeanne Tripplehorn) and supports gubernatorial candidate Donald Washberg (Kyle MacLachlan) in confronting hard truths.
Donald Washberg, newly awakened, distances himself from his crypto-Nazi backers and returns his family's stolen land to the Osage people, righting a historic wrong.
Impact and Themes
It's a powerful and gratifying experience to witness racists being held accountable and Indigenous Oklahomans receiving the justice long denied to them. However, this ideal resolution can feel like a distant dream in today's reality.
Sterlin Harjo, a Tulsa resident and the show's writer-director, insists the story's hopeful message doesn’t have to remain a dream.
He shared his insights with The A.V., emphasizing the possibility of real change.
Author's Summary
Sterlin Harjo’s The Lowdown blends film noir with urgent social justice, spotlighting Tulsa’s struggles and the quest for healing and accountability.