Lay Away

In October 2020, it was reported that the seventh episode of the season would be titled "Lay Away", and was to be written by series creator Noah Hawley, co-executive producer Enzo Mileti and co-executive producer Scott Wilson, and directed by Dana Gonzales. This was Hawley's 30th writing credit, Mileti's second writing credit, Wilson's second writing credit, and Gonzales' third directing credit.[1]

In its original American broadcast, "Lay Away" was seen by an estimated 0.65 million household viewers and gained a 0.1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research. This means that 0.1 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode.[2] This was a slight decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 0.70 million viewers with a 0.1 in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

"Lay Away" received generally positive reviews from critics. Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B" grade and wrote, "'Lay Away' doesn't lack for characters making big swings; as Oraetta murders her boss and rifles through his desk, Josto decides to go all in on getting his brother killed, and Loy decides not to take the bait. This should all be pretty exciting stuff, and the episode isn't without its share of tension. But the same lack of cohesion, of forward motion, plagues this season almost as much as it did season 3; and while there, the choppiness felt like it might be moving towards an intentional point about modern life, here it's like a story trying to remember why its being told."[4]

Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone wrote, "The good news is that we're just about out of this Frankensteined-together middle portion of the season, with two much stronger episodes immediately following. But it's been a bit of a slog to get through this stage of things."[5] Nick Schager of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Kansas City remains up for grabs in Fargo's seventh episode, 'Lay Away', but that's not to say that criminals aren't trying to seize control of the city. On the contrary, double-crosses abound, as both sides in the brewing gangland war attempt to gain the upper hand through duplicitous means."[6]

Keith Phipps of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "We're seven episodes in, so it's probably time to start asking this question: Does this season have an endgame? There are currently so many moving pieces, it's not clear where all of them are headed — or if the show has a route to bring them all together at the end."[7] Nick Harley of Den of Geek gave the episode a 3.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "While the surrounding elements are feeling noticeably adrift, the main crime story at the heart of this season of Fargo is delivering gangster-filled goodness. Josto's bluff adds a lot of intrigue to the mix, and Chris Rock really cooks with the heavy material that he's given. Even Odis, who started off as a weak collection of tics, looks like he'll be playing an interesting part in this vicious chess match. If Fargo could figure out how to supply all of this season's many characters with purpose like that, this thing could finally take off."[8] Scott Tobias of The New York Times wrote, "In an episode that sets Loy and Josto up for comparison, there can be no doubt that Loy is the craftier of the two, with good instincts and a fuller understanding of what power he does and does not have."[9]

TVLine named Chris Rock as an honorable mention as the "Performer of the Week" for the week of November 7, 2020, for his performance in the episode. The site wrote, "Chris Rock's Fargo crime boss Loy Cannon has kept his cool thus far in Season 4, but his rage boiled over this week as he weathered an onslaught of tragic setbacks. Loy was fuming after the murder of his right-hand man Doctor Senator, and he took it out on his underling Leon, viciously whipping him with a belt for daring to say Senator's name. Then when Josto lied that Loy's son Satchel was dead, Rock twisted Loy's face into a mix of shocked horror and coldblooded calculation, already gaming out his next move. Plus, anyone who's watched Rock do stand-up comedy knows he is a gifted orator, and he put that talent to great use as Loy ranted about the poison of racial prejudice to jittery detective Odis Weff. Fargo has found a way to harness Rock's charisma into a stellar dramatic performance, and this week, he confidently stepped into the spotlight... well, like a boss."[10]