Brief spoilers for Wednesday night's "Sons of Anarchy" coming up just as soon as I get a hot shave...The show just gets better every week. It helps that the last few weeks have put Jax in situations where he's been forced to be more aggressive. I'm not saying a fairly laid-back, passive character can't work at the center of a show about a motorcycle club, but I don't know that Charlie Hunnam is the guy to pull it off. Seeing him lose his patience with Dutch -- and then throwing him through a plate glass window -- seemed like a much better use of Hunnam's talents.
But the killer moment this week (pun only slightly intended, and for that, I'm sorry) was Clay's confrontation with Lowell. Lowell begging for his own death and the future of his son -- the same way his father no doubt made the same pleas to Clay decades earlier -- was incredibly powerful, particularly on a show that's so much about what sons inherit from their fathers, and very well-played by both Ron Perlman and Keir O'Donnell as Lowell.
What did everybody else think?
I thought the most ineresting dynamic was the relationship between Hale and Jax when going after the Agent. Hale told Jax to go to Floyd's basically asking to take care of the dirty work. Then he watches as Jax escorts to guy out of town. It seems even Hale recognizes the relationship the town has with SOA and the value they can have. It reminded me a little of Tony's relationship with Agent Harris at the end.
ReplyDeleteCan I just say that I'm so happy you cover this show, because no one I know in real life will watch the show with me. And, given that my other new favorite show is Privileged, you can see why my friends are questioning my bipolar TV viewing habits.
ReplyDeleteIt does get better every week!
I have been waiting for Jax to show his mettle - there has to be a reason why he's second in command, reasons why he earned it. And, we're finally getting a glimpse of it. Hope there's more.
Though, I would like to see someone get into real trouble that they can't get out of - always escaping the law is the point, I suppose. And we see ex-communicated and/or ex-con members, so we know there are consequences for their actions.
But I want to see someone break the law and pay for it - like that one guy I can't stand, the who brought Cherry back in the truck (the one who OD'd?). Yes. Send him up the river.
I'm just glad someone here finally defined "Sam Crow". If I had to go through another episode not knowing who that was or what it meant, it would have continued to annoy me.
ReplyDeleteI'm really enjoying Ron Perlman in this. I especially like the look on his face when he realized Half-sack saw him hugging the Nevada chippie and started winning the fight.
You know, I did explain the whole Sam Crow thing back in my episode two review.
ReplyDeleteWait, I went back to your post...did you ever get Redwood Original explained to you?
ReplyDeleteDefinitely gets better each week and quickly taking the place of The Shield (and The Wire) as the best written show on TV, although you can make a strong case that Mad Men is better.
ReplyDeleteLove the dynamic re: fathers-sons, and I thought the scenes with Clay and Lowell this week were incredibly strong. There is so much below the surface - the death of Jax's father, the circumstances behind the bones on the side of the road - the link reA: weapons with the IRA.....although I'm sad to see "Dutch" escorted out of town, Kurt Sutter wrote him into such a tight box that there was really nowhere to go with the character. Ally Walker makes a far more interesting ATF agent and certainly has more dimensions to her character. I love Sutter's dark humor - like the Shield, you have to follow closely to catch it sometimes (the morgue scene with Clay Tig was great).
I think "Redwood Original" has to be because they are the first charter up in the redwoods-defined ecosystem up there. They're original kind of like something is the First Methodist Church, right?
ReplyDeleteThe confrontation between Lowell and Clay ended pretty predictably, but it still worked well. You have to wonder if Clay just felt sorry for Lowell Jr, had a change of heart, or that he knew he'd fail Moby just like he failed Lowell Jr, so he decided to take the risk and get him into rehab. And after all, we still don't know the full story.
ReplyDeleteKim Coates' look when he saw Lowell Jr. in the back of the van was priceless.
Also, the scene between Cherry and Bobby was all kinds of uncomfortable, and well acted by Manning and Boone. Bobby's almost sociopathic "you passed the test!" laugh was weird. Manning continues to impress me with finding a lot of sadness within Cherry.
I am loving this show. Well written, acted and so engrossing. The father and son dynamics are interesting, but you have to give it to the 'Gemma'as played by Katey Segal as the real power behind the throne.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete"This guy is dead."
ReplyDelete"At least."
I just watched the last three eps in a row, which really highlighted the growth of Jax's character. And not that you asked in this thread, but I also prefer "SAMCRO" despite the screaming caps.
ReplyDelete