This show is crazy, guys. I have to admit, I’ve considered Sons of Anarchy a guilty pleasure since the start of last year. I feel that it started as a strong drama with a few action elements thrown in when needed. The first couple seasons that focused on Jax and his inner turmoil, and figuring out his life direction were compelling. I liked everybody in the club for the most part. Then season three happened and I almost quit watching the show. I found season three that ridiculous and kind of boring. Season 4 rebounded with some crazy shit and I got back into it, but starting to be for different reasons. It slowly evolved from a drama to this show where insane things would happen all the time. Season 4 I viewed as sort of the downfall of Clay. As a sympathetic character, I mean. Season 5 was even crazier, we lost Opie. Then I felt as if season 5 was the downfall of Jax as a character I could really relate to. Sure, he might occasionally still write some pseudo-philosophical stuff meant for his son, but he could be shooting people for very little reason in the next scene. And that is the show’s central character.
So why do I still watch it? Because, as I said, this show is fucking crazy! This episode, and the past few episodes have been banana-balls nutso. I love it. I love it in the same way I love the Fast and the Furious series. I shouldn’t love it, but by god do I ever. The Sons are on full lockdown and are after the Irish. After some handy torture by our hero Jax, SAMCRO finds Connor, one of the local head honchos for the Irish. He puts Jax in touch with the real heads of the IRA and Jax pleads his case to set up August Marks as the new gun runner even though Marks is black and the Irish are notoriously racist. We find out after the call that Gaalan, the guy who killed two Sons, was sitting in with the Irish bosses the whole time. Oops, Jax! Probably not gonna work out for you. I liked seeing Chibs’ reaction when he found out that Jax offered the deal to the IRA without consulting the club first. I’ve enjoyed this season’s more assertive Chibs. In the past I felt that he’s been too much of a yes-man. “What’d you do Jax? Slaughter a nursery filled with babies? I tried to tell ya ‘bout them babies Jackie boy. D’ya want me to slaughter a couple more nurseries to sort of even the score?” Maybe not that bad, but I haven’t seen him so much as an independent character before.
Tara’s still trying to get the kids out of Charming. Yada bladda chadda. That’s a story line that’s taking two seasons too long. Peter Weller time! Jesus, that dude looks haggard. It looks like Red Forman had his gang shoot up Peter Weller’s face, but it was already made of steel and just left dings everywhere. Nero is cool. I don’t know, Jimmy Smits just makes an aging gangsta so darn likeable. I think Nero and Jax have a great rapport, and I enjoy it whenever they’re doing anything. When they’re driving and joking around I just find myself smiling.
The Irish has plans to bust Clay out of prison and have him run guns with a new crew of his own. Clay’s reaction is to contact SAMCRO and ask what he should do. I feel like this show is trying to get me to sympathize with Clay now, but I just can’t. Sorry, you’ve done too much shit Clay. You were behind the murder of Opie’s wife, Opie’s father, Jax’s father, Eli’s wife. Probably a lot more. I can’t get behind you now because you look sad about it. The only way he could contact the club was to set up a conjugal visit in prison, wherein the visitor has to pay $500 to get two minutes of talk time without any kind of recording devices. It has to be a wife, so it had to be Gemma. In a Pulp Fiction style WTF-worthy twist, the corrupt prison guards decide that a conjugal visit should involve sex. So they force Gemma and Clay to fuck while they jack off. It was a pretty rough scene, and a small part of me kept hoping that Gemma and Clay would go apeshit and mess up the guards but it didn’t happen. They played it safe. Actually I don’t know if they used a condom, but they definitely got it on. Gemma deals with it for the time being, but seeing as how she told Nero, and Nero’s now off to prison, I’m sure something will happen. Oh yeah, Eli arrested Nero. At the clubhouse, which was boomin’.
The bosses at the IRA told Jax to gather the entire MC at 8:00 so they could discuss the new deal. So Jax does exactly that, probably too hopeful for peace to suspect foul play. How Jax pieced the puzzle together was kind of goofy though, in my opinion. He saw an Irish pen and it was left by an Irishman who dropped off a keg of beer. First, why would the Irishman have or leave a shamrock pen? It’s like the show wants me to believe one of two things: either every Irishman carries shamrock pens 24/7, you know because they’re Irish, or that the IRA was trying to send a message. Which doesn’t make sense. If they were trying to send a message, who would it be for? The large group of people they’d hoped to blow to smithereens? Also, lastly, nobody tapped the keg? It was a full clubhouse! Nonetheless, despite all those questions, it was still a scene rife with tension. Jax rescuing Abel, Chibs staying behind for them both. I know I was holding my breath.
They’re always after me for not selling arms
All in all I loved this episode. It was crazy, and reminded me of everything that I’ve come to love this show for. Gunfights! ‘Splosions! Random sex perversions! Four and a half stars out of five!
