Sons of Anarchy season 4 - Page 3

Piney and Bobby seem like certain casualties right now. As for the rest, that depends on how far Sutter is going to take the Hamlet analogy. 

The obvious picks would be Piney, Unser, and Juice, although Kozick, Happy, and Fat Prospect are totally expendable as well (if they're important enough to count).  Otto too, although it seems like Sutter has a good time figuring out how badly he can maim himself while still managing to pull off a retaliatory shanking. 

 

Jax and Clay's conflict is the cornerstone of the show.  It'll last til the end.

 

Tig needs to stay because Clay needs a heavy in his corner to keep the threat level up.

 

Since they didn't kill Opie the first time, I think he's gonna around for quite awhile.  They won't off him without exploiting the major dramatic potential in turning him fully against Jax.

 

Bobby and Chibs would hurt the most, as along with Opie they make up the likeable core of SAMCRO (Juice is fine too, but has so far been played for laughs more than empathy). I don't want to bet with my heart, but it's just hard for me to imagine sitting around that table without those guys.  

Agree on Unser. I don't even know why they still have him on, he's basically outlived his usefulness to the SOA. Although I guess he does know about the Sheriff and his wife at the fertility clinic. Maybe Dunbar's character kills Unser before he can tell everyone that the Sheriff is shooting blanks (what? wouldn't be the most ridiculous thing Sutter has ever done on this show)

After this last episode, looks like Piney is a dead cert too. I picture Clay strangling him quietly with an oxygen tube, but who knows, maybe he'll get his blaze of glory e.g. he bursts into The Chapel, fires off several shots at Clay at point blank range (missing every goddamn time), then Tig puts one right between his eyes. Whatever happens, I'm sure all us fans will miss the lovable old racist and his right wing militia befriending ways.

Pretty sure they're keeping Unser around for the simple fact that Dayton Callie is better than your entire  family.

Yes I know, he was in Deadwood, which automatically makes him the most amazing thing ever. Never seen that show, but he's alright. Only times I really liked him were when going up against the frustrated Hale. Also when he had nothing to do and was hanging out at the club house, trying to be one of the gang.

"PUT YOUR HAND DOWN."

and

"He seems like a pretty nice guy!"

(Perlman spits out half his drink)

Oh, I know he hasn't ever served much of a purpose outside of 2 or 3 episodes, but he's such an engaging presence that I don't mind just having him around the periphery.  

 

It's not just that he's in Deadwood, it's that he is incredible in Deadwood.  But yes, that show is better than several generations worth of your people too.

I'm hoping he decides, "Fuck it, I'm dying anyway, I'm joining the club!"

He more or less has.   But real outlaw MCs have laws that say you can't apply for membership if you've ever been or even applied to be a part of any law enforcement agency.

Unser may not serve much of a purpose narratively anymore, but he's definitely one of the show's more interesting characters. And if a rift develops between Clay and Gemma, Unser could become important again.

As of now, what Unser knows is more important than what Unser does.

I'm all for ending the lovefest between the Sons and the Mayans but I'm just not buying this subplot with Juice. The whole thing has been way too rushed.

 

On the plus side I appreciate the matter of fact way they had Clay come out and say he killed J.T.

The Juice subplot isn't doing it for me, but I loved that they're finally developing the JT story.

 

Out there prediction: JT is still alive and Unser and Gemma are the only ones that know.

Taking an entire brick of coke is not plausable.  I don't buy that he's that stupid.  And it won't be hard to figure out he had something to do w/ it. 

 

JT alive?  that's a way, way out there prediction.

The set-up for the Juice subplot still doesn't play right, but I like where they're taking it.  And yeah, great that they're not pussyfooting around the JT thing any further.  Piney doesn't look long for this world, but that's not really new.  I like how the pressure is building up on multiple club members (Clay, Bobby, Juice) from different angles. 

Last night, the look on Tig's face after Dondo's "She taught me that I was more that just a huge cock" comment was priceless!!!!!! 

That would be a very cool reveal but it's way to out of reality even for this show. First there was a body and second I don't buy J.T. wouldn't attempt to contact Jax.

 

And can the show finally explain the race requirements with motorcycle gangs? Seriously it's starting to drive me nuts that they have a guy who is clearly puertorican and another guy who is some mixture of black or spanish and a jew but for some reason they care if he is black. This is the strangest form of racism that I have ever seen.

Stealing a whole brick of coke from the fucking Mexican cartels? Juice, what the fuck?

 

It's nice to see that the show continues this year's concept of everyone lying to everyone else, through their fucking teeth. There hasn't been an honest exchange of any value between two characters since the show started.

This Juice subplot pisses me off.  I've been trying to give it room to develop but it just feels like someplace we've been before only not as interesting and less plausible.  It's also annoying that it's still better than almost all of last season.

 

I'm not sure how I feel about the Clay/JT thing now.  It makes me wonder why they spent so much time on the did he/didn't he regarding Clay when there wasn't any reason to.  It's like this major change of heart in how they want to approach the issue but it makes me wonder why now?  It seems like the shift is to the "why" of the issue rather than whether the issue happened.

from Kurt's blog

 

THANK YOU

Yeah, sorry Kurt. Not buying it. Whatever compelling parallels this storyline might have in the history of real-world MCs, you still jammed it into this season pretty inorganically.

I agree that it's fertile material to explore, but the show is doing it in an awkward way. Now if the Sons kill/kick out Juice it will be because of the coke and not the black thing. Even if he owns up to what he's doing they'll have to let him go for attempting to play ball with law enforcement. Juice is fucked already, and that has nothing to do with the fact that he's half black.

Yeah, that post clarifies nothing about why the Sons are tolerant in some ways but not when it comes to black people, and even if it did it has not been expressed nearly well enough in the show to be hanging a major plot point on it.  Liking everything else, though, so let's go.
 

 

They gave Chibs a pass for going about as far with ATF in the past, although it was a different time and was motivated in some part by not wanting to upset Opie right after the Donna mistake came out.  But there is a precedent.
 

 

Juice is fucked, but I don't think he dies. At least not yet. He goes into protective custody.

I think Juice should be more worried about the Cartel than the Sons at this point, the Cartel has a way of knowing everything this season.

Finished season 3, but need a way to catch up to you guys.

Only thing that really bugs me is how Opie and Jax seem to be down with all the bad stuff the club does in the sense when they possibly go to far. Opie should of turned on the club after his wife was killed, and Jax seems to have become Clay's lap dog. Glad season 3 ended with Tara finding the letters. Maybe there is some hope!

looks like one aspect of Juices' problem was taken care of.....

 

I just hope that the skanky porn chick that Jax "had a conversation with" doesn't end up being a rat to the cops, that would be too convenient and a little cliche.

Chibs is on to Juice, big time.

 

I have to say, if this keeps going at the same rate it will surpass season two as my favorite of the show.

This season is certainly juggling a lot of balls.

 

I agree that Chibs is onto this particular deceit.  He was around when Miles was patched in, so I imagine he won't think that story makes any sense.  And did Miles ever enter the room when the security cameras were on?  Shouldn't that right there shoot a hole in Juice's story?

 

Not sure what Clay thinks the endgame is for his Tara move.  Both Unser and Gemma will know, and the only leverage Clay has with Jacks is Tara and his future away from the Club.  For all of the legitimately stupid decisions made this year (leading to good drama, I might add), that ranks as the loudest "HUH?".

 

Very fun season to watch, though.  Embracing the soap aspect just enough to keep the season propulsive.

Miles getting blown away was a nice bit of surprise violence. Brutal, and so quick I couldn't even tell if it was real squibs or CGI.

Yea, they did a good job on Miles getting shot, visceral and surprising. I actually really enjoyed this episode, It seems like they are giving the other guys more to do this season. I wanted to see more of Chibs so it looks like they've given him something to do finally.

Don't think they'd put squib on someones face.

 

This is gonna end badly for so many.  Half the club is gonna be dead.

That head shot(s) was insane.

 

I'm liking this season much more than last, which set on the DVR for a long time.

You guys have to realize that SOA is at heart a fantasy show. Start thinking of the timeline involved in season 2-3 and all that shit happened in about TWO MONTHS. 

 

Not to mention the Sons are out of jail for about a day and whack over a half-dozen Russian mobsters. 

 

It's as realistic as Dr Who. Don't hold it to standards of logic and real life and it's much more enjoyable. 

 

 

A friend of mine associated with The Outlaws MC, and she said season 1 absolutely NAILED it. 

 

 

Great exchange from this week's episode with Piney - 

 

Gemma walks in clubhouse, sees Piney doing shots:

 

G - "It's 9 am!"

P - "Yes, it is."

 

 

 

Let's not forget Luann was banging Bobby so he'd keep quiet about her skimming money from the club. It wasn't just him banging Otto's hot wife for shits and grins. 

 

 

Luann was good casting. Much more used up looking than say Opie's wife, but still you could believe she once had a "career".

 

 

well obviously they would not use traditional squib for headshots. I watch enough special effects "making of" bits to know that there must be safer alternatives to getting the practical squib effect without hurting the actor/stuntman (some kind of compressed air trick, a pull type system, etc)

my only problem is that when The Shield went over the top, it was still believable. When Sons goes over the top, more times than not it totally takes me out of the show.

 

Seasons 1 & 2 were money to me. Three was ok but once they went to Ireland it was aces. This season...I don't know, it's just waaaay too predictable. Saying that, my hope is that maybe that's what Sutter is shooting for, just to snatch the carpet from up under me in a few episodes.

 

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

 

exactly why I think the "MAIN" cast member not showing up next season is Tara

 

and not for reasons already alluded to so far (cartel hitman)

You think that trying to get out of a drug deal with a crime syndicate introduced in season four can match the drama of clashing with man who murdered the protagonist's father and usurped his position as the head of both his actual family and surrogate family?  Seriously?
 

 

It's like "Hamlet 2" in a world where Hamlet didn't die at the end. 

Well, he's obviously not sticking too closely to it, but I expect he will come back to it in the ultimate conclusion (Hamlet's later acts are a total bloodbath, so why not?).  But regardless of adaptation issues, no outside threat is going to match the intensity of the Clay-Jax conflict, because it will never have the history there. 

Everyone says Tara but I'm thinking Gemma for some reason. She's the one caught in the middle between the opposing forces of Clay and Jax. If and when they crash into each other she's going to be the one closest to the point of impact.

I don't see Sutter letting her go until he has at least gotten Sagal her Emmy nomination (which it's more than a little absurd didn't come for the 2nd season).