S07.E09: What A Piece Of Work Is Man

[henripootel]

When August Marks shot Bobby, I totally didn't expect it.

Neither did I because it totally makes no farking sense.  Ever-smart Marks executes a man in broad daylight in this day of snipers and ubiquitous cameras?  This is assuming Jax doesn't bitch out and call the cops, which you'd think Jax would never do except that's exactly what he did do next.

 

So why exactly did Gemma make it a point to antagonize the sheriff?  She's practically an Old Lady for the club, but Gemma wants to measure dicks with her?  In her office?  I considered the possibility that she did this intentionally to make the other officers think the sheriff actually hated the club (instead of being under the spell of Chib's Chub) but that's dumb too - why bring any attention to it at all.  I'm not even gonna get started with the car-top sex.  In broad daylight.  In front of another (possibly cellphone equipped) Son.  Jeez, just ... jeez.  

 

So Juicy woke up in a cell doing nothing, got to shove something in his own ass, then got moved ... to another cell to wait some more.  Nice plot pacing there, Sutter.

 

And could Sutter telegraph more obviously that Nero is doomed?  Maybe have the Reaper himself materialize behind him and swing as Nero, I dunno, bends over to tie his shoe.  Another swing and a miss.

 

I also renew my objections to Abel as a plot device - I refuse to believe that a 5-year-old is being driven to insanity by being surrounded by adults who coddle him and his proximity to (admittedly horrific) events he doesn't witness and can't possibly understand.  I know Sutter wants us to see this as poetic justice but he also wants us to see the sex-on-the-car scene as 'sexy' and whatever the opposite of 'ludicrous' is.  

Edited November 6, 2014 by henripootel

[Guest Accused Dingo]

I agree with all of that. He's not portraying women in general; he's portraying women operating around men in this morally twisted society.

This is true to life with 1% clubs. Women are either old ladies or prostitutes...hell they are often both. I think Sutter has done a remarkable job showing strong women being built from weak positions. Gemma and Tara are two strong willed and intelligent women who were able to stand up and battle men in a very mans world and often come up on top. Yes Tara got shanked in the end but I think it is very telling that she got shanked by another woman in what amounted to a game for Jax's soul.

Edited November 5, 2014 by Accused Dingo

[La Tortuga]

I also renew my objections to Abel as a plot device - I refuse to believe that a 5-year-old is being driven to insanity by being surrounded by adults who coddle him and (admittedly horrific) events he can't possibly understand.  I know Sutter wants us to see this as poetic justice but he also wants us to see the sex-on-the-car scene as 'sexy' and whatever the opposite of 'ludicrous' is.

 

I can see why you'd object to Abel becoming the avenging angel or next serial killer in the near future--that's a bit much to expect from a kindergartener. But I still think he can serve as a plot device in the form of a catalyst for others to take action. And I absolutely believe a kid that young can be driven insane when he's surrounded by death and violent people and has no normal, peaceful routine, when he learns by experience to associate going to the cabin with dead loved ones, and when he overhears his grandmother confessing to his mother's murder and (loudly) blaming herself for the dead body sitting in front of her on the family picnic table. Just because Abel's too young to fully understand what everything means doesn't mean he can't understand any of it, and it doesn't mean he isn't affected by it. He's interpreting what he sees and hears the best way his little kid brain knows how, and as we saw a few episodes ago with the hammer scene, he's the kind of kid who thinks of himself as part of the chaos around him, not just an observer of other people's chaos.

[PiggyRod]

Showing those "SOA Moments" during commercial breaks is not doing the show any favors. It just highlights the fact that it used to be good and now it sucks.

When I saw "2 hours and 15 minutes" on the DVR, I let out an audible groan. Thankfully the actual show didn't last that long.

I haven't watch for that reason exactly, I saw 2 hours and thought "hellllll no".  Yet reading here I can't say I missed much, all I got is that Bobby died in an anticlimatic way, that's about it. I do not see any mention of plot advancement.  Noone is shouting "What a great episode!"  Still, I will watch tonight.

[terrymct]

Neither did I because it totally makes no farkng sense.  Ever-smart Marks executes a man in broad daylight in this day of snipers and ubiquitous cameras?  This is assuming Jax doesn't bitch out and call the cops, which you'd think Jax would never do except that's exactly what he did do next.

 

So why exactly did Gemma make it a point to antagonize the sheriff?  She's practically an Old Lady for the club, but Gemma wants to measure dicks with her?  In her office?  I considered the possibility that she did this intentionally to make the other officers think the sheriff actually hated the club (instead of being under the spell of Chib's magic boner) but that's dumb too - why bring any attention to it at all.  I'm not even gonna get started with the car-top sex.  In broad daylight.  In front of another (possibly cellphone equipped) Son.  Jeez, just ... jeez.  

 

 

Agreed that Bobby's broad daylight murder in an area with security cameras was stupid.  Shocking, but stupid.

 

Gemma fighting with Althea was also profoundly stupid.   I did, however, enjoy Nero watching the antics through the office window.  Best pantomimed "WTF are you doing?" I've seen in a long time.  I don't understand why Nero is still with Gemma.  She's cost him almost every single thing he holds near.  Why doesn't he run away from her?  Does she have a friggin trick pelvis or something?  

[Decider]

Charlie Hunnan is Australian, isn't he?

 

He is from the UK.  Born in Newcastle and brought up in Cumbria, to be exact.  You can hear more of his natural accent in this clip.

[La Tortuga]

I wonder if Nero stays with Gemma for the same reason Tara stayed with Jax for so long instead of just leaving at the earliest opportunity. Nero & Tara are/were both simply hooked on these Tellers, no matter how much danger that presents to their kids.

[monakane]

I can see why you'd object to Abel becoming the avenging angel or next serial killer in the near future--that's a bit much to expect from a kindergartener. But I still think he can serve as a plot device in the form of a catalyst for others to take action. And I absolutely believe a kid that young can be driven insane when he's surrounded by death and violent people and has no normal, peaceful routine, when he learns by experience to associate going to the cabin with dead loved ones, and when he overhears his grandmother confessing to his mother's murder and (loudly) blaming herself for the dead body sitting in front of her on the family picnic table. Just because Abel's too young to fully understand what everything means doesn't mean he can't understand any of it, and it doesn't mean he isn't affected by it. He's interpreting what he sees and hears the best way his little kid brain knows how, and as we saw a few episodes ago with the hammer scene, he's the kind of kid who thinks of himself as part of the chaos around him, not just an observer of other people's chaos.

 

Excellent analysis of Abel.  I've become so desensitized to the lunacy on this show that it didn't register with me how traumatizing it must be to see a loved on laid out on the picnic table.  Dead and missing an eye no less.  Why would they ever expose him to that??

[ChicksDigScars]

I haven't watch for that reason exactly, I saw 2 hours and thought "hellllll no".

That's okay. Since you DVR-ed it, you can pass through the alcohol and motorcycle commercials and it will only be an hour show. And that 2 hours and 15 mins includes the live show afterwards.

As for taking so long for people to catch on to who actually killed Tara, it's all because of WHO did the deed. Sutter is going to make sure the wife draws a check until the very end. Personally, I'd prefer to see Chibs, Tig and Nero make it to the end before Gemma.

[La Tortuga]

Excellent analysis of Abel.  I've become so desensitized to the lunacy on this show that it didn't register with me how traumatizing it must be to see a loved on laid out on the picnic table.  Dead and missing an eye no less.  Why would they ever expose him to that??

 

I think when it comes to Abel, everyone intends to shield him from seeing and hearing awful stuff. (Tara was always concerned about his happiness, his social skills, etc.) That's why he's now got Gemma, Wendy, and the babysitter all staying with him, serving as the gatekeepers to protect him from the bad stuff. But the thing is, these people completely suck at keeping a good eye on him, because they're always having to deal with new, terrible stuff landing on their doorstep and encroaching on their lives, and no matter where they take the kids the bad shit seems to follow (mostly because they take him to places that are still filled with club members conducting their regular business).

 

Gemma and Jax aren't willing to send the boys to a place where there aren't liable to be 5 armed guys, a junkie, and/or a dead body coming through the door at any moment because that would mean choosing between being away from the kids or being away from the action, and they don't want to do either. So they tell themselves it's enough to just wait until Abel is supposed to be asleep or out of the room, just like some addict parents wait until the kids are in bed or at school to get high. But let's face it, Abel's a kid in a house, not a baby in a playpen or a prisoner locked in a cell--he's going to get around and see stuff he wasn't meant to see, just like kids in a normal house occasionally walk in on their parents arguing or boning or whatever.

[henripootel]

I've become so desensitized to the lunacy on this show that it didn't register with me how traumatizing it must be to see a loved on laid out on the picnic table.  Dead and missing an eye no less.  Why would they ever expose him to that??

Not for nothing, but I've had occasion to see how kids react to death up close.  I've spent time in a part of the world where people still bury their own.  The dead guy was laid out and prepped for burial and the kids ... really didn't care.  We who live in a world where we might live our lives without ever seeing such a thing, we might imagine they'd get the wiggins, just like we would.  In my limited experience, not so.  Even the pre-teens were pretty much just bored, although they could actually grasp what was going on.

 

For what it's worth I think these guys have the right of it.  Death should be personal and painful, not antiseptic and distant.  And just to stay on topic, I'd still guess that Abel has seen more violence on tv then he ever has in 'real life'. Just cuz Kurt Sutter wants us to think he's earned this doesn't mean he has.

Edited November 5, 2014 by henripootel

[La Tortuga]

henripootel, that's a very reasonable argument. I can see how children raised in an environment where it's normal to lay out & bury your own dead would grow accustomed to it quickly. In a sense, that is what Abel is learning, as evidenced by his fairly annoyed tone at breakfast when he asked, "Did somebody else die?"

 

But the people around him aren't dying of old age; they're being murdered, one of them in his own house. He's living in a suburb, but the adults around him are in the midst of war. I think the fact that he's now overheard his grandmother confessing her own blame for two murders is the factor that really complicates the situation for Abel. His grandma loves him and reads him stories, she corrects his manners when she thinks he isn't behaving, oh and she killed his beloved mom and said it was an accident because she was trying to be a good grandma, and then sat over Uncle Bobby's dead, mutilated body and said that was accidentally her fault, too. On top of that, during the lockdown his father made it clear that he (Jax) was personally responsible for the safety of others, which Abel immediately mimicked by appointing himself personally responsible for guarding his baby brother.

 

Even if Abel's seen more violence on TV than in real life, at this point he's observed enough in his real life to expect, or at least to fear, that at any point his grandmother's deadly violence could be aimed at him or Thomas. So in that respect, I do think Sutter's laying the foundation he needs to lay for Abel to develop mental problems and violent tendencies.

Edited November 5, 2014 by La Tortuga

[HisSassyKitten]

How about "Birth Mama"?

Nah, Nero can just call me Little Mama.  I meant he can call Wendy that. Lol

[henripootel]

I can see how children raised in an environment where it's normal to lay out & bury your own dead would grow accustomed to it quickly.

At the risk of yammering on and on about this, Tortuga, you make my point for me.  The little kids I spoke of - you know how many of them are turning into dead-eyed thugs?  None.  A familiarity with death might make you blithe about corpses but it doesn't make you a serial killer, nor fear that you're likely to become a corpse soon yourself.

I think the fact that he's now overheard his grandmother confessing her own blame for two murders is the factor that really complicates the situation for Abel.

Did she?  I remember thinking that even I (with no prior knowledge) might not have concluded that I'd just heard Gemma confess to anything specific.  And I'm old enough to know all the words she said and know what she's capable of, because I watch a show called Sons of Anarchy.  Abel isn't and he doesn't, so no way he's haunted by the evil deeds he couldn't possibly have witnessed, or even understood if he heard about them.  Which he wouldn't because no one would ever tell him about them, ever.

 

ETA: 

So the cops dig up the partial preacher, and August Marks gets his own head ducked down into a cop car, and here's lookin' at you, Moses.  You got a date with the Reaper.

Somebody does.  Congratulations, Jax, you just made it worth Mark's while to have yourself and everyone you know exterminated.  But you did get in a nice smug look while he was arrested.  Good plan.

Edited November 5, 2014 by henripootel

[daughtersofanarchy]

I absolutely loved them stitching together their Frankenstein faux preacher.  What a hoot.  And August Marks fell for that unholy hybrid. hee hee  Now those scenes harkened back to the REAL Sons of Anarchy show.  Whatever happened to that show?  Oh yeah, we got a changeling in it's place.  hmmm ...

 

Also loved that the scapegoat Chinese guy was in Vegas at the time Tara was killed.  That was a laugh-out-loud moment, too.

 

Jax to new Indian Hills prez:  Well, see, Jury had a kid, and Jury blamed us 'cause the kid got killed.  No, really, he had a kid.  Kid's mom lives out yonder apace, you could go ask her.  (Oh, don't forget to duck when you git there.  They got a lot of guns.) 

 

So the cops dig up the partial preacher, and August Marks gets his own head ducked down into a cop car, and here's lookin' at you, Moses.  You got a date with the Reaper.

[HisSassyKitten]

Oh I see what you did here!

Perhaps Bobby would have been better off if he'd approached Jax's plans with a bit more of a critical EYE. RIP Bobby.

Great recap by the way.

[Lambie]

Hey Kurt Sutter, no woman in the world has ever said "take me now." Not ever.

Stupid episode. Couldn't care less Bobby died because this show has become a 90-minute steaming dump set on fire and left on the viewers' doorsteps every week.

That after show was painful and I only made it through 10 minutes. For some reason. Feel really bad when a guest goes rogue on Chris Hardwick. This guy not so much.

[marcee]

I wish they'd planted a bomb in that stitched up body.

[tilly]

Gemma fighting with Althea was also profoundly stupid.   I did, however, enjoy Nero watching the antics through the office window.  Best pantomimed "WTF are you doing?" I've seen in a long time. 

My favourite part of this season has been Nero soundlessly freaking out behind that glass. I could watch Jimmy Smits practically semaphore "are you kidding with this shit?" all day. 

[Disraeli Ears]

The most bizarre part of this season, for me, has to be the Chibs/Althea pairing. In SOA time they have known each other two weeks? Three weeks? And she is basically all "Prove you have feeeeeelings for MEEEEE!"

And the whole "Take me now!" scene in the garage. Not sexy at all...not even the brief shot of Tommy Flanagan's butt could make that watchable.

[GleamingMist]

I wish they'd planted a bomb in that stitched up body.

My husband said the same thing!

[wetmoregal]

henripootel, I agree.  I did not hear Gemma confess anything about killing  Bobby or Tara.  It was a more general "I'm sorry this happened to you...."  I was expecting a full confession with Abel within ear shot and was surprised when it didn't happen.  As a viewer, I was able to connect the dots, but I don't think Abel (at age 5) would have based on what he overheard.

 

I didn't understand why Jax would hang around while Marks was being arrested or give the evil eye to Moses.  Can he protect the rest of his crew from Marks' enforcer?  Somehow, I don't think so.  And calling a lawyer isn't going to protect the preacher's wife and stepson.  Neither of them are long for this world I'm afraid...

 

I didn't understand how Marks all of a sudden had a gun during the Bobby/dead preacher exchange.  It was only after reading the discussion here that I realized that the gun was on Bobby and Marks got it while he was holding him close.  At first I thought, boy Chibs didn't do a very good search and I bet he's going to feel even worse knowing that he missed it and Bobby ended up dead.  Personally, I am grateful that they put Bobby out of his misery.  I can't even imagine coming back from that torture both physically and mentally. 

Edited November 6, 2014 by wetmoregal

[Guest Accused Dingo]

The most bizarre part of this season, for me, has to be the Chibs/Althea pairing. In SOA time they have known each other two weeks? Three weeks? And she is basically all "Prove you have feeeeeelings for MEEEEE!"

And the whole "Take me now!" scene in the garage. Not sexy at all...not even the brief shot of Tommy Flanagan's butt could make that watchable.

 

This is why I am convinced she is playing a game on SAMCRO and she is more then just a dirty cop.   She was appointed by the other lady in the beginning of the season (I forget her name now) and I don't think she would have gone to all that trouble to appoint a dirty cop.  I think she appointed an undercover agent to "play" the dirtiest cop on the planet, (I mean could she have been more obviously on the take?)   The thing about players is they know how to play.  She must have realized something was wrong with Chibbs so she played him into revealing his feeeeelings and dudes do that through sex (no offense to dudes out there).  Hey sex it out if it helps.  I think Althea is playing a long game  I don't think she buys that the Chinese killed Tara for a second.

 

Now if I am wrong and she is just a,,,,,,less the honest cop who is trying to play the game in Charming......well......ok then.  I will be disappointed but I still want Chibbs to get out alive and I kinda like them together so...ok then.  Still lI am hoping Althea is more then she seems.  I would be an interesting reveal.   

[Bandolero]

I felt nothing when Bobby died... nothing at all. Well maybe I felt like it was his just desserts. I honestly dislike and am disgusted by almost everybody on the show so I just cannot muster any feelings of loss at this point. Even Bobby's quips while being held hostage annoyed me. Would anybody really antagonize their captors like that? I found it a bit unbelievable.

 

I know lots of folks like Nero but I find him to be as dumb as the rest of them. Sitting around, like a lump of coal, at Gemma's beck and call. 

 

Juice needs to do the deed and get it over with. Tired of looking at his despair every week. 

 

Son and mom (after that explicit warning by Marks) decide to go along with Jax... beyond foolhardy IMO.

 

So Jax is warned by Marks to never lie to or betray him and he does it repeatedly... kind of like signing his and the club's death warrants. How does Marks being in prison solve anything... doesn't the guy have lots of people on his payroll who will do his bidding? I do not see the wisdom in continuing to antagonize him at this point.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Bandolero

[TigerLynx]

With all the people Jax and Co. have killed this season, why didn't they just kill August Marks and his henchmen, or at least try to?

 

I wouldn't be surprised if the other Chapters voted for Jax to meet Mister Mayhem simply because they don't want his stupidity to get them killed, or to cost them anymore money.

 

It's a good thing Nero is pretty to look at because he has lost all his functioning brain cells.

 

Happy and Tigg are made of win.  Happy wanting to cut up the body was hilarious.

 

It's official.  Gemma, Juice, and Unser are cock roaches.  They will never die.

[TribbleTrouble]

So, because they decided they needed some lame plot device to move Able into the back to witness Gemma's Bobby meltdown, they have Wendy, totally out of character, suddenly giving a shit that the guys, who just laid out a beloved dead brother, are tracking some freaking mud into the cabin? And instead of just stepping back outside, all of them (including the women and baby Thomas) go rushing into some small side room to address those offending mud covered shoes like it's the most important thing going on in that moment? Really?

It's a small stupid thing, but it's so indicative of the poor lazy writing that infects this show. It's like the garage sex scene. Completely ridiculous. Is that really the only way they could come up with to nail home (so to speak) the point that Chibs has feelings for Jarry?

I like the show and I'll see it through to the end, but I've always felt like they never in a million years expected to go beyond season 1 and they've been flailing ever since with no clear idea where they're going with the story. Now they're trying to wrap it all up and they're struggling. Plus, I suspect the hour and a half episode thing for the final season was probably imposed on them by the network in a ploy for additional ratings. Suddenly Sutter found himself having to fill the equivalent of an additional 6 1/2 or 7 episodes and he just didn't have the material, so we end up with a lot of bloated scenes, poorly written filler and illogical nonsense. It's disappointing.

[rockpaperscissors]

 

Is it just me or does Jax have a very pronounced accent that he hasn't had in previous seasons? Why?

I like to think Charlie is doing it on purpose as the only way he can protest what a crapfest this show has turned into.

[Ohwell]

I felt sorry for poor Abel  constantly getting his head rubbed by Jax and the others.  There were times when it looked like it hurt or made the kid dizzy.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Ohwell

[Maximona]

 

I'm pretty sure I've seen Annabeth Gish in other things

 

The Bridge.  A very good show that got canceled because even though it had a lot of corpses, most of them were Mexican so, you know:  Who the fuck cares?

 

Sons of Anarchy has become the Number One comedy on my TV-viewing schedule.  Frankenpreacher!  Girl fights!  A cop driven mad by her lust for biker dick!  

 

The only thing that could make me happier is maybe a crossover segment with Criminal Minds, but alas!  that won't happen.  Different networks and all.  I kind of would like to see Garcia get stuck babysitting Abel.

 

I've watched SOA from Season One, so I'm kind of a captive audience.  It's worn its own little groove in my brain, and that groove craves closure.  I started watching just because I know the area that it supposedly takes place in very, very well, and I loved the idea of calling a town in California's oh-so-UN-charming Central Valley, "charming."  It was always a trashy, melodramatic show, but it did have its moments -- mostly when Katy Sagal was on the show because unlike most of the other cast members, she can actually act.

 

It's sad to see that Katy Sagal is still acting because those scripts are an insult to anyone with talent.  But I guess when you're married to the showrunner, ya gotta do what ya gotta do.  At this point, the only thing I really, really, really hope Sutter spares us is the Jax and Gemma incest scene before he kills her.  Though I suppose, it's inevitable.

[henripootel]

This is why I am convinced she is playing a game on SAMCRO and she is more then just a dirty cop.

I considered that too, but it seems to me that she's done a whole lot more than she should even if she was 'undercover'.  And why do anything complicated (or STD-acquiring) just to bring down pissants like Jax and the Sons?  Just follow the trail of bodies they leave and you'll soon catch them burying / excavating one.  Or three.

henripootel, I agree.  I did not hear Gemma confess anything about killing  Bobby or Tara.  It was a more general "I'm sorry this happened to you...."

 

And yet I'll be surprised if we don't see a scene where Abel tells Jax 'Grandma said she killed mommy!'  If we do get that scene, I'm gonna have to call bullshit.

Edited November 6, 2014 by henripootel

[La Tortuga]

I felt nothing when Bobby died... nothing at all. Well maybe I felt like it was his just desserts. I honestly dislike and am disgusted by almost everybody on the show so I just cannot muster any feelings of loss at this point. Even Bobby's quips while being held hostage annoyed me. Would anybody really antagonize their captors like that? I found it a bit unbelievable.

 

I know lots of folks like Nero but I find him to be as dumb as the rest of them. Sitting around, like a lump of coal, at Gemma's beck and call. 

 

Juice needs to do the deed and get it over with. Tired of looking at his despair every week. 

 

Son and mom (after that explicit warning by Marks) decide to go along with Jax... beyond foolhardy IMO.

 

So Jax is warned by Marks to never lie to or betray him and he does it repeatedly... kind of like signing his and the club's death warrants. How does Marks being in prison solve anything... doesn't the guy have lots of people on his payroll who will do his bidding? I do not see the wisdom in continuing to antagonize him at this point.

 

I think, as others have pointed out, that Jax is very reactive, and I would add that this is reinforced socially within his group. Bobby reacted to his capture and mutilation with bravado, because that is how he's "supposed" to react as a man. The murder of a highly valued club member demands a reaction in Jax's mind and as part of his chapter's overall sense of duty and loyalty. While I think being reactionary is a really bad quality for a leader, at this point I don't see how him being proactive has been all that successful, either. All the plans he's laid out for the last several episodes have gone down in massive flames because they were stupid plans that relied on everyone else to just fall in line and do what he wanted. And lord knows he isn't going to be inactive; even when he wants to sit and think, Chibbs reminds him that some form of action and demonstration of leadership is required.

 

To react to Marks in such a short-sighted way is foolish, of course. But to not act at all is perceived as an admission of weakness and defeat; it is socially unacceptable. Jax isn't capable of making a good plan anymore, his brothers aren't offering any good ideas, and Marks has already proven he's too strong for their plans anyway. They have nothing else they can do but react quickly in the hopes that it will catch Marks off guard, though doing this will ruin them all and their families, too.

[kittle1974]

Oh Jax, don't feed the animals. Sure the shot of him driving by with the " nyah nyah I got you" face when they were arresting Marks, made for a good visual, but he proved his point, no need to goad any further

<br /><br />The fact that they put those stupid glasses on him during that scene to show us how smart he is outwitting Marks and company was just ridiculous. He's an idiot. He deserves to die. Just like the rest of them. And it can't happen soon enough.

[Puddy]

I watched it two times, which I normally do not do.  Bobby tried to tell Jax that August had a gun.  That made it really sad for me.  I was prepared though, since I had a feeling.   When August told Bobby he was the smart one, I knew is goose was cooked.  Why would August allow the "smart one" to advise Jax?

 

The sex on the patrol car was just silly.  It added nothing and did not pave the way for a thing.

 

From the previews, it looks like Unser is finally piecing this shit together. 

 

I think August will kill Gemma  just because she is a dumb, old bitch that caused a ton of trouble and cost everyone money and lives.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Puddy

[GoddessofFolly]

Althea slipped something into Chibs' collar.  Someone on another board mentioned it, so I watched that scene, again.  Sure enough, right before the clothes some off, her left hand definitely looks like it drops something into Chibs' collar.  The whole scene was so cringe-worthy, I didn't take a close look the first time.  Hopefully, this and the fact that she didn't trust Chibs enough to tell him that the Chinese guy couldn't have killed Tara, means something.  At least, I'm really, really hoping her weird behavior means something.

[Puddy]

Damn, I missed that!  I will have to watch...again. 

 

PS and by the way ~~ I have told men to "take me now", but all I wanted to do was go shopping and have someone else drive and park.

[Broderbits]

I don't recall her exact words, but didn't Gemma confess to baby Thomas that she killed Tara "accidentally" in episode 7 "Greensleeves"? That's when Abel overheard her. This week he caught her apologizing to Bobby's corpse. Even if he doesn't quite understand what's going on, his confusion might just cause him to blurt something out and Gemma will have some 'splainin' to do.

[Betweenyouandme]

I loved Chris Franjola when he was on Chelsea Lately. On these aftershows it's just brutal to watch. I made it about a minute in and had to stop. He is completely unsuited for this gig.

As for little Abel, I keep thinking that Gemma, who has the instincts of a viper, will catch on to the fact that Abel knows she did it, is mad, and can expose her. And she will, because ultimately she is a soulless sociopath who can justify anything in the name of self-protection, kill Abel somehow to keep him quiet. After all, she still has Thomas to bend to her legacy. But after she does the deed, probably impulsively, she will realize what she has done and go completely off the edge and become a homeless woman muttering to herself, insane. Oh, the club will blow apart and Jax be unable to help her due to his death or imprisonment or banishment. Whatever. Gemma the crazy homeless raving madwoman. That would work for me. Nero, of course, will die. Gemma's men always die. It's like a rule or something.

Hello there. I've been thinking this too about Gemma killing Abel. And, in doing so, if Jax saw or found out, that vengeance would be off the charts.

Of course, that could be crossing a line for TV, but on the other hand, Abel could kill Gemma. Probably a little far fetched, but it is the series last season.

[Insomnia]

I don't think Abel is five, unless they have explicitly said he is five, I think he's like three and a half, at the most four. When they first talked about putting him in to school it was going to be pre-kindergarten, or something like that.

 

Sorry, I normally marathon my shows before they come back on, and have a better sense of time passing, but I didn't with SoA... and I'm kinda glad, actually.

[Artsda]

Jax said he was 5 in this episode. He said it to Wendy.

 

The show gave him soap opera aging so he could talk and walk, interact. With the timeline this show has had, it doesn't make sense he's 5 since he was a few months old when Tara got pregnant with Thomas and Thomas is still a baby. So Abel should just be a year older than Thomas. Yet there's now a 4 yr age gap between them.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Bobby was seen as a gutty, trained, warrior in his last days, right?  He didn't miss a thing mentally as Moses did his thang, right?  

 

So, any chance that he would have just let Marks get behind him to grab the gun?  Or, would he have pitched a hizzy fit, gone to his back and kicked Marks and otherwise tried to reveal the weapon to give Jax a fighting chance to get the weapon?  What BS.  At least he died wearing his kutte.

 

My fantasy is that an Indian Hills fella is the rat.  He'll testify at the whatchamacallit  (doodoo???)  that Jury saw it coming, told him the whole story.  Hello Mr. Mayhem.

 

If Patterson is still actually the D.A., how are we supposed to buy that she has stayed 100% away from Jax and company - especially after the bombing?  C'mon.   I know we got some ridiculous scene about how she was cutting back or some such.  But there is no chance she would have stood by as the war erupted. 

 

I think Sutter's over-arching point in all of this is a study in how lost people, all sexes, seek community and belonging.  Even folks who seemingly achieve status may see themselves as living a lie and seek out more suitable, for them, partners.  Those bonds become the be-all, end-all in their lives.  Never mind it is probably a huge lie...it is what they "know."

 

What I know is that I do love watching a faux train wreck.  Toot toot!  

[metalchik]

 

Also the hood of the car sex was one of the dumbest things I have ever witnessed on this show. It was offensively stupid.

PREACH!  I rolled my eyes and told my boyfriend that had to be one of the most ignorant scenes in a show ever.  What writer thought that was a good idea?  I'm still saying to myself "how stupid"!!

 

Oh and I must say when Juice was hiding the shank in you know where - I don't know about yall but I would have spit on that thing SEVERAL more times.  Haha  But yeah that was kinda a dumb scene also....

[DrSparkles]

Okay, Chibbs and the cop.  WTF? I just kept saying "Wait, is this really happening?"  And then, "Why the hell are you taking off all your clothes?  Just drop trow, turn around, and let him bend you over the hood."  Of course if she did that she'd end up looking right at the other guy and that could be, you know, awkward.  

Outstanding!!!

You know what would have been REALLY surprising & unexpected? If Marks had shot Jackson. Of course, that might have denied me seeing Charlie's nekkid buttocks again :(

[terrymct]

Damn, I missed that!  I will have to watch...again. 

 

PS and by the way ~~ I have told men to "take me now", but all I wanted to do was go shopping and have someone else drive and park.

 

Take me.  Take me now.  To the grocery store.

 

I love it.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

Bobby was seen as a gutty, trained, warrior in his last days, right?  He didn't miss a thing mentally as Moses did his thang, right?  

 

So, any chance that he would have just let Marks get behind him to grab the gun?  Or, would he have pitched a hizzy fit, gone to his back and kicked Marks and otherwise tried to reveal the weapon to give Jax a fighting chance to get the weapon?  What BS.  At least he died wearing his kutte.

The way Bobby collapsed on the ground right before Marks brought him over, I wonder if he'd been lightly drugged. Combined with his collection of recent physical traumas, that would be enough to make him "out of it" and unable to let Jax know until the last minute.

 

Oh and I must say when Juice was hiding the shank in you know where - I don't know about yall but I would have spit on that thing SEVERAL more times.  Haha  But yeah that was kinda a dumb scene also....

Since we saw the guard bring things into him later on, why not just bring the shank in then? Even if the guard just wanted to see Juice suffer a little, an object like that could make him bleed; when the other guard comes in, he'd definitely notice blood running down Juice's leg.

 

That entire scene made zero sense.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Sir RaiderDuck OMS

[Madding crowd]

The after show was terrible and Mark Boone Jr. looked drunk. Don't bother with the after show if you can't provide something interesting. As for the show itself: Mr. Maddingcrowd is a police officer and I asked him why we never did it on his police car in a public parking garage :). Didn't understand that scene at all and I didn't see anything planted on Chibs but maybe I averted my eyes and missed it.

 

Jax was just plain stupid to have Marks arrested. His henchman are still on the loose and can get back at Jax at any time. I also think Marks would have a smart attorney on hand who could get him out pretty quickly. 

 

Still not sure where they are going with Abel. There is a difference between a child seeing a dead grandparent and understanding the person was old and in pain, and seeing a bloody, partially dismembered body on a picnic bench. I'm sure Abel knows something is very wrong in his life, but he wouldn't know what exactly. I'm actually glad they said he was five years old. I have read speculation that he was 2 or 3 and that just wouldn't be possible with what has happened. Thomas should be at least 2 also. Clay was still around when Thomas was starting to look like a 1 year old and he has been gone for awhile even in TV show time.

 

I hate Unser but I would like it if he rats the club out in the end. Mr. Maddingcrowd is really tired of all the bad cops and wants someone to find a way to get to Gemma. I also want the next person she slaps or threatens to say "You're a 58 year old grandma, not afraid of you" and kick her ass. I know, I know, but a girl can dream.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Madding crowd

[Febgirl]

 

You're a 58 year old grandma, not afraid of you" and kick her ass. I know, I know, but a girl can dream.

 THIS! So much This!

If Wendy is able to do that by the end of the series, I will be thrilled.

[JLG]

The way Bobby collapsed on the ground right before Marks brought him over, I wonder if he'd been lightly drugged. Combined with his collection of recent physical traumas, that would be enough to make him "out of it" and unable to let Jax know until the last minute.

 

After watching the scene, I wondered if that was why they made such a point of breaking his jaw before they took him out of where he was being kept?  I think I do remember that before Marks pulled the gun, Bobby was making unintelligible noises.

 

The only thing that could make me happier is maybe a crossover segment with Criminal Minds, but alas!  that won't happen.  Different networks and all.

I mentioned in another thread that as tired as Criminal Minds has gotten, they still would have solved Tara's murder in about 2.5 seconds.  Probably before the plane even took off. 

 

Off the top of my head, Jury White, Half-sac, Karen Oswald and Agent Kohn have all been on CM.  Oswald and Kohn were in the same episode.

[KYBlonde]

 

PREACH!  I rolled my eyes and told my boyfriend that had to be one of the most ignorant scenes in a show ever.  What writer thought that was a good idea?  I'm still saying to myself "how stupid"!!

 

The first thing I thought?  That Ms.Cop McDirty was going to frame my dear Chibbs for rape.  Better not bitch!!

[henripootel]

As for the show itself: Mr. Maddingcrowd is a police officer and I asked him why we never did it on his police car in a public parking garage :).

Well, that's probably because you never thought to say 'Take me now!', nor thought to bring a friend alo ... ugh, I can't even finish this joke.  That whole ridiculous scene was repulsive to all the parts of my brain.

 

But while we're here - did Mr. Maddening crowd have any opinion on how quickly an actual cop would have the Sons back in the can sitting next to Juice?  I mean I know that real cop work bears little resemblance to tv cop work but this show is laughable.  I'da thought the Slaughter at Diosa alone would be national news, and the local cops under some pressure to get to the bottom of all this.

Edited November 6, 2014 by henripootel

[Puddy]

Bobby tried to tell Jax that August had a gun.  It was very muffled, but you can make it out.