S07.E10: Faith And Despondency

[Puddy]

No too sure about the "suppression" but I heard the scraping!!

[Darknight]

ITA with both of these statements. It is very far fetched for a 5 yo to come up with such a scheme. So, now are we to believe that he did actually killed the birds and left the cryptic message on the wall. All of this is out of character of the character and a 5 yo.

But Abel isn't just any normal 5yo. He's a 5yo whose live the life of horrors Some kids with serious mental illnesses could come up with drastic plans. Serial killer start out killing in their childhoods

[Turtle]

Juice almost looked like he is enjoying his new 'romantic' relationship.

 

The dead-eye 1000-yard stare did not look much like enjoyment to me.

 

I thought Jax told Abel about Wendy because he thought Abel was freaking out because his "mom" was dead, and so Jax wanted to make it better by giving him a new mom.  A little twisted, but I can understand what he was thinking.

 

As for Abel, I don't think he had a master plan to hurt himself and blame Gemma for it.  I think he hurt himself because he's been pretty traumatized, he hasn't received any real support in dealing with that trauma, and he overheard Gemma talking about killing his mom; he doesn't have the mental or emotional maturity to deal with any of it.  Self-abuse, while rare in kids that age, is not an uncommon reaction to that sort of situation.  And I think that he later blamed Gemma for hurting him because he knows Gemma did something bad, and because he had the sense that saying "I did it to myself" was going to get a bad reaction.  And he senses that Gemma did, in some way, hurt him, leading to some ill-defined anger or resentment toward Gemma.  Kids are pretty receptive about that sort of thing.  And so concludes my pop psychology lecture.  (Although, I think the show could have presented this much better.)

 

I enjoyed the Tig/ Venus scenes, but that enjoyment was somewhat tempered by the number of times Tig said "baby". 

 

Rat is the Half-Sack of the Final Ride.

 

I forgot all about Half-Sack!​

Edited November 13, 2014 by Turtle

[Captanne]

For me, Jax told Abel about Wendy's motherhood because it was the perfect moment.  No distractions.  Both Wendy (Mommy) and Jax (Daddy) in the room with their son.  Also, Nero had suggested that Abel might be acting out because he resented Gemma "taking Mommy's place".  So, in that perfect setting (or, at least as good as it gets on this show), Jax gave Abel a mommy -- not only proactively removing the "granny is replacing mommy and I don't understand" thought that might be in Abel's head (according to Nero) but also telling the child the absolute truth.

 

I liked that scene.  The whole thing was as honest and as close as Jax Teller will ever get to normality.  (Define "normality" for yourself, of course.)

[BetyBee]

I was blown away by the ending, then immediately fearful that Jax wouldn't believe Abel and would head in the wrong direction like he always seems to do. 

 

Jax's glee at Juice's situation made me think that he might reveal to Tully who Juice's father was after he no longer has any use for Juice. Jax is a cold hearted bastard.

 

I'd like to see Gemma get what she deserves, but I don't trust Sutter at all.  Still, at least he finally gave us a good episode.

[terrymct]

Bottom line -- as much as I like the idea of Tig and Venus, there is no way guys in a motorcycle club would be totally cool with one of their members dating a transexual -- especially one that's kept the original equipment below the belt.

 

Remember that this is Sutter Land, not reality.  In an earlier season, Tig had sex with a corpse and talked about it fairly openly.  The MC guys seemed fairly cool with that, maybe a teeny bit skeeved, but cool.

[noreallywasntme]

3) Gemma drops of Abel with a cut on his head at school. Teacher asks Abel where he got the cut. He says Tommy. She asks if an adult did it. Abel asks if an adult did would the adult get into trouble. The teacher says yes.

If I recall correctly, this scene went differently - Abel did not ask if an adult would get in trouble. That was told to him by Courtney Love. I don't know if that even matters bc as you said, many of the scenes seemed like throwaways and I'm not sure if it's over analyzing to question it on my part but I guess it could lend to less scheming on Abel's part.

I like others was on edge during the Venus Tig scene. I saw less of the romantic depth and was expecting Tig to strangle Venus. I imagined him crying bc he really loves Venus but he hates himself for it & therefore the logical thing for a psychopath to do is kill the object of his love. Or vice versa...maybe that's how Tig meets his end, at the hand of Venus. I don't see anyone happy at the end of this.

Because it can never be said enough - Charlie Yummmmnnam.

Edited November 13, 2014 by noreallywasntme

[PiggyRod]

 

I thought Jax told Abel about Wendy because he thought Abel was freaking out because his "mom" was dead, and so Jax wanted to make it better by giving him a new mom.  A little twisted, but I can understand what he was thinking.

 

I think Jax telling Abel about his birth mom was more about Wendy than about Abel. Yes, Abel has been having some problems coping with losing his mother but I felt Jax genuinely thought Wendy deserved some type of credit for all she has been doing for them.  I felt this was his gift to her to show that he really appreciates her sticking around and helping out.

[cotterpin]

I think Jax telling Abel about his birth mom was more about Wendy than about Abel. Yes, Abel has been having some problems coping with losing his mother but I felt Jax genuinely thought Wendy deserved some type of credit for all she has been doing for them.  I felt this was his gift to her to show that he really appreciates her sticking around and helping out.

 

I also think it was his way of beginning to accept and honor Tara's wishes. Tara wanted Wendy involved with Abel and Thomas. She wanted Wendy to be the custodian of the boys. One of the reasons Jax most recently tried to take Wendy out of the picture was because Tara had set the ball in motion for Wendy to have custody of the boys should something happen to her. IMO Jax is finally beginning to see that Wendy isn't the enemy or the threat he believed she was.

[GleamingMist]

I also think it was his way of beginning to accept and honor Tara's wishes. Tara wanted Wendy involved with Abel and Thomas. She wanted Wendy to be the custodian of the boys. One of the reasons Jax most recently tried to take Wendy out of the picture was because Tara had set the ball in motion for Wendy to have custody of the boys should something happen to her. IMO Jax is finally beginning to see that Wendy isn't the enemy or the threat he believed she was.

 

I agree with this (was actually coming on here to post that and you worded it far better than I could have).  I was thinking it could eventually start with Wendy's son calling Tara mommy and end with Tara's son calling Wendy mommy - I want Wendy to end up with those boys and take them far away, they can go hang with Nero on his farm. 

 

I did also want to give Jax props for siding with Wendy on the Abel talking to someone thing.  Apparently everyone buy Gemma understands the severity of a situation when child services is involved.

[Empress1]

It bugs the fuck out of me that Jax can wink at Wendy all "We were married but decided to just be friends" and Wendy can go along with that when he shot her up. Like, has he even apologized? Not that there's enough sorry in the world to excuse that, but ...

I get why Winsome would think Jax is a good man, but ... Naw, girl. (With Winsome, at least he's been good to her directly; it drove me crazy when Tara would say it because he treated her like shit.)

Gemma. I know you distrust outsiders, but when a five-year-old digs a fork into his flesh, you get him therapy. (I think it should have been a given when Tara died; losing your mother so abruptly and violently warrants grief counseling.)

[monakane]

It bugs the fuck out of me that Jax can wink at Wendy all "We were married but decided to just be friends" and Wendy can go along with that when he shot her up. Like, has he even apologized? Not that there's enough sorry in the world to excuse that, but ...

I get why Winsome would think Jax is a good man, but ... Naw, girl. (With Winsome, at least he's been good to her directly; it drove me crazy when Tara would say it because he treated her like shit.)

Gemma. I know you distrust outsiders, but when a five-year-old digs a fork into his flesh, you get him therapy. (I think it should have been a given when Tara died; losing your mother so abruptly and violently warrants grief counseling.)

 

When Jax shot up Wendy, any empathy I felt for him as a character died.  No matter what he's been through since then, I feel no pity for him.  I HATE that Wendy thanked him for telling Abel the truth.  She should be hating him with every fiber of her being.

[NotChu]

It bugs the fuck out of me that Jax can wink at Wendy all "We were married but decided to just be friends" and Wendy can go along with that when he shot her up. Like, has he even apologized? Not that there's enough sorry in the world to excuse that, but ...

I get why Winsome would think Jax is a good man, but ... Naw, girl. (With Winsome, at least he's been good to her directly; it drove me crazy when Tara would say it because he treated her like shit.)

Gemma. I know you distrust outsiders, but when a five-year-old digs a fork into his flesh, you get him therapy. (I think it should have been a given when Tara died; losing your mother so abruptly and violently warrants grief counseling.)

 

Ya forget that Wendy was a junkie when she gave birth to Abel and the poor kid nearly died because of it.  You forget Wendy marched in after a few months of rehab talking smack about getting a lawyer and threatening to take the kids away.  Jax did not act in a vacuum.  In fact, I would say he acted with much restraint seeing as how he could have ripped Wendy's head from her shoulders.  

[Disraeli Ears]

Wait! Am I the only one who thinks/fears Tig will kill Venus??? I no longer trust anyone in the show including Sutter.

True. I mean, as sweet as that scene was between them, does anyone really think that couple would have a happy ending? Hello - it's TIG! If you go back to the earlier seasons, Tig is a bad guy with a propensity to (in his own words) "beat hookers." He has killed so many people, including women. Do we really think that in a couple of years (or months) he won't be taking his frustration out on Venus? She deserves better.

But that really goes for all of them. Do you see Chibs eventually not killing people? Jax? Happy (hahaha)?

Edited November 13, 2014 by Disraeli Ears

[Empress1]

Ya forget that Wendy was a junkie when she gave birth to Abel and the poor kid nearly died because of it. You forget Wendy marched in after a few months of rehab talking smack about getting a lawyer and threatening to take the kids away. Jax did not act in a vacuum. In fact, I would say he acted with much restraint seeing as how he could have ripped Wendy's head from her shoulders.

Re: the former, yes, that's awful. That was Wendy's rock bottom, I think.

Re: the latter, those kids SHOULD be taken. The environment they are in is toxic - a fact Jax himself once acknowledged. Season 4 was all about his exit strategy. I am, have always been, and will always be Team Anyone but SAMCRO Raises Those Kids.

Edited November 13, 2014 by Empress1

[Guest Accused Dingo]

Re: the former, yes, that's awful. That was Wendy's rock bottom, I think.

Re: the latter, those kids SHOULD be taken. The environment they are in is toxic - a fact Jax himself once acknowledged. Season 4 was all about his exit strategy. I am, have always been, and will always be Team Anyone but SAMCRO Raises Those Kids.

And that was all about to happen before Gemma murdered Tara. Jax had let go. He signed the papers giving Wendy gardianship and made a deal with the cops to let Tara leave with the kids. Jax could not let go of the club. He was never going to let go of the club so he let go of his family.

Tara's death changed everything.

Edited November 13, 2014 by Accused Dingo

[Texasmom1970]

If they are gonna show Charlie Hunnam's ass they really need to do it at the end. It was really hard to focus on the episode afterwards.

I love Walton Goggins on here, on Justified, he is wonderful on both!

[xls]

But Abel isn't just any normal 5yo. He's a 5yo whose live the life of horrors Some kids with serious mental illnesses could come up with drastic plans. Serial killer start out killing in their childhoods

He reminds me of a young Dexter.

[xls]

 

I like others was on edge during the Venus Tig scene. I saw less of the romantic depth and was expecting Tig to strangle Venus. I imagined him crying bc he really loves Venus but he hates himself for it & therefore the logical thing for a psychopath to do is kill the object of his love. Or vice versa...maybe that's how Tig meets his end, at the hand of Venus. I don't see anyone happy at the end of this.

 

I feared Tig was going to do something to her when they embraced.

[BetyBee]

I did not even think of Tig hurting Venus or vice versa; however, I didn't really believe Tig's "heartfelt" speech. I don't know if the actor didn't sell it (for me) or if it was just so out of character, but I didn't find it as touching as many others did. I totally buy Walt Goggins as Venus, but I don't buy a sincere and deeply in love Tig.

[Puddy]

I may be the only one, but I don't think Tig will hurt or kill Venus.  I just don't.  No, they will not be living happily ever after but I think they have a real connection.  Even if they part ways, both will still care for each other.

[Febgirl]

I may be the only one, but I don't think Tig will hurt or kill Venus.  I just don't.  No, they will not be living happily ever after but I think they have a real connection.  Even if they part ways, both will still care for each other.

Agreed!

[Kris117]

I haven't seen that much butt crack since I was clicking around the channels and stumbled upon Dating Naked.

 

The nudity doesn't bother me so much, but couldn't they throw in some topless women somewhere along the way? 

 

  

No, anyone who watches this show knows that it never has shots of bare-breasted women.

I can vaguely recall from the after show that Charlie said that Jax spends most of the night just watching Abel sleep (meaning he spent more time with the kid than he has since he got out of jail) and pondering. In the morning he can't bring himself to believe that Abel could be telling the truth. From the previews, though, it looks as he has just enough doubt to start asking questions. That's my recollection after a couple of days, so it might have some holes in it.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

I did not even think of Tig hurting Venus or vice versa; however, I didn't really believe Tig's "heartfelt" speech. I don't know if the actor didn't sell it (for me) or if it was just so out of character, but I didn't find it as touching as many others did. I totally buy Walt Goggins as Venus, but I don't buy a sincere and deeply in love Tig.

To me, the less than all-in you describe is precisely why I see Coates' performance as being phenomenal.  I would never have bought a Tig who just said the "right things."  I saw a huge struggle to embody a deeply conflicted man attempting to be more honest than he probably has ever been to a female.  A guy like Tig isn't particularly loquacious.  Coates portrayed him as almost being paralyzed by his lack of vocabulary.  Awesome.  

 

I love that great TV can bring out so many varied takes.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Lonesome Rhodes

[henripootel]

But Abel isn't just any normal 5yo. He's a 5yo whose live the life of horrors Some kids with serious mental illnesses could come up with drastic plans. Serial killer start out killing in their childhoods

So a guy with stage 50 cancer fights off a hit-yokel and kills him.  Okay, I can deal.  A highly-trained soldier leads his guys into the world's most poorly planned ambush ('they'll get out of their cars, stand in one place, then with no signal at all, we'll just run out and surround them!') - grrr.  Fine.  But a 5-year-old (driven to darkness by events he can't possibly know about or understand) conceives and executes a plan that convinces not just his easily-fooled father, but actual professionals that his grandmother abused him.  Before his mom dressed him and sent him to school.  With wounds that were obviously still fresh and bleeding.  Sorry Sutter, Tarrare himself couldn't swallow that.  

 

I'm officially calling bullshit, and in the context of this season, that's saying something.  

Edited November 14, 2014 by henripootel

[Snookums]

Unser is clearly invincible. Dude's had stage 87 cancer since season 1

 

 

Unser and his cancer have the longest lasting, most stable relationship on the show. I can see his cancer tidying up the trailer, putting a Stouffer's Lasagna in the oven, wearing a frilly apron while waiting for Wayne to come home from a long day of cover ups/inadvertent reveals.

 

Here's a hint: when you miss the original broadcast because Tuesday was your birthday and you were out late, and you wait to watch the show over dinner? Make sure the opening montage isn't just straight up fucking. Like, five, ten solid minutes of fucking. Was quite a thing, eating succotash while Charlie Hunnam's ass was taking up so much of my visual field. 

 

Okay, can somebody please explain to me how the writer of that beautiful, Emmy worthy scene between Venus and Tig can be the same person who dreamed up the sloppy, ridiculous, badly written mess of a character that is Althea Jarry? Annabeth Gish is trying her best, God knows, but she's a last minute character who's had no backstory at all, nothing that would explain why this career cop would make such stupendously stupid choices right out of the gate. How is she supposed to have gotten this far as a professional and a law enforcement officer with such terrible decision making skills?

 

I know in Sutter's world every single authority figure is corrupt, but he usually does them the courtesy of having them earn or explain their reasons. Althea is apparently just some woman who walked into Charming, took one look at Chibs and had her panties wisp away as her brains melted out her ears. At best it's a cheap, barely sketched simulacrum of Tara's story, at worst, a "throw the spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks" approach to her character. It's ridiculous. And insulting. It's the same as watching Wendy try to soothe and cheer the woman who tried to get her to overdose. Sutter, why do none of these people, who are Grand World Champions at grudge holding, have any Goddamn memory of past events?

[StayClassySD]

Am I the only one who was disgusted by the scene with Jarry and Chibs the moment he struck her back? Then even more so when she threw herself at him afterwards? It wasn't hot or even remotely sexy. You can have angry passion that leads to sex without them hitting each other or at the very least without Chibs hitting back. Plus, there is just no chemistry at all between the actors, IMO.

[Uncle Benzene]

Am I the only one who was disgusted by the scene with Jarry and Chibs the moment he struck her back? Then even more so when she threw herself at him afterwards?

 

I was disgusted by it the moment she struck him. For No. Fucking. Reason. At. All. Did that part not bother you?

 

Chibs shouldn't have struck her back. He should have told her to shove her crazy up her ass, and walked away without looking back.

[Duke2801]

I was disgusted by it the moment she struck him. For No. Fucking. Reason. At. All. Did that part not bother you?

 

Chibs shouldn't have struck her back. He should have told her to shove her crazy up her ass, and walked away without looking back.

 

Agreed!  The whole scene was just gross and unnecessary.  And there was legitimately NO point to it.  We already know these 2 have no real future together.  So I guess it was to show that they are drawn together by their mutual love of violent foreplay.  Whatever, Sutter. 

 

I love Walton Goggins on here, on Justified, he is wonderful on both!

 

 

We just started watching The Shield on Amazon a few weeks back (yes, 12 years too late!) and I'm really enjoying him on that show too.  He's just... good. 

[StayClassySD]

I was disgusted by it the moment she struck him. For No. Fucking. Reason. At. All. Did that part not bother you?

Chibs shouldn't have struck her back. He should have told her to shove her crazy up her ass, and walked away without looking back.

It probably should have but sadly over the years there are always scenes of women striking men and the reaction much like mine is to hardly blink or bat an eye at it. Thats not to justify Jarry doing so because in hindsight I should have had a different reaction. But to see Chibs hit back is what made me angry. Regardless the scene was all sorts of fucked up and not in a good way.

[SunnyBeBe]

IMO, the writers are very confused and mistakenly believe they can credibly assign thoughts, reasoning and planning to the mind of a 5 year-old that are more in line with that of a 15 year-old.  Psycho or not, it's not believable to me.  In fact it causes the show to take on a Chucky vibe..  But, hey, at least it's amusing.  lol

 

And man, they really are dense.  Jax really needs some psychiatric advice regarding that child.  You don't pick the day your child mutilates his arm to break the news he has two mommies.  Talk about immature.  Jax is clueless.  Maybe they really are trying to drive Abel insane.  I can see him having a split in his personality soon.  We'll see the evil Abel and the good one.  They can move to a new town and pick it up on a Lifetime special movie.lol

 

Does anyone know if that was really Charlie in bed?  Please tell me it was and that he didn't use a body double.  I know his body is perfect, but wasn't sure if he would bare it like that.  Has he spoken on the matter in public?

[Febgirl]

Didn't mention this in my earlier post, but I have to say, that seeing the Gemma/Nero portion of the F*montage, was just so disturbing- I'm sure that's as intended.- passion-less, all you could hear was the creaking of the bed springs, gross.

 Also, re- the CPS visit- having worked for a major city's CPS, that's true-- they would never have had Abel and Gemma in the same room.

 Upon my re-watch, that Tig and Venus scene still got to me, but what worked me up even more, was the "morning after" scene.  You really saw what Venus was talking about in the scene that happened later.  Her actions toward Tig were those of someone in love, which made his rebuff of her all the more painful to watch. I loved seeing the little details, like when she kissed his back. To all those who say that she's too good for him, I agree, but at this time-- their relationship is probably the most honest, and dare I say, healthy of all of the characters.

[Pickles Aplenty]

Being with Venus is definitely the healthiest thing Tig has ever done, sexually speaking.

 

You know, I have grown to hate the time-jump gimmick that so many shows are relying on these days (Boardwalk Empire, I'm looking at you), but I think in SoA's case, it really would have worked. If Abel were just a little older, I would have bought this self-harm/mastermind idea, but a five year old?  Nah.  I guess I can fanwank that he really doesn't have some master plan and that all he knows is that he wants to punish Grandma for some reason, but I don't know if that was Sutter's intention, so it all falls flat.  The fact that he speaks like a delayed toddler makes it even harder to believe.  They should have aged the actor up a bit, just for credibility.

 

As for Chibs and Jarry...they don't really annoy me that much.  I wasn't surprised by Chibs hitting her back, since these guys aren't really respectful of women; after all, Jax beat the ever loving shit out of Ima and shot up Wendy.  The rest of the guys have had sex with Crow Eaters, whether they wanted it or not, because women are objects to them.  Chibs might be the best of a bad bunch, but I find it totally believable that he would smack a woman back if she smacked him first.  That's just what they do.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Billina

[Darknight]

IMO, the writers are very confused and mistakenly believe they can credibly assign thoughts, reasoning and planning to the mind of a 5 year-old that are more in line with that of a 15 year-old. Psycho or not, it's not believable to me. In fact it causes the show to take on a Chucky vibe.. But, hey, at least it's amusing. lol

And man, they really are dense. Jax really needs some psychiatric advice regarding that child. You don't pick the day your child mutilates his arm to break the news he has two mommies. Talk about immature. Jax is clueless. Maybe they really are trying to drive Abel insane. I can see him having a split in his personality soon. We'll see the evil Abel and the good one. They can move to a new town and pick it up on a Lifetime special movie.lol

Does anyone know if that was really Charlie in bed? Please tell me it was and that he didn't use a body double. I know his body is perfect, but wasn't sure if he would bare it like that. Has he spoken on the matter in public?

I believe he or someone else said he doesn't use a body double.

[RedHackle]

Firstly, the show is making a huge mistake with these "SOA Moments" they are airing during the commercial breaks because all it does is remind the audience of how good the show used to be.

 

 

I totally agree - been thinking that for a while.  I also feel that this is the first half-way decent episode in quite some time.  I think Tig and Venus's scene has everything to do with why so many of us liked the episode.  With the preposterous writing Sutter has been doing lately, I would never have expected so poignant a scene from him.  Nice touch.  Also really loved Abel's reveal to Jax, but like others, I'm calling bullshit on his fork gambit; this is the kind of thing Sutter does so often and so badly; he comes up with some far-fetched scenario he thinks sounds trippy but just doesn't think it though.  How long have most of us been shrieking about the absurdity of anyone believing that Lin's crew was responsible for Tara's death.  Kurt, buddy, you have to take some classes on how to achieve realism in writing.  Please.

[Guest Accused Dingo]

OK because it has been brought up I decided to check and according to the internet this is what a 5 year old can do: 

 

"Five-year-olds are creative and enthusiastic problem solvers. They offer progressively more imaginative ideas for how to do a task, make something or solve longer-term or more abstract challenges. As they participate in a variety of new experiences, five-year-olds ask more analytical questions and weigh their choices. They are also more social as they learn new things and prefer activities that involve other children."

 

"Children this age can manage feelings and social situations with greater independence. They might decide on their own to go to another room to calm down, or try strategies like negotiation and compromise to resolve a conflict before seeking adult help. They also have improved skills for forming and maintaining friendships with adults and other children. Being accepted by "the group" is becoming more and more important."

 

"In the creative arts, five-year-olds have a varied repertoire of music and are able to compose and arrange music within specified guidelines. They create realistic art with recognizable subjects and more detailed settings. They also recognize that art can tell a story. The dramatic play of five-year-olds is pre-planned, elaborate and sustained. They are able to perform simple plays, do pantomime and perform puppet shows."

 

 

From what I understand a five year old cannot make something up from thin air but once an idea is given to them aka - the teacher telling Abel that if he got the cut from an adult that adult would get into trouble.  Abel's reasoning skills would be at a level to reason bigger cut bigger trouble.   5 year olds aren't stupid and I think Abel would most definitely be able to come up with his fork plan once the idea of an adult getting into trouble for hurting him was put into his head.  

Edited November 14, 2014 by Accused Dingo

[cotterpin]

People underestimate the amount of plotting and scheming that kindergartners are capable of, especially those without children

 

I have a 4 and 6 year old. Both are capable of the type of thought process Abel exhibited (in fact, they use the "x will get in trouble if y happens" relatively often to get the other into trouble). They can be incredibly sneaky when they want to be, very adept at hiding objects, etc. 

 

So, Abel concocting a plan to frame Gemma after Courtney Love tells him ? Realistically could happen.

 

However, it's likely that Abel lacked the cognitive ability to do things like keep the give in depth details about how and why, clean the blood off the fork, scrape in the right direction etc. In the 5 year old mind, it would be "scrape up my arm with a fork, gramma will get in trouble for hurting my mommy"

[henripootel]

In the 5 year old mind, it would be "scrape up my arm with a fork, gramma will get in trouble for hurting my mommy"

Executing that plan takes vastly more than that.  You have to figure out when Gemma might plausibly have done the deed - it had to have been that morning before school, so why didn't anybody notice it?  Along those lines, why is the wound still bleeding like it just happened?  Did Gemma visit the school to scratch up Abel?  Getting away with this requires Abel to give just enough detail to implicate Gemma but not enough to make the adults scratch their heads.  That's a skill many adults don't master, which is why most crimes are solved by people implicating themselves.

 

I'm aware of how early kids embrace the notion of lying but that doesn't mean that they're any good at it.  A few easy questions Abel should be able to answer and I'm pretty sure his story would fall apart.  And it's not like these questions would be out of line given that CPS got involved, nor that you'd have to be suspicious of Gemma in order to ask them.  Shit, if this happened to my kid, I might well wonder if somebody prompted them to say 'grandma did it' and you could be damn sure I'd get to the bottom of that.

Edited November 15, 2014 by henripootel

[Guest Accused Dingo]

But technically his plan did work.  He is out of Grandma's house and living with daddy and Wendy.   I honestly think we as an audience are thinking this through way too much.  We are thinking way to much into this.  We are making this too complicated.  Social services was in fact called.  Abel is out of Grandma's house.  His plan essentially worked.  I honestly don't think his plan was all that complicated.  When asked.  Who hurt you?  All he had to say was "Grandma"  Then Social services gets called.      I don't really think too many questions got asked at least not right away. 

Edited November 15, 2014 by Accused Dingo

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Do y'all recall the Army commercials where they touted that they get more done by 9:00 AM than a typical person does all day?

 

Well, I'm thinking the Secretary of the Army may need to get with Sutter.  Have you ever seen a commando group get more done that SAMCRO did in one day in this ep?  They routinely travel alllll over creation as if on a Star Wars pod instead of Hogs. 

[henripootel]

But technically his plan did work.  He is out of Grandma's house and living with daddy and Wendy.

True, and not to belabor the point, Dingo, but I for one think the plan 'worked' because Sutter is a shitty writer (sometimes) and just put it in the script, not because the whole Abel thing makes a blind bit of sense. 

Edited November 15, 2014 by henripootel

[Puddy]

cotterpin & Andyourlittledog2 - Amen.  I know how I was at that age.  I was a pretty crafty little squirt.  Maybe I didn't know every last gory detail, but I sure as hell knew one plus one would always equal two.

 

How did I know this?

 

"Stupid" adults talked in front of me, thinking I was a "stupid" little kid.

 

I was a stupid little sponge.

Edited November 15, 2014 by Puddy

[Broderbits]

 

 

"Stupid" adults talked in front of me, thinking I was a "stupid" little kid.

I was a stupid little sponge.

Thank you for expressing this perfectly! Abel's a quiet little kid watching and learning and waiting.

[Puddy]

Broderbits - You are welcome and thank you!!

[Artsda]

It's a different way of life for them, the actors have said before these are people who don't go to a bank. They don't use ATM's or have credit cards. They deal with cash, under their mattresses. They're not going to use iPhones or Androids downloading apps, they have HD tv's and that type of technology, new cars etc..

[Ohwell]

ETA:  A smartphone was used with the preacher's death, they played his video of the sex on it after they retrieved it from his corpse they dug up. I don't recall smartphones otherwise.

Also, didn't Moses have an ipad or something when he showed Bobby's eye being carved out? 

 

The kid is basically being raised by wolves.

As my uncle would say, that's it in a nutbag.

[magdalene]

 

The kid is basically being raised by wolves.

Wolves are much better parents to their young than the characters on this show.

[Guest Accused Dingo]

It's a different way of life for them, the actors have said before these are people who don't go to a bank. They don't use ATM's or have credit cards. They deal with cash, under their mattresses. They're not going to use iPhones or Androids downloading apps, they have HD tv's and that type of technology, new cars etc..

 

 

We joke a lot about it but a pair of good sneakers is considered a form of status in a lot of places.  Being able to afford a good pair of Nikes every year in  some places is the same as owning a thousand dollar watch in others.   They probably have stashes of cash and cheap throwaway phones instead of expensive iPhones simply because the cheap phones you pay to play cannot be traced as easily by the cops.  (Assuming the cops didn't suffer from ineffective cop syndrome most police forces who aren't the leads suffer from)  These guys aren't trying to keep up with the Jones.  

[Puddy]

The outdated cell phones are standard issue.  They are called "burners" meaning they are essentially disposable.  Too much trackable technology in the modern gadgets gets you located when you don't want to be found.

 

That is the reason.  People like this have boxes of old phones sitting around.

[Joan van Snark]

Am I the only one that somehow wants Gemma to get away with it?  I know if Gemma was a 'real' person she would be detestable, but I think Sagal is the best actor on the show and I like her character.  

 

I can imagine it shaking out that Unser will finally put the pieces together and confront Gemma.  Gemma will talk her way out of it and Unser will try to protect her.  I'm not sure how Nero will play into the whole thing.  I see Jax dying and Wendy ending up taking the boys leaving Gemma alone and miserable.

 

Did anyone else notice that Bobby was forgotten about literally overnight?  Was he even mentioned?

Edited November 16, 2014 by Joan van Snark