I feel like I sound like a broken record which is likely a commentary on this season as a whole, but man, was this weeks Sons of Anarchy episode anti-climatic. After episode 5 ended with a bang, and the threat of 3 of the major characters being badly injured or killed I finally expected some high drama to play out over the hour. Cut to this episode and oh, wow, everyone is in the hospital, but guess what? They are all just fine. I'm not saying that I wanted something to happen to Abel, because I really didn't, but it might have been nice to have keep the suspense going for a little bit. I understand this event was necessary and why it happened as Jax needed Gemma to hit rock bottom and be able to threaten to cut her out of the family in order to be able to actually bribe her to help him get evidence on Clay. They have put Clay and Gemma at such odds that only after something so drastic happened would she agree to a reconciliation with him. However, once again, it made the car accident feel like it was very contrived and thrown in for a reaction. Normally I wouldn't mind if the writers used this every once in awhile, but it has been all over in this season that feels mildly lost in purpose.
This was also played with Chibbs as there has been much foreshadowing and speculation that he might actually be killed this season. Once again this storyline came to the climatic ending of…..him being pistol whipped rather than shot. It was another high tension moment that ended with anything but a bang. Again, he is not a character I wanted to see killed, but it feels as if the same device is being used over and over. It did actually result in death with Opie, but we already had that big moment of emotional sadness this season, so to keep teasing it just seems silly.
On the other hand, while we didn't yet see it in this episode, I was happy that within the final 10 minutes it feels like we may finally have some progression in the storyline and the show finally has found its purpose for the season. It took way too long to get there, but I do thoroughly enjoy the idea of a Gemma/Clay undercover operation. Whether I like both characters or not, they have a very strong chemistry and dynamic on the show. In fact, part of me wonders if the absence of their relationship is what has been "missing" this season. While Clay has become cold and calculating, Gemma is the one person that has any sort of power over him and could truly bring him to his knees. I also wonder how long Gemma will actually be able to hold out and if at any point she will turn against Jax and start to fall for Clay again. It has always been obvious her love for him isn't gone. This kind of tangled web drama is what Sons of Anarchy is great at creating and playing and I am happy to see the stories of this season are finally moving in that direction.
The fact that Juice finally confessed to Clay also provides some great conflict as we all know Clay has no good intentions and will only use it for his own selfish purposes. I also hope this means that Juice's character will once again be front and center, because his character has been wasted being Clay's errand boy this season.
Overall, while I didn't necessarily find this weeks episode that great and exciting, I appreciated it for what it could finally mean for this season of the show. As long as they keep advancing the interesting storylines and not playing drama just for the sake of it, there is hope that it can be salvaged yet. I have faith that it will be, so just please don't disappoint SAMCRO.
This season is defiantly feeling like a retread of season 3, where not a lot actually happens but man did I love that finale. It seems doubtful that it will have a great finale.
The increased violence at least has gotten me to believe that they would kill off a character like Chibs or Juice if only for the moment. Using Gemma as a mole might give Clay some bit of redemption by having him fall on the sword to get her back in with Jax and Tara. Not that Clay deserves any such moment of redemption of grace.
They just need to stop the build-up to offing Clay and get it done with. Unfortunately, if they do that, it's going to mean the decline of Sons of Anarchy. He's the major conflict throughout the entirety of the series, and without him being a threat, there's not really much else for the series to do. Therefore, they won't off him. If I had to guess, he'll find a way to pin it all on Juice with the whole "helping the Feds" thing and it'll lead to Juice being killed off.
If they kill off Chibbs, though, I'm going to freak the fuck out. Chibbs is my favorite character on that goddamn show.
Things just seem generally...I don't know, disjointed. There were too many new characters introduced with the Nomads and shit, and then Damon Pope...it just makes everything feel a little...I don't know, lost.