Posted by SH
The last time I’d caught up with Charlie Hunnam, he was the clean-cut British lothario Lloyd on Judd Apatow’s underrated Freaks and Geeks follow-up Undeclared. Well, I think it’s safe to say his new character, the leather-clad biker Jax Teller, would take great pleasure in kicking Lloyd’s limey ass all the way across the pond.
Jax is the conflicted heir to the legacy of Sons of Anarchy, a California biker gang started by his deceased father and current stepfather. While the biker life is all he’s known, a recent discovery among his dad’s effects makes him wonder if SAMCRO (Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original) has veered dangerously off-course from its original intentions. Like, you know, maybe all that gunrunning, police corruption and frequent violence ain’t what Daddy had in mind.
The conflict comes into play in Jax’s first scene, as he’s perusing a convenience store picking up biker essentials like condoms, smokes and … children’s books? Turns out Jax is going to be a daddy himself soon, with his junkie ex-wife Wendy, played by Drea de Matteo, who is still looking for her first substantial post-Sopranos role — and by “substantial,” I also mean “good,” so save your Joey comments, please. But before he makes his purchase, a big boom outside gets his attention. A building has exploded, and not just any building, but the gang’s illegal firearms warehouse. A rival gang, the Mayans, has pillaged it, taken the guns that were scheduled for delivery to an Oakland street gang, and blown the place to smithereens.
Amid the wreckage, we’re introduced to Clay Morrow, played by Ron Perlman with a constant sneer that would put even Hellboy on edge. He’s Jax’s stepdad and the leader of Sons, and while he can depend on the local fuzz keeping the incident quiet, there are two dead bodies left behind, as well as the need to get those guns back before the intended customers get unhappy i.e. homicidal.
In the middle of all this revenge plotting — and a warning to a white supremacy group encroaching on the gang’s territory with meth — it’s baby time. Wendy shoots up right before going into labor, and the baby was born with serious health problems and not expected to live. At the hospital a doctor who seems to have some familiarity with Jax delivers the news. This is Tara, played by the versatile Maggie Siff, whom Mad Men viewers will know as Don Draper’s paramour, and Nip/Tuck-philes may remember as an Israeli physical therapist burnt to a crisp. I’ve seen the second episode of Sons, so I know a bit more about Tara’s past, but you’ll get no spoilers from me. So stay tuned.
Fed up with the situation, and unable to bring himself to see his fragile son, Jax heads to a bar and administers a beatdown to the drug dealer who sold his wares to Wendy. Hey, somebody’s gotta pay, right? Jax’s mom is feeling equally murderous, but toward Wendy herself. Katey Sagal is chilling in her portrayal as Gemma, Jax’s mom and Clay’s wife. It’s a confident portrayal that will put the image of Peg Bundy out of your head faster than Al Bundy going through dollar bills at the nudie bar. She leaves Wendy with a fully loaded hypodermic and lets nature run its course.
The gang eventually gets its guns back in a bloody shootout with the Mayans, but is left with some tracks to cover. Someone who’s not worried about it, though, is Bobby, who makes a living as an Elvis impersonator. He was given leave from the raid to take the gig, only to find his slot filled by an Asian competitor. This is the episode’s one wrong note, in which we see said competitor injured before he can take the stage. And by injured, that means, yep, another beatdown. And while the fists are flying, he’s spouting off Elvis lines. Kinda funny, but it feels like a different show.
All in all, a stellar intro, and definitely a series worth keeping tabs on. Not sure if it will become addictive, because I get the feeling that you could miss a week or two and still get caught up rather quickly. One storyline I’m really keeping an eye on is the triangle between Clay, Gemma and Jax’s dad. Nothing is out in the open yet, but I’m getting a Hamlet-kind of vibe there. And hey, when a show about bikers has you thinking about Shakespeare, it must be doing something right.
Tags: FX, Recap, Sons of Anarchy by sharrison76
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