Review Guide:
Episode 7.08 The Separation of Crows - Review
Episode 7.09 What a Piece of Work Is Man - Review
Episode 7.10 Faith and Despondency - Review
Episode 7.11 Suits of Woe - Review
Episode 7.12 Red Rose - Review
Episode 7.13 Papa's Goods (Series Finale) - Review
Farewell Article - Series Review - Best Moments
Sons Of Anarchy - Red Rose - Review
I am utterly speechless at what just happened on last night’s Sons of Anarchy. They certainly didn't hold back on huge moments in the episode, and they were so huge that it did feel like an episode fit to be a series finale. I can only imagine what they have in store for that.
Before we got to the really shocking moments, there was some club business to wrap up. Jax confessed to the other presidents about Jury and how he wasn't really the rat. It was one of the most heart-breaking apologies on Sons of Anarchy mainly because he might not have been sitting where he was now if he wasn't set on vengeance. It was an honorable thing for him to do, and I am glad he did it. Jax seemed to have accepted his fate even know a final decision was yet to made. Jax wanted the vote to be unanimous, I am not entirely sure if he is setting himself up for a bullet, which he does deserve now or if he is simply asking to step down as president of the club. Sure he would probably have to have his tattoos removed, but at least he will be able to stay with his kids.
This episode was all about piling up the death toll. We witnessed three major characters that have been on the show since season 1 end up dead, but they were all inevitable. Juice was one of these characters that could die at any moment, and you wouldn't care as much, mainly because of all the things he had done. As soon as he killed Lin I knew he was going to die sooner rather than later. It doesn't mean it wasn't shocking as you didn't actually know who would end up killing him. Before he got put out of his misery he had to endure another round of being raped, it is such a shame for the character to go out with that happening moments before. Juice also got beaten half to death, so I was more relieved than anything when he finally died. No one, not even Juice deserved to go through all of that. It was Tully who ended up killing him by stabbing him multiple times in the neck. Theo Rossi did a fantastic job portraying Juice for all these years, he was never a fan favorite character, but he was sure one you will remember for a long time to come.
Another person who had an exceptional performance this episode was Dayton Callie. Unser was to true to who he was, and instantly was concerned by not what Gemma had done, but what Jax was going to do to her. It was also rather fitting to have Nero call upon Unser for help, by asking him to arrest Gemma. Nero did say he was doing it for Jax, but I think truly he still loves Gemma and was trying his best to save her.
Following the tragic death of Unser, was Gemma's death which like Juice's had been a long time coming. Over the seasons we have witnessed Gemma become more and more selfish, we have witnessed her do all sorts of horrible things from killing Tara to constantly lying to Jax. Perhaps the cruellest thing she had done was to give her blessing to Jax for him to kill her. Convincing her son to kill his mother wasn't justice it was selfish of her. Jax now has to live with her blood on his shoes. The one good thing we got to see of Gemma was Hal Holbrook, he returned for a couple of brief scenes, but as always he was a joy to watch.
Favorite Quotes
"My baby boy, its ok, its time" Gemma
"I can't do that, this is all I got left" Wayne
"It's been a privelage to wear this presidents flesh, I am sorry I couldn't live up to it" Jax
"This ain't about betrayal son, I promised Tara I would help get your boys away from all this shit, that eventually killed her" Wayne
"I have done so many bad things in my life, caused so much pain. I didn't want that, but after a while its just what I did, and who I was. I loved my family, my boys, but I knew that wasn't enough" Gemma
"Haven't we had enough of this, look at where we are Jax, what we all have become. This has to end here" Wayne
Summary
It was a fantastic episode, I really couldn't of imagined it topping the previous episode,but it did. The three major deaths were heartbreaking, yet shocking even though all three were pretty much inevitable. There were a ton of guest stars ranging from Michael Chiklis to Hal Holbrook as Gemma's father. They all brought something special to the episode to make it even greater. It truly was one of the most powerful episodes of televison I have seen. The whole cast deserve Emmy's for the episode, they were all outstanding. If any show deserves awards it's this one.
As always thank you for reading! Let me know in the comments what you thought of the episode!
Also, The Red Rose was Tara's tattoo in the opening credits.
ReplyDeleteVery great review, Robert :-)
I was so happy to see Michael Chicklis and Katey Sagal acting the hell out of each other in that scene. Then, Charisma Carpenter looks always the same: a queen.
Sons of Anarchy ended tonight for me. Jax's soul is destroyed. There's nothing to do about it. Bye, Gemma. Congrats to Theo Rossi, Dayton Callie, Charlie Hunnam, Drea De Matteo and Katey Sagal.
I didn't even notice her tattoo, thanks for telling me!
ReplyDeleteI thought last nights episode would off been a fitting end to the series, with 3 major character deaths, and Jax going beyond the point of no return. I really can't imagine how they plan to top this episode (If they do).
I was really surprised to see Michael Chicklis in the episode, wasn't at all expecting to see him, his scenes with Katy were golden, they were really good. The again every scene with Katy in is going to be mind blowing. She never fails to deliver a good performance.
All I want is for Tig and Venus to live. That's it. I'd like to see Wendy get out of there with the boys, and go with Nero to the farm with his boy, too.
ReplyDeleteI think Tig and Venus will live, it would actually be nice to Venus in the finale. This episode she planned to go with Nero so I am hoping that she sticks to the plan to take the boys with her to the farm. Although now she just slept with Jax I am having doubts that it will happen.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, another quality review man. Looking forward to your thoughts on the series finale. Honestly, and I know this makes me sound evil, I kinda cheered when Unser died. He seemed barely phased or even disgusted when he heard the truth about Tara. All he cared about was his precious Gemma. He reacted like he would to any of the other heinous acts on Sons. And despite him being an asset to the club for so long, Tara's death was his fault because of his need to constantly tell Gemma EVERYTHING. (You are right about him being true to himself, or his sycophantic love for Gemma.)
ReplyDeleteAnd to be honest with you, I felt no satisfaction when Jax killed Gemma. I get why he felt it was necessary (ie if word got out that she killed Tara instead of the Chinese, the blowback would crush the club.) Still, Gemma did not deserve an out after what she did. Putting her in jail, far away from her family and her loved ones would have been the most fitting punishment.
Great review Robert.
ReplyDeleteIt breaks my heart to think of early seasons Jax, Juice, Tara and Opie and to see what's left of Jax. There is nowhere else left for him to go. None of them deserve a happy ending. Wendy, maybe, because she came a long way from the S1 "junkie whore" and the boys. Early Jax was full of questions, optimism and John's manuscript. There is nothing of that left. No love, no hope, no redemption, nothing. As much as I came to hate Juice, I hated to see him suffer. I was ready for it to be over. I have waited years for Gemma to die and this scene was worth the wait. I hurt for Jax because he put himself in this situation. It all comes back to the choices he made and didn't make. Choices for the club over having a life. I didn't cry for Gemma, I cried for Jax and the man Jax used to be.
Thank you, I am looking forward to seeing the finale! It should be a blast!
ReplyDeleteI don't blame you for cheering, Unser only truly cared about Gemma. All season long he has been passing her information he had gotten about Tara's case or about the club. He is partly to blame for Tara's death, i mentioned this in a previous review,but if he didn't tell Gemma everything she wouldn't have ended up killing Tara, she also wouldn't have ended up dead. So really Unser was to blame for all that has happened. Having said that I don't think Jax should have killed him especially in cold blood.
There was a part of me also that didn't feel it was right for Gemma to die. To be honest I doubt Jax was even going to pull the trigger. It was only when Gemma said "you have to do it" when he shot her. I do agree there were other alternatives than killing her, I do wonder on the show why everything that happens always ends in another person dying. He could of let her go.
Unser made some mistakes. But I always felt he along with Nero were the closest thing to being the conscience of the show, the ones who see this life Jax and the others lead for what it is and the consequences it has on the innocent. Jax killing Unser was the final straw for me. I don't want Jax to have a happy ending after all the death and destruction he has caused this season. I want him to fall HARD.
ReplyDeleteI think out of all of them Wendy probably deserves a happy ending, she might just get one is she follows up on the idea to go to Nero's farm with the kids. Nero also is another one I would like to see get a decent ending, especially after what he went through with Gemma.
ReplyDeleteI was glad Juice died, I knew it was going to happen eventually it was just a matter of when and where. He suffered way to much, and it wasn't really nice to see him getting constantly raped or beaten up. So I am glad that is over.
There is absolutely no coming back from what Jax has done in the episode, killing Unser for a start shouldn't of happened. He didn't need to kill him. I really don't see how Jax can move on knowing he has just killed his mother, it will damage him emotionally. He should of listened to what Nero said about "a son killing his mother, there is no coming back from that" and let her leave the country or throw her in prison. Her death was inevitable, I just don't think it was the right call given the state he is in.
It did also feel like he was going on a suicide run, trying to wrap everything up before the vote happens.
I think Jax will end up dead by the end of the finale, I can see that be the closing scene.
I have to accept her death by the hands of his beloved boy, too. Mostly because it was her final manipulation, her ultimate trick. Gemma won. She's now free. From everything: the pain, the sense of guilt, the bad memories, the shame.
ReplyDeleteI have to accept Kurt's decision: to destroy Jax's soul all the way (mission accomplished, Captain). And I will. I just need some more time to think about it.
I agree with you there! Unser didn't like the life they were leading, neither does Nero which is why I am glad he is leaving as I would hate to see him die as well. I think Jax will die in the finale anyway, he has gone beyond redemption.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair on Jax, it was Gemma who was pushing him to pull the trigger. He did lower his gun, and I felt like he would have let her go. So really she made him kill her.
Yeah she definitely manipulated him into to killing him even though she knew it would be hard for him to get over, as killing your mother is not something you can come back from. She was selfish, at the time thinking of herself, not Jax.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe Jax wants to come back from this. He's finally seeing every wrong choice he ever made. He's tying up loose ends. He's too calm, almost resigned. Almost at peace with what he's going to do really. I'm 99% sure he's going to die, I'm just not sure it's going to be the end scene. I wouldn't put it beyond Kurt to give us sunshine and rainbows for just a few seconds before they fade to black. I also don't see Jax sitting on his bed with the trigger in his mouth. I don't know how he's going to do it, but I think he's going to take a few with him when/if he does.
ReplyDeleteI think Wendy is going to the farm and I think Jax is going to make sure she or Nero have John's manuscript to give to his boys.
No matter how I feel about Jax, the man he became and the killing of his mother, that was a brutal, beautiful scene with Charlie Hunnam and Katey Sagal.
SN- I'm almost as afraid to hear the music Kurt chose for the finale as I am seeing the end of Jax. I'm sure it's going to rip my heart out. He used a wonderful version of "Knocking on Heaven's Door" for the finale promo. What can he follow it up with, that's not going to shred the fans?
I know. Just wished he could have ignored his mother's wish and walked away with her being left to live with what she did for the rest of her life. That, in my opinion, would be a fate worse than death for her.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been, in the end she got given the easy route.
ReplyDeleteYour welcome!
ReplyDeleteJax accepted his fate when he met with the other Presidents. In exchange for the striking of an unwritten bylaw - which I think is obviously that men of color can be patched in. He told them that he'd have his crew vote unanimously as long as this came to pass. From that moment on, and even before, the episode felt like Jax tying up loose ends and saying his goodbyes. He's got nothing left - though one would hope he'd try to at least make some type of peace with his two sons rather than simply sending them off to the farm. They, too, have lost everyone who's ever been in their lives, and while Thomas is too young to understand, Abel has seen his mother, and now grandmother, go away, and now his dad too..
ReplyDeleteOf course Wendy is the best choice for them, I hate how she fell back in bed with Jax, because the first time I ever HATED his character was in 6x12 when he went to Wendy's and shot her up with heroin in order to discredit her from protecting his kids. I loved that she was redeemed and got herself together, and I'm okay with her still loving Jax, but sleeping with him again just days / weeks after Tara was brutally murdered and in Tara's own bed.. after all that... just... icky, I guess. Still, I'm rooting for Wendy and Nero to get the boys and perhaps be the series' sole survivors. I could see Chibs and Tig still kicking around though, with Sutter perhaps wanting the club to live on with a least a few familiar faces.
I really didn't think Gemma would meet her maker this week, I thought she'd at least make it to the finale, but I'm sort of glad they let is happen now so we can see the full fallout in the finale. Though an episode of Sons without Katey will certainly be strange. Unser, I gotta say, had it coming. I liked the guy for a long time but part of me felt like he wanted to be killed there - he knew Jax wasn't fucking around he stated himself that Gemma was basically all he had left. If she was going to die, I think he wanted to die too. He knew he had a part in Tara's murder (handing the information to Gemma pretty damn recklessly) and saw what had come of it. At least he beat cancer..
I don't usually comment over here in FX land because I sort of skipped out on SOA Season 4 and most of 5 -- but I came back for the final couple seasons and man, if this show doesn't walk away with multiple Emmys then I don't know what will. For me personally, Katie Sagal was the biggest draw and what a performance she gave in her final episode. So heartbreaking that I almost came to sympathize with Gemma. I think the plots tend to run overly long on this show, but for the most part the writing is amazing and the acting is just fantastic. What a gutsy move to do away with these three characters all in a single episode. Plus, bravo on those great guest cameos (Charisma Carpenter and a "disguised" Michael Chiklis, cool!). Hoping that the writers on other networks were taking notes from beginning to end. I tend to agree with certain other viewers that there are loose parallels to Hamlet all the way through this series, and that it will be a tragedy right to the finish. Personally, I feel that what Jax set in motion this week amounts to a suicide run, but yeah -- they really have me interested to see how it all ends up. Just, WOW.
ReplyDeleteI kind of read it that she was really ready to end things, she was just wiped out and hollowed from everything she'd set in motion and was ready to go. Just such a resigned, understated tone. She wanted him to do it.
ReplyDeleteI know she was indeed ready to end things, I just felt she was very selfish in how it turned out. Giving Jax her blessing for him to kill her didn't do Jax any justice. Gemma may of been ready to go, but I don't think Jax was ready to kill her.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you, it did feel like he was tying up loose ends which is why I felt this episode was more like a series finale than the penultimate episode. Jax is pretty much a dead man walking, so as long as he gets the chance to say goodbye to Wendy and the boys, then he will be at peace.
ReplyDeleteI think Wendy, and Nero will still leave. I hope she doesn't decide to stay thinking she and Jax have a chance, because in reality they don't given he probably has limited time. Nero at the very least I think will leave for sure. Enjoy the conference call with him today ;)
Unser is partly to blame for Tara's murder, if he didn't always go telling Gemma everything he had learned, she wouldn't have gone round their that night. I did always hate it how he would tell Gemma everything about the club, and more notably this season Tara's case. He did have it coming, but I thought Jax murdering in cold blood like that was unforgivable.
Season 4 wasn't the shows best season by any means. This season is actually turning into one of my favorite seasons. The cast have really upped their game this season, and nearly every episode you get an emmy worthy performance from someone. This episode had Emmy's written all over it. Katy in particular was fantastic as usual ( she has been all season) and if she doesn't win anything or even gets nominated I will have no faith from them on in whoever picks the nominees.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't believe sutter decided to kill of three major characters in the same episode, it was risky from him, but it paid off in the end through brilliant performances by the cast, also with brilliant writing. I mentioned to someone else that I think Jax is going on a suicide run, he knows his time is running out, and wants to wrap everything up quickly. I am actually wondering if anyone else is going to die in the finale. I am pretty confident Jax will meet his end, as it look set to be heading that way. Only time will tell.
Wow, just wow...
ReplyDeleteOh I definitely tend to agree Robert -- although given how fiercely, I guess I'll say "protective" (?) she was of her son, and considering the code the entire club lived by, I wonder if (in her eyes) she was giving him a form of permission that would eventually give him a chance at self-redemption. I'm not saying I agree with most of the things Gemma ever did -- and I'm not saying her tactic will lead to a happy ending -- but for me, I really did believe her when she said she loved Jax from the purest part of her heart.
ReplyDeleteThere is no question about it that she loved him, and I too agree she did love him from the purest part of her heart. She would do anything for him, and I do think that everything she has done over the seasons she has done for him.
ReplyDeleteShe wanted her son to move on from Tara's death, and knew the only real way he could do that was to kill her, even if it was hard on him. Maybe that is why she forced it upon him.
That is probably the best word to describe the episode.
ReplyDeleteI keep wondering, after all is said and done, whether it will actually be Nero who ends up leading the life Tara
ReplyDeletealways imagined for Jax. He’s getting out of the business with no debts, and he'll have contact with the boys and with Wendy. Considering how far Jax has fallen since S1, that would be an interesting bit of irony -- I mean, presuming Nero even survives next week's episode!
Any theories on the cart lady? That's one long way to push a cart. Do you think she's in Gemma's mind?
ReplyDeleteI am not sure who exactly you are on about, but I think I know (been a long day). If its the woman by the vending machine then I think she did play on Gemma's mind a little. I think that could be the point where Gemma realized their are a lot more people worse of than she is. I think she was also thinking about how that woman would give anything for a home, and a family, and she just through it all away.
ReplyDelete