Recap: Sons of Anarchy, Episode 3.01, SO

Well, I certainly didn't see that coming. Sweet baby Abel, I've been trying to wrap my brain around the closing scene of the premiere of Sons of Anarchy all day long. Let's put a pin in that for a hot minute. I'll start my recap of Sons of Anarchy, Episode 3.01, entitled SO, just as soon as I'm done clipping my acrylic nails over an old newspaper.  

Needless to say, there are spoilers abound... 

Sons of Anarchy often deals with the consequences of the choices that its characters make and SO was no exception to that overarching theme. In the season premiere, we saw the consequences play themselves out in terms of the loneliness of our favorite characters, the disarray of SAMCRO after The Kid was abducted, and the violence the Sons family was subjected to during the drive-by.

Photo Courtesy of Bobby Elvis' Bake Sale

First, loneliness and isolation separated Jax, Tara, Gemma from each other and the club--both physically and emotionally. Hell, even Piney was lonely--he misses John Teller. Like a lot ya'll. Jax is in isolation in The Kid's nursery, cut off from Tara, his mother, and the MC. I nearly cried when Opie pried him off the floor (no really, it was as if Jax's ass had grown roots into the carpet) and carried him to the shower. The new Jax is limp and helpless until after the funeral. And isn't amazing how physically separate Jax is in this episode? He's on the dock by himself, crouching in the dirt by himself, and riding by himself. I think the only time we've seen Jax this alone is when he was spending quality time with Dead Daddy Teller's Burnt Book of Biker Wisdom. 

Meanwhile, rather than be consumed by her loneliness, Tara acts by awesomely trashing the joint in a fit of rage and tells ATF Bitchface that "I don't need a boy to handle my shit" (talk about living the WWGD principle). Completely motivated by the fear of losing Jax and her very serious life in Charming, Tara tells the Prince of Charming, "We don't know who we are until we're connected to someone else. We're just better human beings when we're with the person we're supposed to be with. I wasn't supposed to leave. I belong here." How's that for some heavy shit? And was it just me or was there some lingering doubt in Jax's eyes?

Meanwhile, meanwhile, what does Gemma do to escape her isolation in the sticks while being on the lam? She nearly cuts a guy's dick off while trying to steal his car... which she needed reading glasses to hot wire, of course. I mean what else would Gemma do? She's the valet, shit-head! To add insult to injury, she declares it's just a flesh wound. Paging the Black Knight.    

Second, SAMCRO is in disarray at the start of the episode. While the guys swarm Jax when they get a lead on Cameron Hayes, there is a certain awkwardness to their presence in the house. They ride funny and they seem undecided at the dock. Is it the situation? Is it seeing Jax completely undone? I don't know. But the only one who knows how to handle the situation is Clay and the value of his leadership (however flawed) becomes immediately apparent. He plays the outsider card and lays blame on Agent Bitchface for the death of Half-Sack, The Kid's abduction, and Gemma's run from the law. Clay reassures Tara. (WTF? I don't even know? Who is this Clay Morrow and what have you done with King Clueless? I love this Clay. LOVE HIM). Even better, he tells Stahl:

Anything happens to my grandson. Anything. And I promise you that I'm going to shove a gun barrell up that bony ass of yours and I'm going to blow that black heart out.

Clay pulled shit together most effectively when he told Jax to man up. Act now. You're going to find the kid. Make the hard decision to do something, regardless of The Kid's fate. Which leads me to... 

Third, the violence. And there was so much of it. I'm so sad to see Hale go. He really grew on me as a character and provided an interesting ethical dynamic for SAMCRO in Charming. I'm just going to trust Kurt Sutter that Hale's death will mean something, contribute to the forward momentum of the story. So in quick succession, Hale is killed while trying to stop the perpetrators of the drive-by after Half-Sack's funeral, Jax bashes in the skull of one of the shooters, and a kid is shot. The only sense I can make of it is this: no one is Charming is immune to the consequences of SAMCRO's outlaw choices. My working theory on who is responsible for the drive-by? The Mayans. They're going to want recompense for the highway showdown during the season 2 finale.    

Funny things, loose ends, and some questions:

• Chuckie lives another day to serve Bobby-Elivs' banana bread and coffee at the clubhouse!
• Damn, those boys can actually ride motorcycles. Loved the chase scene. 
• Fantastic close-up of John Teller's mug shot. Way to build in the mythology in a subtle way.
• Clay (to the forger): Thanks Mr. Magoo
• Tara and Jax mention what they did to Kohn. Twice. This has got to be foreshadowing. I wonder if finding Kohn's body is a way for Stahl to get her groove back?
• Charming votes Republican, just ask Hale's brother. BTW, did you catch those teeth? I guess I'm going to have to learn his name now. Or can I just call him Snaggle Tooth for the rest of the season? 
• Unser calls Gemma "our girl" when he's talking to Clay.
• Tig to caregiver: "My name is Tiggy." Uh... Tiggy? 
• Speaking of Tig... What's up with Kozik's desire to come back to Charming? 
• The super-top-secret code name for Gemma is "Love"
• What does Gemma read in the newspaper that makes her want to go home? I smell a rat....
• Cameron's old boat is named Dithreabhag which I think, loosely translated, means "He was here." Either that or it's something about double penetration. No, really.
• The hospital administrator is still lurking. Look out, Tara.  
• Half-Sack got patched in posthumously AND gets the SAMCRO coffin, which is always the tasteful choice for your internment needs. 
• The song playing during the opening montage of Sons of Anarchy SO is No Milk Today by Joshua James and The Forrest Rangers
• The song playing the at the end of SO is Dad's Gonna Kill Me by Richard Thompson 
• Jax leaves his SO ring on John Teller's grave while keeping the NS ring for himself. Did you know that the season 3 finale is titled NS? Get it SO (1) - NS (13)? Either Jax will be wearing both those rings at the end of the season or he'll wear neither of them.
• Jax. Naked. Shower. Again. But this time shot from above. I know you dirty bitches are out there trying to find screen cap of it for the spank bank.  So here you go....  Your picture of Jax naked in the shower. Sigh... this just makes me feel dirty

Photo Courtesy of Bobby Elvis' Bake Sale

What do ya'll think? I'm looking forward to seeing more of the supporting cast in the next episode. What did I miss? The comments section awaits....

All of the screen caps in this post are from Bobby Elivs' Bake Sale, a great site run by @amonmich. Go check out her excellent SOA caps and follow her on twitter while you're at it.