Tig's grief sets fire to 9'ers: 'Sons of Anarchy' 'To Be, Act 1', some thoughts

By April MacIntyre Nov 30, 2011, 5:26 GMT

One thing you can take away from this episode; Tig\'s rash action has created the beginnings of a whirlwind for season five.

Clay Morrow will not go gently into that goodnight.

And his fair lady, Gemma, will keep twisting that shiv until she secures prince Jax as the SAMCRO president.

Tonight's first leg of the two-part finale sets up a whole new set of problems that extend beyond the Irish and the Mexicans.

The Oakland gang The One-Niners (9'ers) now are set ablaze after Tig's erroneous assumptions of their guilt and his subsequent actions. When you act and speak in anger, bad things happen.  Tonight it was epic.

Do you love me?

That was the question, to be answered by both Jax and Gemma as Tara is weighing the pros and cons of just accepting her fate as premiere old lady and sticking it out with her old man.  Tara is doomed to walk in Gemma's shoes some day, perhaps.

Katey Sagal's Gemma always brings it, machinations, bossiness, natural sex appeal and thinking three steps ahead of Clay have made her the fiercest female badass on television, ever.

Charlie Hunnam and Maggie Siff's Jax and Tara are a twisted Romeo and Juliet, their performances these two episodes stomp the yard. Emmy award nomination committees need to take notice of this work. 

Tara's character has become both angry and resigned, fatalistic and cunning. She says she is smarter than Gemma.  She knows Gemma and what motivates her. Perhaps she is wiser in the books department, but underestimating Gemma in the street smarts department is a fool's folly.

Hunnam's Jax reacted almost incredulously to Gemma's big reveal regarding public enemy Clay Morrow. Jax also knows Gemma. He almost looked like he had it with his mother, whose half-truths and obfuscations of any semblance of straight-talking have reached his limit.

One thing you can take away from this episode; Tig's guilt-fueled rash action has created the beginnings of a whirlwind for season five. 

The woman killed in his hit and run was obviously loved by Leroy, who is blinded by murderous rage now. How that gets smoothed over will not be easy.

I have seen next week's episode and the fun is just beginning. The series has been a bountiful weekly source of entertainment, and I look forward to daydreaming about all the possibilities to come for season five.