Boardwalk Empire Recap: Don’t Be a Jabronie

Recaps

By vallegirl | Saturday, September 29, 2012 | 9:02 am | 7 Comments
Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in: Boardwalk Empire, Recaps

Oh gah…this scene. Eli’s out in his work shed and finds a birthday present he never got to give Will because he went to prison. It’s a model airplane and he was going to build it with the boy. As he sorts through the pieces I get so very sad and it’s in that moment that I really appreciated just how deep Shea Whigham’s gone with Eli. He’s no longer the insecure and bitter baby brother and everything about his interpretation of Eli has become so small and still and quiet and he’s fucking killing me.

Early the next morning Eli’s sitting at the dining room table with the model airplane lost in some morose thought when Will comes downstairs. Eli barely croaks out “Will” then tells the boy that he didn’t want to wake June. Will’s on his way to work in the lumber yard and Eli tries to get the boy to have some breakfast so they can share some time together but Will says he’ll get coffee and donuts at the yard.

Like a lost bird.

Eli keeps trying to forge a bond with the boy by thanking him for taking care of the family but Will lies that it wasn’t nothing. Eli thinks that now that he’s home Will can go back to school, since Will got June’s brain, but Will thinks he’s learning enough. Eli tries to bond over them both getting educated and says he read Shakespeare…in prison…and Will couldn’t look more awkward if he tried. Until his boss comes to pick him up and Eli gives him the model airplane. All Will can say is it’s “keen” and go off to work, breaking off one more piece of Eli.

Mercifully, we cut to Mickey ordering around his crew about loading the trucks and to have everything loaded and ready to go by sundown. Then the last Prohie standing, Sawicki, has picked up where Nelson left off and is bugging Mickey about the shipment. Mickey has to remind him that he’s paid NOT to ask questions but Sawicki’s all “You haven’t paid me, yet.” Heh. He’s like Mickey’s doppelganger. While Mickey whines about how he’s always broke even in a cash business like bootlegging, Eli finally shows up, taciturn as ever, but humbled enough not to argue when Mickey makes him help the rest of the crew load the trucks.

Oh, a weisenheimer.

Maggie Gyllenhaal in a blonde wig is out at some swank New York club with Nucky and Billie, talking about Billie’s non-existent hummingbird routine and pretending that they’re three for the road. Nucky says he’ll talk to “Lee Schubert” about staging the show and Maggie gets all starry-eyed in time for Billie to excuse herself to go talk to a young and handsome swell. Maggie, as is her wont, just isn’t getting it so she’s flapping her yap while Nucky gets all jealous as Billie laughs at the swell’s jokes and he strokes her hand. Eh, I’ll give him that one except she knew he could see her and she’s not stupid so I take it back.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
vallegirl
About

Vallegirl has never actually lived in a valley, has a lot of time on her hands and likes to yell at kids about how things were in her day.  Currently in LA, she's also spent a lot of time in the great states of  New York and Florida so she's not crazy, it's just a cultural thing.

7 Comments

  1. 1
    ellemck1
    Posted September 30, 2012 at 8:16 am

    I loved Gyp’s line “I got a gun. You got a gun. He’s got a gun. He’s got a gun. Everybody’s got guns!”. It kinda described this show really well.

    Also, I love Owen (it’s the Irish accent. Has an affect on me.), but I’ve accepted that he’ll probably go down soon and I’ll survive and be sad.

    Eli took this episode. I can’t wait to see more.

  2. 2
    vallegirl vallegirl
    Posted September 30, 2012 at 10:21 am

    I loved the line, too, but it was so heavily promo’d that I felt cheap reusing it so I didn’t. But Cannavale has such an amazing voice to go with his Silly Putty face, that I get why they couldn’t get enough of the way he yelled “Errybody got GUNS.”

    And Shea Whigham was in Take Shelter with Michael Shannon. Played his best friend. All of Eli’s hawkish mannerisms were there, but the character was much more sympathetic. I really came to appreciate his acting in that movie so I gained a better appreciation of Eli between seasons. Clearly, the writers/producers think highly of Whigham and I’m glad he’s getting the chance to flesh out this character.

  3. 3
    plockeness monster plockeness monster
    Posted September 30, 2012 at 5:52 pm

    I thought Nucky found another dude’s razor in the medicine cabinet.

    I’m on the Owen train as well. I think he’s hot. I also think that him and Margaret are secretly in love.

    I still don’t understand the scene between Nucky and Means.

  4. 4
    vallegirl vallegirl
    Posted September 30, 2012 at 11:01 pm

    Different strokes. I think Charlie Cox is average-looking and he’s not charismatic enough for me to make anything interesting out of his role, which is pretty slight to begin with. He’s just kind of there, and I really hope they don’t make Margaret go back down that road again. That’s been her story for the first two seasons and I want them to let her find a way to make herself happy in life.

    But I hadn’t considered that the razor was left behind by someone else. Thanks. That makes the scene make some sense.

  5. 5
    Zo Impressive
    Posted October 1, 2012 at 10:32 am

    Isn’t this from last week? Anyhow, Eli is not looking healthy most def. Gyp is way over the top and Margaret has bc a real b*tch. Nucky is a sap over the new girl, but only set Gyp off more with his note about Tuna. Bad move, Nuck. Gyp is 7 Psychopaths in 1. Holding on rest for recap/update.

  6. 6
    chaosbutterfly
    Posted October 1, 2012 at 11:03 am

    Just cried real tears at the title.
    Omg, I haven’t seen anyone use the word jabronie in so many years. That was the ultimate insult on the playground….it used to make people cry and/or fight.
    Ahh I cannot stop laughing!!

  7. 7
    hot cawfee
    Posted October 3, 2012 at 9:12 am

    Am behind on watching– will catch up this week–pinky swear!!!!!

    I thought the razor was some else’s too. Then and dont know why– I remembered that Nucky’s first wife killed herself (with a razor??) when thie baby died. It flashed into my head. Maybe Nucky fears Billy is unbalanced????

    I still cannot stand Owen. But Bobby Cannavale is really developing his character.

    I love how its getting all Harlem Renaissance in AC—great scene between Chalky and Maybelle. She is trying to go Flapper but her father is having none of it. Do we think Samuel will become the Gangster Doctor????

    I had none of my beloved Richard this week so Eli is getting my love. Wow……when he stood at the door uncertain as to turn the door knob or walk in, I teared up as his hands fumbled. Then he knocked gently and the little guy answered the door “Pop?”.
    Yes Valle—you do see the love he has for his family. I lost it a little too when he took down Will’s b-day gift—and we see his son has become a man now.

    Question—-did Nucky help out June while Eli was away?? And do the kids know that he was in jail and why???

Post a Comment

Your email is never published nor shared. Required fields are marked *

*
*

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

Human Verification: In order to verify that you are a human and not a spam bot, please enter the answer into the following box below based on the instructions contained in the graphic.