Richard also still might get hooked on dope. Or he might become Tommy's guardian, since he knows how much Jimmy loved Tommy and Tommy might be in a bit of danger since he's going to be a rich, potentially powerful kid.

12/13/2011 10:46:38 AM

Tommy and Jimmy's Mom = Family that Jimmy promised him. Done.

12/13/2011 11:45:43 AM

Went back and watched this episode again. I feel pretty confident in saying that Jimmy knew he was going to die pretty much the whole episode. He seemed to spend almost that entire span of time trying to right some wrongs, provide for his son, and make peace with himself.

12/13/2011 12:07:58 PM

Not sure how much power Tommy will have.

He's like 5?

The power Jimmy had was because Nucky was supposed to be dead or in prison. Now that Nuckys legal troubles are clear he's going to be back. Plus he's just killed Jimmy. He's going to be PISSED at what Margaret did. He was seen as weak before all this shit started so he's coming back next season as ruthless as ever.

The only one of Jimmys partners that will be on his side is Harrow.

By the time he's be old enough to do anything prohibition will be over.

No telling how fucked up he'll be with his grandmother raising him.

12/13/2011 12:37:27 PM

Quote :

"Went back and watched this episode again. I feel pretty confident in saying that Jimmy knew he was going to die pretty much the whole episode. He seemed to spend almost that entire span of time trying to right some wrongs, provide for his son, and make peace with himself."

I felt the same way. I first felt that way when he got silent during his and Nucky's meeting, and felt more confirmed when he was going over & ripping up Commodore's Will. The scene with Tommy and the pony ride I was near tears knowing he was saying goodbye/having one last good moment with him.

12/13/2011 1:53:22 PM

I obviously enjoyed the finale a lot, but they were super heavy-handed in their foreshadowing of his death

12/13/2011 2:00:29 PM

^^^^Yeah, I agree. At the very latest, he knew when he got that phone call from Nucky. But I agree that I think he knew for the entirety of the episode. When Richard tells him in the first 5 minutes of the episode that Nucky will never forgive him no matter what he does, he doesn't react because he knows Richard is right. Also, from a narrative standpoint, they veeeeery strongly foreshadowed his death throughout the episode (^ beat me to it).

^^^POTENTIALLY. Not saying that he is right now (since you're right, he's just a kid), or that he definitely will be, but considering who his father and his grandfather were and that he might have the badass of all badasses watching over/protecting him, there is potential there (Gillian said as much: "You're going to be a very big man in this city one day"). We'll see, but there are some interesting directions they can take Tommy in.

Also, one more thought on the finale: the way Steve Buscemi delivered the line "I am not seeking forgiveness" was super, suuuuuuuper lame. I. AM. NOT. SEEKING. FORGIVENESS.

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 2:04 PM. Reason : ^]

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 2:17 PM. Reason : .]

12/13/2011 2:02:29 PM

everything about that was lame

the line

the camera angle

the tone

the pacing

12/13/2011 2:10:02 PM

^^^I didn't watch closely, but it didn't seem like foreshadowing to me.

From the start of the episode, Jimmy knew he was going to die...that's why he was wrapping things up with his kid and whatnot.

12/13/2011 2:12:24 PM

^I agree Jimmy knew throughout the episode that he was a dead man walking, but there was also technical/narrative foreshadowing. Like when Jimmy says the title of the episode as he pours whiskey on the ground for his wife, like the shot when it shows him almost entirely in the shadows (the scene where Nucky and Owen show up to his house), like when Richard offers to come and Jimmy says "This is something I have to do alone" (the type of line that never appears before anything but the death of that character).

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 2:19 PM. Reason : /]

12/13/2011 2:15:31 PM

Quote :

"Most of the characters, including Jimmy Darmody, are based on real-life people from that book. I don't know whether or not Darmody's real life counterpart died in a similar way, though."

From wikipedia:
"Jimmy Boyd, born 1906 or 1907, served as an assistant to Nucky, and was head of the 4th Ward and a county clerk. As opposed to the character presented in the show, he wasn't a World War I veteran (he would have been 11 at the outset of war), he wasn’t Nucky’s driver, and did not rob bootleggers. However, Boyd was one of Nucky Johnson's political operatives, delivering bad news and maintaining order in his ward, as well as participating in some dirty dealings. He was involved in Atlantic County politics through the early 1970s. Boyd died in 1974."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Boardwalk_Empire_characters

Regarding the guy the Commodore is based on:
"By the time of his return to Atlantic City, Enoch "Nucky" Johnson had become the unofficial boss of the city. After Kuehnle unsuccessfully challenged Johnson's leadership, Johnson agreed to support Kuehnle, his former mentor, for City Commissioner. Kuehnle was elected in 1920 and reelected every four year term following that until his death in 1934 serving specifically as Commissioner of Parks and Public Property."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Kuehnle

Anyway, I thought it was a good way to end the Darmody character, and also a good commentary on the lost generation, specifically that "I died in the trenches years ago" bit. I was surprised over the past two episodes though, just because I expected the murder of his wife to be some sort of catalyzing event that would change his character significantly.

I took Gillian's line about "You're going to be a very big man in this city one day" as just another clue about how crazy she is as opposed to setting up anything next season. I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't see her again. I expect the Chicago action to step up next season setting up Capone taking over for Torrio in 1925.

12/13/2011 2:17:25 PM

^Yeah, Gillian's line can definitely be read that way as well. Just about any line her character says now can/will be seen as just fucking cuckoo.

I also thought the "I died in the trenches years ago, I thought you knew that" bit was powerful as well; it summed up the tragedy of Jimmy's character quite nicely. Plus, it's pretty telling that in that scene, most of Nucky's lines and the way Buscemi delivered them were a bit cringe-worthy, while Pitt's were absolutely captivating. Also, the commentary on the lost generation makes the title of the episode just a little bit more poignant.

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 2:24 PM. Reason : /]

12/13/2011 2:23:54 PM

They're bringing on Gandolfini as Nucky's cousin Nucky next season.

12/13/2011 2:24:50 PM

haha

12/13/2011 2:40:40 PM

Didn't Bushemi play Gandolfini's cousin on the Soprano's...?

12/13/2011 4:42:13 PM

lol

12/13/2011 4:43:37 PM

Tony Blundetto

12/13/2011 4:45:43 PM

the joke seems to have lost it's luster now

12/13/2011 4:51:19 PM

Oops...I didn't realize y'all had already discussed Jimmy's awareness of impending death (and his resignation). My bad.

If anything, the "heavy-handed" foreshadowing may have been a sort of kindness or consideration for the viewer. Letting us know that it's going to happen and that it is a big deal...making it THE JIMMY'S GONNA DIE episode...versus just capping him in the end.

It probably would have been more artful to spread that kind of foreshadowing out over several episodes though.

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 6:43 PM. Reason : ]

12/13/2011 6:42:00 PM

If I were nucky, I'd heads would roll in that church until I got that land back.

12/13/2011 9:30:37 PM

Quote :

"^^^POTENTIALLY. Not saying that he is right now (since you're right, he's just a kid), or that he definitely will be, but considering who his father and his grandfather were and that he might have the badass of all badasses watching over/protecting him, there is potential there (Gillian said as much: "You're going to be a very big man in this city one day"). We'll see, but there are some interesting directions they can take Tommy in."

Normally I would agree that Tommy has a very good reason to grow up to be a vengeful motherfucker. But I just don't see this show going that direction. No way they are going to skip the 10 most important years in American gangster history and all the "big" names to show Tommy as an adult raising hell. This show is about Nucky and will be for at least next season. Although I do see Nucky somehow out of the show by the end of next season. Not saying he is going to get killed. But he could go to jail for something else or just get out of dodge. Its hard to say since he is a more based on a real character than Jimmy was.

12/13/2011 10:02:18 PM

^but he is the story in prohibition-era Atlantic City.

^^I could actually see something like that happening.

[Edited on December 13, 2011 at 11:17 PM. Reason : .]

12/13/2011 11:16:43 PM

Breathe, Nuck.

12/13/2011 11:31:14 PM

^^^I don't think they'll skip to Tommy as an adult, but I think he could become important in a much later season, say Season 5 or 6 (if it gets that far). That said, I also don't think that during that 10 years in between they'll focus on Capone/Lansky/Lucky as much as everyone thinks. They'll obviously address that stuff, but I don't think this show is really interested in showing the part of history that everyone already knows; the proof in that regard is that they portray Capone as a witless dope. I'm not saying they won't show all that stuff, I just don't think it'll be the focus.

And speaking of that, there's no way Nucky is gone until the show is over. For better or for worse, this show is all about Nucky, especially now that Jimmy's gone. I could, however, see Margaret being gone by the end of next season as she continues to be a royal pain in Nucky's ass.

[Edited on December 14, 2011 at 10:20 AM. Reason : ^ Those last words by Darmody have haunted me since the finale]

12/14/2011 10:02:05 AM

Quote :

"I'd heads would roll in that church until I got that land back."

Yeah, I don't see how Nucky can't just be like "It was given to you by mistake. Just sign it back over and we'll make a nice donation. Or else..."

12/14/2011 10:07:04 AM

Nucky'll get through it. The only thing he has to worry about is when he runs out of booze, and runs out of company, the only person left to judge him will be himse--.

12/14/2011 10:17:40 AM

Tommy and Gillian will be marginalized or cleaned up all together. Nucky entering full gangster mode may decide to tie up all loose ends and have them killed for all we know.

Van Alden in Cicero is an interesting turn of events and we'll no doubt see more of Capone's growth due to this.

12/14/2011 10:22:26 AM

^ Unlikely if Richard is protecting them.

Also, I did catch the fact that Van Alden thinks he's in the clear when he's really headed to Capone's backyard, but I still don't think Van Alden will be on the show much longer.

12/14/2011 10:33:16 AM

as much as I like Richard Harrow I just don't buy into this notion that he's going to protect Gillian and Tommy. we have to remember this guy was supposed to be a one episode appearance before become an overnight fan favorite. and he's already been shown to be a lost soul with inclinations of drug use and suicide. Now with the only two people whom he felt any connection with no longer living he could take a number of different directions.

honestly, i'm still of belief that he'll probably be sought out by Owen Slater when Nucky begins rebuilding his inner circle. I'm not lost on the one scene they shared together earlier in the season.

but then again, the writers have expressed a 1-year time jump will occur between seasons 2 and 3 so there is no telling what has happened to Richard in that time frame.

12/14/2011 10:40:43 AM

I wondered...with Van Alden in Cicero so they'll obviously start building Capone's story plus Capone having seen Harrow's handywork, that maybe Harrow would go work for him.

12/14/2011 11:09:49 AM

Gillian called Richard a dimwitted mope or something to that effect, I don't think he likes her.

12/14/2011 11:10:43 AM

Season 3 will start one year ahead. Right when Eli is getting out of jail.

12/14/2011 11:13:15 AM

So that's summer of '22?

Capone takes over for Johnny Torrio in '25, so they could begin setting that up.

12/14/2011 11:42:36 AM

I still don't think Capone is going to become a major character on this show. As I said, this show doesn't seem too interested in showing the parts of history that are already well-known. Obviously they're going to show it, but I don't think it's going to become one of the main focuses of the show.

I think we'll get more involved next season with characters like Owen and Munya. They've already gone out of their way in episodes to establish some background for those two: with Munya, in the finale, they deliberately worked in his dialogue about Odessa and how Nucky wouldn't survive in Odessa. With Owen, there was the scene where he killed the other Irish guy in the bathroom and the scene with him and Mr. McGarrigle.

Point is, I think we'll get a little bit more Capone/Lucky/Lansky, but I don't think they're going to replace Jimmy as the major secondary focus for the show (behind Nucky). I could be wrong, obviously.

Also, ^^^ good point, I somehow forgot about that. I could see Richard going any of the directions mentioned on this page, honestly, since yeah, he is a lost soul. I just hope they don't get rid of him altogether.

^^I already suspect that Season 3 will end with something major happening to Margaret or Eli (and I'm leaning towards Margaret). With the Season 2 finale, they made it clear that this is a show about Nucky Thomson going "full gangster." Whether or not that will be an interesting show kind of remains to be seen. The show was interesting with Jimmy in it, even great, but as I've said before, I don't know how interesting it'll be without him as just a show about an all-out gangster. We've seen a character like Nucky before; we hadn't really seen a character like Jimmy (obviously the lost soul war vet is a stock character, but not one who was doomed by his incestuous mother, who was in turn doomed when she was used as a 13-year-old prostitute).

[Edited on December 14, 2011 at 12:11 PM. Reason : .]

12/14/2011 12:04:29 PM

Quote :

"Gillian called Richard a dimwitted mope or something to that effect, I don't think he likes her."

He and all the viewers except you two know that she said this to keep the cop from asking him questions about Jimmy and Jimmy's wife's murder.

[Edited on December 14, 2011 at 12:52 PM. Reason : .]

12/14/2011 12:51:46 PM

^No shit, but it also seemed to annoy him a little bit. You could tell by his (half of a) face that it annoyed him.

12/14/2011 12:53:27 PM

it very obviously annoyed him

as it should have

12/14/2011 12:54:56 PM

I, too, dislike when my friend's MILF calls me a simpleton.

12/14/2011 12:57:02 PM

not to mention his loyalty was so deep to Jimmy that he didn't bother telling Gillian where Jimmy had gone the night of his death. simply stating that he stepped out on his own.

12/14/2011 1:44:08 PM

haha Obama watches Boardwalk Empire. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20553487,00.html?hpt=hp_t2

I'd love to hear his opinion on the finale.

12/14/2011 4:55:31 PM

It probably reminds him of all the shady shit he did in Chicago to reach high political office.

12/14/2011 9:43:11 PM

I wonder if he watches Homeland.

12/14/2011 9:50:14 PM

I wonder if he watches All-American Muslims.

12/14/2011 10:00:05 PM

Quote :

"It probably would have been more artful to spread that kind of foreshadowing out over several episodes though."

The next-to-last episode of the season explained his background and filled in a lot of the gaps. Maybe it wasn't foreshadowing but I think it made his story and conclusion feel more satisfying.

12/14/2011 11:28:57 PM

Quote :

"I wonder if he watches Homeland."

I believe in the full quote he mentioned Homeland too.

12/15/2011 8:54:02 AM

One character who I predict will have a bigger role next season is Mickey Doyle. He got more screen time in the last few episodes and they really went to lengths to show that he is has gotten mistreated by almost everyone.

[Edited on January 2, 2012 at 2:17 PM. Reason : Doyle and Harrow, mark it down.]

1/2/2012 2:17:22 PM

thats some great insight, def worth bttt'ing the thread

1/2/2012 7:43:26 PM

I am finally getting to see this series. There is so much neck slitting, STDs, I just saw a scalping, weird religious shit, suicide attempts, and on top of the normal physical violence and sex/beaver, I still really like this time period.

3/6/2012 11:29:16 PM

http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/04/boardwalk-empire-season-3-will-jump-ahead-in-time.html

Quote :

"Season 3 of "Boardwalk Empire" will skip ahead in time more than a year, which will mean new and even more intense pressures on Nucky Thompson and his Atlantic City machine."

5/29/2012 2:17:05 PM

Bump for elkaybie

8/27/2012 10:14:23 PM