“The Things That Turn Players Into Kings”

S05E03

If one of the primary themes on this show has to do with the brutal way in which power is seized from one generation by the , the necessary counter-theme is this: The old eat the young – either by killing them outright or forcing them into the situations where they become old by necessity. Tonight, two of the younger SAMCRO members got eaten.

Making Hobson's Choice look like picking out a dessert at TGIFriday's: Let's get to the main plotline of the episode. Jax, Tig, Chibs and Opie are behind bars and everyone quickly learns they're under the protection of the Galindo cartel. Insofar as Pope is concerned, this is heresy. He has a guard on his payroll and the guard arranges a meeting wherein Pope delivers the doctrine of payback to Jax: From now on, 50 percent of the take from the Galindo runs belong to him. In addition, the two deaths related to the whole unpleasant Dawn Traeger business are bad for Pope's organization, so to soothe the worried minds of his underlings, one of the four Sons in prison has to die before the changing of the guard's shift. Actually, one of the three who is not named "Tig," because Pope wants him alive and behind bars for life, where he will presumably be used as a pincushion/lovedoll for whichever Pope-related felon deserves a toy with his Happy Meal.

The method by which the Son is going to die is particularly brutal: He gets put in "the box" with several of Pope's thugs, and the Son fights until he dies. Also, there is a betting pool on how long it will take. Jax learns this last part when he gets the boys all landed in solitary, per Pope's directions. He finally comes clean with Opie about everything from the last four seasons – ev-er-y-thing. Jax finishes with, "I had to make a choice, brother: Kill Clay or save the club." Opie immediately replies, "You made the wrong choice."

The two friends are pressured to decide who goes to a horrible death, and Jax shrugs that he'd rather not choose, but try to fight the guards. He and Ope meet up with the other two, and Jax briefly sketches in the deal, then decides that they won't make said deal. Opie, however, has noticed the guard's itchy trigger finger and decides he's going to go into the box. By the way, the box has a big glass window, so Chibs, Tig and Jax get to watch Opie get his head bashed, then have his body repeatedly battered by the thugs sent in to kill him.

That Opie – who has been looking for an excuse to die for a while now – should choose to throw his life away for Jax, after Jax chose the club over making things right for Opie last season, says something about how desperate and dumb some kinds of love are. And his death says something about SAMCRO as a whole: The club was introduced in season one as a loving gestalt for its members and their loved ones (recall, if you will, the sequence in which we see the club having a convivial feast at the Morrows' while Opie and his family eat their scanty dinner in cold silence), but over the last four years, we've seen that whatever SAMCRO gives, it takes twice as much. Nobody embodied that like Opie Winston, who never had a chance thanks to Piney and who deserved so much more. Rest in peace with Donna, Ope.

Watching his brother from another mother die as a result of Tig's ongoing homicidal impulses seems to have made an impression on Jax. He calmly promises the guard that he'll be killing him later, then goes in for a meeting with Pope, saying, "There's a new plan. I just watched my best friend get beaten to death for you. Now, I'm going to get the club to sign off on your cash. But I need Traeger outside. Him knowing I saved his life gives me an internal advantage I'm going to need. And when I'm done, you can send him out the same way you did his kid, 'cause I really don't give a shit." Pope replies almost approvingly, "There you go, finding a hidden advantage in an unfortunate circumstance; using pain to take you to the level. Those are the things that turn players into kings."

Remember: It ain't easy being king.

Meanwhile, over in the B-plots, which would have been riveting in any other episode …

Ain't no in-laws like outlaws<: Gemma – who has reached the getting-hickeys portion of the relationship with Nero, which means that wearing his class ring surely can't be far behind – learns the hard way that she is not on the approved visitor list at the hospital daycare. Not having carte blanche with Jax's kids puts her in a meddling sort of mood, so she drives out to see Wendy and lies blatantly about Tara turning to hillbilly heroin to ease the stresses of single motherhood, and gosh, wouldn't this be a swell opportunity for Wendy to waltz in and rip her biological son from the only mother he's ever known? Wendy is desperate enough to fall for the play and visits Tara's office, where Tara quickly discerns what's prompted this round of "Who's Abel's momma?" She then channels Gemma by reminding Wendy that she is a surgeon and Jax's legal wife, while Wendy is an ex-junkie biker whore, and she won't hesitate to blatantly exploit every societal prejudice attached to those profiles when the custody case goes to court. Then Tara heads down to the daycare to deliver an implicit threat to Gemma: Leave her family alone, or she'll start every conversation with Jax with, "So! Have we talked lately about how your mom conspired to kill your dad, then slept with his murderer for decades? Do we really want her around the family?" Gemma considers herself served.

Won't someone think of the hookers? Because sweet, dumb Juice is a total sucker for Clay's lion-in-winter act, he drops the dime on where Gemma's been spending her ample free time, so Clay decides to check out the Best Little Cathouse In Charming. He ambles off to debauch a former Disney teen star turned hooker, as one does, and Gemma loses her shit. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Best Little Cathouse in Charming is busted later that night. If Nero and Carla are planning a long con on the Sons, they may discover that these hoopty bikers are more trouble than they're worth.

Lisa Schmeiser is an Oakland-adjacent reporter and blogger. She'll always talk with you about this show on Twitter and she blogs at Penny Wiseacre.

The episode opens with our four SAMCRO boys entering Gen Pop at the county lock-up, and boy, orange is not really their color. Within seconds, a giant contingent of Pope's guys on the inside is heading toward them, but they're quickly intercepted by the Latino coalition Romeo must have called upon.

And -- in keeping with the show's tradition of opening every episode with morning in Charming -- we zip to Nero's pimprageous pad, where Gemma is slowly waking up. She is either nursing a monster hangover or Nero's depleted her electrolyte levels to a staggering degree. Quite possibly both, knowing her. Nero distracts Gemma from her bitching and moaning about Jax's recent life developments by calling out the hickeys he gave her a few hours ago and cooing, "Love hurts." As will Carla, if Nero doesn't get his ass in gear and starting dealing in hooker management. Gemma quips, "I don't think your Whore Friday is keen on me occupying your time." Nero just dismisses Carla as being a Type A madam.

Inside lockup, Chibs frets to Jax that Pope's only going to find other ways to get at SAMCRO in prison. Immediately after commenting that all the guards are greedy bastards on the take, one such exemplar fetches Jax to the warden's office, where Pope is waiting.

At the SAMCRO clubhouse, Bobby is delivering the news that Luis has ensured the boys' safety on the inside. "Thank God," says Juice. "Thank vatos with shivs," Happy corrects him. (It would crack me up if we find out that Happy's a militant Richard Dawkins fanboy in his spare time.) Then everyone goes off to Lindelof Pines for a meetup. On the way out the door, they run into Gemma, who is sporting a necklace of hickeys. This does not pass unnoticed by anyone, but in a rare display of discretion, nobody says a word. They only stare.

In the warden's office, Pope tells Jax, "Relax -- we're just here to talk." Jax glares and asks, "Is that what you told Tig's girl before you set her on fire?" Pope gives Jax a Child. Please. look and says, "Let's not discuss the tragedy of dead girls. That's an argument you'd lose." Pope then gets to his point: He thinks SAMCRO are too smart and too ambitious for him to kill. And here's where we see how smart Pope is: Rather than waste resources on killing a bunch of people who will likely be more trouble than they are worth, he's just going to twist Jax and the club as a way of teaching them not to mess with the smarter class of criminal: Fifty percent of the money the club makes on every drug shipment will now belong to Pope. Also: "Traeger, he stays inside for the rest of his life. I'll make sure he's treated accordingly. This way, every time I think about my daughter, I know where he is and what's being done to him. I need a dead Son for the Niner and the cop you killed. It maintains my relationships. I don't care who. The commander knows about it, he'll set it up. When that happens, witnesses are no longer witnesses and you get out to earn."

By Sobell

Jax protests that "I'm not just going to kill one of my guys," and Pope says amiably, "Yes, you are. Before the guard shift. It's the cost of doing battle." Jax says, "I'm not going to war." Pope disabuses him of that idea with, "You're already in it, son." After he leaves, the commander comes in and Jax sneers, "I didn't know your office was for rent." The commander just ignores this and says, "The thing you're handling has got to go down in solitary. Don't want riots in my yard. The shift sergeant can walk you through the process." It's charming how "choose someone to get murdered, then do it" has been drained of all blood and turned into an action item on Jax's to-do list.

We zip to the daycare center in the hospital, and Gemma's come by to see Abel and Thomas. Abel yawns, "Hello, Grandma," which more or less confirms my theory that Jax and Tara have lucked into parenting a toddler narcoleptic. Alas, Tara did not put Gemma on the pickup list, nor did Tara even tell her there was a pickup list or bother to drop off the forms Gemma needs to fill out in order to be on the pickup list. You can imagine how well Gemma takes this.

Why imagine? This episode is going to show us. Tara's in the middle of informing two nervous new parents of how the surgical team is going to fix their infant's underdeveloped abdominal wall when Gemma begins rapping on the window of her office. It is a mystery to me why the hospital security doesn't have a poster of Gemma emblazoned with the legend "DEPLOY TASER ON SIGHT." Margaret should get on making that happen, right after she gets over Tara giving her the strong arm and saying, "I'm sorry, I got it."

Tara grabs Gemma by the arm, hauls her down the hall, and politely inquires as to what the hell Gemma thinks she's doing. Gemma waves around the form and says, "I'm not on the list." Tara facepalms, muttering, "Jesus Christ," then rallies back to form and sounds like a real professional when she says, "Yes, the hospital requires consent upon visitation." Gemma says, "I'm not a visitor! I'm their goddamn grandmother!" "And I'm their mother! You will not bully me into changing how I raise my children," Tara says. Gemma protests that she's not bullying, and trots out the old canard about childcare providers being mere strangers and not, say, the loving professionals whom many children come to regard as family. She's only trying to help, you see. Tara says she doesn't need Gemma's help, then gives her a contemptuous once-over. "Wrap a scarf around that shit. What are you, fifteen?" she says, not bothering to add, "And this is why I will keep my kids in daycare until they're in college before I let you take care of them."

By Sobell

After Tara storms off, she passes Margaret, who says, "I hate it when she makes you stoop to her level." Tara, who is perhaps a tad sensitive to the social realities of having married a felon with a GED, snaps, "I didn't stoop!" She flounces away, leaving Margaret to ponder whether any management textbooks cover the delicate issue of firing someone because their lethal clan is turning your surgical unit into an episode of Maury.

Cons in the yard, recapper flashing back to her Prison Break days. Jax and Opie have a conversation that shows us where Opie's head is at: "This ain't fun anymore. Chasing cash we don't need and spending every dime trying to stay alive." It's sort of amusing, then, that when they meet up with Chibs, we see that he's got a dollar bill tattooed over his sternum. Jax tells everyone about his latest meeting with Damon, conveniently leaving out the part about how someone who is not named Tig is going to be dead by the end of the day.

Meanwhile, Clay and Bobby are doing their best not to crap their saggy jeans as Luis delivers the news that Pope met with Jax on the inside. The whole point to this scene? Luis warns them that the Galindo cartel has a low tolerance for dealing with people who attract the kind of shipments-blowing-up trouble that SAMCRO had back in the episode premiere. And in return, Bobby and Clay bluster that they've got this handled. Can this relationship be saved?

Clay decides to handle his professional loss of face by attempting to regain some face in his personal life. He shamelessly leans on Juice's pity glands until the poor, dumb kid is nearly in tears. The two of them are clearly headed over to the Best Little Cathouse in Charming.

Gemma has now tracked down Wendy at her day job, and since Wendy happens to be between group meetings at the moment, she tolerates the notion of conversing with Gemma. Their body language is worth noting here: Gemma's sitting upright on the edge of her seat (with a scarf on, natch) and Wendy's leaning back, leg crossed as a barrier against Gemma, hands tucked into her lap, closed off. Gemma starts by relating Jax's charges of manslaughter, claiming they're "bullshit." "They always are," Wendy says, bemused and dismissive. She asks how Tara is, and Gemma spins a tale of woe: "She's in bad shape. That's why I'm here. I think she's self-medicating." Wendy does not seem surprised, and asks if it's pain meds. Gemma claims that Tara's become hooked on oxycontin, Jax is oblivious, and won't someone think of the children? Wendy says, "Well, you should tell someone at the hospital," and Gemma gamely deflects that with, "I'm not letting in outsiders." Then she moves in for the kill: "You want Abel in your life?" Wendy begins laughing: "You want me to threaten her with oxy abuse? What the hell did she do to you?" Gemma shrugs, "It doesn't matter" -- which should be a red flag right there -- and claims that she's giving Wendy the leverage she needs. Wendy just shakes her head as she marvels, "Unbelievable." Gemma concurs, "It's a shitty way in, but it beats some messy custody suit, which we both know is the only other way you're going to ever get to see your kid. It's a small, unstable window. Just think about it." Then Gemma totters off. As she hits the door, Wendy says bitterly, "He will never call you 'mommy.' Your promise to me, remember?" Gemma turns and says, equally bitter, "Yeah. I remember everything." And that is exactly why Wendy should blow off this whole exchange, maybe do another group meeting to strengthen her resolve not to slip back into self-destructive habits, and just forget how Gemma tried to play her. But will she? Probably not, because one of the themes in this show is that parenthood makes you completely insane.

Back at the prison. Jax needs to speak to a guard in solitary, and owing to budget cuts, there is a new and sudden need to speak to him before half the guards go off shift. So he and the other three SAMCRO cons go and pick a fight with four of Pope's pet felons. Hilariously, Jax attempts to punch out a man who literally blocks out the sun whenever he looms into view on screen, and it is like watching a cocker spaniel try to savage a Volkswagon.

And that is how we finally to see Jax without his clothing on. So I'd say it was worth it, no? Also, he looks like he's been working out even more. Those deltoids are so well-defined, he could store dimes in the crevices.

We zip to the hospital, where Tara's exemplifying the challenge of maintaining a healthy work-life balance by feeding Thomas (he's on her desk, in his infant car seat) while trying to highlight notes for a case she's reviewing. Wendy appears in the door with an apologetic, "Sorry to barge in." Tara says flatly, "This is not a good time." She then shuts down Jax as a topic of small talk and treats Wendy's involuntary exclamation about Thomas -- "Oh my God, he's so beautiful!" -- as a threat to take this kid too. Wendy plows on, saying, "We need to begin the conversation about Abel." Tara informs her that there is no conversation, and Wendy says, "Your life is very messy, Tara. I know -- it used to be my life. And with Jax running the club, it's only going to get more complicated." Tara cuts her eyes at Wendy and asks, "And what does that have to do with my son?" Wendy says, "His father is a convicted felon and his guardian is psychologically fragile." Point to Wendy. Tara dismisses it as "bullshit," adding that she's Abel's mother, "Legally. We got married... yesterday." Wendy looks a little stunned, but rallies to say congratulations. Then she fully recovers: "You still have to tell Abel I'm his mother. Or the court will." As she heads to the door, Tara calls out, "Why do this today?" and then the penny drops for her: "Gemma. Of course."

Tara levels with Wendy on the mother-in-law from Hell: "She tried to kill you -- or did you forget that? She's pissed because I won't let her run my family. What did she tell you? That I'm unstable? What? Strung out on painkillers?" Wendy looks slightly abashed, and Tara knows she's hit on Gemma's line. She also knows she has the facts on her side: she hasn't taken a pill in a month. Wendy concedes that yes, she was played by Gemma, "but it doesn't change the truth." Tara gets right up in Wendy's face and snaps, "What truth? That I'm a surgeon and you're some ex-junkie biker whore. You want to come after me and my family, bring it on, darlin'. I'm not afraid of you or your bullshit custody threat." Tara wheels away, and Wendy takes a moment to remember the Serenity Now thing, then mutters, "Okay, Gemma." Which... yes. Now let us all hope that Tara does not pick up the frosting wand because that is a look that flatters no woman.

By Sobell

And now that I think about it, it's never really been a question of whether Tara will stoop to Gemma's level. But for a while, it looked like Tara was willing and able to push above it.

Having neatly recapped the machinations of season four in under two minutes, Jax drops to his bunk, exhausted. It's decision fatigue, Jax. I am honestly surprised he's not contriving a way to get thrown into solitary for a month or two just to get a little me-time in, maybe not have to wrangle his mom, his wife, his sulky BFF, the collection of men-children that comprise SAMCRO, Galen and the rest of the Real IRA, Romeo and Luis, and various and sundry law enforcement types. ANYWAY. The point is, Opie now knows everything.

Jax concludes, "I had to make a choice, brother: kill Clay or save the club." Opie unhesitatingly replies, "You made the wrong choice." Spoken like a man whose entire family has been destroyed by the club.

Back at the hospital, Tara's rolling Thomas back down to the daycare when she runs across Margaret. There's a contrived reason for the two of them to interact (Tara needs Margaret to sign paperwork so she can do pro bono work in the local prison system) and then Margaret awkwardly asks Tara if she indeed married her big felonious biker baby daddy. Margaret does not congratulate Tara; this does not pass unnoticed. But Margaret does Tara a solid by warning her that Gemma's outside the daycare waiting to see the kids. She asks if Tara would like Margaret to run interference, what with it firmly falling within her purview as hospital administrator, but Tara gives her a not-quite-to-the-eyes smile and says she's on this, as it's a family thing. I do believe we've just witnessed Tara rejecting her surrogate mother, hospital edition, and declaring her allegiance to SAMCRO in a way Margaret will clearly understand.

As Tara wheels Thomas by the daycare entrance, Gemma tries to put her on the defensive with an accusing, "You're late." Tara doesn't take the bait. She sits down, crams a bottle back in Thomas's mouth, then says, "Wendy paid me a visit today." Gemma plays innocent with, "What'd that bitch want?" Tara sighs, then says, "I love you, Gemma." She rolls her eyes skyward as though praying for patience -- or for comprehension of her own stupid heart -- and affirms, "I really do. You and me, we've been down a long road. And I know you love Jax and the boys, and they adore you --" Gemma attempts to regain control of the conversation: "Where is this sad song going?" Tara ignores that and keeps going, "You're pissed off, afraid I'm trying to push you out. That's why you're twisting up Wendy, trying to use her to hurt me. Oh, save the bullshit indignation. She copped to it." Gemma, apparently oblivious to the ground shifting beneath her feet, says patronizingly, "I forgot, you're the smart one. My pretty little Frankenstein." Here is the point I admit I debated for a full five minutes: Is Gemma referring to Tara as her own private Frankenstein's monster, and she biffed the reference because she's perhaps not a woman of letters? Or is Gemma accusing Tara of being similar to the Dr. Frankenstein in her ability to create monsters through her intellectual hubris? I mean, the literary slam seems a tad subtle for a woman who likes to whack women in the face with skateboards, but I wouldn't want to sell Gemma short.

By Sobell

Having neatly recapped the machinations of season four in under two minutes, Jax drops to his bunk, exhausted. It's decision fatigue, Jax. I am honestly surprised he's not contriving a way to get thrown into solitary for a month or two just to get a little me-time in, maybe not have to wrangle his mom, his wife, his sulky BFF, the collection of men-children that comprise SAMCRO, Gaalan and the rest of the Real IRA, Romeo and Luis, and various and sundry law enforcement types. ANYWAY. The point is, Opie now knows everything.

By Sobell

In any event, Tara owns it: she's smart. She concludes, "Here's something else that might sound familiar. Don't ever try to hurt me or my family again." Gemma leans in and sasses, "Or what, doctor? You gonna kill me?" Tara goes eyelash to eyelash with Gemma and replies, "No. But my husband might." Gemma shifts back and watches Tara take off. She looks rattled. Which is, of course, when her phone rings and it's Carla, delivering the news that Juice and Clay have just strolled into the Best Little Cathouse In Charming.

After Gemma hangs up, Carla turns on the charm and comes out from behind the counter to ask if these two Sons are ditching a warrant as well. Clay says they're just there to look around and asks if Carla minds. Nero -- who is wearing a grandpa sweater and a necklace made of hickeys -- strolls over to say that everything's cool. He and Clay introduce themselves, and Carla says meaningfully, "This is Gemma's old man." Oh, Nero is going to be in so much trouble during employee evaluations. Clay does not miss Nero's latest accessory and says, "I'm guessing you're the new one." Now would be a fine time for Nero to confess to commitment issues, but instead he asks that Clay kindly keep his relationship issues outside the Best Little Cathouse In Charming. Juice gives a bright, nervous smile and says cheerily, "Aaaaaaaaand we should go!" Clay mutters, "I'm just getting comfortable." Juice rolls his eyes all, Surrogate Dad, you are EMBARRASSING me so much!

Oh, but the embarrassment has just begun, because Clay has zoned in on Emma, and Nero -- casting a skeptical eye at the oxygen tank -- asks, "You really think that's a good idea?" Behind Clay, Juice is looking haunted. Clay pulls the aging-lion-in-winter act: "I'm just a wounded guy in need of a little comfort." Then buy some shearling slippers. Juice says, "Come on, Clay." Clay: "Shut up." Juice: "Okay." Nero rolls his eyes as Clay walks over to Emma, then walks off. Carla sidles up to Juice and purrs, "Come on, baby. It's time to graduate." Juice grins, "Really?' "Really," Carla affirms. She takes his hand to walk him back for an aromatherapy session, and Nero asks tetchily, "What are you doing?" "You think you're the only one who gets to play with white trash?" Carla ripostes. Juice clarifies, "Actually, I'm Puerto Rican --" "Stop talking, honey," Carla says. "Okay," Juice replies, in a rare moment of keen strategy.

Opie lasts 56 seconds.

(Tig had turned around so he couldn't watch, but Jax refused to turn away; his was the last face Opie saw, as he was beaten to his knees, before the pipe to his head knocked him to the ground. to him, Chibs beat his fists against the window and wailed. Jax turned away as the four men began to defile Opie's body. Kudos to Charlie Hunnam, because he made Jax look as if he'd aged ten years in under a minute.)

In the scene, as Sergeant Jackball is walking Jax to a meeting with what will surely be Pope, Jax calmly tells him, "I'm getting released, and there's nothing you can do to stop that. I'll find out who you are, and where you live. And then I'm going to kill you." Sergeant Jackball looks skeptical, but that's okay. He'll learn, quite possibly in a scenario where he's given a lead pipe and four hate-filled antagonists and told to fight until he dies.

Gemma is hanging out on Nero's couch, drinking whiskey and smoking a joint. Nero comes in and Gemma asks how Emma's doing. Nero calmly notes that she went to an escort service, then adds reproachfully, "Emma's an earner." Gemma apologizes and Nero sits on the couch with her, and somehow the topic of Gemma costing Nero and Carla revenue is miraculously over and done, so either Gemma's really exerting that much of a hold over Nero or he's got his eye on a bigger payday down the line. Nero leadingly comments about the flipside of anger, and Gemma rigorously denies that it's love. However, she is probably correct when she concludes, "I've not nothing good left for Clay."

Jax walks into the warden's office. Pope breaks the ice with, "Sounds like things went according to plan." Jax declines to sit. He stands, head regally inclined, and says, "There's a new plan. I just watched my best friend get beaten to death for you. Now I'm going to get the club to sign off on your cash, but I need Traeger outside. Him knowing I saved his life gives me an internal advantage I'm going to need. And when I'm done, you can send him out the same way you did his kid, 'cause I really don't give a shit."

Pope looks almost approving as he nods and says, "There you go, finding the hidden advantage in an unfortunate circumstance. Using pain to take you to the level. Those are the things that turn players into kings." Jax is in no mood for a conversation about his professional development: "I guess you would know." "Yes, I would," says Pope. He and Jax engage in a bit of tit-for-tat, which is how Jax learns that the Charming home invasions are not the doing of Pope's people nor the One-Niners, and Jax concludes discussions with, "I'd like to call my wife. Let her know I'm safe." Pope makes a sweeping be-my-guest gesture and heads for the door. Before he leaves, he cautions, "Be smart, Mr. Teller. It's who you are."

And this was the moment I was completely sold on Damon Pope as a worthy addition to the SAMCRO universe. We've seen, in little bits and pieces, that he maintains his power structure by demonstrating consistently that the most effective way to keep people in line is to set up situations where they'll fall prey to their greatest character weaknesses. We know he's studied Jax and that he has an idea of how smart Jax is. We know the one thing Jax hasn't learned yet is how to become his feelings' master instead of their slave. Pope has learned that lesson -- and he's just told Jax twice to do the same thing. I cannot wait to find out why, and how it fits into Pope's long game.

Jax dials Tara and catches her during the dinner hour. Happy is playing with Abel -- lending more credence to the theory that SAMCRO only patches in the guys who could always work as man-nannies if the auto shop closes down -- and Tara is actually paying attention to Thomas. The phone rings and she lunges for it. The first thing she asks Jax: "Are you okay?" "Yeah," he says, and Tara just nods, swallowing back tears and looking very soft and young for a moment. (Funny how channeling Gemma will put miles on your face, huh?)

Speaking of whom... Gemma's early evening nap is interrupted by the sharp crack of a gunshot. The police have come to raid the Best Little Cathouse in Charming. Because this is Sons of Anarchy and we can't have a week go by without some flesh parade, we see a few of the escorts being marched out in cuffs and lingerie. We also see some bald guy with a lot of tattoos bleeding out on the floor.

Jax is back in the unflattering gen-pop orange togs, as are Chibs and Tig. He rolls over to where they are in the general bunk area -- Chibs notes the wide berth everyone is now giving the Sons and wryly comments, "News travels fast" -- and asks Tig to give him a moment with Chibs. The two head over to a table, and Jax gives Chibs his assignment: "Figure out who we owe favors to in here, and get me intel on that sergeant in solitary." Chibs nods. With a hard face and the barest arch of his eyebrows, he indicates Tig and asks, "What about him?" Jax indicates that Tig will be joining them. Chibs is surprised, and asks, "How?" Jax gives Chibs a quelling look and says only, "Send him over." Chibs, who did not survive to his healthy old age by being a contrarian, does.

Tig comes over and sits down on the attached stool in front of the table. Jax, who is sitting on the table, looks down at him as a king might at an errant vassal. (Even the body language echoes this: Tig's head is bowed and his eyes downcast, and Jax is pressing forward relentlessly into his space.) Tig finally looks up and says, "I'm sorry, Jax. I know it should have been me in the box." Jax says pitilessly, "But it wasn't. I talked to Pope. The witnesses who put you killing his girl go away. You're coming out with us... It's not about [thanking me]. From now on, you back my every play. You support all my deals. And you never vote against me again." Tig vows, "You've got my word on it." Jax nods, and dismisses Tig with a turn of his head. The episode ends with the prince having become the king, and the king sits alone.

By Sobell

Lisa Schmeiser is an Oakland-adjacent reporter and blogger. She'll always talk with you about this show on Twitter and she blogs at Penny Wiseacre.