[Spoilers] Boardwalk Empire - Season 3 discussion thread

[drawkcabi]

Kind of a lot of set up this episode for episodes to come. Nucky losing track of himself with Billie at the wrost time. I care for Rosetti less this week than I did last week and last week wasn't all that much. It should be fun to see him killed, if it doesn't take too long.

best line of the episode - Eli to Doyle: "How are you still alive?"

[Matt O'Sevens]

I was a little under-whelmed with tonight's episode...hopefully it's setting up for a better one next week

[Mark Antony]

Solid set-up ep, Enjoyed Chalky and Rothstein as always and surprisingly Eli as well.

[Francis Buck]

Somehow, even Chalky getting a check-up is compelling fucking television.

I'll chalk it up to MKW's acting.

[7V3N]

I like how Chalky and Eli were featured. Eli as an on-the-front soldier should be pretty exciting.

[GameTheory]

Kind of a lot of set up this episode for episodes to come. Nucky losing track of himself with Billie at the wrost time. I care for Rosetti less this week than I did last week and last week wasn't all that much. It should be fun to see him killed, if it doesn't take too long.

best line of the episode - Eli to Doyle: "How are you still alive?"

Loved that line. I've found myself wondering the same thing.

[Trebla]

Kind of a weak episode but loved Eli. He looked like a guy just getting out of jail. Think the actor lost some weight for that effect

[NestorMakhnosLovechild]

Nice episode. Clearly a lot of set up. There was some very strong character work in this episode. I have really grown to love the portrayal of Mickey Doyle. His character has such a distinctive voice (not just his actual voice, but his whole manner of speaking) and is such a compulsive joker that he really just can't keep his mouth shut. His scenes with Eli were great.

I think it's also about time that we get a proper Owen Sleater-centered episode. He's clearly become important in Nucky's organization and has proven himself time and time again to be a smooth operator, but other than his little bit of character development last season where he killed the Irish expat "traitor" we haven't really gotten a sense of what his long term goals are. With the time jump, I'd like to see a little of how he's settled into his new life and where he thinks he's going.

I think part of what made this episode so watchable was that Nucky (for me, the least interesting character to watch for a couple of different reasons) was paired in all of his scenes with a more interesting character. Stephen Root is always amazing and he totally stole his cryptic scene as the corrupt federal investigator. Rothstein is Rothstein and every time he's on the screen I can't help but wish the show was about him. Even Billy is, by far, the most entertaining and interesting of Nucky's dalliances.

As for the Chalky scenes... I may be in the extreme minority here, but I do not get all the Michael K. Williams love (I haven't seen The Wire). He's OK, but the portrayal is not exactly blowing me away. There has been one brilliant Chalky subplot, which is when he was locked up with the book and whats-his-name who is now his enforcer. Other than that, his subplots are just so... obvious and on the nose. I have to give major credit to that med student though; I can't imagine many people would have the nerve to ignore Chalky's directive and administer medical aid to a guy that just fucking slashed your face with a knife for no good reason at all. That's nerve.

[Lady Olenna]

I think Harlow and Slater are my favorite characters. I really liked Eli and the interaction between he and his son.

I think the best line was Chalky saying "Am I interesting now?".

Edited for spelling

[7V3N]

Yeah this show has an abundance of characters and handles it incredibly well (they split characters up by episodes, featuring some each episode rather than switching constantly. HINT HINT GAME OF THRONES). Richard, Chalky, and now Eli seem like are very emotionally-complex characters. I like how they have decided to dive into Eli's emotions on the situation. I found it very intriguing that his son had to work while Eli was in jail, and Nucky didn't take care of the family ("your own brother!").

[Crown]

Rosetti kicks ass. He's a genius at creating awkward situations. I'm laughing my ass of when he opens his mouth.

[Anya, Vengeance Demon]

Shea Whigham really sold the new, post-jail Eli, and while I never much cared for him before--except when he's fighting with Nucky, because those scenes are awesome--I'm intrigued by the idea of the new Eli. And so far it seems as if Nucky is emulating that old joke about boot camp: taking away Eli's rights and giving them back to him one by one as privileges. I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up working too, by reinforcing Eli's sense that all that he has comes from Nucky.

(Also, it's not like Eli has anywhere else to go. Anyone familiar with the events of season two learned that Eli will always go crawling back to Nucky when the shit hits the fan, making him inherently unreliable no matter what he says about Nucky at the time.)

I also really enjoyed Nucky's repartee with Rothstein ("If you were trying to be obvious, you wouldn't be that obvious"), which was cagey yet congenial in an entertaining way.

[red snow]

Somehow they managed to change Eli from one of the characters I hate most into some one I actually had some empathy. Great work by the writers and the actor and i agree with the other poster than the actor seems to have lost weight for the role (or make-up costume department did a convincing job).

Rosetti is still great as any scene with him in has you worrying what he might do. Every tiem that fuel attendant said something I was worrying for his life. I hope his lack of a reappearance didn't mean Rosetti killed him.

I'm not really liking Billy that much. She just seems to be another of his floozies and I'm wondering why Nucky is falling for her. I think he knows it's a mistake from several scenes in the episode though.

Chalky's scenes were good but felt a little too removed from the Atlantic city stories.I think he works better when mixed in with Nucky, His daughter definitely got a taste of the excitement though and I thought it was an interesting turn of events that Chalky has warmed up tot he suitor at the same time as his daughter has cooled. Maybe having a massive scar across his face will be a turn on for her?

I'd also enjoy an Owen centric episode.

[7V3N]

I agree Billy is pretty annoying, mostly because her scenes with Nucky just seem to be there to make Nucky seem more like a bad guy. But she is a million times better than Lucy (as a character. I enjoyed the theme behind Lucy's plot).

"Untie him- Oh. Before you do, put a bullet in his head."

I don't think we need any more convincing about Nucky being a full gangster now.

_____

Though I find Rosetti's character to be too "easy" for the writers (a loose cannon who can blow at any convenient moment), I did keep saying "Oh man, he's gonna kill him/her" every time he spoke to someone. That scene with the spaghetti and meatballs seemed too simple--yeah, Rosetti hates feeling dumb so he goes out of his way to make himself feel smart--especially since it was the name of the episode.

_____

I LOVE Chalky. He continually hits a lot of strong themes, and provides excitement as well. I was curious, however, why his scenes did not seem to have any plot relevance. What has happened to his business in the past few years?

I love how he mixes his feelings of being "field nigger" among his educated classy family, and being upset that his family is not as grateful as they should be for their status.

[drawkcabi]

Somehow they managed to change Eli from one of the characters I hate most into some one I actually had some empathy. Great work by the writers and the actor and i agree with the other poster than the actor seems to have lost weight for the role (or make-up costume department did a convincing job).

Rosetti is still great as any scene with him in has you worrying what he might do. Every tiem that fuel attendant said something I was worrying for his life. I hope his lack of a reappearance didn't mean Rosetti killed him.

I'm not really liking Billy that much. She just seems to be another of his floozies and I'm wondering why Nucky is falling for her. I think he knows it's a mistake from several scenes in the episode though.

Chalky's scenes were good but felt a little too removed from the Atlantic city stories.I think he works better when mixed in with Nucky, His daughter definitely got a taste of the excitement though and I thought it was an interesting turn of events that Chalky has warmed up tot he suitor at the same time as his daughter has cooled. Maybe having a massive scar across his face will be a turn on for her?

I'd also enjoy an Owen centric episode.

Billie is amazingly beautiful, she's half his age and she has her own life and career. With all this she still seems interested in Nucky, I have to believe this is a big reason he's fallen for her. Both Lucy and Margaret "needed" Nucky. Even though Lucy had been a showgirl she was getting close to past her prime when she was with Nucky and there was a definite feeling of "need" on her part toward him. With Billie, it appears Nucky needs her more than she needs him, if at all, and it has to be a turnaround that's intoxicating for him, and as we saw at the end of the season opener, it's Nucky that falls into her lap and says that's the one place he feels safe.

Also I think the actress playing Billie is pretty good. She sings nice and is extremely attractive and like 7V3N said she is a breath of fresh air compared to Lucy and all her "daddying".

I agree with you about Chalky and he's better when he's not so removed from the other Boardwalk Empire plots, but he is still such a powerful and imposing character onscreen, I feel intimidated just watching him on TV. Chalky, along with Eli were still the best parts of last night's episode.

I don't like Rosetti, I like the actor Cannavale, and maybe a character like him needed to be added to shake things up on the show, but I find myself not enjoying his character and his actions.

[Francis Buck]

I'm feeling fairly certain that Rothstein is using Billy to spy on Nucky -- not necessarily for any particular purpose, just in general. Nucky and AR's conversation ended with the latter commenting on her and Nucky's relationship, then scoring the eight ball perfectly. I don't know where it might lead, but it seems odd that the writers would even bother making it a plot point (her living in an apartment he owns, that is) if there wasn't some endgame.

I was glad that Rosetti actually used his brains instead of brawn, as I was afraid he might just be a little too one-dimensional. As others have mentioned though, his violent outburst at the premier has colored almost every single interaction -- it's like you're just waiting for it to happen again in every scene he's in.

Also found the Eli story intriguing. It seems like jail has hardened him, and having him work "from the ground up" could further alter his characterization in some interesting ways. It was also funny how Owen basically blew off Doyle and went to Eli for counsel on the Rosetti situation. I agree with others in wanting an Owen-centric episode. I didn't like him it first, but he has grown on me and I have a feeling he's in it for the long haul (I'd love for Nucky to find about the affair years later, and basically not even give a shit -- but then again, it seems likely that they'll revisit that little romantic sub-plot quite soon, considering the showrunners have gone out of their way to show the sexual tension between Owen and Margaret in both episodes so far).

I do hope Chalky's storyline with his daughter somehow becomes interlaced with the larger picture. Even though it's good on its own, it kinda feels like character development just for the sake of it (which I seem to remember feeling about his familial subplot last season as well).

EDIT: Another thing I was wondering is just where Rosetti fits in. Is he simply the boss of his own entire organization? What about Masseria? It seems odd that, being from New York, he'd feel so free to fuck with Rothstein's liquor if he doesn't have some serious back-up.

[Lady Olenna]

Shea Whigham really sold the new, post-jail Eli, and while I never much cared for him before--except when he's fighting with Nucky, because those scenes are awesome--I'm intrigued by the idea of the new Eli. And so far it seems as if Nucky is emulating that old joke about boot camp: taking away Eli's rights and giving them back to him one by one as privileges. I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up working too, by reinforcing Eli's sense that all that he has comes from Nucky.

(Also, it's not like Eli has anywhere else to go. Anyone familiar with the events of season two learned that Eli will always go crawling back to Nucky when the shit hits the fan, making him inherently unreliable no matter what he says about Nucky at the time.)

I also really enjoyed Nucky's repartee with Rothstein ("If you were trying to be obvious, you wouldn't be that obvious"), which was cagey yet congenial in an entertaining way.

Couldn't agree more. I think Nucky will end up depending on Eli at some point and hopefully the tables will turn. I always liked Eli, even in previous seasons, but the actor has gone above and beyond this season. The scene with his son was brilliant. Sad, but brilliant.

[Paladin of Ice]

I'm feeling fairly certain that Rothstein is using Billy to spy on Nucky -- not necessarily for any particular purpose, just in general. Nucky and AR's conversation ended with the latter commenting on her and Nucky's relationship, then scoring the eight ball perfectly. I don't know where it might lead, but it seems odd that the writers would even bother making it a plot point (her living in an apartment he owns, that is) if there wasn't some endgame.

I agree that making a point of it without following up seems a little odd, but I read the Nucky/Rothstein interaction totally differently. To me, it seemed more like the part in the ASOIAF books where Varys arranges a get together between Shae and Tyrion, but along the way asks Tyrion why a man like him even bothers with a woman like Shae. I felt Rothstein was voicing some of the same disapproval, especially since he suddenly has a position atop the liquor world... as long as he can continue getting it from Nucky, and Nucky doesn't take his eye off the ball. Which Nucky is already doing due to his fling with Billie. (See Nucky's confusion about the date.) Rothstein meanwhile, is a man with his eye always on the ball. (Hence the fancy pool shot.)

Looking at next week's preview, it seems obvious Rosetti is going to stay in place at that gas station, and that violence is going to start there... the guy burning to death looks like he's doing it right by that station. Rothstein may not want to start a war, but I wonder how long he'll sit in place if Ncuky doesn't have the manpower to do anything about it. And it would certainly make Nucky turning to Richard Harrow understandable, in order to try to do something about Rosetti. Plus, Nucky probably doesn't suspect Harrow of killing Manny, although he may be playing that one close to the vest.

[drawkcabi]

Well it was Doyle telling Eli about Manny so take the source into account but he said Nucky didn't know who killed Manny and that was why he wasn't seeing anybody except by appointment (there's also Billie though, of course).

Rosetti keeps talking about being Sicilian, so he's probably got a lot of strong connections with the Italian mafia in New york, maybe he's a "made" guy and it's contributing to his fearless attitude.

[Crazydog7]

He's a minor charecter at best but I like a guy who's first reaction upon having his cheek slashed is "that other guy has it worse then I do and I'm a medical student let me see what I can do"

I'll say this for Eli he's a terrible peace officer and brother but a good enough father. I'm sorry his family doesn't get more play