by Damon Martin
Imagine the terror of hearing the news that your baby has been kidnapped by an Irish Republican Army operative, and you’re left to deal with the emotional implosion while trying to grasp how exactly you’ll fight, scratch, claw or kill to get your son back.
The stage was set thus as Season 2 of Sons of Anarchy – the hit FX show which follows a ficticious biker gang known by the same name – went off the air. The turmoil and fallout from that very moment picked up as Season 3 took to the road, and the Sons of Anarchy burned up the miles in search of their vice president’s son.
Kurt Sutter’s opus to outlaw bikers hit new heights for Season 3, which wrapped up Tuesday night, taking the characters down scary roads and emotional peaks never reached before on the show. What Sons of Anarchy achieved in recent episodes was nothing less than miraculous as the characters moved towards a year’s end crescendo.
The central character in the show Jackson “Jax” Teller went on the aforementioned search for his son Abel, who was kidnapped by Irish gun runner Cameron Hayes, as payback due to his belief that Jax’s mother was involved in getting his own son shot and killed.
Jax seemed to have every dark emotion running through his body for the entirety of Season 3. Blaming himself for the loss of his son, he perpetuates his grief pushing away the love of his life in the process. Innitially it’s simply emotional distance that Jax uses, but when that doesn’t work he turns to infidelity to finally strike the blow that forces his woman to walk away for good.
The depths to which Jax punishes himself for his admitted misdeeds culminates when he finds his son in the arms of a loving Irish couple looking to adopt a baby. Instead of rushing in to save the child, Jax watches the couple closely and ultimately decides to let his baby go so it has a chance at a normal life as opposed to the life of an outlaw that his father was born and bred into.
The show spent a fair amount of time this season in Ireland due to the ongoing search for baby Abel. While show runner Sutter was unable to get FX to pay for an entire shooting schedule across the sea, he was able to procure several cut aways filmed on location to add to the ambience.
The layers of the show’s story reach far beyond just Jax and the search for his baby. Jax’s mother Gemma, who was accused of shooting the Irishman’s son, was on the run at the start of Season 3, but soon gets pulled back into the family fold when she finds out her only grandchild has been kidnapped. It’s in Ireland where Gemma discovers the secrets her past love, John Teller, which date back to when he traveled to the island in the ’80s. Not only did John have a second life in Ireland, he had a second family complete with a woman he loved and a child he bore.
Gemma tries to keep it all together and not let the rest of her family see her in a weakened moment as she realizes the extent of John’s deception and betrayal, but she has to once again be the strong female lead – a role that Katey Sagal has brought brilliance to time and time again.
The plot twists further when Gemma discovers her son Jax is getting very close – in the biblical sense – with a girl from Ireland named Trinity. By the way, Trinity just happens to be Jax’s half-sister that he obviously knows nothing about. It’s in those very moments when Gemma becomes a true mother, and, thanks to the stunningly sharp dialogue written by Sutter and others, she’s the most blunt character TV has seen since Tony Soprano
“Well, unless we want a three-headed grandchild,” Gemma says to John Teller’s other woman. “Looks like we’re going to have to share some family history.”
Gemma’s mothering doesn’t stop with just her own kids as other members of the motorcycle club seek out her counseling on a regular basis. When Opie, Jax’s best friend and closest confidant, reaches out to Gemma for girlfriend advice -he’s unsure he can deal with his new lady’s porn star career – she reacts with caring and brutal honesty.
“I think she’s sweet, seems good with her kid,” Gemma tells Opie. “But she earns her living catching cum in her mouth and I’m sensing that’s a problem for you.”
Consider the other subplots – revolving around a not so honorable ATF agent who would likely turn on her own mother if it meant capturing the right bad guys, a volatile truce between the Sons and a rival Hispanic gang known as the Mayans, Gemma’s husband Clay’s undying need to keep the club involved in the gun running business, and an IRA operative who has turned on his leaders and seeks only personal gain which comes at the expense of the Sons of Anarchy – and you’ll perhaps understand why I say Season 3 was nothing short of breathtaking.
While Sons of Anarchy may get passed over once again when it comes time for Emmy nominations, Kurt Sutter has managed to bring a show to television that challenges the mind and our own morality, as it explores the underlying core theme – how far would you go for sisters, brothers and family, blood or otherwise?
