Empire Under Siege
Posted by Dan in Boardwalk Empire, UncategorizedSeptember 29th, 2011, 05:21 PM
Boardwalk Empire returned this week and the HBO drama has gone right back on the burner, simmering on low a heat sure to build over the ensuing weeks until it boils over in dramatic fashion. Whereas in the first season most of the players in Nucky Thompson’s empire were predominantly working towards the same ends and were worried mostly about rival gangs and US Customs agents, this season we see an empire beset by duplicitous double crossers and intrigue. Characters once loyal to Nucky now feel slighted by the man and are taking aim at the Treasurer of Atlantic County. Spoilers ahead, you know the drill, if you haven’t watched the first episode of the second season yet you will probably not want to read on. Instead of spoiling it for yourself, why don’t you pop on over to Blinkx Remote and watch the first episode of the new season? For those of you interested in some conjecture on what is going to happen in the next few weeks, read on!
First off, the Commodore is back, baby! Far removed from a stint on his deathbed last season, the Commodore—we don’t even know his real name, do we?—is fed up with what he sees as Nucky being ungrateful for having been handed the town by the Commodore. In his corner is his illegitimate son, Jimmy Darmody—as played by the brooding and haunted Michael Pitt—who also feels slighted by Nucky. The two seem to be conspiring together against Nucky but events at the end of the episode lead us to believe that the Commodore plays his cards close to his chest with Darmody. One really must wonder if Darmody will be taken care of if the Commodore does return to power.
Meanwhile, Chalky White—brilliantly played by Michael Kenneth Williams—witnesses his bootlegging operation being shot up by members of the Ku Klux Klan who have mounted a machine gun in the back of their pickup truck. It is a 
harrowing scene and Chalky does end up with a bit of righteous retribution as he is able to shoot one of the klansmen as they drive away. But of course, this sets in motion an outcry from the white majority and at the same time an outcry from Chalky and his people. The whole thing takes a dramatic twist when we are shown that the klansmen were sent by the Commodore and that Nucky’s brother Eli—the sheriff—is in cahoots with the Commodore! What a tangled web they weave. So drama and intrigue abound. This season is really set up very nicely.
There is just one more moment I feel I need to comment on. In a brilliantly directed scene just after the klansmen shoot up Chalky’s operation, Nucky is seen delivering an impassioned polemic to members of an all-black church congregation. In it, he calls for justice and equality and everything else you’d expect a glad-handing politician to say. Through a fantastic series of cuts and audio editing the scene seamlessly changes to Nucky giving a similar speech to an all-white town hall meeting in which he vows to keep them safe from the obstreperous Negro. Not only was this extremely well done, it was extremely powerful. It really captured the environment of the time and the complex line on which Nucky must dance to keep things under control. The new season is off to a tremendous start and I can’t wait for the next episode! What did you think of the return? Leave a comment and let us know!
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