Chris Bryant | On 12, Oct 2014

Episode 5 of Sons of Anarchy’s final season takes place – in tone, time and setting – post-massacre. SAMCRO are recovering and very much at war. This echoes throughout every character timeline the show follows and leaves Kurt Sutter’s tragedy headed in the most dangerous direction: straight for the truth.

Where the remaining (yet to be brutally killed) members of the club are regrouping and plotting revenge after Henry Lin’s statement at Diosa Norte, it’s very clear that the other members of the cast are just as aware of the oncoming carnage. Juice is still a tragic hero, his every fear and misstep merely ensures the viewer feels more heartbroken as opposed to turning on him. In Juice, Sutter and Rossi have created a truly loveable character and in the closing moments of Some Strange Eruption, they decide to test that dedication to Rossi’s struggling soldier.

Although the first moves of this game have been made, the writing team of Sutter and Robert Patino take another step in the name of tension and the instilling of fear. Before now, Jax and Tara’s children have remained fairly passive. They exist within the show for this purpose anyway; mostly, they hang out with a responsible adult (Gemma/Unser/Wendy) or Happy, or they are being placed in danger (international kidnapping/exploding buildings/drug-induced car crash), but this episode, after a few hints and questions, shows Abel’s reaction to the confusion and chaos surrounding him.

Though it contains the aftermath of a massacre and a three-way face off in the street, Season 7’s pacing could be called into question. Five episodes in and Jax is only a little closer to discovering anything about Tara, Juice is still walking around and Chibbs’ questionable relationship with new Sheriff Jarry is equal parts enjoyable and uneasy. In spite of the enjoyment of the terror and the teeth-grinding anxiety that watching these stories brings, it can only be sustained for so long before the audience require something to be terrified about.

Overall, Episode 5 represents a change. The first half of this season concludes with a fight between Jax and Lin. With a few truths now floating around San Joaquin and a few of Charming’s own looking a little shaky, it cannot be long before the final season explodes.

Sons of Anarchy Season 7 is available on Netflix UK, as part of an £9.99 monthly subscription, and on Amazon Prime, as part of a £5.99 monthly subscription.

 

Where can I buy or rent Sons of Anarchy online in the UK?

For more information, see where can I watch Sons of Anarchy Season 7 online in the UK?

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