It feels like just a week ago when I did my write up of the Peaky Blinders series 2 premiere but now it's all over again for another year. To be honest it'll probably be longer than a year. The months leading up to the premiere we were given teasers to whet our appetites and when the show came back it did so with a bang, but did it manage to hold it together over the following episodes? Well, yes and no. The show was really ambitious this year and all the story lines would have been brilliant if they were isolated. If. Unfortunately for us and Peaky Blinders they only have 6 episodes to tell their story and they tried to cram so much in it it was hard to keep up and they didn't really get to explore them thoroughly either.
We did get to see more of the rivalry between Campbell and Tommy, but Tommy felt more neutered at times because he was being used by Campbell and the Irish/UK government (if I'm being honest I still don't know whats up with this) and he didn't have a choice in the matter. It seemed like he had given up and was doing what he was told, with minimal resistance. In the last episode we see him getting his affairs in order and embracing his fate although Grace, the love of his life, has arrived and informed him that she wants to be with him. Him not even attempting to fight at the end made him seem weak and it's not the Tommy that I like. I like the calculating Tommy that always finds a way out of everything.
Another major plot line from series 2 was the Peaky Blinders taking over London and we were introduced to the Blinders London counterparts in Sabini (Noah Taylor) and Solomans (Tom Hardy). They were both quite interesting characters and the acting was superb but the last episode of series 2 proves that they were filler. All the Blinders needed to do was burn the licenses and then they could control Epsom? Did we really need everything else that came before that then? Seems a bit pointless. Speaking of pointless I'd like to bring up Tom Hardy's casting, he was superb but his screen time was so limited there wasn't really any point of casting Hardy, he could've been played by anyone. Unless theres any chance Hardy will be back for series 3, with his role expanded but seeing as though it was tough enough for him to film series 2 I find it quite doubtful which is a shame because it's a waste of a good actor.
We also get to explore Tommy Shelby and his love life with the arrival of May Carleton (Charlotte Riley) and the return of Grace. It's evident from the beginning of series 2 that Tommy is not quite over Grace and the fact that he named his horse 'Grace's Secret' is proof of that. Even though Grace seems to be constantly on his mind he embarks on an affair with the upper class May which got on my nerves quite a bit, because to me it felt like she loved the idea of a gangster not the idea of Tommy. Their pairing also seemed fairly rushed as well becauseTommy is not over Grace, which would've been ok if they were just having sex but it's insinuated that the two share feelings for one another. Lucky for me Grace eventually returned and although she had limited screen time Tommy and Grace still had amazing chemistry. I'm not quite sure how to feel about the Blinders baby, Tommy is quite moral so I can see him making an attempt to leave the life to have a family but he would never be able to. It's more likely that he'd push Grace away, give her some money and tell her to raise the baby with her husband or by herself. I'm glad we'll have a third series to find out what Tommy decides, and if Grace stays we can see what sort of family dynamic they'll have.
All three of these story lines as well as the subplots for the supporting characters, such as Polly and her lost children, could have been brilliant seasonal arcs. It's unfortunate that the show decided to have it all going on at once because I would have liked more time dedicated to each one. The Peaky Blinders taking over London would have been a lot more engaging if the whole of the series was dedicated to it rather than getting 15 minutes of screen time each episode. We could have seen more of Sabini and Solomans as well! I did still enjoy series 2 even though it was rushed, I will most definitely be tuning into series 3 and I just hope that Peaky Blinders slows it down a little. Anyone else agree with me?
Live Long and Blog!
Related Posts
Peaky Blinders Plays a Blinder
Peaky Blinders Series Two Teaser
Peaky Blinders Series Two Sneak Peak: Who Did This To Us?
Did Peaky Blinders Come Back With A Bang?
Peaky Blinders Almost Lost Me
No comments:
Post a Comment