The Americans, Season 5 premiere, Amber Waves

The Americans is back and seemly more relevant than ever.  This marks the penultimate season of the series and while I’ll be sad to see it end next year, I’m encouraged that the story does have an ending in mind.  To quote Neil Young, “It’s better to burn out than it is to rust.”

Last season brought the complication of Paige entering into her parent’s trust.  Paige has matured beyond being a little mother for Henry to being an actual asset who reports to her parents.  But Paige is an idealist.  She was deeply traumatized by witnessing her mother kill an attacker in front of the soup kitchen.  Her father has also changed, forbidding her from having a relationship with Matthew Beeman in a modern twist of Romeo and Juliet.  Paige can no longer escape to the refuge of the church because Pastor Tim must be managed lest he exposes the family’s secrets.  Between that and puberty, Paige has a rocky road ahead.

Meanwhile, the pressure is no less great for Elizabeth and Phillip.  Last season Martha nearly brought down the family and had to be exiled to Moscow.  The biological weapon project ended in failure when William was exposed and paid the ultimate price for his years of service to the KGB.  Oleg and Stan were held together by their love for Nina.  With her death, both men are grieving and lost.  Gabriel must decide when it will be time to retire this important couple.  Will they flee for a new life or retire and return to a country they hardly remember?

Despite the fantastic, suspenseful action of the series, it is the emotional investment we have in its characters which make it so interesting and compelling to watch.  It also feels current given the ongoing controversy about the president's praise for former KGB agent Vladimir Putin.  The critics continue to praise it, but it has yet to win an Emmy or viewing numbers of other FX shows.  It’s a pity because it is one of my favorite shows on television.

The episode opens in a high school cafeteria where Devo’s “It’s a Good Thing” plays in the background.  An Asian teen gets his lunch and seeks out another boy who is sitting at a table eating lunch alone. (This scene felt reminiscent of many a John Hughes movie.)  The American’s uses music from the era to illustrate plot points in more subtle ways.  The songs says, 

“Now let's have a great big hand

For everybody who can understand

Life's a bee without a buzz

It's going great till you get stung!”

The first boy introduces himself as Tuan and the seated boy replies in a thick Russian accent his name is Pavel or Pasha for short.  Tuan tries to make small talk with Pasha and appears very friendly.  Pasha’s answers are stifled due to his limited English.  The pair agrees to meet after school.

Tuan meets with Phillip and Elizabeth in a modern home.  Phillip is dressed as an airline pilot and Elizabeth is dressed as a flight attendant.  Tuan tells them about his meeting with Pasha.  It’s clear that Tuan is attempting to develop Pasha as an asset with Phillip and Elizabeth posing as his parents.  Tuan is probably much older than a high school student but has been sent to the high school to gain the trust of Pasha. (Again a call back to '80's movies Hiding Out or 21 Jump Street.)  

“America the Beautiful” is sung in Russian as a shot of combine harvester moves through the United States fields “of amber waves of grain.” (The episode’s title.)  The camera zooms out, up to the satellites and back down on the Soviet Union where the crops are decimated. (According to declassified CIA report from May 1983, the grain harvest kept failing to meet expectations set by the Soviet central government. The Soviet Union was reluctant to purchase surplus grain from the United States.  Four straight years of the poor harvest was a source of shame for the Soviets who didn’t want to admit they couldn’t grow enough food to feed their citizens.  It was an ongoing source of tension between the two powers.) Soviet citizens are shown waiting in long lines for very little food.  This scene of scarcity is contrasted at the KGB office in Moscow where a Party member picks up a rich Danish pastry off a silver tray to have with his tea.

Stan’s new FBI boss Wolfe (played by Peter Jacobson, House) calls him into the “vault.”  He tells him Oleg has left the Soviet Embassy and returned to Moscow.  What is not know is the reason for his departure or whether the Soviet’s know of his work with Stan and the FBI.  Wolfe T warns Stan that his “conscience” may be detrimental to his mission in the case of Oleg.

Tuan watches a western show on television as Phillip and Elizabeth arrive at his home.  Tuan notes he only watches the show because the other kids talk about it at school.  They quiz Tuan about Pasha.  Tuan reports that Pasha is not assimilating that well, he’s a loner and his English is poor.  Tuan thinks they could best work him by having dinner with the family as “neighbors.”  Tuan notes Pasha’s father hates the Soviet Union and wonders “Why would you have let someone like that defect?  I would have put a bullet in his head a long time ago!”  Tuan is a communist from Vietnam and apparently doesn’t suffer capitalist fools.

Oleg walks through an ornately decorated flat while thunder rolls in the background.  In the kitchen, Oleg’s mother makes tea.  Oleg picks up a technical magazine from the table and smiles.  He looks at a picture of his late brother in uniform.  His mother joins him and she apologizes for persuading him to return home.  She describes her grief as a feeling of being unable to breathe.  She tells her living son to “be careful.”  Oleg replies, “Of what?” (But he knows how dangerous his native land can be, especially for those who are suspected of colluding with Americans.) Mother and son share a grief-infused embrace.

Elizabeth and Phillip return home to Paige after she has shared a pizza dinner with Stan.  Elizabeth asks her daughter if she wants to watch the Winter Olympics with her but Paige declines. (At this time, the Summer and Winter Olympics occurred in the same year.  The ’84 games were the first time the Winter games had been held in a communist nation, Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. In 1980, the United States famously boycotted the Summer Games in Moscow.)  It is probably because of this fact that Elizabeth is interested in watching the games.

Misha, Phillip’s oldest son, waits in a public restroom stall nervously looking at two passports. He proceeds to go through airport security in Moscow.  At “Passport Control” a uniformed man asks for his final destination that Misha states Yugoslavia for the purpose of visiting family.  It appears that the young soldier may be defecting to the United States to seek out his father.

Elizabeth and Phillip join their “son” Tuan for a dinner with Pasha’s family.  As they make their way down the street, it appears there is a man working on surveillance in a dark parked car.  Phillip is charismatic at dinner, spinning a tale of how he met Elizabeth and their lives in the airline industry.  Pasha’s father interjects on how much better their airline must be than the notoriously dirty and unsafe Soviet Aeroflot.  The father’s criticism of his native land doesn’t stop there, he complains of crowded living conditions, long lines for food and lack of technology for the majority of people.  (For example, it takes three years of waiting to receive a telephone for a household.)  The man describes the corruption of the system.  He now proudly works for the United States Department of Agriculture as a consultant.  Perhaps that is why the “Centre” has targeted him, they see his defection and work as being a traitor.  Will Elizabeth and Phillip take him out or turn his son against him?

Stan is cooking in the kitchen when Paige arrives.  Stan thanks her for helping Matthew with the transition to living with his father.  Matthew joins them in the kitchen and the teens' hug.  Henry knocks on the door and joins his sister for a cozy dinner at the Beeman’s.

In the kitchen of the Russian’s home, Pasha’s mother apologizes for her husband’s behavior.  While the woman will not admit she misses the Soviet Union, it’s obvious she doesn’t share her husband’s enthusiasm for their new capitalist home.  Elizabeth attempts to change the subject by discussing hobbies.  Elizabeth confides that they adopted Tuan at age ten from Vietnam and he had a hard time adjusting at first.  She advises the new immigrant to “be patient” about her son’s adjustment to their new life.  In truth, Phillip and Elizabeth are hoping to use Pasha as an asset and while they may desire better language skills, they hope to use the boy’s sense of alienation to turn against his newly adopted country.

Back at Tuan’s home, they debrief about their dinner.  The pilot/flight attendant cover is a perfect way to explain the couple’s prolonged absence from the home.  Tuan assures them he’s turning on and off lights in the home to keep the neighbors from guessing that he actually lives alone.

On the way home, Elizabeth notes sarcastically, “I can’t wait to have dinner with that family again!”  Elizabeth contrasts her experience growing up after World War II to the man’s complaints about scarcity of food and long lines. “We starved!  My mom always said she wasn’t hungry, but she was so thin…” Phillip recalls eating soup, which was basically hot water with a trace of onion.  Their shared experiences after the war might be one reason why they were eager to join the KGB and leave.  Phillip wonders if they may still have the chance to go home someday.  Elizabeth remains ambivalent.

When Phillip and Elizabeth return home they find Paige waiting up in the kitchen reading a John Irving novel.  Paige discusses dinner that night with the Beeman’s. “Were you working?”  she asks her parents.  Elizabeth confirms this but will not discuss any details.  Phillip asks what she and Matthew talked about and Paige appears defensive.  “We talked about Michael Jackson and gym class! Who cares!”  Paige confesses she can’t sleep, that she keeps seeing “that guy that mom murdered”  She asks her mother pointedly, “Do you think about it?” Phillip replies, “It gets better.”

At that moment, the doorbell rings and Stan arrives with a six-pack of Miller Highlife beer.  Elizabeth complains that Stan isn’t providing enough vegetables for her kid’s dinners. (She may kill people on a daily basis but she won’t feed her kids junk food!)  Paige and Elizabeth leave the men alone with their beer. 

Stan shares that he appreciates Paige and thinks her growing friendship with Matthew is a positive development.  Phillip bites his tongue and doesn’t voice his disapproval.  Stan raves about a woman he met at the gym, but he hasn’t spoken to her yet.  Stan’s plan is to go to the gym daily to see her and “get in the best shape of my life!”

Later in the bedroom, Phillip details his conversation with Stan to his wife.  On the subject of Matthew and Paige, he remarks, “He’s going to be heartbroken when it doesn’t work out.”  Elizabeth promises to talk to her daughter.

A train cuts through the snowy countryside of Yugoslavia.  Misha looks out the window at the darkness while a letter from his mother is narrated.  She explains her sadness and regrets in life and hopes that he will have a better life in the United States.  She says she always believed his father (Phillip) to be a good man.  It is unclear whether she is still living.

Oleg arrives at the regional office for Soviet intelligence.  The man who interviews him notes that Oleg’s request for a transfer BACK to the Soviet Union was highly unusual.  The man is frank about the current challenges the country is facing, shortages, inefficiencies, and corruption.  They are planning on creating a new task force to crack down on corruption.  He warns Oleg that the investigation will include high officials, including people Oleg and his family is likely to know and have been social with.  It is therefore very important to keep their work very secret.  He asks Oleg, “Are you a KGB officer first?”  Oleg looks at him fiercely, “Of course!”

Claudia and Gabriel walk together through a park in the rain.  Claudia informs him they believe Misha has defected and may seek out his father in the United States.  The conversation shifts to Phillip and Elizabeth and their recent “troubles.”  Despite their near exposure, Claudia is in awe of how they continue their service.  “Nothing scares those two!”  Gabriel, who has seen more of the pair, especially Phillip’s fragility, disagrees, “Everything scares those two.”

Elizabeth seeks out Paige in the teen’s bedroom. (Paige is wearing an Esprit sweatshirt, oh the memories!)  “I want to help you with your nightmares!”  She takes Paige to the garage.  Elizabeth pushes her, grabs her hair and then her wrist.  Paige is baffled and protests.  Elizabeth instructs her, “Do anything to protect yourself!”  She shows Paige how to make a fist.  Elizabeth wants to give her daughter the tools to defend herself.  While Elizabeth is much too secretive to discuss her own sexual assault, the memory of that it motivates her to teach Paige not to be a victim.

Oleg walks down the rainy streets of Moscow back to his parent’s flat.  It appears he might have someone following him.  Oleg’s father greets him warmly and asks about the job.  Oleg is tight-lipped, saying only that it went well.

Phillip is in the laundry room, close to where most of their spy equipment is stored.  They discuss new safe house addresses and other details.  Elizabeth reports that she taught Paige some “self-defense” and was pleased that her daughter is fast.  Phillip again urges his wife to talk to Paige about Matthew.  Elizabeth is vague, “I will.”  Does she not want to hurt their newly strengthened mother-daughter bond?

Gabriel greets Phillip and Elizabeth at his new safe house.  He explains what he knows about William’s final days and death. They all seem surprised at William’s loyalty, in the end, he infected himself rather than talk to the Americans.  Elizabeth marvels that William is a hero. Phillip adds sarcastically, “Maybe he’ll get a stamp.”  Gabriel notes that they still have something to do regarding dead scientist.  Gabriel shows them an aerial picture of a U.S. Army facility.

Phillip and Elizabeth, dressed in dark clothes, wait in a thickly wooded area at night.  A car drives slowly up a nearby road with its headlights off.  Phillip approaches the car; the man inside informs them they have twenty minutes until the next security pass.  More men emerge from the woods and met up with Phillip and Elizabeth.  One cuts through the high chain link fence and the group enter the secure area.  Phillip studies the aerial photo as the team tries to orient themselves.  Hans, the young South African is one member of the team.  Animals can be heard; an Army Jeep passes on the road but does not see the fence has been breached.

The team silently goes to work, laying tarp and getting out shovels.  The men start to dig a large hole. One man walks up a knoll to keep a lookout on the road.  It seems like hours have passed.  The men and Elizabeth take turns digging.  Elizabeth and Phillip share coffee from a thermos. The hole appears to be at least six feet deep; a rope ladder is dropped down to assist with getting in and out of the hole.  Finally, a man strikes a hard metal box with a bright biohazard label.  The box is opened with the use of a blowtorch. Those in the hole don masks and thick gloves for protection.  The box is opened to reveal the corpse of William, wrapped in thick plastic with a note stating, “Do not burn!”

Phillip carefully opens the body bag using a scalpel.  Elizabeth stands next to him as he removes several inches of tissue from William’s thigh area.  Elizabeth bags up the specimen and hands it to Hans.  Hans accidently falls and cuts his hand with the scalpel which had just been used to cut the sample.  The wound has punctured his gloves but he assures Elizabeth that “It doesn’t hurt.” (These are first audible words spoken this entire scene.)  She assures him it’s okay.  Hans turns to climb the ladder out of the hole when Elizabeth shoots him in the head using a gun outfitted with a silencer.  They quickly place his body on top of William’s and close the metal box again.   

It’s a brutally jarring end for Hans and the first episode.  While it’s easy to understand that Hans had possibly been infected with a lethal bioweapon, which had to be contained, Elizabeth’s cool efficiency in dispatching him is remarkable.  There was a time when it was clear he had romantic feelings for her, and he was always an eager student.  It’s hard not to feel sorry for him, in that last moment he trusted his mentor that it would “be okay.”  But perhaps this illustrates the steely resolve Elizabeth feels about her own mission and life as an agent.  If faced with exposure (to U.S. law enforcement) would Elizabeth and Phillip kill themselves?  It’s unclear why they had to obtain the sample in the first place, but it will likely be sent back to the Soviets for research. 

The preview of upcoming episodes continues to develop the storyline with Paige as well as Gabriel suggesting the United States is sabotaging the Soviet’s grain supply.  Stan is approached about “turning” Oleg.  Elizabeth and Phillip will have to endure more meals with Pasha’s parents as his father continues his anti-communist rants.  It's a chilling start to what is bound to be a suspenseful season.

Taboo, Season 1, Finale

It’s unclear if the series will have a second and possibly third season.  The ratings have been a little weak for the first season.  Personally, it’s been hard to become excited about a show, which is so dark and violent given the current state of the world.  The series has been altogether too reliant on the audience’s concern for James Delaney and his demons.  Zilpha played by the expressive actress Ona Chaplin has been relegated to a mere muse of James’s fevered dreams.  The world of Taboo swirls around a strange cannibal for whom it’s hard to feel empathy towards.  In this finale, it appears once again that James will triumph and leave muddy England behind.  Perhaps the second act with other interesting characters may save the series from its own self-indulgence.

The first scene unfolds with Zilpha narrating a letter to James, her lover and half-brother as she walks along the city at dusk. She explains how his absence in her life has forced her to examine the caged condition of her soul.  She dreams of a place where she can be free and reunited with him.  She vows to “leave England and society.”  But not by ship apparently, Zilpha steps onto the railing of a bridge and leaps off to her death in the water below.  The camera follows her decedent into the cold embrace of the river, mirroring the haunting opening credits.

James has been granted his audience with Sir Stuart Strange.  James takes notes as the head of the East India Company gives his account regarding his involvement in the illicit slave trade. “In those days I only took boys who already had the shadow of death upon them.”  Strange muses although he spotted this desperate aura around James, somehow James managed to survive even Africa “where every man dies.”  James recounts how an African healed him, and afterward committed such atrocities, which would make Strange’s seem tame by comparison.  However, James notes he is not the one on trial.  James informs Strange how he will testify that he was ordered to lower the flags of the East India Company and the “Union Jack” and instead fly the flag of the United States, an act of treason.  James notes Godfrey’s testimony will affirm Strange’s guilt. (Godfrey is shown looking frightened, escorted by French Bill to a secret location.)  James hands Sir Stuart a note of demands.  James will not testify and destroy Godfrey’s testimony in exchange for a ship out of England.  James gives Sir Stuart four hours to consider and deliver on this offer. Given the serious nature of the charges and Prince Regent’s dislike for the East India Company Strange must consider this deal.

Lorna descends the stairs calling out, “Brace, I’m going out, I need to see someone!”  Robert hastily opens James’s safe and retrieves a bundle of letters.  Robert rushes downstairs and hands the first one to Brace, stating it is from Mrs. Delaney.  The boy then flees the house to deliver the rest of the post.  Robert’s first stop is to Mr. Cumberly the chemist who is surprised that James could have predicted his whereabouts at a random brothel.  With a women’s naked behind as a backdrop, he asks, “As a scientist, I’d like to know how he does it? Does he see me in his dreams?”  Robert does not answer but runs off to find Atticus to deliver his next letter.  Atticus is busy butchering a rabbit, and thanks him.  

Back at the East India Company, an agitated Sir Stuart calls Wilton and Pettifer into his office. “Gentleman, there are things that I need you to do!”  It appears Delaney’s demands will be met.

Pearl kisses a uniformed Company man as they place a flirtatious game of crochet. Pettifer runs out to find the women.  He orders Helga and Pearl into a carriage for “a tour of the grounds.”  Pettifer draws his gun and the women go with him.

James wears a hood, speaking in his mother’s language as his wounds bleed and rats run over his feet. Coop and some red-coated men stand nearby in his cell.  The uniformed men enter to get James.  “Tell them I’m not ready, I need to see a doctor.”  A red-coated man treats James roughly.  James falls to the floor, foaming at the mouth in an apparent seizure.  The guard informs Coop, whose first guest is the prisoner is bluffing. “Or has he fallen off the tightrope?”  The guard makes a small nod. “Get the doctor then.”  Coop replies. “And hope we haven’t completely fried his brain.”

The carriage carrying Helga and Pearl is ambushed on a road deep in the woods. Pettifer gets out of the carriage and explains to the women they are being “rescued” by an agreement between Delaney and the East India Company.  Pettifer will tell the Company the women were kidnapped.  Atticus reveals his face and tells Helga if it were up to him he would have killed her.  Instead, he informs her Winter’s death was the fault of Pettifer and the Company.  Suddenly, Atticus shoots Pettifer in the head, and the carriage and the men rush off.

Wilton comes to Sir Strange with information about a ship, aptly named the Good Hope.  Strange orders the boat to be brought near Delaney’s shipping offices with “skeleton” crew aboard with provisions for a two months journey.  False pretenses are noted.  Wilton further asks why two carriages are en route to Bedlam Asylum Strange loses his patience, “Because this day is insane because Delaney is insane!” (In truth, the gunpowder is stored at the asylum; perhaps Delaney will give it back to the Company or have it loaded aboard his new vessel.)  Wilton asks if they should wait for Pettifer’s return.  Strange replies, “No we shall not await Mr. Pettifer’s return!”  He tells Wilton to bugger off; perhaps he knows Pettifer will likely not be returning.

Atticus and his men instruct the prostitutes to exit their carriage.  Lorna is waiting in another carriage with a special witness, the little boy from the docks. Lorna explains that Temple saw what happened to Winter.  Temple identifies the carriage the murderer left in as belonging to the East India Company.  Helga sneers at the boy, demanding that he tell the truth. Temple swears to his account.  Lorna says, “James is offering you a new life.”  (This will be a strange ship of misfits sailing to the New World.)

Mr. Cholmondeley works in his laboratory, he speaks out loud to himself. “So James, things that go ‘bang.’”  What did James ask for in his missive?

Lorna goes back to the Delaney home to find her own letter from James, which she reads with a blank expression on her face.

In the lab, Cholmondeley adds some substances together to create a small explosion. “There! Things that cause confusion!”

Lorna hurries out of the house into the sunlight.

James is attended to by the prison’s physician who stitches up his wounds.  A uniformed man asks how much longer it will take the physician approximates thirty minutes.

Countess Musgrove or “Carlsbad” chats over cards about the beating of men for pleasure in the bedroom.  They laugh and drink gin.  Lorna interrupts the party stating she has an appointment.  Lorna cleverly disguises her intentions by referring to herself as a saleswoman of a certain feminine product a powder that is in high demand. (Gunpowder.)  Lorna offers her “samples” she will show her in private. The ladies note, “How dull our lives were before Countess Musgrove!” (If they only knew the truth.)

In the hallway, the Countess draws a knife on Lorna and brings it to her neck.  Lorna identifies herself as someone who works for James Delaney.  The Countess has heard that James is in the Tower but Lorna assures her he will soon be free to sail.  Lorna demands a letter for safe passage and the codes of the flags in order to navigate through the United States waters.  The Countess expects the Nootka treaty in return for these favors but Lorna offers blackmail instead.  “A letter will be sent to Solomon Coop describing how you titillate and intoxicate on behalf of the Americans,”  Lorna states it will be sent if she doesn’t return home in a few hours.  Lorna states that James has found a “leak” within their organization and will fix it for them if they cooperate.  Upon hearing this Countess softens, asking Lorna the nature of her relationship with James.  Lorna boasts she is Mrs. Delaney, his mother!

The physician continues to tend to James.  Sir Strange watches his timepiece nervously in his own office.  Outside the prison, Robert sings loudly to rouse his father.  Strange receives words that “the whores have been freed” and he chuckles.  In the cell, James tells the physician “I’m ready” despite him not having finished dressing his many wounds. 

James is brought down a hallway by uniformed guards to Solomon Coop’s office for his deposition.  Coop reads the treason charges against him and demands the names of the Americans operating in London.  James mutters in his mother’s tongue. Coop threatens to place James in the rack and other inventive tortures.  James suddenly locks eyes with Coop and admits,  “I must have lied.  I will tell you one thing all the charges of treason brought to me by the East India Company will be dropped today, witnesses vanish and testimonies burn. Demands will be met, pride will be burned and when morning becomes afternoon, then I will become a free man!”  Coop is incredulous.  He flies down the hall towards the Prince Regent’s chambers muttering.

James walks out of the prison, beaten, but standing proud dressed in his old clothes. Robert waits for his father.  James gives him a letter, stating it is the last one.

Coop approaches the Prince Regent.  And the Prince begins, “I hear the case has been altered!”  Coop concedes they have had to release Delaney.

The motley crew, including Pearl, Brace Godfrey, and Helga wait for James down by the docks.  Pearl sings a few verses of  “Yankee Doodle Dandy” before being silenced by Helga.  Brace looks out to the water, “Aye, it will happen.”

Atticus shoots his gun in the air and sneers at the public to clear off the streets.  People scatter as Atticus and his men begin unloading cargo.  Robert runs off to find Mr. Chichester and deliver a letter.  Judging from the depth of Mr. Chichester’s sigh, it is likely stating that he will not be able to provide testimony regarding the sinking of the Cornwallis. 

James returns home. There is a letter for him on a tray.  It is from Zilpha, she poetically relays her reasons for taking her own life, which she feels is “merely turning a key into a lock.”  There is a flashback of her preparing for her plunge into the Thames.  Zilpha is not sure if she will go to heaven or hell but begs him to keep some “part of her soul for your own.”

Lorna arrives with the news of their secured safe passage thanks to Countess Musgrove.  James looks melancholy; he actually sheds a tear for the life of his half-sister.  Lorna reads the letter.  James states, “If she were dead I would know it, I would feel it, like a door open in this very house.”  Lorna tries to reason with him.  “If she was in the river, she would sing to me!”  Zilpha’s epic plunge is reshown.  Lorna notes her words were very certain. “If the dead don’t sing, how can I hear them?” Lorna urges him to have the question will have to be answered in America.  She notes all these people are waiting for them, and Zilpha will not be returning.  She adds one final plea, “It’s a fine day to die at sea!”  With that, James rises and promises her they will board his ship together.

Robert opens the gate to several carriages heading towards the docks.  It appears the East India Company is delivering the gunpowder to Delaney’s boat, gunpowder made with raw materials stolen from them. What a bargain!

Mr. Chichester storms into Sir Strange’s office, furious that his inquiry will amount to nothing due to Delaney’s deal.  Strange gloats, “The difference between Delaney and me is I always make sure I have one ace yet to play!” (But it appears so far, James has received everything he wanted. Is Strange planning a final coup?)

 Chichester leaves disgusted by Delaney and Strange, promising this injustice will not stand.

Dr. Dumbarton receives James in his secret office.  The doctor offers him Laudanum, pain medicine for his journey.  Dr. Dumbarton states nothing in this “war between cousins is complicated.” He assumes James still needs a letter for safe passage, for this, the doctor wants the treaty for the Nootka land to offer to the East India Company.  But James sees through the doctor, noting the doctor is a pawn for both the Company and the Crown.  Dumbarton notes, “No one in this city has only one master.”  James beats the doctor’s head savagely on the wooden desk and then pours the morphine down his throat, saying, “I do!” 

He places the doctor’s head in a bucket of blue dye, ensuring his death.  James flashes upon a vision of his sister in the water whispering to him.  James leaves the doctor’s dwelling leaving a grim tableau, Dumbarton has been strung up by his hands, faced dyed blue, intestines hanging out over a vat of red paint with a note pinned to his chest.

Cholmondeley hands a suitcase to Robert, urging the boy to be cautious with it.  “Has he actually managed to employ anyone who knows how to sail that thing?” Wilton looks around suspiciously as the barrels of gunpowder are unloaded.  Wilton hands over a flag of the East India Company so that they “Will have no hindrance. Tell Delaney he may have won this small battle, but justice will be delivered by God.”  Those are to be Wilton’s last words, as the man shoots him in the head.  “Kind regards from Sir Stuart Strange.”  It appears that Strange wants to ensure no one in the Company will be alive to testify against him.  The man orders Wilton’s body to be thrown into the river.

The Prince questions Coop about his personal faith.  The Prince states he speaks to God all the time. The Prince wants everyone to hang, Delaney, the Americans, cats, and dogs! Coop protests that they have made a deal with Delaney but Prince demands action.

The ship is nearly ready to sail.  Godfrey trembles, dressed as a woman in a cold shack with the other women.  The King’s men ride furiously towards the dock.  Atticus updates James on the progress of the ship’s readiness.  Atticus is wary of the chemist but James insists they need him as a physician on the journey.  James informs Brace he will not be coming. “You’ve always been my father’s man, we are sailing to my mother’s land now.” Brace asks if James is doing this as a “mercy” believing the old man would not survive the journey.  (And to hide how this decision hurts the elderly faithful servant.)  James states, “You were not born for freedom”  James bestows his father’s house and possessions to Brace as they part.  Robert warns the men that soldiers are coming.

The gate to the docks open. Atticus and Cumberly are ready with their weapons.  The soldiers move forward in the eerie silence as a bomb explodes killing many.  Atticus and his men take advantage of the confusion to shoot the others.  Brace still stands ready with the other men to defend his master.  More men come and are attacked.  The women and passengers are rushed to the boat.  Causalities occur on Delaney’s side but Atticus remains standing and fights on.  Helga is shot as she reaches for a gun she dropped.  Lorna shoots a soldier but is struck as well.  Brutal fighting continues. Cholmondeley throws a grenade-like device and is struck down.  Atticus and James fight their way to the docks and reach the ship. They carry the body of the chemist with them aboard.  French Bill and several others are sacrificed in this effort.  The ship sails away with red-coated soldiers still firing at them.

Solomon Coop sits in his opulent office reading the private military report about the failed execution of James Delaney and his men.  Strange arrives at his office in high spirits.  His clerk tells him, “Still no word for Pettifer and Wilton.” Strange, already knows their fate looks at a rolled up parcel on his desk. “Ah, my final ace!”  The clerk notes a messenger on behalf of Dr. Dumbarton delivered it.  Strange believes it’s the Nootka land and a deal for trade.  He says to himself, “An end to this deal at last!”  The camera pans out to the building's exterior and a loud explosion is heard and the room is quickly engulfed in flames. 

Chichester arrives at the Delaney home to find Brace staring blankly. “Mr. Delaney said he left you the account of the sinking of the Cornwallis and a statement from the East India clerk Godfrey.”  Brace directs Chichester to the attic to find the documents.  Chichester finds the testimonies and closes his eyes in relief, “Justice.”

The ship is at full sail now heading west.  James looks in on his passengers.  Lorna lies wounded but opens her eyes weakly.  Cholmondeley is badly burned on his face and hands.  He asks for Godfrey’s forgiveness, as he lies, dying.  James wants to go to the Azores.  Atticus asks, “I thought the gunpowder was for the Americans?”  James notes, “We are Americans.”  The Union Jack is lowered and the Stars and Stripes are raised on the ship. 

So ends the first season of Taboo, with a long look towards the horizon.  Ultimately, James has managed to wage an impossible war against the largest powers in the known world at the time, the East India Company and the British Empire.  But like the Americans, James has managed to outmaneuver the great powers by exploiting their weaknesses.  In that way, the story is one of the classic “anti-hero” like Walter White or Robin Hood.  Despite his evil ways, James takes care of those who are loyal to him, like Godfrey and Helga. But the way in which he does things leaves little room for other characters to chose anything but his way or certain death. (Helga pays for trusting James with her life as does many of Atticus’s gang.)

The question of plausibility still hovers like a dense fog surrounding the series.  I love magical realism but the continuous triumph of James and his evil plans rings more false than magical.  While the show looks to the aboriginal wisdom of people from Africa and the Americas why does this deeply flawed white man act with shamanistic power?  If the series continues, my hope is that they can expand and develop other characters beside James Delaney.  The story still has promise if it can see beyond Tom Hardy.

Taboo, Episode 7

We’ve arrived at the penultimate hour of this season.  It’s been an interesting but uneven ride.  I haven’t discovered if there will be a second season, but I predict it would focus on James’s travels to the New World and his father’s land there.  For better or worse it seems that Tom Hardy will remain the focus of the series.  The viewer glimpses the world through his highly fragmented psyche.

The episode begins with James waking up in the mud to find the body of Winter nearby.  Given James’s demons, it seems possible he is responsible for her murder.  Helga and Atticus assemble on a small boat to memorialize the young woman.  Helga has written an emotional eulogy and insists that her daughter’s body be committed to the river’s waters she loved so dearly.  James watches from a distance.  

There is a new orphan in the episode, James’s natural son Robert.  (His adopted father killed after exposing the gunpowder operation to the Company.)  Robert is brought to James’s residence where Lorna warmly opens the doors to the youth.  Brace is rude, describing the boy as a “bastard.”

Lorna finds James by the docks, observing the memorial for Winter.  She says he’s there because he “has a heart.”  But even Lorna acknowledges that James might have been her murderer.  Still, she adds, “You were kind to her, she told me.”  Lorna informs James his son has arrived home.  James walks away.  Lorna tries to talk to a street child about Winter but he runs away.

Atticus and Helga row out to sink Winter’s body. Helga states, “Let the river take her body, let me keep her soul.”  Atticus tries to defend James’s innocence in regards to her death but Helga is not convinced.  At home, James dreams of Winter, in his vision, she states she is afraid and asks to sleep under his house for safety.  It may be possible James has been framed for this murder to incite Helga to kill him.

Later that evening, Mr. Chichester pays a visit to James.  The older African explains his findings regarding the “Cornwallis” to James.  He accuses James as one of the men who nailed the holds of the slaves shut, assuring their death.  James has no defense for his behavior other than he was “following orders.”  Mr. Chichester notes that James was the sole survivor of this tragedy.  He implores James to testify against Sir Strange and the East India Company in an upcoming trial regarding the incident.  Mr. Chichester offers him immunity if he agrees to testify.  James refuses and asks Chichester to leave.

The next day Robert brings James his tea. James says, “I have a use for you.”  He proceeds to hand the boy a large skeleton key that he says is “for the safe.”

James walks to his dock office and is met by gunfire from Helga.  She shouts “Murderer!” but seems to deliberately miss her target.

Zilpha seeks out James at his office on the docks.  She is surprised to see that her brother’s ship has been burnt.  Inside the office, she asks if he knows who blew up his ship, James is silent.  She explains that their “renewed” relationship began awkwardly.  (Referring to their post-funeral coital session.)  James has decided to end their relationship.  He can’t really explain to her why, he coldly states, “I believed once that we were the same person.”  Zilpha agrees.  But James continues, “Not anymore. Perhaps you should thank your God for that.”   Zilpha is shocked as he hands her a raw diamond “for your widowhood.”  Has James really stopped loving her or are his demons simply too powerful at the moment to pursue further intimacy with her?  

James goes to the gunpowder storage place.  Atticus meets with him. The storage site is on the grounds of the Bedlam where his mother was kept. James suspects “the lioness will protect her cubs no matter what the cost.”  Atticus fears Helga will betray them for treason.  James orders Atticus not to kill Helga despite his fears.  James leaves, ordering Atticus to fix the leaky roof.

James returns home to find Robert and Lorna in the kitchen because Brace is “unwell.”  James confronts his servant.  He notes that the rats still thrive in the house despite poisoning them.  James has deduced that it was Brace who poisoned his father with arsenic as a “kindness” to the demented old man.  Brace describes the father’s madness, which included burning his own flesh.  The elder Delaney had nothing to live for and thought James was dead.  Brace yells, “You came back too late!” James seems to accept what Brace did and orders him downstairs to continue his duties.

Sir Strange meets with some unusual visitors.  Helga and one of her “employees” Pearl describe that gunpowder was given to the Americans under the direction of James Delaney.  Godfrey takes notes.  Strange is ecstatic at the news of this “high treason.”  Strange ponders the spoils; Nootka Sound, tea, and trade all the way to China.  Helga asks to leave but Sir Strange takes them away to be held until they can testify and be “pardoned” for their part in the crime. Godfrey runs off again to warn James but finds him not to be home.

Coop meets with Sir Strange and Wilton in the elaborate halls of the palace.  Strange declares, “We have some rather good news for British patriots everywhere!”

James sits in the wood burning sage using feathers and yellow paint in a ceremony.  He sees his mother and father in a vision.  Godfrey finds him and interrupts these revelries. “You’ve been betrayed, two women came.”  James calmly replies, “I know.”  Godfrey gives him the address where they are being held.  James adds, “I have use for you, there is someone I need you to see.”  The two men depart together on the white horse.

Sir Strange and the King’s men meet to discuss the crimes of James Delaney and who would obtain the spoils.  The guilt will extend to his family.  Coop sums it up, “It seems you have delivered both James Delaney and Nootka Sound to the Crown.”  Sir Strange states he feels that this has been his patriotic duty.  Strange states the “ladies” are in protective custody and will be delivered if they can have a trade agreement.  The East India Company seems very pleased with this “quid pro quo” between their interests and the Crown.  Coop orders, “Go ahead, and arrest the bastard!”

James and Godfrey go to the drag club together to meet Mr. Chichester.  James introduces the two men.  Mr. Chichester wants Godfrey to testify against the East India Company regarding what he knows about the Cornwallis. Godfrey is understandably afraid, especially because it can’t be done anonymously.  James asks to speak to his friend the clerk alone.  “I’m going sail away, and on my ship, there will be no rules and no judgment.”  Godfrey fears James will hang. James implores him to “make believe” that he will testify but promises they will sail away before this occurs.  The men rejoin Chichester, Godfrey proudly declares he will declare “The truth proudly to the four winds!”

The Crown’s men mobilize to arrest James.  Godfrey hastens to pack up his things.  James knows the Crown is after him and is being followed but remains strangely calm.  He instructs Godfrey to seek to go to an address and seek out a man with “markings on his face.” Once there, he is to find Atticus and tell him Helga’s location, and then give his account of the Cornwallis events.  These documents will be held securely.  James promises he will send for him when his ship is ready to sail.  Godfrey feels that James is a fool without a ship but hurries away.

James waits as the Crown surrounds the drag club.  He suggests the entertainers leave and avoid the “extreme violence coming their way.” The ladies scatter.  James calmly shuffles cards as he is arrested for high treason.

Dr. Dumbarton is warned about James’s arrest.  He too is strangely calm, “I clear out when my reds are red, my whites are white and my blues are blue.”

James arrives at a cold stone cell and is beaten by uniformed guards. They strip him and call him a traitor.  He is left naked and bleeding in his cell.

Lorna walks with purpose down to the docks.  She spies the little boy from earlier.  He appears about eight with mud under his eyes making him look corpse-like, “I want her to forgive me.” Lorna asks for what. Noticing the little shrine, Lorna adds, “You know it’s a sin to not tell the truth in a sacred place.”

Lorna runs home to Brace to inform him it wasn’t James but the East India Company who killed Winter, the little boy was the witness.  Brace continues to scrub his pot until his hands are bleeding. “Arsenic is a kindness. I wish I had killed James too.”  He explains James has been arrested and is in the notorious Tower of London.  Brace cries, “No one will give him a ‘kindness’ there.”

Coop wastes no time commencing torture upon James.  He explains a doctor will be present to perform the more physical aspects of the process. James will need to be alive for the court proceedings.  James sits in a chair with his face covered by a cloth hood. Coop describes the tightrope they will need to walk between life and death.  Coop wants the names of all his American contacts and collaborators.

The scene cuts away to Mr. Cumberly and the Countess burning documents.

James speaks from under his hood, requesting a private audience with Sir Strange. Coop laughs off this request.  James adds, “The people you seek are already fleeing, if I’m allowed a meeting perhaps you may catch some before they leave the shores.”  A masked torturer begins working on James’s private parts. Coop leaves, adding, “Sir Stuart Strange is busy.” James is tortured with water, Coop returns, demanding the names of the Americans.  James flashes back to visions of his own drowning.  But James again requests an audience with Sir Strange.

Sir Strange is busy playing golf.  Mr. Chichester arrives to confront him. Sir Strange attempts to flee. “I have a reliable witness, who will testify that it was you who ordered the loading of human cargo.”  Sir Strange is smug, thinking Chichester is speaking about James and informs him Delaney is imprisoned in the Tower.  But, Chichester informs him his witness is not James, Strange pales.

Godfrey meets French Bill in his female persona. Godfrey asks nervously, “Where are we going?”  The documents are strapped to her person.

The King spins his globe as Coop enters his chambers. With a quick nod of his head, His Highness is informed Delaney has yet to talk.

In the Tower, the torture continues. Coop has brought in an Asian man whom he calls “Dr. Ling” to dole out some special painful experiences. James wears an iron masks, Ling pours a liquid into his mouth. Coop explains, “His unearthly potions alter perceptions.” James again hallucinates about hunting, chains, and sex with Zilpha. Coop returns to His Majesty, who has grown impatient that James has not talked while the Americans scatter.

Sir Strange is told that Godfrey has fled. Wilton states, “There was much about Godfrey that we didn’t know.” He states Godfrey is a “molly” and fears James has him well hidden by now.

The torture continues but James remains mute except to repeat, “Stuart Strange.”  Coop again goes to the King who states, “Give him what he wants.”

Sir Strange is brought to James.  James is beaten but conscious and appears to be writing. “Your plan worked, you in a cell, me on a hook!” James states coldly, “I have a use for you.”

So ends the penultimate episode.  The narrative of James being one step ahead of all his enemies remains a dominant theme.  The preview of next week’s finale shows James’s trial, Lorna and Brace taking up arms and the King yelling, “Kill him!” However, given how James has always managed to outsmart everyone it’s  hard to feel any real suspense regarding next week’s outcome.  James will be freed and set sail for America, despite how unlikely that appears.  Unfortunately,  despite all the action in the show James’s superhero-like ability for escaping danger ultimately makes the series seem dull and predictable.  I would love to be surprised next week by a different outcome otherwise, I'm not optimistic about a second season.

Taboo, episode 6

This week finally delivered on some action. Long alluded to visions were explained and it might be clearer what James Delaney’s end game is becoming clearer.  There are two episodes left after this week,  I hope the final hours of the season can match this installment’s pace.

The hour begins with James imagining his mother in the water.  Brace explains to James that his mother wasn’t the sainted victim he remembers.  The old servant tells him his mother tried to drown him when he was a newborn.  The rest of this vision is revealed to James over and over in the episode, guiding his maniacal behavior. Why did his mother do this?  Was she aware of the “devil” her son would become, was she trying to punish James’s father or was it post-partum depression?  Of course, these questions can’t be easily answered.

After learning this dark family secret, James disappears for several days.  His first stop is to visit the abandoned Bedlam Insane Asylum. There he sees the bed and chains which once held his mother. He notices a bird carving on the wall. Later, Delaney haunts the docks at night where he encounters Winter.  She boasts that she is not scared of him.  He mutters to her in his mother’s tongue, and his steady gaze makes her nervous.  He orders her, “Go home to Helga, your mother loves you, you’re safe there.” She flees.

Meanwhile, Cumberly enlists the help of a dozen men to aid in the sped up production of gunpowder.  He warns the men if they fail to continuously stir the mixture, a huge explosion will result.  James’s son Robert participates in the first shift.

At the East Indian Company Pettifer and Wilton complain about having to meet with Mr. Chichister, the “Blackamoor” in regards to the sunken slave ship.  Chichester appears and manages to charm the two Company men with tales of his travels to the pyramids.  After breaking the ice, he discusses the results of his investigation.  The ship, once known as the Cornwallis, changed names to the Influence in order to conceal its secret cargo of slaves which were bound for Sir Strange’s brother’s plantation in the Caribbean.  The crew was sparse; to protect the secret, and the ship sank due to excess weight.  The crew was instructed to let the captive men aboard drown to avoid anyone finding out about the incident. “Dead men tell no tales.”  It seems that Chichester has the Company “dead to rights.”

James bathes in the river, re-enacting the memory of his near drowning.  His son witnesses his bizarre behavior and runs away in fear.

Back in London, Mr. Chichister seeks out James Delaney at his dockside offices.  He knows that James has information about the sinking of the Cornwallis.  It has been hinted the ship that James purchased, allegedly a Spanish ship was actually another illicit slave ship given the chains and African beads found on board.

The East India Company’s African desk informs Sir Strange about Mr. Chichister’s revelations.  Strange uses a chess analogy,  “Chichester is their bishop, James is their horse, Prinny (The Prince Regent) is their queen, the King is safe.  I think it’s time we start moving some pieces.”

Robert’s adoptive father is alarmed by the activities occurring on his property.  The men are becoming fatigued with the continuous stirring of the mixtures. Cumberly calls out for a shift change as one man falls asleep.  The farmer mutters, “May God have mercy on our souls!”

Lorna, concerned about James’s whereabouts makes an awkward visit to see Zilpha.  She finds Thorne intoxicated and agitated. He taunts her about rumors that she enjoys “walking with a man with flesh in his teeth.” Lorna remains composed under his verbal attack.  When Zilpha finally emerges with ample bruising on her face, Lorna senses the dysfunctional relationship between man and wife.  Ultimately, Lorna is ordered to leave without any information about James. (And still unaware of the relationship between brother and sister.)

James pays a visit to Dr. Dumbarton at the hospital.  Their plan includes a ruse about a cholera epidemic.  Dumbarton muses that although invented, there are now six cases of the disease reported. James draws parallels between the hysteria of rumor to faith or patriotism.  James promises to have the gunpowder ready for delivery by midnight the next day.

Zilpha takes a long bath but is interrupted by her husband.  He informs her he has been given a new position in Australia, a position he applied for months ago without her knowledge.  She coldly informs him, “Australia is too far.”  She proceeds to kick him out of her bathing room. She seems unusually distant and resolved to free herself from this man.

The gunpowder is finished and loaded into coffins.  Mr. Cumberly instructs the men to use the utmost caution, as the substance remains highly volatile.  Delaney affixes the “Cholera” notification on the funeral carriage.  Robert joins the men to deliver the product.  They traverse the long road to London with the coffins.  By nightfall, they reach the city walls and are stopped by guards.  They inform them they have six bodies, victims of cholera.  One guard insists on taking a look inside a coffin.  While distracted, Robert manages to slip into the coffin on top of the gunpowder.  The guard sees what he thinks is the corpse of a child and allows the party to continue onwards without further inspection.  James whispers to his son, “Good boy.”

At the farm, Robert’s adoptive father looks at the place where the men worked on the gunpowder.  He sees the bird carving on a wooden post and is struck with fear at the pagan image.  He crosses himself.

The gunpowder has reached its destination, the morgue of the hospital. Dr. Dumbarton is pleased, “I’ll have to tell Mr. Madison I found a man in London I can rely on.”  Delaney wants assurance his ship will have safe passage through the American blockade.  He plans to sail soon.

James finally returns home to find Lorna.  She continues to warn him about the dangerous game he’s playing.  She informs him there are rumors he’s sold gunpowder to the “Republicans.” (The United States.) James looks weary and fatalistic about what may happen to him.  He’s more interested in Lorna’s visit with Zilpha.

Zilpha spies on her sleeping husband, armed with a long thin needle.  She wakes him, he momentarily thinks she’s about to become intimate before she stabs him through the heart with her weapon.  He’s unable to utter a word before he dies.

Zilpha pounds on James’s door in the middle of the night.  She seems possessed with fiendish glee.  She declares, “He’s dead, we’re free.”  James seems startled by her lack of forethought.  He warns her she’ll hang for her crime.  Zilpha seems shocked when James insists she returns home immediately.  He promises he will see to the removal of Thorne’s body.

Dr. Dumbarton and a nun don plague masks and see to Thorne’s body. After a quick look at the body, Dumbarton pins the “cholera” notice on the body and instructs the nun to prepare the body for immediate burial.

Sir Strange enters the Company hall with triumphant news.  A farmer confessed to a priest that gunpowder had been manufactured at his property.  For this information, the farmer will receive twenty-five pounds.  Godfrey pales, and quickly exits the meeting to go inform James.  Godfrey reaches James at his home.  James doesn’t seem surprised by the information but warns Godfrey to not be seen with him.  In his usual stoic fashion, he says, “I’ll deal with it.”

James rides quickly out to the farm.  There are fifty kegs of ingredients on the premise.  Mr. Cumberly warns James that it is too unstable to moved.  James is firm; “We will move it now because we have been betrayed.  The time for talking is done.” James places a bloody mass of flesh into Cumberly’s hand.  Instead of taking the roads, the kegs are loaded onto small boats to take the material away from the farm.  Atticus and his crew assist with the risky removal.

 At St. Mary’s the priest returns to the confessional upon being summoned by the bell.  He sees Ibbott and asks, “You again, is there more to tell?”  The priest then pales as he sees the old man is dead, his tongue removed.  

The East India Company cavalry arrives too late to catch James.  It seems James has a supernatural ability to stay one step ahead of the Company and the Crown.

At the Company, Wilton has the unenviable task of informing Sir Strange that the farm was empty of contraband.  Strange is resolute, “Let him think he is one step ahead of us. We will attack what is undefended.”

Zilpha dresses for her husband’s funeral.  She inserts her hat pin, the murder weapon into her tall black hat which resembles her brother's.  It is a small gathering of some Company men and a priest. Zilpha’s veil helps hide her badly bruised face. Her expression is blank throughout the short burial service.  It is assumed they were told he died of cholera.  Looking on from a distance is James; he stares at his sister hungrily.

Upon returning home, James finds Zilpha in his bedroom.  He orders her, “Take off your dress, now!”  They make love with passion and abandon for several minutes.  But in his sister’s embrace, James is haunted by the vision of his mother trying to drown him.  He gasps for air as if he was drowning.   Zilpha has no idea what demons are haunting her brother.

James heads down to the warehouse where the kegs of powder are being stored.  He plays with flint starter.  As usual, James seems to flirt with complete destruction.

During the day there is a lively crowd around the docks. A man with a model ship on his hat entertains some street urchins. A carriage carrying Wilton approaches and calls out to James, “Mr. Delaney, Sir Stuart just wants you to know the gloves are off! This is war!” Seconds later a powerful explosion occurs near the water line. The man with hat shepherds the children away. James watches as the mast of his ship is engulfed in flames.

James rushes off to the club where Godfrey works as drag entertainer.  He wastes no time putting a knife to Godfrey’s neck, “My ship is in pieces!”  The terrified man babbles he didn’t know about the pending attack.  James warns Godfrey,  “Know. Report. War has begun!”  James leaves the club in haste.

Next, James finds Atticus whom expresses his condolences on the loss of the ship.  James is out for revenge, and he suspects the man whose thumb he removed to be the source of his latest misfortune.  Atticus confronts the man in a dark alley, “ You were meant to be guarding the ship!”  James slips behind the man and slits his throat.  However, this does not solve his transportation problem.  As usual, James removes a part of the body, this time the heart.  Atticus wonders if James has supernatural powers or simply uses reason to find his enemies.  James doesn’t answer his associate but instructs him “Bury this body where it won’t be found, you can keep the heart.”

James goes to the brothel for comfort from a bottle.  Helga is warned, “The devil is here.”  She goes out to confront James.  He wants her to find a ship captain, slit his throat and steal his ship.  She refuses this suggestion and implores him to get some sleep.  This makes James agitated and he flings cups and steals a patron’s bottle.  His desperate state scares the patrons.

At the docks, James yells out in the darkness, “I need a ship, somebody give me an f-ing ship!”  He wades in the water, perhaps again haunted by the story of his mother’s attempts to drown him.  Winter calls out to him from the water line.  She offers him another fresh bottle of liquor.  He warns the girl to stay away from him, that he can’t be trusted in this state.  James continues to drink, visions of his mother plaguing him before he blacks out.

In the morning James wakes with his face in the mud.  After a few stunned seconds, he stands, retrieves his hat and looks around.  Near the burned out spine of his ship lies Winter, deceased with an apparent wound to her abdomen.  He looks at her in horror and disbelief.  It is likely he killed her during the night.

This episode delivered on stories that have been slowly simmering.  The vision of James’s mother was explained, Zilpha finally extracted vengeance on her abusive husband and the Company finally took something meaningful from James.  James’s power to remain free seems in doubt.  He has made a new dangerous enemy, as Helga will want revenge for the death of her daughter.  It seems improbable James will find a ship in time to escape the Company and his other troubles.  Even his future with Zilpha seems uncertain given the depth of James’s demons.  I hope the final two hours continue to deliver the action contained in this episode. 

Taboo, Episode 5

Taboo, Episode 5

After last week, it seems as though interest in this show has really dropped off. Instead of a “play-by-play” recap, this recap will just cover some of the highlighted action and my impressions of the show.  Frankly, it seems Taboo is a little too slow and uneventful for warrant a full review.  The current extra-long episodes might have been better in the original hour format.  It's been hard to stay awake and interested in the cluster of unlikeable characters.

James Delaney and his brother-in-law arrive to duel in the woods at dawn. Lorna wades through a creek to observe the action.  Throne has brought a colleague from the East India Company to act as his “second.” James is alone.  The men have chosen pistols.  Throne fires first, a ring of powder forms on James’s chest. James notes the Company man had failed to load Throne’s pistol because they want Delaney alive. Thorne braces for a fatal shot but James shoots the Company man in the head instead. The group breaks up, their grievance unresolved.

Last week Delaney’s team succeeded in stealing saltpeter from the Company.  James explains to Lorna that he won’t hang for the offense because the material had been sold to the Royal Navy and its disappearance will send the Crown after the Company instead of Delaney.  James fears one of his men will seek the Company’s reward and tell on the group.  James cuts off the man’s thumb in a bar as a warning to the others. At the brothel, a customer threatens Pearl with a knife.  Winter alerts James of the attack and that man is killed with his body left for the crabs on the shore. 

James has chosen the farm where his son lives to render the saltpeter into gunpowder.  The chemist Cumberly is forced to accelerate the process to satisfy the American’s needs for the gunpowder.  James offers the chemist to use his son as an apprentice in the work.  A visit to “Carlsbad” aka the Countess, results in a deal; the Americans will agree the Nootka trade monopoly and provide safe passage through the American blockade in return for the gunpowder.  James wants assurances for the deal but Carlsbad notes they will have to trust each other.  James wounds a man on horseback who ventures too close to the gunpowder site.

Zilpha is dismayed that her husband has returned home from the duel alive.  Thorne punishes her in the episode for “uttering his name” while she dreamt.  Thorne again beats and sexually assaults her for her “crime.”  Honestly, Thorne is despicable and tiresome. Is it really necessary to show this violence every episode?  Thorne employs a man to exorcise Zilpha.  She is restrained with coarse ropes as the man takes the opportunity to grab her breasts while she is bound.  Both men seem to enjoy her muttering and writhing on the floor as they pretend to pray for her.  After the ordeal, Zilpha watches Thorne in bed.  She removes a long thin object from her dresser with foreshadowing of murderous intent.

Another major event this episode was the discovery of the original Nootka treaty. (The show’s theme song sounds as he pulls out the parchment!) James has been searching for it since his return to London and finally finds it in a trunk of his father’s belongings.  Lorna watches in horror as James destroys his father’s drawings and letters.  James cries, and explains how horrible his mother was treated, especially after she refused to pretend to be “Spanish or Italian.”  Lorna seems to understand a bit of his pain.  It appears James may have a romantic interest in his father’s wife because he refused to allow the chemist to court her.

Many allusions have been made to drowning slaves on a doomed ship.  The Crown summons an African-Londoner whom frequently writes the King regarding the unsolved mystery of the vessel.  It implicates that the Company may have broken the law by engaging in slave transport.  The Crown would be interested in exposing the illegal activities of the Company.  It appears the ship in question may have not been sunk but is the ship Delaney bought containing evidence of slave occupation.  What use it will be in James’s plans to pit the Company against the Crown remains to be seen.

Overall, my biggest issue with the series is that all the characters are hard to relate to or care about.  James seems to be a nineteenth century “Walter White.” He kills with impunity and is even willing to put his son in danger to achieve his nefarious goals.  I have a theory that the boy may be the child of him and Zilpha.  Perhaps after giving birth to him, she was left sterile.  Tom Hardy is an excellent actor but I feel he plays the same version of a “bad guy” seen in other roles such as in Peaky Blinders or The Revenant. But in those roles, he played an ancillary character.  It’s hard for such a bizarre character to be the led in the series.  I do hold out hope that the series will have a satisfying conclusion but for now, its been a challenging watch.

Taboo, Episode 4

Taboo, Episode 4

This hour marks the halfway point in the series, which continues to expand on the macabre and bizarre with allusions to dark magic.  James continues his elaborate plans that have violent outcomes.  Last week he pitted the Crown against the East India Company in order to gain his dreams of a trade monopoly in the Nootka territory.  James’s dismissal of the Americans as a legitimate adversary comes back to haunt him this hour.

After the recap and credits, James has a dream in which he is submerged.  He awakens to loud banging on the door.  A small group of soldiers in red coats order the door to be open by “Order of the King!”  Lorna is whisked awake to prison after the fracas with the Duke of Richmond the previous night.  James promises her the East India Company will come to her rescue.  He orders her to “Hold out, and don’t sign anything!”

Lorna is brought inside dark prison walls; she has been stripped down to her underclothes and led into a room. Coop, the King’s secretary approaches her.  What follows is a game cat and mouse.  Coop threatens to give her over to his men and prisoners to rape and abuse her.  Or, Lorna can sign away her rights to the Nootka Sound over to the Crown.  If she refuses, she will not only be raped but also forced to stand trial for the attack on the Duke for which she will hang. Coop cuts the laces on her corset while he makes his threats.  Coop offers her one thousand pounds and freedom if she signs their documents.  Lorna struggles to cover her bare chest and says bravely, “I was told to wait for a better offer.”  Coop sneers, “James Delaney is in league with Satan himself! We do God’s work!”

At this pivotal moment, James and members of the East India Company burst into the cell.  It appears the Company has more power than the Crown as Lorna is freed from prison.  Brace meets Lorna outside with instructions to make sure she arrives home safely.  Despite her recent ordeal, she is reluctant to accept a carriage ride home.  She reluctantly agrees to go with the older servant.

Sir Strange is livid back at the East India Company headquarters.  He’s upset at the King for breaking their agreement of “common cause” against James Delaney. Strange yells,  “James Delaney is turning London into a bear pit!”  As a counter measure to the Crown’s action against Lorna, Strange decides to withdrawal from the “India talks.” (At this time, the East India Company was essentially acting as a sovereign force in the region. The Company had a monopoly on trade and its armies, not the King’s were on the ground.  King George, the III wanted to in control of the region and its riches.)

James meets Godfrey in the brothel for men with adventurous tastes.  He informs James the Company is not interested in granting him a trade monopoly for Nootka. He advises James “The game is up!”  Godfrey answers James’s query regarding gunpowder. “Gunpowder production is controlled by the Crown.”  Therefore, James will be unable to obtain it.  Godfrey confides how the Company speaks of him with hatred now.  He cautions James his plans will have “poor outcomes” for him and those people around him. James dismisses his concern, noting, “The people around me deserve what they get!”  Godfrey is saddened by his heartlessness, “Even me?”

A chemist gives a demonstration to a group of wealthy people.  He is able to add different compounds, which result in the shattering of his glass beaker.  After the show, a woman compliments him and makes sexual suggestions.  The chemist is happy to oblige her, right there on the chemist’s table.  James walks in on their amorous activities and the woman flees.  The chemist, Mr. Cumbly, demands to know the reason for this rude interruption.  James flings a bag of gold on the table. Mr. Cumbly bites down on the coin to verify its authenticity.  The chemist is intrigued.

James walks home in the dark.  The front door has been changed and the boards have been removed from the windows.  Brace explains he has changed the locks too. The men discuss Lorna; Brace deduces her prison escapade was “all part of the plan.”  James instructs Brace to buy Lorna some flowers.  Lorna walks in on the conversation. “You said I was a weakness. I’m not weak!” James replies, “All around me are damned!  If you are resolute to stay you must do exactly what I say!”  James demands access to his father’s possessions.  Lorna states she is too tired to retrieve them for him presently. 

James looks out the circular window in his nightclothes.  He sees a ghostly figure outside down by the water.  Alone in her room, Lorna looks at a bouquet of red roses from James.

Zilpha masturbates feverishly alone in her dimly lit bedroom.  James sits in front of his fireplace, seemingly communing with her.  He blows ash into the flames while she simultaneously climaxes.  They both chant at the same moment.  Zilpha imagines James on top of her wearing a lion mask.

Thorne comes home to find his wife after her “communion” with James.  He tells her “The Crown and Company are at war again!”  He notices her altered state and sneers, “Who’s in there!”  Realizing his wife is still under James’s spell Thorne proceeds to sexually assault her.

Lorna throws the red roses out the window.

James rides his white horse to the mill where his son lives. (It is not known who is the mother of the boy, could it be Zilpha? Is that why she can’t get pregnant again?) The chemist is dropped off at the mill by a carriage.  He appears drunk and dry heaves repeatedly.  He explains he was at a party, entertaining the well-heeled guests with nitrous oxide. (The early anesthetic began as a party drug, its anesthetic properties were not realized until the 1840’s by a dentist.)  James shows him around the farm, Cumby inspects and tastes pigeon and cow dung.  He asks about what wood might be available and is disappointed there are not oak trees.  Cumbly suggests urine will work, especially urine with alcohol present.  All these ingredients will be used to make gunpowder James desperately needs.  They discuss how long the process will take and James is disappointed to learn it will take a year.  Cumbly suggests if they can obtain some saltpeter it will speed up the process immensely. There is a cache of saltpeter stored at the East India Company barracks.  James schemes to rob the Company.

As James approaches his horse to return home, the horse nickers nervously.  James looks around the area nervously. Peasants hang by the door and the mill house appears unusually quiet.  Suddenly, a giant sized man attacks James from behind.  A vicious fight ensues.  One moment it appears the man has killed James after a savage blow to the head.  Miraculously, James manages to rise and stab the man in the legs. Once James has gained the advantage, he employs meat hooks to drag the man by his torso through the yard. “I told your friends Nootka Sound was not for sale!” (Does he believe the Company sent this man?)  James finishes murdering the man by using the hooks to disembowel him. (It’s not shown.)  James’s son watches the horrific scene below from an upstairs window.

Dawn breaks down at the docks.  Inside the house, Brace reads the newspaper.  James arrives, frightening his servant.  Brace asks him sarcastically, “When was the last time you were at church?” Brace informs James that Lorna has a costume fitting that day.  James assures him the Company will see to her safety. The servant compares James’s strategy of pitting the Crown against the Company as a “see-saw with you as the middle.” Brace notes Lorna threw out the roses he gave her.  James is concerned that his servant has been reading his letters.  James has received an invitation from Countess Musgrave to attend a ball.  Lorna enters the room remarking on the Countess’s reputation.  Brace hands James another letter remarking, “The Americans want a place in the ‘see-saw’.”  James asks Lorna to attend the ball with him.

James heads to Helga’s brothel to find Winter manning the bar.  Helga has been busy shucking oysters, “They mask the smell of sex.”  James again uses a bag of gold to persuade the Madame to close for the day, giving him a loan of a few of her prostitutes.  In a back room, James meets with Atticus.  The tattooed man is amused at James’s offer to money in exchange for the whore’s urine. (To make the gunpowder.) James tells Atticus of his plans to rob the East India Company.

James walks down to the Company headquarters to scope out the site of the robbery.  He meets briefly with Cumby to give him payment.

Lorna readies herself for the ball. James dresses up slightly but he still looks like a very dangerous man.  As Lorna gets into a carriage, James receives some flowers from one of Helga’s women.  He hands her a pistol for the night’s events.  He tells Lorna, “Business is afoot tonight which doesn’t concern you.”

James and Lorna are introduced at the Countess’s party.  Zilpha and her husband are also in attendance. Upon seeing her, James is possessed by his demons and needs to flee Lorna and the room.  Outside, he finds his half-sister.  James theorizes that someone knows about their affair and invited them to the same ball on purpose. (The American’s?) “Do you feel me when I break in?”  James asks her.  Zilpha remarks that he is a devil.

Dumbarton arrives, breaking into the conversation.  He assesses Zilpha as “quite a prize.”  Dumbarton notes how James killed the assassin they sent to the mill, “gutting him like a bull.”  Dumbarton has a proposal for James, safe passage with Zilpha to the Americas if he takes the spy Carlsbad with him.  He offers to kill Thorne, “Love is part of the deal.”  James pauses to contemplate a life of freedom with Zilpha. Dumbarton walks off saying, “Don’t worry how we know so much, we just do.”

The robbery begins at the Company with several prostitutes “distracting” a man and Atticus and his men quietly executing the rest. While a man is “entertained”  Helga puts a gun to his head then orders men to gag him.  A carriage rolls through the now open gates of the Company.  Atticus carries a beaker of chemicals through the front door.

At the party, James grows impatient and checks his watch.  The chemist mingles through the rowdy crowd, offering them hits of nitrous oxide.  Lorna realizes that James knows the man.  She asks coyly, “Is he part of your league of the damned?”

At the Company, an explosion opens the door to the warehouse where the saltpeter is kept. (Potassium nitrate.)

Lorna finds Zilpha alone in a room and decides to confront her rival.  Lorna senses that Zilpha has known James for a long time.  She asks, “If I had intentions with him would I need to be wary of you?”  Zilpha scoffs, “No civilized woman would have intentions with him! We share the same father.”  Lorna is relieved to discover that they are related.  (If she only knew!) When she sees James again he is cold, insisting that she bring his father’s possessions to him that night.

The Countess takes an opportunity to flirt with James by dancing with him.  A magician spies the couple and incorporates them into his “magic box” act.  He compares James to a gorilla.  The Countess and James enter the large box as the magician beckons them to “Step into the beyond.”

Inside, James confronts her. “You are Genève Delacroix from New Orleans.” James has deduced she’s Carlsbad and is working for the Americans. The Countess notes how James desires a “tea monopoly” for his Nootka land.  James wants a meeting with the Americans at the embassy in Paris.  The Countess knows about him and Zilpha. “Your own sister, goodness!” The trick is over the pair part ways outside the box.

Thorne is in the ballroom intoxicated from the nitrous oxide.  Upon seeing James Thorne becomes enraged.  James hits Thorne forcefully in the gut and drags him outside.  Zilpha and Lorna follow the men outside nervously. Zilpha implores, “James, please!” Thorne replies, “You call this THING James? Don’t all him anything but n***er!”  Thorne decides to challenge James to a duel at dawn, to the death!

This episode continues to highlight James’s brilliant scheming.  Regular “taboos” like sex and murder become increasingly twisted by adding psychic sex and desecration of the body.  My money is on “the devil” James prevailing in next week’s duel and in his wickedly clever schemes.