As this episode of Peaky Blinders begins, Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy) goes to the opium den where Arthur attacked the dealer’s wife. He puts a bag down and shows them the bomb inside before asking for tea. Thomas asks the dealer to bring all the opium he has in the cellar. Once he returns, Tommy says it is his duty to take care of his constituents. The consumption of opium is not good for one’s health. From now on, they will only sell cigarettes, cake, and tea. The dealer agrees to stop selling opium and to tell his suppliers this. Thomas thanks them for the tea before dropping the bomb into the water outside. It blows up seconds later. Tommy tells a police officer to warn other pub owners that he’ll shut them down and replace them with charitable housing if they sell opium.

Later, Ada (Sophie Rundle) meets with Thomas and the others. She apologizes for being late due to the explosion. Thomas starts the meeting by introducing Finn’s new wife Mary Bone (Abbie Hern). Johnny Dogs (Packy Lee) is asked to go get Duke (Conrad Khan) so he can be introduced to everyone. Thomas tells everyone how he slept with a girl twenty years ago and Duke was born nine months later. Lizzie (Natasha O’Keeffe) doesn’t like how quickly Thomas brings him into the family. Thomas says he is bringing him into the fold so he’ll have to earn membership into the family. Tommy talks about the wounds he will try to heal while Lizzie claims he is opening wounds up.

Arthur (Paul Anderson) offers the new Shelby a drink, but Duke says he doesn’t drink and he isn’t a Shelby. Thomas asks them to put Duke on the blackboard writing the odds only to find out that he can’t write. He recommends letting him wipe off the chalk then. Once they leave, Duke tells Arthur about his father. Arthur asks what he can do. Duke says he can tell the time and it is a lot more than what Arthur can do. Arthur checks and finds that Duke has stolen his pocket watch. Arthur lets him keep it to stop him from being late in the future. Thomas goes to the church where he meets with Linda (Kate Phillips). She says there is no forgiveness in her heart for Arthur Shelby, but there may be forgiveness from God.

He says she will do God’s work. Linda says God is interested in him too and will be with him for every step of his journey. Thomas asks whether God is interested in him or his money because he knows she runs a foundation. He suggests he can make a donation to her foundation so she’ll help Arthur on his journey to redemption. When Thomas offers 10,000 pounds, Linda says praise the Lord. She promises the money will be spent to do good around the world and a mission will be named after him. She is only going to help him and not sleep with him. Thomas knows negotiations for that favor would take a considerable amount of time.

At the Liverpool docks, Tommy meets with Haydn Stagg (Stephen Graham) who apologizes for the initial misunderstanding. He gives Haydn money while admitting he is responsible for his brother trying to deal with his problem now. Thomas believes he can use a man like Stagg. Machine guns are coming here from Boston that he wants Stagg to unload and store. Thomas shows him the type of ammunition that will be coming as well. He wants Stagg to take better care of the guns and ammunition than he did the powder. Previously, his shipments went through Belfast docks. Now that he is dealing with Boston, he is considering shifting his supply line to Liverpool.

Thomas says he’ll be a very rich man and asks if he ever says thank you. Haydn looks at the bullet which has his name etched on it. He thanks Thomas before saying he could close all this down and live like an ordinary mortal man. Instead, he goes around getting please and thank yous. Thomas asks if he wants to know why he has carried on for all these years. He says it is so he can do this while pulling out his gun and pointing it at Hadyn. Then, he can do this as he puts the gun up. Stagg says he feels it. When Tommy’s last bit of business is done, he will be an ordinary mortal man. Finn (Harry Kirton) tells Arthur they have a problem with the referee because he isn’t taking the money because he is religious or something.

With Thomas away, Arthur is in charge of gambling. Finn tells Arthur that everyone is laughing at him. Billy Grade (Emmett Scanlan) enters and says the referee told him to go screw himself. Arthur begins rambling about Jesus and what he wrote on the ground. Then, he orders them to bring him the referee. Thomas and Lizzie have sex. Lizzie says she hates their house now and would like to blow it up. There was a time when they didn’t say anything afterward because they didn’t have to. Now, they have nothing left to say. Thomas tells her that Jack Nelson (James Frecheville) is coming to Birmingham to stay with them for a day. Then, they need to make a move.

Thomas asks whether she wants to know what that move is, but Lizzie says no. She already knows enough. She mentions his book of regrets and the combination to the safe. Lizzie says she is at the very top of his list of regrets. Tommy admits he regrets marrying her because he has put her through so much and everything that is to come. He argues that she married a curse when she married him. She has shared his fate and those are his regrets. He tells her he loves her. Lizzie runs over and pushes him down onto the bed while saying it sounds like he is ticking a box, but she doesn’t know what is inside the box. He has never let her in even though she knows the combination to the safe. Wilfred the referee (Douglas Russell) is brought in to talk to Arthur.

He warns he is going straight to the police once he leaves here because Isiah (Daryl McCormack) points a gun at him. Arthur says they should call the police then. Finn calls before they hand the phone over to Wilfred and encourage him to ask for the Chief Superintendent. Arthur shows the referee the Chief Superintendent’s betting records with them. He makes a lot of money from football matches because they give him the results before the match. Billy shows him the whistle that he needs to blow on Saturday afternoon to give a penalty to Birmingham City in the final minute to ensure they will one to nothing. Wilfred refuses and threatens to go to the newspapers if the police won’t listen.

He isn’t afraid because he was in France. Finn tells Arthur to phone Tommy only to be told to shut up. Wilfred tries to leave as he says it isn’t right what has been happening and it is about time someone stood up to you people. Again, he refuses to take money to cheat while saying he won’t do a bad thing. As they begin closing the blinds, Wilfred says a beating won’t make a difference. Arthur knows since he sees it in his eyes. Then, Arthur tries to force Billy to deal with the referee. Billy chokes him to death as Duke leaves the room seconds later. Arthur tells Billy he is bloodied now so he isn’t going to heaven anymore. They won’t let him in. Isiah is told to take him to the foundry and ask for Patches. When Billy goes to the showers, he hears someone whistling.

He is confronted by Jack who grabs him by the balls and demands he becomes his spy inside the Shelby Organization. He says he used to do this thing for a living and misses it like Mr. Shelby. Billy agrees to do what he says before learning Jack’s associates are going to take care of Tommy Shelby. Billy is going to give up Tommy’s brother Arthur. Only information leading to the murder of Arthur will save Billy from an Italian death. Linda surprises Arthur as he sits down for a drink. She sits down with him and encourages him to pray. He gets down on his knees, grabs her hands, and Linda helps him recite the prayer. The next day, Charlie Strong (Ned Dennehy) takes Duke to Tommy after he found him stealing a car and he has a stack of money from the betting shop.

Tommy tells him not to steal from him. He gives Duke some money and instructs him to get on a train to wherever he wants to go. Duke says he wants four wheels a horse for all the hills in England. When Duke is asked why he wants to leave, he says he didn’t take to the work in the betting shop. Tommy asks Charlie to get his dad’s old wagon and two strong ponies. While Charlie and Curly (Ian Peck) go to work, Tommy tells Duke his mom stole his watch and chain. He is from a long line of thieves. Tommy stole the watch from a drunk when he was a kid and it had Saxon Shore carved into it. He tells Duke everything he needs to know about himself before he gets on the road.

He says Esme claims the spirits favor Duke and are in him. Duke suggests she tried to sell him like one of those horses and wonders how much was paid for him. Thomas says he has no use for gold anymore before yelling for Curly to hurry up. Duke remembers the watch that she used to wear over her heart. They buried it with her. Curly runs over to tell Tommy the wagon wheel is messed up so he is told to put a new one on it. Once he runs off, Thomas tells Duke how they fix wagons here. Duke says he likes it here a lot more than that betting shop. When asked why, Duke says people who tick him off. There are a lot of people in that betting shop, but only a few here. Tommy says there are only Charlie, Curly, dogs, and horses. Duke likes dogs and horses since they’re better than people.

Thomas says there is work around here for men who are good with horses. Duke wants to remain completely unknown. Thomas says this would be the perfect place for that. Dule yells for Curly to hold the wheel for a minute while asking Thomas where he’d stay. He can stay in the stables with the other stallions and there are plenty of girls around here now that Finn has been married. Tommy admits he has a future for him even though he already has a son. His business has two sides, a dark side and light side. He will need someone for each. Duke asks whether he is dark to which Tommy says he has figured out we don’t get to choose which one we are. Thomas asks them to get a shovel for Duke so he can shovel crap.

He needs petrol in the boat because he is going to meet a lady. Diana (Amber Anderson) meets with Tommy moments later. He shows her the boat and talks about building charitable housing along the canal network between London, Birmingham, and Liverpool. This would be one of the two sites. He already has the permission, but still needs the financing. He believes her influence with the Guinness family can help. He asks if she’ll help. Diana says she booked them a suite in a motel not far from here. She jokes they’ll show him to the coal house to make his delivery dressed like a working man. Oswald has slept with Lizzie so her suggestion is about balance and proportion.

She insists it would only be fair. Diana argues this isn’t about charitable housing and instead is about a different type of trust. They have important work ahead of them. It is much harder to lie with your body than words. Diana confesses she mostly does what she wants although she’ll sometimes do things for the cause. In this case, it is both. They go back to the motel room and have sex. Then, Tommy goes down into the boat and imagines he is in a mine. He falls into water and begins struggling in the bathtub. Once he climbs out of the tub, he finds a pile of bodies in front of him. Michael (Finn Cole) has a dream about Polly who again says there will be a war in this family one of them will die.

Later, Lizzie and Tommy agree they need to leave early to catch the first train to Liverpool. When she asks about him changing the safe’s combination, he admits there are things he can’t share with this new business. She questions him about the pain killers he has been using too. Lizzie asks him to tell her everything when he is ready. She claims it is like the clock stopped ticking and she is waiting for the bomb to explode. He promises to tell her when he knows everything. Jack complains about Gina running while before demanding whiskey instead of wine.

Jack goes on about the currency in England and how the currency here is blood. He tells Tommy he is an American and he’ll smash the glass and spill the blood to get what he wants. Lizzie learns that Tommy is going to Canada to collect payment for the shipment. Jack explains Michael will be there to watch his back. Thomas says whiskey does talk sometimes, but five million dollars is a legacy. When he comes back, he’ll know everything. Jack sees himself so clearly in Thomas. He calls him a man with a bright, glaring future. They’re interrupted when a car comes up the driveway although they weren’t expecting more guests. Oswald and Diana join them explaining they decided to come when they heard their American friend was in.

Oswald asks Nelson if he had all that he came for. Jack says he has confirmation that the future of Europe is in the hands of people like himself. Oswald argues the urgent conversations between Washington, Rome, and Berlin can now begin. Jack agrees they all got what they wanted. Diana says she got what she wanted from the moment she set eyes on it. She tells Lizzie she is lucky to have each day what she has only sampled once. Lizzie rushes away from the table. Oswald asks Nelson to forgive them for that necessary housekeeping. Mosley (Sam Claflin) reminds Thomas that they told him he’d have to pick a more suitable spouse at some point. A woman with Lizzie’s past and personal history isn’t suitable and doesn’t deserve him.

Thomas grabs another drink before telling Oswald he is right. He says Lizzie doesn’t deserve what he is and what he will become. Once Jack asks what he’ll become, Tommy says he belongs here at this table with people like them, but she doesn’t. Then, we see a man approach Michael to say he is there on behalf of Jack and Gina. First, he needs an answer to a question. If Michael says yes, he will be released. Michael says he has consulted his mother although she is dead and the answer is yes. When he is released, it is his intention to kill Tommy Shelby.

 

Peaky Blinders Review

It is clear that this was the best episode of Peaky Blinders this season, but that isn’t saying a lot. The season has become a bit of a mess with too much going on and not enough time to thoroughly cover these storylines or build the characters. Since there is only one episode, it is hard to believe the last episode will be able to close enough doors to provide a satisfactory ending. Instead, the intention may very well be to set up a future movie.

There are just too many things to cover, including the Nazi angle, Michael and Tommy, Duke’s role in the world, Tommy’s health, and Arthur’s recovery. We also have Haydn and the guns he is supposed to receive. The season might’ve been too ambitious with so many storylines and new characters without eliminating some of the characters from last season.

The scene after the murder of Wilfred was strange since Billy just quickly jumped over to a public bathroom that I doubt we’ve ever seen before. How did Jack know he was in there? Unfortunately, this was sloppy and didn’t make any sense. I am also not a big fan of Jack Nelson because there was no backstory or character development and he just seemed too cartoonish in the last ten minutes.

Still, I am glad that things finally started happening even though it might be too little too late. The episode scores a 7 out of 10. Recaps of Peaky Blinders can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support Reel Mockery by following this link.