After the events of last weekâs riveting episode (are you reading this Emmy voters?), it didnât seem like Tara would ever be able to forgive Jax for what happened. But now that sheâs had a night to calm down, she certainly seems willing to try, even if she doesnât look entirely convinced that theyâll be able to leave Charming as promised. Jax still believes that they can get out, though, and now that the hospital in Providence has offered Tara a job despite her recent accident, their plans to start a new life together are still alive. Or at least they were until Tara foolishly broke her hand all over again after freaking out following Wendyâs visit. Personally, I donât see why itâs such a big deal. Wendy is, after all, Abelâs biological mother, and if sheâs completely reformed, then why shouldnât she be able to get to know her son? Gemma sees the reasoning behind it and agrees to let Wendy into Abelâs life, but only under her rules. That could mean that Drea de Matteo is coming back to âSOAâ full-time, but I wouldnât place any bets just yet.
Meanwhile, with the rest of the club now aware of Taraâs attempted kidnapping, theyâve agreed to join Jax in exacting revenge on Lobos Sonora by teaming up with Romeoâs men to get rid of the cartelâs presence in Charming. The attack doesnât go quite as planned, however, and they accidentally wander into a minefield just outside of the Lobosâ camp. During the ensuing firefight, Kozik steps on one of the mines and is blown to pieces â an event that will likely go down as the most pointless death in the history of the show. I donât really see any reason why Kozik had to die apart from the fact that Kenny Johnson (the actor who plays him) has a new gig on NBCâs âPrime Suspect,â especially when he was just beginning to mesh with the rest of the cast. That whole sequence played really false to me, with Jax and Chibbs even using some rocket launchers (or as Juice called them, ââCall of Dutyâ shitâ) like they were seasoned pros.

Apart from that strange detour, the rest of the episode did a great job of getting all the showâs ducks in a row in preparation for the finale. One of the biggest loose ends still looming in the background was the deal that Clay struck with Georgie to trick Hale into thinking he had new investors for Charming Heights. Unfortunately, the plan worked a little too well, and one of the Asian families went behind Georgieâs back and actually made a deal with Hale, ensuring that the property deal would go through. When the Sons learn that Georgie canât do anything to stop it, Bobby forces him to confess the truth about Luanneâs murder before giving Tig and Opie the go-ahead to kill him like they should have weeks ago. As expected, Georgie was involved in her death, although he claims that it was an accident and she was only meant to be roughed up a bit.
Of course, that particular piece of intel isnât going to mean much to Otto since Bobby already lied to him about killing Georgie once. And now because of it, heâs decided to rat on SAMCRO after Lincoln agrees to a list of demands that include giving Lennie the Pimp back some of his prison rights and moving up his execution date. Oh yeah, and he also wants to be the one to tell Bobby that he gave up the club, although that last one is going to blow up in his face as soon as he learns that Georgie was responsible for Luanneâs death. Then again, as long as Otto doesnât sign off on his testimony, thereâs always a chance that heâll be able to retract his statement in time. And from where Iâm standing, thatâs SAMCROâs only hope of getting out of this whole mess in one piece.
Other thoughts from the episode:
* Ottoâs traitorous decision wasnât even the biggest talking point of the night, but rather it was Opie finally discovering Pineyâs body in the cabin. Iâm not sure why Unser didnât go finish the frame-up job immediately after speaking with Gemma, but now Opie knows the real truth, and Unserâs warning that Clay needs to die before he âkills someone else you loveâ suggests that Opie will indeed be the Son who puts him down for good.
* But itâs entirely possible that someone totally unexpected will be the one that pulls the trigger instead. If Tig killed Clay, it would continue in the tradition of the show's other Shakespearean influences, although it would be more âJulius Caesarâ than âHamlet.â And after confronting Clay about being shut out in recent weeks and then turning over his Sgt. at Arms patch after seeing what he did to Gemma, Tig certainly has motive.
* And then thereâs Juice, whoâs trying to save the club and his brothers by essentially going against everything they stand for. If he would have just went confided in Chibs in the first place about the whole race issue (who claims that it isnât an issue at all because his birth certificate says heâs Hispanic), he wouldnât be in the difficult situation that heâs in now, which only makes it that much harder to swallow.