So, Boardwalk Empire fans ---- what did ya think of the season finale?

[grasswire]

Nice setup for the next season, with Jimmy and Eli and Jimmy's father discussing the takedown of Nucky. Jimmy and Angela. Mrs. Schroeder and Mr. Thompson together again after Mrs. Schroeder gets a warning of coming destitution. And the federal agent gets a little surprise of his own!

Wow. I thought the ending sequence was quite stunning. After the Eddie Cantor song, the shots of the beach, the boardwalk are beautiful. And then the music is "Rose Room."

Incidentally, music for the show is by Vince Giordano, music historian, bass sax virtuoso, and band leader in NYC with a regular gig for his hot dance orchestra playing music of the twenties and thirties.

[pacalo]

1. *lalalalalalala*

I didn't see it yet -- we DVR'ed it & will probably watch it tomorrow night. :hi:

I'll check back in after I've seen it, grasswire.

:hi:

[AngryOldDem]

2. I liked it.

This show is so masterfully written and acted. It captures the time period brilliantly.

Any idea when Season 2 starts? The spring?

[Bertha Venation]

3. hi, grasswire

Maybe add the word "SPOILERS" to your subject line?

Anyway, I like the way it ended with Nucky and Margaret . . .

[racaulk]

4. I thought it was brilliant.

The finale was great and it tied together some loose ends while leaving plenty of room for exploration in future seasons.

The twist with Lucy being pregnant could be seen coming a mile away, and she will certainly be a pain in Van Alden's side next season. Considering how pious Van Alden is (in his mind, at least) and how his wife is unable to conceive a child, this pregnancy will be sure to shake up that relationship. Van Alden has proven that he is not above murder in the name of his faith, so will Lucy be safe? Also, considering how ambitious Lucy is, how can Van Alden be sure the child is even his?

I felt sooooo bad for Angela. She is definitely experiencing an existential crisis that she can't talk about with anyone (homosexuality was considered a mental illness during this time period), not even Jimmy, and I think she feels trapped to a certain extent. The postcard she received from Mary was a punch in the gut.

The scene where Nucky was telling Margaret about how he lost his son and wife was heartbreaking. Scenes like this are terrific for character development, as they prod you into feeling sympathetic for a character who is largely villainous.

Harding's mistress is truly detached from reality and has no idea she has been used and taken advantage of. I'm curious if she's just a temporary minor character, or if she'll reappear in the second season.

I was not expecting Torrio to help negotiate a truce between Nucky and Rothstein. Wow!!!

The play to sneak Eli back into office after the election was coldly calculated, but brilliant!

I'm glad Nucky kept his word and invited Chalky and his date (wife?) to the post-election celebration. Definitely a bold move, considering the time period.

And yes, I have to agree that the song at the end of the episode, combined with the shots of the cast, was beautiful and very appropriate. I can't wait for next season!

:hi:

[grasswire]

5. it's clear that Nucky is falling deeply in love with Margaret...

...but the twist is that she returned to him because of her warning (superstitious) that she will be destitute in the coming year. She is now a calculating and certified whore. Will she still be independent minded? Skeptical? We'll see.

[REP]

9. She also saw the gravestone of his wife and child

She seems to be more than just a calculating money-grabber. So far.

[WolverineDG]

10. She also has 2 young children to support

in a day & age when jobs for women were few & low-paying. Many women back then re-married quickly after becoming widowed for the same reason. I wouldn't call her a whore.

dg

[maxsolomon]

6. Fairly predictable.

They've kinda run out of steam. I don't know that there was much suspense to any of the conflicts resolved.

My favorite character is now Richard Harrell, the disfigured vet, followed by Johnny Torrio. My least favorite is Warren Harding's mistress.

Also, Gretchen Mol was not naked.

[rcrush]

7. not enough humping.

[grasswire]

15. yeah but you got full frontal nudity! eom

[Manifestor_of_Light]

8. Steve Buscemi does not have man boobies.

TMI.

About the music: A couple of weeks ago Rothstein was playing pool and I recognized the music as the Gershwin Piano Rolls. It's a CD of cleaned up piano rolls that George Gershwin himself cut. It's the most lively, happy, motivational music I've ever heard. And of course the piano playing is amazing.

I think it's on Nonesuch. I recommend it highly in my not so humble musical opinion.

Get it and you'll perk up!

[grasswire]

16. here's a really really good article about the music

http://www.atlanticcityweekly.com/news-and-views/cover-story/The-Sounds-of-Boardwalk-Empire-Archeophone-Leon-Redbone-104033519.html

with a link to archival music

[Manifestor_of_Light]

18. Here's the link to the CD at Nonesuch Records.

http://www.nonesuch.com/albums/gershwin-plays-gershwin-the-piano-rolls

I remember seeing the Larry King Show when this came out. They were playing the music on an automated Synclavier Yamaha piano. Kitty Carlisle, who had dated George Gershwin, was standing there listening and said she could feel George "there".

It's awesome composition and awesome piano playing.

[bamacrat]

11. Amazing, but I hate we have to wait until November for it to come back.

I thought it was awesome how they had Jimmy walking the beach where Nucky stands in the intro, very cool. Quite possibly the best show ever made, both from and acting standpoint as well as a directoral view.

[Bertha Venation]

12. We really have to wait until November?!

:cry:

[lazarus]

13. amazingly good

Angela was downright cruel, cutting her hair like that.

Love that Margaret and Nucky are back together. If he lets her into his world, she could outscheme the Commodore and Eli, I believe. :D

Harrow is an amazing character, played by an amazing actor. He did more with a few twitches during the killing scenes than most actors can do with a full monologue.

[grasswire]

14. it was the fashion of the time for a woman to bob her hair

The flappers of the twenties adopted the bobbed hair and short skirts. The style became the prevailing cut.

[lazarus]

22. yes, but

she did it right after he finally opened up emotionally about the War. He told her that heartbreaking story about how remembering her hair and his hands running through was the only thing that kept him going, so she immediately cuts her hair off?

She may as well have kicked him in the groin. That would be less painful.

[Kat45]

17. I loved it!

They gave us closure on a few things, yet set the stage for all kinds of interesting storylines next year. Great show!

[IcyPeas]

19. Something I didn't "get" in the last episode:

Just catching up with the end of Boardwalk Empire. I didn't understand this part of the show, can someone explain what this accomplished?:

(quoted from Racaulk's reply)
"The play to sneak Eli back into office after the election was coldly calculated, but brilliant!"

[lazarus]

23. Eli was unelectable

too much corruption and crime attached to his name. Halloran (O'Halloran?) was slightly less tainted, at least enough to get elected. But he's a bumbling fool, so he had to be replaced by someone they could count on.

I think Eli and the Commodore are doomed to failure. Jimmy will likely Hamlet it up for a few episodes of the next season, but that's about it. In the end, the fact that the Commodore is the one who slept with his thirteen year old mother will outweigh the fact that Nucky is the one who procured her, imo. Plus, Nucky actually took care of Jimmy, whilst the Commodore was non-existent in his life.

[IcyPeas]

25. thanks for that explanation - it's such a great show ...

I gotta pay better attention. :)

[SoCalDem]

20. The crazy fed guy will kill the mother of his child & present it to his poor wife

he's a wacko..

[IcyPeas]

21. does anyone catch any similarities between...

boardwalk empire and Carnivale? (both HBO)

I just recently watched Carnivale and they are both set in the same time period. There is a crazy preacher in Carnivale like the crazy Fed guy. The preacher gave himself lashes with a whip and so did the fed guy. Thought it was a strange coincidence.... Love both their characters though.

[SoCalDem]

24. I never got into Carnivale.. I started watching it, but lost interest

I am pissed at the finale of Dexter.. I thought he and Lumin were perfect together..

[MrSlayer]

26. Actually Carnivale is set in the dust bowl era.

15 or so years later than BE. But yeah, there is that weird extreme zealot self-beating thing going on with Van Alden.