Action Juice

After nine years and 36 episodes, Peaky Blinders is finally over, or at least the TV show portion is. Season six, the final six-episode run of the series, has now concluded, and it had a lot of ground to cover coming off 2019’s tumultuous season five. If you’ve seen that season, then you know that Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) has a lot on his plate for season six. His problems include internal treachery within the Blinders, the rise of European fascism, and Shelby family strife, among other things. All of this is to say, there’s plenty of plot for the writers to spread out over these last six installments. Or at least, you’d think there was.

Helen McCrory’s passing meant that Peaky Blinders was irrevocably changed, and that moving forward, the writers would have to alter the dynamics of their storytelling. Her character, Aunt Polly, was a true deuteragonist and counterbalance to Tommy, and without her, the show would have to introduce a new secondary lead or instead focus entirely on its protagonist. Showrunner Steven Knight chose the latter for season six, which was probably the savviest decision given that the void McCrory left was too substantial to counteract. And I should note: the way that the filmmakers address McCrory’s absence, and subsequently Polly’s, is quite respectful and tactful. I was a fan of how they did it, even if it likely forced them to rework the narrative a bit.

However, it wasn’t just McCrory’s death that the cast and crew had to contend with; there was COVID as well, which delayed season six so much that the gap between it and the previous season was almost three years. This is a notable problem, considering that Peaky Blinders has always featured a complicated narrative full of multi-dimensional characters and plotlines. I’m sure I won’t be alone when I state that the available recaps were inadequate in reminding me of what exactly was happening with everyone and everything. I would recommend re-watching season five before starting six, but I know that’s a big ask for most people.

Then again, maybe it’s for the best that most viewers will have forgotten a lot of the minutiae from past seasons. Heck, maybe that’s what Knight was banking on, as season six takes its good ole time addressing past storylines. If you were hoping that episode one of this season would provide you with answers to your burning questions coming out of season five’s finale, then you’ll definitely be disappointed.

Perhaps it’s best to first communicate what season six of Peaky Blinders does cover in regard to major season five storylines. Particularly, the political subplot involving Oswald Mosley (Sam Claflin) and the growth of fascism throughout Europe is further explored throughout this season. Tommy continues to spend time with the reprehensible man, and now he also has to withstand the approaches of Mosley’s new mistress, Lady Diana Mitford (Amber Anderson). I have to give the writers a lot of credit here, as they constantly found new ways to make me despise these fascists in each and every scene they’re in. When they make Tommy’s skin crawl, they made mine as well. While these scenes might not always seem vital to the primary storyline, they more often than not feel worthwhile as showcases of terrific villainous acting.

In addition, there’s a good deal of time spent with Tommy’s family, especially his wife Lizzie (Natasha O’Keeffe) and their two young children. There’s quite a lot of drama wrung out of this side of the story, some of which works quite effectively. But there’s also too much gypsy-related stuff in many of these segments, which to me, felt a bit too close to fantasy for a show normally grounded in realism.* And these scenes, which take up large chunks of the runtime of the middle episodes, only serve to postpone the juicier bits that most viewers are aching to see.** Of course, there are also the requisite scenes with Tommy and his siblings, mainly Arthur (Paul Anderson), and those are significantly more interesting. But at the same time, watching Arthur go through the ups-and-downs of addiction and depression again is neither novel nor as compelling as it was before.

It’s not until episodes five and six that the season really starts to pick up steam and address the massive problems Tommy is facing. These episodes, particularly six (the finale), more than adequately begin to answer the fans’ questions while also offering up the cathartic violence and double-dealing that Peaky Blinders is known for.*** Unfortunately, there is a detectable amount of rushing toward the end, especially in the finale. I can’t help but to think that the season would’ve flowed better had they not waited until the finale before kicking everything into gear, but hey, it made for a hell of a conclusion.

I can think of two plotlines in particular that most fans wanted to see resolved in season six. The first deals with Michael Gray (Finn Cole), Polly’s son, who became an adversary of Tommy’s after a failed takeover bid in season five. Without spoiling anything, I can say that Michael’s story is covered in season six, albeit more briefly than I would’ve preferred. I foresee some fans getting annoyed by this, and I can’t disagree with that. I’m one of them. The second plotline is in regard to who betrayed Tommy and sabotaged his attempt to assassinate Mosley in season five’s finale. Again, without spoiling things, I can say that this is addressed. Also again, I foresee fans expressing their discontent over how this is handled. Personally, I enjoyed watching this question get answered, even if it left me with a few new questions.

While the finale may not offer adequate time to all of its resolutions, I still think it’s one of the best episodes of Peaky Blinders ever made. It opens with some old-fashioned, Thomas Shelby-style plotting, as well as one of the best emotional scenes in the series. After that, it’s essentially 60 straight minutes of vengeful carnage, the kind of which we viewers have come to expect from this show. The best set-piece is a foggy nighttime shootout outside The Garrison, the Peaky Blinders’ pub. It juxtaposes unsettling quiet with loud bursts of sustained gunfire in a way that I found both nerve-wracking and gratifying. It’s riveting stuff in a stellar final episode.

That’s the thing about this season, it’s chock-full of outstanding moments, even if it confoundingly misallocates its time. In the first episode, there’s a scene with Tommy in a chilly Canadian bar that I found highly amusing, in a way that few shows other than Peaky Blinders have ever achieved. And then there’s perhaps my favorite scene of the season, in which Tommy and Arthur share a touching moment in Tommy’s basement while discussing their past and then the road ahead. It’s a magnificent segment between two actors who have become so comfortable with their characters, they virtually disappear into them.****

Whenever I ponder my frustration over this season’s flawed structure, I think back to moments like those, and you know what? I’m quickly able to forgive showrunner Steven Knight and director Anthony Byrne, because if they’re able to create moments like those on the page and screen, then they deserve praise over indignation. So here, as I conclude, that’s what I’m going to do. I want to thank Steven Knight, the directors, the cast, and the crew for six mostly incredible seasons of gangster television. I know I’ve conveyed a bit of discontent here about season six, and I stand by my points. That being said, I appreciate where they went with the story, the themes they mined, and the new characters they introduced.*****

I’m really going to miss this show, but hey, at least they’ve already announced a Peaky Blinders sequel movie, and from what I’ve read, there may be even more after that. Maybe knowing that undercuts the emotional impact of season six a bit, but no matter what, the original Peaky Blinders is done, and that’s difficult for me to type. For now, so long, Tommy and co.

If I had to score it, I’d give season six of Peaky Blinders a 7/10.

Notes:

* The gypsy-related mysticism has always existed on the fringes of Peaky Blinders, but it often takes center stage in season six. I personally don’t like it all, since it often feels like a plot device Steven Knight uses to write himself out of a corner.

** There’s one episode in particular that spends almost its entire runtime on Tommy tending to family matters. I understand how that storyline contributes to Tommy’s character development, but simultaneously, I don’t understand why so much time had to be sacrificed for something that barely touched on Tommy/Peaky Blinder business.

*** There is some action and violence in each episode, but until the finale, those scenes felt like fan service. It was almost like Steven Knight was saying, “Here you go, a bit of blood to tide you over.”

**** While all of the actors are tremendous on this show, Cillian Murphy and Paul Anderson continue to stand out. I found Anderson to be especially first-rate this season, so much so that he almost steals scenes away from Murphy and his magnetic presence. Arthur and Tommy are god-tier characters played by two of the best actors in Britain.

***** There are a lot of characters, subplots, and themes I didn’t touch on in this review, both new and old. I enjoyed the return of Gina Gray (Anya Taylor-Joy), Alfie Solomons (Tom Hardy), and so many others. I was also quite intrigued by a number of new players, such as Jack Nelson (James Frecheville, loved the accent), Duke (Conrad Khan, so much potential), and Hayden Stagg (Stephen Graham, always brilliant). Also, the deep dive into Tommy’s morality, his dark and light sides, was a theme that I thought Knight and Murphy convincingly explored throughout the season.