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Boardwalk Empire, Ep. 4.01: “New York Sour” an efficient, promising reintroduction to the show’s world

Boardwalk Empire, Ep. 4.01: “New York Sour” an efficient, promising reintroduction to the show’s world

Boardwak Empire promo pic, S04E01, "New York Sour"

Boardwalk Empire, Season 4, Episode 1: “New York Sour”
Written by Howard Korder
Directed by Tim Van Patten
Airs Sundays at 9pm (EST) on HBO

Kate is new to Boardwalk Empire this season and her reviews will approach the acclaimed series from the newbie’s perspective.

Jumping into a series partway through its run can be a tricky endeavor. There’s a lot you miss- nuances of meaning in character interaction, thematic development, and stylistic callbacks to previous significant moments, to name a few. It does, however, provide an often underrepresented perspective, that of the more casual viewer, and sometimes, fresh eyes are useful in examining a show’s strengths and weaknesses. A season premiere is the perfect time to jump into a new show, as one of the duties of such episodes is to welcome in new audience members who may be wholly unfamiliar with the series as a whole, without alienating the core viewership. It can be a tricky balancing act, but it’s one that Boardwalk Empire’s season four premiere, “New York Sour”, handles quite well, efficiently introducing this newbie to a wide range of characters, locales, and interpersonal dynamics.

The premiere opens with a helpful “Previously On…”, but even without it, the action of “New York Sour” hangs together well, providing understandable, clear motivations for each character. As a new viewer, I expected to spend most of the episode confused, but the sure hand of director Tim Van Patten put me instantly at ease. The opening scene, at a remote bar on a snowy evening, ties in only tangentially with the rest of the action, but it sets the tone and period well, easing viewers into the world of the series. From there, we check in with most of the main characters of the show and while the name at the top of the marquee may be Steve Buscemi, in this episode, it’s Brian Geraghty as a seeming rube of a Treasury Officer who most intrigues. As much of Boardwalk Empire is peopled with famous historical names and figures, it’s tempting to research Agent Knox to see just how significant of a player he may become. Geraghty keeps Knox on the right side of enigmatic, leaving him a question mark while grounding the performance in believability. It’ll be fun to see where he fits into this season.

Elsewhere in the episode, we’re treated to some delightfully energetic tapping as we watch Chalky book his club. We’re supposed to be watching Michael K. Williams in these scenes, and he does a great job, but I couldn’t help appreciating the period specificity of the tap routines. Watching the background entertainers should be a fun side benefit to the apparent prominence of the Onyx Club in this season’s action. The sexual games of Chalky’s talent booker, along with the numerous shots of the Onyx Club patrons (a far more gender balanced crowd than one might expect), provide interesting social commentary about racial issues at the time and it’s nice to see the show explore this. Hopefully there’s more to come, particularly as this interest in the social issues of the time seems otherwise absent from the episode.

Boardwak Empire promo pic, S04E01, "New York Sour"

Returning viewers are fully aware of Al Capone’s role in the action, but for this first time viewer, the reveal is handled marvelously. It’s a nice beat of comedy that continues through the episode, escalating in intensity (and becoming less funny) each time it returns. By Capone’s final scene, we’re worried for the poor 22-year old reporter who has no idea who he just offended and Al’s reaction to the typo tells newbies everything we need to know about him. The more engaging threat, though, is Jack Huston’s Richard Harrow, who is clearly on a tear of revenge on his way home. His motivation will assumedly be made clear soon to viewers like myself who missed it last year, but one thing is certain- Harrow is a calculating, deadly man and whoever crossed him is in trouble.

Gretchen Mol is very good as a torn Gillian Darmody, but without more context, it’s hard to get a strong grasp on her. The same is true of Buscemi’s Nucky. He mostly fills a managerial role this week, but his interaction with his fling is telling and there is clearly much more to come. While the world holds promise and several of the characters are engaging, there is an unfortunate staginess to this premiere that hopefully is not indicative of the show as a whole. Some of the actors chew their lines a bit and there’s a lack of tonal consistency throughout the episode. Several scenes are very relaxed and naturalistic, such as those with Harrow, Gillian, and the memorable final one with Knox; others feel forced. All in all though, this is a promising start to the season and an easy place for new viewers like myself to jump in.

What did you think of the episode? What season 1-3 callbacks did I miss? Did you see Agent Knox’s turn coming? Which characters did you most enjoy and which did you most miss? Post your thoughts below!

Kate Kulzick

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