Sons of Anarchy: “Faith and Despondency”
(Episode 7.10)

This was easily the best episode of Sons of Anarchy we’ve seen yet this season. Not only did we actually move forward with a plot, but the writers managed to sneak in some really excellent scenes too. Of course, this being Sons of Anarchy ’s final season, there are some cringe-worthy scenes as well, so I thought it best to break up this week’s recap into two groups, The Highs and The Lows:
THE HIGHS
The closing scene: First, Jax tells Abel that Wendy is his “first mom” because “she came out of his tummy.” Then, Abel asks Jax, “Is that why Grandma killed my other mommy, so my first mommy could be here with me?” STOP IT. I cannot. Did he just say that? Did you see that look on Jax’s face? Did anyone else laugh? I was howling. I kept rewinding the scene just to watch Jax’s expression. We’ve been waiting a long time for Abel to share this nugget of information, and it felt good to get it out in the open.
So, does Jax believe Abel? I’m not sure. Remember, Abel just maimed himself with a fork to get Gemma in trouble and happily lied about that, so Jax knows he’s a good liar. Plus, the kid had a long, emotional day and is probably confused. On the other hand, Jax could think about Abel’s comment, take a moment to question Gemma’s story, and actually investigate Tara’s murder. I hope it’s the latter, because he should have done that 10 episodes ago, and saved the viewers a very frustrating season.
Venus and Tig: Venus Van Dam is a treasure whenever she’s on Sons, but this episode she absolutely sparkled. Tig is dodgy after a hot night together, and Venus thinks Tig only likes her so that he can prove he’s “out of the box.” But Venus has fallen in love with Tig, she is very much “in the box,” and therefore she must end it. What follows is a tearful, heartfelt conversation between two “criss-crossed” people who realize they are actually very much in love.
Though the writing has been pretty lazy this season, this scene was pure poetry. My favorite line was, “I am a man who knows she’s a woman. I know how beautiful I am.” I am consistently impressed with how a TV show about a thug biker gang could create such a sympathetic, well-rounded, and endearing transgendered character. Special kudos to Kim Coates (Tig) and Walton Goggins, who plays Venus so lyrically it’s a crime he hasn’t gotten an Emmy.
Unser saves the day: When Leland goes to the hospital to kill Officer Eglee (thus assuring she won’t testify against the Aryan Brotherhood), he’s thwarted and killed by Unser. Oh, this scene was a nailbiter; I jumped when Leland threw back the shower curtain and found Unser. It reminded me of the good ol’ SAMCRO days, when people were killed because they were bad, and not because of Jax’s twisted revenge fantasy.
Moses is dead: Jax, Tyler, OT (from the Bastards), and Otis (Aryan Brotherhood’s new leader) team up to take down Moses and the rest of Mark’s crew. Okay, forget about the fact that Moses’ Special Ops guys would probably have noticed 35 people hiding behind a trailer. Just relish in the awesomeness of the ambush, and the Sons’ revenge on Moses.