Margaret is accompanied by a reluctant Nucky to receive an honor from the church, and she finds a new audience to unveil her idea for a women's clinic.Download Video Boardwalk Empire Resentment Episode On ABC Family Tv Online Tv Live Streaming Video. Online Watch Boardwalk Empire Full Episode Watch Stream HD Video on Internet TV.Meanwhile, Rosetti finally makes a deal to get a shipment of liquor; Richard puts Mickey in his place; and in Chicago, Van Alden finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.Chronicles the life and times of Nucky Thompson, the undisputed ruler of Atlantic City, who was equal parts politician and gangster. A bustling little city by the seashore, totally dependent upon money spent by tourists, Atlantic City’s popularity rose in the early 20th century and peaked during Prohibition. The resort’s singular purpose of providing a good time to its visitors - whether lawful or not - demanded a single mentality to rule the town. Success of the local economy was the only ideology, and critics and do-gooders weren’t tolerated. By 1900, a political juggernaut, funded by payoffs from gambling rooms, bars, and brothels, was firmly entrenched. For the next 70 years, Atlantic City was dominated by a partnership comprised of local politicians and racketeers.
This unique alliance reached full bloom in the person of Enoch “Nucky” Johnson - the second of three bosses to head the Republican machine that dominated city politics and society.
As of late, Boardwalk Empire has attempted to strike a balance between characters pushed to engage in unlawful activities and those purposefully steering themselves directly into any form of moneymaking malfeasance they can find.
Despite a honest-to-goodness family (sure, unlike his many fine tailored suits, the family came off the rack, but it is a family nonetheless), Nucky’s transition has become one of a man more wholly embracing his criminality; gone is the charming, but transparent façade of a representative of the people.
Initially, Nucky was, for all intents and purposes, where the buck stopped with matters pertaining to illegal activity in Atlantic City. But with that came a notoriety and celebrity that made his criminal endeavors more difficult to maintain, and ultimately came within a hair’s breadth of doing him in.
On the flipside was Michael Pitt’s Jimmy Darmody – the character so much of the audience bought into as the series’ true protagonist. Jimmy was the anti-hero, the guy compelled to break the law, slit some throats and bootleg liquor because the war – and certainly the Oedipal tryst with his mother Gillian (Gretchen Mol) beforehand – ruined Jimmy’s mind, spirit and body.
In a shocking move, Winter and his writers took a chance at redefining their intended lead by having Nucky personally do away with what may have been Boardwalks‘ most significant character in the young Mr. Darmody.
The result? A Nucky (and now season) defined by the dying words of a son slain by his surrogate father. So what did Jimmy know that Nucky was reluctant to recognize? “You can’t be half a gangster,” of course.
MY SAY As every memorable gangster drama has shown us from the '30s on, every mobster protagonist needs an antagonist who's even more vicious and trigger-happy. Nucky gets that (and some) in Cannavale's Rosetti. Gyp's cold eyes are like a pair of leaden buckshot, and when he smiles his mouth curls ever so slightly and you expect to see a pair of glinting fangs. Cannavale is excellent here, but try not to remember some of his old TV roles, like the ones on "Cupid" or "Will & Grace" -- that'll just spoil the effect.
The rest of the opener is excellent, too, and even for "Boardwalk Empire" almost startlingly vivid in period details. The illusion of a cold winter's New Year Eve in 1922 is flawless. The illusion of Buscemi playing a ruthless mobster is still a little less so. He still seems too nice, too quirky (or maybe I'm the one having trouble forgetting old roles, like Lenny Wosniak from "30 Rock.")
Gyp, in fact, has the best line for him: "A breadstick in a bow tie." Nucky established his killer creds in last season's finale, and you can be certain he'll reinforce them Sunday. Nucky -- and Buscemi -- are finally getting more harrowing.