Character Analysis Peaky Blinders Season Two

Peaky Blinders Character Analysis Season Two. 

*Read Season's one analysis here        *spoiler alert: discusses plot throughout season two

Season two takes us deeper into of the gang world of 1920's Birmingham.  It takes us farther down the alleyways of corruption, higher into wealthy estates and flashy nightclubs, and finally squeezes us under pressure at the Epsom Derby.  Our characters face extreme trials of spirit, the rival gangs are more advanced, Thomas's ambition is mightier than ever, and the remaining Shelby members are scrambling to keep up.  In every direction Thomas looks he faces a new obstacle but he keeps driving towards some destination that only he knows.  It's as if in season 2 he is building a complex trap that he's putting himself in, giving himself such a narrow chance of survival that he makes preparations for failure.  Why does he insist on doing this to himself?  Maybe because he knows he can do it, that he can succeed, and without this path he'd be lost.  Maybe he wishes for death and figures he'll see how far he can get before the inevitable happens.

Where is Thomas Shelby now?

Two years later we see Thomas Shelby has moved up in his world.  He is buying real estate and finding ways to "diversify his portfolio".  He has a rich big office, a fleet of cars, and is looking to expand to London and beyond. He is doing well although his enemies are deadlier and less predictable.  He is more likely to endanger those around him and he finds himself forced to kill.  On the continuum of morality Thomas is sliding further towards the darker end if only for his unstoppable ambition.  He won't be satisfied and his drive is taking him farther away from those he loves. The family has expressed reservations about expansion. All the new success doesn't seem to be bringing him any happiness because we never see him smile. The momentum of the steam engine Tommy built is speeding up and he's beginning to feel the pressure to stay ahead. Tommy has put his war agonies behind him and it seems he's determined to forget about Grace. He is as loyal to his family as always, finding ways to take care of them without telling them the extent of his dangerous dealings.


May Carleton (Charlotte Riley)
I have to admit that I wasn't quite ready to let go of the romance between Thomas and Grace that was built up during season one so I was a little prejudiced against May when she arrived on scene.

May gives Thomas a chance to finally put memories of Grace to rest and he wants that.  She has influence and money but she is bored with her world and desperate.  A war widow, she takes her horse training seriously and wants Tommy to see her value in the racing arena.  She is kind to Thomas, but how much of that kindness is genuine or a means to an end?  May is a fighter and will switch tactics when she finds that one doesn't work.  She'll go from independent to vulnerable in a matter of seconds searching for the aspect that will have the affect she desires.  It's clear she doesn't give up easily and is used to getting what she wants.

Tommy and May
May's social status is somewhat intimidating but our confident hero is up to the challenge.  Thomas isn't one to miss an opportunity and May is definitely that.  At her estate as he reads the report she prepared about Grace's Secret he seems nervous and so does she.  Neither is sure how to behave.  When she starts crying it breaks the tension.  That's when Tommy comes to the decision to stay the night with her.  It seems as if he almost feels sorry for her but perhaps this is the chance he was already wanting to take.  Either way, it's a welcome distraction from Grace.  May is intelligent and lonely, but she hasn't faced the same difficulties in life that Tommy and Grace have and she underestimates his complexity.

When she confronts Grace, true to her word that she will fight for him, she unwittingly shows that she doesn't truly understand Tommy.  She asks Grace "For love, Thomas Shelby?"  Trying to make Grace think she has a better understanding of Tommy and that all he cares about is business.  But this isn't Thomas, he proves her wrong by his shout up to god up in the sky, declaring his love for a woman.  Tommy loves strongly.  May wants to put him in a role,  evidenced earlier when she asks him to "Kindly behave like a gangster again."  What she doesn't realize is that Tommy never really "acts" like a gangster and that's the last thing he would want to do.  All along he's been striving to make his business legitimate and he loathes the darker side of his life even as he knows it's necessary.

Tommy and Grace
Tommy is struggling with his feelings about Grace. He burns her letter but then names his horse after her.  Naming the horse after Grace is significant because it's at a time where another woman has entered the picture and this other woman is going to be directly involved with that said horse.  It could be he's not quite ready to let go of Grace.  Even after Tommy has stayed over with May he still can't stop himself from ringing Grace at the hotel in London.  He agrees to meet her and why would he agree to

that?  He has to see her again if only to prove to himself that he doesn't need her anymore.  But does he prove that to himself?  No.  He wants to see her again.  Grace is no longer a vision of innocence, perhaps looking more true now to her real character.  She is more refined, wealthily dressed, her face made up, yet she seems more fragile than the strong operative she was in season one.  Now without a purpose, she doesn't have the role she once played to give her backbone.  She wants to impress Tommy, that is for sure.  Their meeting is somewhat confusing.  He is outright hostile towards her and she is hurt.  Acting like an Ass, he refuses to meet her eyes and doesn't offer her a drink.  Is he really trying to scare her away, or is he hoping he'll force her to contradict him and admit that she still cares.  "...Because you don't love me anymore" He is putting words in her mouth possibly to show her he doesn't trust her.  His eyes shine as he turns around with the drink and says "It's good to see you Grace."   Grace's smile of relief when his manner changes and he asks her if she likes Chaplin tells us how vulnerable she felt.  Later, her fingers touching his face, she asks if he has someone and he doesn't answer because he's not willing to tell her and not wanting to lie.  Finally, he admits he has a race horse when she persists the question and it is at this moment he lets go of May, he wants Grace.  When they make love it contrasts from the desperate act of loneliness that was between him and May.  It is intimate and loving as they are looking into each others eyes.  Tommy wants to see her again, even after she's told him she's trying for a baby with her husband, and he dares Grace to tell her husband the truth.

When it comes to love Tommy is genuine.  He doesn't want to keep things going with May after he reunites with Grace and he tells May the truth.  He tries to brake it off as kindly as possible telling May to forget about men like him.  May isn't willing to let him off the hook easily, he is her prize after all.  She's angry but tells him it would be alright for him to stay even after what he has just told her. She tells him she is going to win him, and maybe she will, but here Tommy doesn't kiss her back. 

Meanwhile Aunt Polly is Loosing it.

Poor Aunt Polly, Her internal heartbreak from having lost her children is coming to the surface and she is in real pain.  Haunted by dreams of her Daughter, she's intent on finding out if she is still alive and to have news of her son. The dreams are making he miserable and her state of mind doesn't escape the notice of her family around her.  Her usual pulled together look is now a little disheveled and she lashes out in anger

at those close by.  Thomas, being his usual observant and controlling self takes the initiative to get her a nice house and offers to help her find her children. This means everything to her.  Learning of her daughter's death almost brings her to the edge but the hope of having her son back in her life takes over.  She becomes frenzied with the need to see her son. Recklessly drinking and behaving embarrassingly she has only one thing in her mind, her son.  It's ironic that this beautiful, sharply dressed, confident woman is at her worst when she finally gets to see her son, Michael Gray.  Standing in her doorway, clean cut and handsome, he looks on as she arrives home early in the morning, hung over, hair all over the place and clothes a mess. Our dear Polly should have gotten a chance to make a better first impression, but isn't that life for you?  Never the less, she is overcome with bliss at finally getting to see him and it seems he's back for good.  Now she is faced with the challenge of keeping Michael safe in her deadly world. Torn between not wanting to loose him and sheilding him from gang life she becomes lovingly over protective. 

Michael Gray (Finn Cole)

Michael arrives just in time.  Right of way he comes across as confident, stubborn, and bright.  The
Shelbys are interesting and refreshing to this young man who can't stand his small safe life any longer.  He is kind to Aunt Polly and very observant of the family dynamics.  Refusing to be scared off he puts himself in positions of usefulness where ever he can.  He is similar to Thomas in his ambition and presence of mind. Truly, the Shelbys do need him.  His obvious intelligence and lack of vice make him an ideal man for Thomas to groom.  Tommy needs sharp people around him that can keep a cool head and as we have seen Thomas doesn't waste an opportunity when presented, so I predict in season 3 Michael will play a more prominent role in Peaky Blinder business and, while facing the usual moral delimmas of the game, will come out as a major player.  Michael is likable enough, however his treatment of Aunt Polly when she finds out how she got him out of jail is sad.  It show's how young he really is and how much he doesn't know about the strength of his mother. 

Arthur battle with himself heats up.

Arthur hates feeling powerless and turns to fighting.  He admits he is an animal, out of control.

Thomas needs him though. As Aunt Polly so observably pointed out, Arthur is a dangerous tool, a mad dog being used by his brother to do the dirty work. Really, where would Tommy be without Arthur?  It says something about Thomas that he's willing to push Arthur further towards the edge of sanity.  He warns Arthur to only use coke only on special occasions but Thomas is too observant to really believe his warning will make any difference. Arthur really is an uncontrollable beast, yet he has moments where he makes an effort to be a better man by emulating Thomas. When threatened by the mother of the boy he killed his actions parallel the way tommy acted towards him.  He tries to remain calm, takes the bullets from her gun and offers her a drink. This is Arthur trying, searching for new patterns of behavior.  Temptation is everywhere however and he is undiciplined. Arthur is still fiercely loyal, openly admiring his brothers skill at getting him released from a sentence of death. 

Tommy and Inspector Campbell's conflict escalates bringing harm to Polly. 

Campbell is downright evil at this point. He lies, threatens and has men murdered. Thomas is still ahead

of him, however, boldly contacting Churchill directly, he knows how to manipulate the circumstances to get the most of every play.  He knows Grace is a weakness of Campbell's and he deviously uses it to drive the point of his blade deep into what is left of Campbell's heart. Flaunting Grace in Campbell's face he declares, "she loves me, she loooves me, and all you got was a bullet." Campbell couldn't get any lower then when he abuses Polly, trapping her in the worst way imaginable. Tommy Stares Campbell in the eyes as he says which ever one of them ends up dead will end up in hell.  It's this statement that is at the heart of the matter, Campbell has lost his soul to darkness (I wonder if this is a nod to Joseph Campbell) and no matter who wins the battle between them, both are lost.

Epsom

At the races Tommy is absorbed with all the moves being made around him and he really thinks he might not survive the day.  So, when he goes to May what we see is a goodbye in case he doesn't make it.  He doesn't want May to find him because of the danger, he wants her to stay put, insisting he'll find her and maybe he means it.  He acts caring towards her here, kissing her.  Grace finds him at the absolutely worst possible time and he is quite shocked when she tells him she's pregnant.  He really can't handle this right then for obvious reasons.  In the middle of acting out his complex plan, here she is telling him she loves him and pregnant with his child.  Everything stops for that second, the music returns to the music of Thomas and Grace, he has to aknowledge her love and quickly the moment passes, back to the plan. What a plan it is. He's given himself such a minuscle window to do the hit and so much is depending on his players.  Remind yourself, he did this to himself.  He set this stage.  One last drink with his adversary and he's off and running and we love to see him run.  Shit, he's failed Lizzie and that guy was pretty hard to kill and he's almost made it but here comes the "Red hand."  Its important to note that none of Tommy's players fail him, they all do their part, they love and trust him and he's the one that has come short.  Thankfully, his forethought saves him though;  by boldly reaching out to Churchill he gained an unexpected ally.  Preparing to be gunned down, he says "so close... and there's a woman , whom I love, and I got so close." Cillian Murphy was awesome during this scene shouting out in frustration, his emotions were visibly intense.  Thomas Shelby walks away from death, back to his life with an expression of strong determination.   At Epsom the most satisfying moment came when Polly put her gun on Inspector Campbell's heart and pulls the trigger.  Steven knight allowed us that victory but left us with a big teaser. "I'm planning on getting married." 

Hints are given but it's left open enough that we can't know for sure who Thomas Shelby will marry.  It will depend on the story Steven Knight wants to give us.  One where Thomas stays true to himself or one where our hero turns away from his own heart.  Does Steven want to tell a story where the characters can achieve happiness or will they always fall short of that goal?  Thomas looked death in the face and thought of his love of a woman and it has to be Grace.  If he stays true to his character he will marry her because family is most important to him, he will want his child and when it comes to love he has been true up to this point.  Anyway, It's hard to imagine him really loving May. Even so, he could still decide to go against his nature and marry her for the opportunities she brings to the table. I personally hope he stays true to his heart.  The question for season 3 then becomes what happens when May doesn't get her way?  Who does she become?  Maybe she will become Tommy's new adversary, the space is open now that Aunt Polly finished off Inspector Campbell.

-Kendra

*I'd love to hear from you so leave a comment or send a message. 

Glass Lotus Window

This is Glass

It measures 24" X 24"

Just finished today, I've been wanting to do a lotus flower for awhile and went ahead and splurged on the pink glass. Pink is one of the more expensive colors to use because of the metals used in making the glass. Each color has a different chemical makeup and thanks to advancements in the glass production we can now fuse these colors together creating endless effects. Here is the lotus flower in my wooden screen which I use for shows. These glass panels can be framed into a window space, framed as you would frame a stained glass piece and hung or hung on a wall using standoffs.

 The beauty of these pieces is they will change throughout the day as the lighting changes. I remember the affect stained glass had on me when I was growing up. The colorful light cast always captured my attention.

The inspiration for the lotus flower comes from one of my trips to Bali. In Ubud I went to a gorgeous lotus garden with huge ponds and ate lunch sitting and admiring all the beautiful blooms. The lotus is used as a symbol all over the place today. It has long been considered a symbol of purity, rebirth and divinity.  In My own experience, I find that when I am deep in meditation I tend to see a lotus type image blooming over and over again, similar to the way a kaleidoscope moves. I believe that each of our chakras function this way, like a lotus flower opening. Just for fun, try and feel a blooming of energy where your third eye would be as I've described the next time you sit quietly. 

Here is the Lotus flower in the kiln before I took it out. You can see that when it is directly on a surface, the appearance has changed. 

You can find out more about me and my work at my website. 

Peaky Blinders is a story of moral struggle, love, and human nature

Peaky Blinders is a story of moral struggle, love, and human nature
*Spoiler alert: Discusses story line throughout series 1

*Season Two Review now up here.

 Binge watching Peaky Blinders was surprisingly emotional and stimulating because I'm not a big TV watcher. I'd choose a good book most days to sitting in front of a TV. On a friends recommendation  I tuned in to watch Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby, Annabella Wallis as Grace, and the gang Peaky Blinders in this BBC drama written by Steven Knight. I found myself drawn into the characters by their depth and by their humanness. They each have their own agenda and faults, and because of the length of the series, we see each of these characters struggle and change with their circumstances. Watching this series was like reading a lovely book. You get a chance to really know the characters, sympathize with them, know their back story, and its a pleasure to see what they will do. I decided it would be interesting to analyze Peaky Blinders as if it were a novel.
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What hit me right away was the music and the sound track. A simple strumming sound of approaching danger, silence and breathing, the clopping of hooves. The sound of fear. Thomas Shelby sits bare back on a black horse, stone faced, expressionless. An extended breath of red dust. As it breaks into the cocky strut of "The Red Right hand" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, I realize this show will be about the silences between the words, the slightest expression given by it's main characters, and the music will help take us there.

Let us examine a few of the characters and their moral standings. The other characters are also interesting, but for this blog we'll look at these.


Thomas Shelby
Thomas is a disciplined Character.  He doesn't waste a motion or word.  He is blunt and thoughtful at the same time.  He doesn't care about anything, he cares about everything.  He starts out as a numb war veteran, moving forward because that's all he knows how to do to keep the pain away, keep moving forward.  He finds refuge in his ability to outsmart his enemies, but this also leaves him alone. It's too easy for him, he is smarter, quicker, stronger, and always ahead of everyone.  He has no equal in his immediate surrounding, except for perhaps his Aunt Polly (played by Helen McCrory), who is a passionate, intelligent, strong and loving woman.  She is having a hard time keeping up with him herself.  She's lost control of him, and this scares her.  To keep from feeling, he separates himself emotionally from everyone including his family even though they are most important to him.  He expresses his love for them with loyalty.  He just goes forward into his challenges, driven by a need to escape and a desire to become powerful.  The Barrel of feelings hidden underneath layers of rationalization is overflowing into his dreams, haunting his sleep.  So he never can let his guard down and he can't relax his mind.  A positive affect of this is his supreme focus in the moment.  He doesn't allow his mind to wander and this gives him an edge.  Without wasting a sideways glance, he is aware of everyone in the room, using his peripheral vision, he is hyper alert at all times. Every little action has a purpose.  He also knows the power of his gaze and he uses it to disarm, refusing to make eye contact until he chooses your worth it and then holding it unflinchingly.

Grace Burgess
Grace is angry inside and driven by a need for revenge of her father's death by the IRA.  Following in her father's footsteps as a cop, her job as a undercover agent gives her life purpose and without it she would be directionless.  She, like Tommy, has found solace in action.  She is self righteous and willing to lie and use her beauty to meet her needs.  She is very beautiful but instead of dressing up she dresses down often having a bare face, making her appear innocent.  For this, and because we've already fallen for Tommy we want to hate her.  "Want" being the key word.  Grace believes she is on the right side, and discovers as the series goes along her mistake.  She is naive in that she starts out seeing things in black and white; good and bad.  She strives to be tough, and she puts herself in Tommy's view blindly thinking she'll be able to outsmart him because she underestimates him.  Yes, she is afraid of him, but not as afraid as she should be and she is also cocky.  For this both of them have met their match. Neither one sees it coming.  She doesn't expect to have feelings for him because she forgot she had any feelings except the desire for revenge and she isn't looking for love.

Inspector Campbell (Sam Neill)
The Inspector begins the series imagining he is going to win against evil.  He is an agent of the law and the king which makes him self righteous and stubborn.  To him, Thomas Shelby represents everything that is wrong in the world.  We quickly learn that he is fond of Grace and he battles the jealousy he feels having her close to Thomas with his need to get the information she can provide.  He hates being manipulated into an agreement with Tommy for the Guns and this leaves him feeling powerless.  Tommy forces him into a position where he must question his own moral high ground.  He is making a deal with the devil and he will do anything to regain the upper hand.  His battle with Tommy has become personal. That first meeting between Tommy and Campbell is the turning point where we see inspector Campbell gradually walk farther and farther down the road towards corruption and darkness.  I would not say he is a good man. His use of language about his enemies is a demonstration of poetic negativity; "They feed on the pus of all this corruption like maggots in a corpse…like flies they will swarm and spread"

Arthur Shelby
The oldest Shelby Brother, Arthur, is a mess.
He is a drunk and a bully,  his redeeming quality being his loyalty to his family.  He acts like a child, throwing temper tantrums and surrendering to his emotions.  He is a tough fighter, taking pleasure in acts of violence. When Thomas takes control of the peaky blinders from him, he is almost relieved.  His source of weakness is he wants to make a father figure proud.  Like everyone, he wants to feel he is worth something. With his fathers brief appearance we see how childlike and vulnerable he is. He becomes obsessed with fighting because of  his father. and when he's in the ring, it's like he's fighting his dad again. Fighting to be someone his father would be proud of, and then fighting to prove that he is better than his father because his father broke his heart.  Like a dog, once Tommy proves he is the alpha, Arthur shows his belly.  Arthur wants to be a good man, but his vices are in control.

Aunt Polly

Aunt Polly is immediately likable. Classily dressed, she is confident and intuitive.  She and Thomas have a relationship of mutual respect and she has the ability to get Thomas to confide in her.  She admires him but her experience tells her his ambition is dangerous.  I would say she is the mother of the family.  She is often seen holding the children, and she looks after each of the adult Shelby's as if they were her own.  She is perhaps the most loyal of all, and as we shall see, will do anything to have the family together.  She isn't afraid of much and she knows being on the right side of the law doesn't mean moral superiority.  To her love of family is the highest good.  She gives a great deal of strength to the Shelby Clan.


Now the fun Begins as these wonderful Characters interact.
Their relationships are what I really find fascinating.  In this series Steven Knight Demonstrates he knows something about human nature; The battles within, the subtleties of expression, and the evolution of a soul.  Because of the emphasis on detail, I do wonder how much influence he had over the characters facial expressions and body movements and how much he left up to the actors.  Either way, the end result is beautiful.

Tommy proves Grace wrong.
He has shown his compassion and cunning in saving his comrade with a bullet of sheep's brains. He is not evil. He is underneath, a good man, driven by circumstances to act badly. Thomas is driven to change these circumstances and he wants to make his business legit. Because of Tommy's hyper alert state he sees Grace. He recognizes the qualities in her that he knows of himself and he understands her. Most look away from his stare, but she holds it. She is willing to stand up to him, and ask for what she wants wether it is to sing, or for more pounds to buy a dress. This is a welcome challenge. As we know, the weaknesses of those around him have alienated him and in a world of fools they each see someone else striving just as hard to survive. She knows they are on opposite sides, but he is more like her than anyone she has met so far and this confuses her. She grows more and more disenchanted with Inspector Campbell, who underestimates her and makes her feel angry. This pulls her even closer to Tommy. When Tommy is forced to kill the IRA Agent because of her disobeyed gun shots and the delay of the police assistance Grace finally gets that she isn't on the right side. Her own side failed to show up and Tommy was forced into the whole situation with the agents because of her earlier killing of the first IRA agent. She got him into the mess, so that night when he apologizes to her for his behavior, she knows that she is really the one at fault. The next day she tells Inspector Campbell she wants to resign and admits her change of feelings. She offers to give the location of the guns with the assurance that Tommy will be protected. She can't possibly make up for her lies to Tommy, but she can try and keep him safe. "You took a risk coming here" she says when he comes to her as the police are looking for him. At this point he has won her over.  She has now become a character who questions the moral authority of the police and the law and recognizes that everyone is somewhere in the middle of Good and Bad, especially herself.

Tommy Loves Grace
His falling for her is gradual.  He admires her intelligence and courage, and decides she is an opportunity that has landed in his lap, just like the guns.  He wants to find a use for her. Sitting in the car knowing full well that he has offered her as a whore to Billy Kimber, he is overcome with self loathing and changes his mind. He wanted to be able to use her without caring, but he really didn't have the heart for it when it came down to it. Plus part of him didn't want to bring her any more pain then he already saw in her eyes. Maybe it was his overconfidence that kept him from suspecting her behavior or maybe it was his desperation at needing to feel love and be loved that blinded him.  Either way, he fell very hard for her.  He needed her love like a dying dried out tree needs water.

When they finally make love its innocent.  She must know that he will discover her lies and find her out, but she chooses to give herself to him anyway, even if it means she won't be able to keep him.  She gives him herself because she just wants to love him and he soaks it in.  He sees a future with her, he sees everything in her.  She has brought him peace, finally he is able to let his guard down, and he feels safe with her. Our hearts break for him knowing his feeling of safety is false and his surrender to her will bring pain, but we want him to feel loved too.  It's painful afterwords when he asks her to help him "With fucking everything, fucking life.  I found you and you found me." The next scene we see the first real smile of the season on his face.  The dreams of tunnels have ended and he finally starts to feel himself again.

Therefore, when he discovers her betrayal it is doubly painful, he's finally started to heal, and now the damage will be even worse.  What will become of him? Will his heart turn so dark he becomes  a monster?  In his final letter, his admission that he loves her, gives us hope for him.  He's smart enough to understand that circumstances caused the betrayal and he is no stranger to circumstance.

Inspector Campbell and Thomas Shelby battle for control
Entangled in an fictitious agreement, each resents the other and works towards getting domination. Back and forth they take turns hitting each other with maneuvers of intelligence, blackmail, and witty insults. Inspector Campbell was not in the war and this is thrown in his face by Tommy over and over. By the end of the series Inspector Campbell has become so low that he visits a prostitute and threatens Grace with a Gun. His jealousy of Thomas has eaten him to the point where he has lost himself. Even with Grace's inside knowledge Thomas was able to out smart him and gain the advantage.

The Shelby's end the series ahead, but it's a bittersweet ending. Tommy has reached his goal of taking over Billy Kimber's Gambling empire. As he toasts the Shelby Family Business his Aunt Polly looks on with knowing sorrow. Her child's heart is broken, for Tommy is as a son to her.

In conclusion, Peaky Blinders is a journey into a past culture brought to the present with modern music and relatable struggle. Steven Knight's story illustrates the gray area between good and bad, and the constantly fluctuating motivations of human nature.

My Questions for Cillian Murphy:  As an actor do you find yourself taking parts of the characters you play with you and which parts do you keep of Thomas Shelby? Does playing such a strong character change you in anyway?