Nucky Thompson from "Boardwalk Empire"

 

 
(Credits: HBO)

Boardwalk Empire has been a conflicting series in my mind for a number of reasons. Although its good in its portrayal of the Prohibition era and what it entails, my overall enjoyment for watching it declined as the seasons kept going, to a point where I needed to take a break from the show for a bit. I can't tell if this was purely on me, or if the show burned me out too fast with the characters and plots it was presenting, but it happened either way. 

However, one aspect of the show I really did enjoy was the overall portrayal of Nucky Thompson, the main protagonist that we follow throughout all five seasons. He shares a lot of characteristics I tend to really enjoy in characters and looking back on the many weeks of blogs and choices I have made, Nucky can easily be compared to some of the past characters, in terms of pure similarity. That's why I won't really focus on that this week. 

Instead, what really makes Nucky so interesting is the situation he is seen thriving in. He is a beloved politician, who is seen essentially living a double life between fighting for the affection and support of Atlantic City and trying to make as much money as possible with the underworld activities he participates in. This balance between worlds is sometimes challenged and tipped over and seeing Nucky's reactions to these obstacles are the more intriguing parts of the show, rather than simply Nucky as a character by himself. 

It would be hard for me to recommend Boardwalk Empire on its own. It has received praise in the past, but as I have mentioned I just can't find myself really enjoying the show that much. If it wasn't for Nucky and a few other great characters, I would have probably not even talked about this series at all. But I can say this: it's worth trying out, at least for some of the great performances from the main cast. 

Paulie Walnuts from "The Sopranos"

 

(Credits: HBO)

The Sopranos is definitely a one-of-a-kind and special show. It introduced us to Tony Soprano, who I would love to talk about more in a future post. He slowly became one of the first truly big antiheroes on the small screen. Up until that point in the late 90s and early 2000s, antiheroes existed, but they were never featured or seen as essential to the movement of the overall plot. This changed with "The Sopranos," which also paved the way to many other great antiheroes in the future, such as Walter White and Dexter. 

In this context, Paulie Walnuts exists as a supporting member part of the Soprano crew that attempt to run parts of New Jersey. In my view, he can be seen as a good example of criticism towards the portrayal of the "elegant mobster" that has existed ever since "The Godfather" came out in the 70s. Instead, he is aggressive, short tempered, and violent. His behavior and actions quickly demonstrate to us that the world he operates in together with the rest of the Soprano crew might be morally gray, yet he walks on the darker part of it. 

Yet, my favorite part about this character is his nature of opportunism. Over the series, Paulie proves time and time again that, although he is loyal, he has this opportunistic mentality of growth, and a survival instinct towards self-preservation. It's almost admirable to examine, although all the negative things Paulie ends up doing really stain that part of his moral character. 

Ultimately, I like him because of his survivalist nature and willingness to adapt and overcome. It's honestly a little inspiring, in a way. It was honestly a little disappointing seeing him and the rest of the cast as their younger selves in the prequel movie "The Many Saints of Newark" that came out last year. It didn't really add a lot to him or others as characters, but at least we still have the original series to look to. 

Gus Fring from "Breaking Bad"

 

 

(Credits: AMC)

It hasn't taken me long to return back to the "Breaking Bad" universe, mainly because the two shows that explore the world Vince Gilligan has created have plenty of really interesting characters to talk about. I strongly believe that the story of Walter White's transformation from the original series would have definitely been less impactful, if it was not for some of the great supporting cast that really added to its meaning. 

This week's focus on one of these characters is Gus Fring. Originally introduced as a potential business partner to Walter White, he becomes the main antagonist in the later seasons of the series. His ruthless and calculated moves help him solidify his illegal drug empire, while his clear public persona make him a well-liked individual in the local community. 

Generally, Gus seems to represent a lot of Machiavellian principles in the modern environment, with small twists. His acts of manipulation and crossing of moral lines are simply done because of the need for business to thrive, rather than enjoyment or other motivations. Power is what matters. 

But more than anything, Gus has become a favorite of mine because of the way he presented in the story of all 4 seasons he is in. We can see that the main protagonist, Walter White, dreams that he can be Gus one day, at least in some form. Fring, with his own actions, serves as inspiration to what White wants to become after slowly realizing he is in this environment not because of the money, but because of the "empire business". 

I am looking forward to seeing exactly how Gus' story will conclude in the spin off show, "Better Call Saul," coming out this April. We already know how it ends, but it will be really interesting to see how exactly Gus gets there. 

Robb Stark from "Game of Thrones"

 

(Credits: HBO)

Talking about Game of Thrones has always been a little difficult for me, mainly because of how the show ended. The first 5-6 seasons really shined as an example of wonderful progression and storytelling, only for the massive failure of the finale to ruin much of the character arcs of some of the main characters. In that context, it has become difficult to pin someone down as being a favorite character of mine, when considering some of the unsatisfying ways their stories ended. 

Nevertheless, a particular favorite among the cast for me has always been Robb Stark. His early character arc and story in the first few seasons served as a great introduction to the Song of Ice and Fire and showed us what we should expect for years to come. 

It has always stood out to me the way Robb's simple motivations are presented. He goes to war to avenge his father's death and to create and independent Kingdom of the North. But even more so, he is shown to be a young boy who tries his best to be honorable and just, not only because he believes in these ideals, but also because he tries desperately to live up to the reputation of his father. In many ways, this ends up costing him dearly, which is very poetic when considering his father's fate as well. 

It is really interesting to think about Robb because he seems to be a character with a lot of potential "what ifs". And the Red Wedding still remains as one of my favorite moments in TV in general. If you haven't seen it simply because of how GoT ended, I really do encourage you to check it out, at least the first 4 seasons!

Kim Wexler from "Better Call Saul"

(Credits: AMC)

One of the current shows on air that I have been really excited about has definitely been "Better Call Saul". Coming into it as a big Breaking Bad fan, I was pleasantly surprised by the way this prequel spin off series did not try to bank on the massive sucess of its predecessor, but rather created its own original and compelling narrative. Skip to a few years down the line, and now the expectations for the 6th and final season have never been higher as we await to see what exactly will happen with Saul Goodman and Kim Wexler leading up to 2008 and the events of Breaking Bad. 

Kim has been a personal favorite of mine for a few years now because of her premise: she is, ultimately, a massive spin off from the stereotypical female love interest of the main character we see a lot in movies and tv shows. She largely spends the first two seasons of the show being the moral compass for Saul Goodman, a lawyer destined for corruption as he slowly involves himself more and more into the criminal world. Early on, we see her as the love interest that is there to counterbalance Saul's dark side, to help him stick to the moral path of his career. 

However, this somewhat generic theme completely begins to change with the 3rd season. We begin to quickly realize that her story is not as simple as she begins involving herself more and more into illegal cons and even helping Saul when needed. It's clear to us that she enjoys doing those things, and she does it for herself, rather than simply helping Saul because she has to. 

This is where we come to the realization that Kim is nothing like a normal love interest in modern media, but rather a tragic story about a person influenced by compassion and driven by her career to do many morally gray and illegal actions. As we saw in the most recent 5th season, Kim has now become a very active participant in the cons Saul involves himself in, and it seems like it is tragically too late to save her as she descends further into self-destruction. One can only imagine what kind of unfortunate end the story has for Kim as we prepare for the 6th season coming out later this year. 

Lorne Malvo from "Fargo"

 

 
(Credits: FX)

I stumbled upon the movie "Fargo" a few years ago while taking Film Appreciation here at Bradley with only a very limited knowledge of it beforehand. Since then, I have really come to appreciate the Coen Brothers' crafted story and black comedy elements that exist in a lot of their art. Evidently, others appreciated the same thing and wanted to see more of the "Fargo" universe, leading to the creation of the TV Show "Fargo" and its season one opening in 2014. 

The way each season of the show is constructed has really made me fall in love with the way the story is told and how the characters act in. Each season, a (mostly) brand new cast of normal individuals stumble upon or involve themselves in a criminal scenario, the events of which eventually snowballs into so much more than the original premise. One of my favorite characters in this universe, and the one directly responsible for much of the events in season 1, has to be Lorne Malvo. 

I particularly appreciate Malvo because he seems to be a love letter to all the rest of the Coen Brothers' work over the years. More specifically, there can be many parallels drawn to determine that he was, at least partially, based off the Coens' character Anton Chigurh from No Country for Old Men (2007). A cold and calculating hitman, Malvo stops at nothing to achieve his goals. To do this, he completely disregards the concepts of compassion or empathy. 

But, if Lorne Malvo was just a generic cold hitman, he would not be that engaging. Instead, what really makes him one of my favorite characters is his general philosophy in life and the way it guides him intro representing something more than himself. 

Malvo seems to be very grounded to the idea that humans are just animals, and that we live in a world in which the strong have the right to take from the weak, a right that comes from their strength and ability to defend themselves. For him, it is always "hunt or be hunted" much like the ways of the animal kingdom. 

Do I agree with these principles? Absolute not. But they do serve as a great set up for an intriguing character that drives much of the movement and character interaction in season 1 of "Fargo". If it wasn't for the many biblical references and the way the show compares him to Satan, I would have ventured out to say that Malvo also tries to represent parts of the modern economic system we all live in. But "Fargo" actually already has a much better character in terms of that parallel: V.M. Varga from Season 3, who I will be looking forward to exploring in a future blog post. 

Stringer Bell from "The Wire" (Spoilers)

 

(Credits: HBO)

I just recently finished watching all five seasons of HBO's "The Wire" for the very first time after putting it on my watch list years ago. Considering how much I have enjoyed it for the last few months, I regret not getting into the world of David Simon earlier. As the credits rolled for the final time and I listened to the ending theme song, I already knew I was going to revisit some of the show's most intriguing and compelling people that served as a realistic portrayal to the one big main character of the whole story: the city of Baltimore itself, in which the plot mostly takes place. 

To me, "The Wire" is a story of a broken system. A realistic portrayal of the world in which massive change for better or worst cannot just take place. It's the opposite of what we usually see in TV and police dramas: the one smart detective does not get to win the case because bureaucracy stops him, the bad guy might escape and get away with it, but no matter what, the system keeps rolling and things don't change. The message is clear: flow with the corruption and oppression or risk drowning trying to swim against the tide. 

This is where Stringer Bell comes along. When we first meet him in Season 1, we are automatically attracted to him because he is such a stark contrast to the drug world he operates in. Compared to the rest of Barksdale Organization (the drug empire Bell leads together with his friend Avon), he first seems extremely intelligent, pragmatic, and professional. The excellent acting of Idris Elba helps quite a lot too. These differences are further highlighted in his desire to completely change the way the organization works in Season 3 and create a legitimate real estate business from the drug money he has gained over the years. Those around him ultimately do not understand this desire, as they see "the game" being part of their lives until they either get arrested or die. For Avon and the rest, there is no such thing as actually leaving the drug business, just like many drug lords in our own reality never actually leave their position of power by their own choice. 

For Bell, this massive difference in views eventually leads to his own "drowning" for attempting to swim against the tide. As "The Wire" proves over and over again, you cannot change the system and fighting it usually results in a dire fate. For Stringer, this ultimately means being killed while checking on the construction on one of his developing properties of his real estate business. 

And for me, this is why Stringer Bell is such an interesting and tragic character. A man too smart for the low-level power struggle of the drug trade, yet too limited in his view to realize he cannot simply change the power structure in which he operates. I think Avon, in one of the last interactions with String, puts it best: "When I look at you, you know what I see? A man without a country. Not hard enough for this right here and maybe, just maybe, not smart enough for them out there".