Na Trioblóidí
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"Na Trioblóidí" ( Irish for
The Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...
), is the thirteenth and final episode of the second season of the FX
television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...
''
Sons of Anarchy ''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American Action film, action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX (TV channel), FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008, to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-k ...
''. It was written and directed by series creator
Kurt Sutter Kurt Leon Sutter (born May 5, 1960) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He worked as a writer, director, and executive producer on ''The Shield,'' and appeared on the show as hitman Margos Dezerian. Sutter is also the cr ...
. It originally aired in the United States on December 1, 2009. This episode marks the final appearance of
Johnny Lewis Jonathan Kendrick Lewis (October 29, 1983 – September 26, 2012), also credited as Johnny K. Lewis, was an American film and television actor. He was best known for playing Kip "Half-Sack" Epps in the first two seasons of the FX series ''Sons ...
(
Half-Sack Epps The following is a list of characters from ''Sons of Anarchy'', and its spin-off ''Mayans M.C.'' Both are American crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter. ''Sons of Anarchy'' aired from 2008 to 2014, ''Mayans M.C.'' from 2018 to 20 ...
),
Adam Arkin Adam Arkin (born August 19, 1956) is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing the role of Aaron Shutt on ''Chicago Hope''. He has been nominated for numerous awards, including a Tony Award, Tony (Best Actor, 1991, ''I Hate Ha ...
(
Ethan Zobelle The following is a list of characters from ''Sons of Anarchy'', and its spin-off ''Mayans M.C.'' Both are American crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter. ''Sons of Anarchy'' aired from 2008 to 2014, ''Mayans M.C.'' from 2018 to 20 ...
),
Henry Rollins Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, comedian, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1 ...
( A.J. Weston), and Sarah Jones (Polly Zobelle).


Production

The episodes title: "Na Trioblóidí" is Irish for
The Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...
; a three decade long ethno-nationalist conflict in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
between nationalists, loyalists and
British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces are the unified military, military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests ...
that occurred between the late 1960s to the late 1990s. The IRA depicted in the series is a fictionalised version of a dissident republican paramilitary called the
Real IRA The Real Irish Republican Army, or Real IRA (RIRA), was a Dissident republican, dissident Irish republican paramilitary group that aimed to bring about a United Ireland. It was formed in 1997 following a split in the Provisional Irish Republica ...
; a splinter group that was created after the
Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...
had a ceasefire towards the end of the conflict.
Kurt Sutter Kurt Leon Sutter (born May 5, 1960) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He worked as a writer, director, and executive producer on ''The Shield,'' and appeared on the show as hitman Margos Dezerian. Sutter is also the cr ...
, series writer and creator, said that Half-Sack was killed off because
Johnny Lewis Jonathan Kendrick Lewis (October 29, 1983 – September 26, 2012), also credited as Johnny K. Lewis, was an American film and television actor. He was best known for playing Kip "Half-Sack" Epps in the first two seasons of the FX series ''Sons ...
wanted to leave the show due to creative differences; "We decided we'd find some noble way for him to go. It wasn't my intent to try to be sensational and kill off a main character."


Plot

Stahl orders Zobelle released from prison, as he is an FBI informant with information on several high-up players in government and in the
Aryan Brotherhood The Aryan Brotherhood (AB or The Brand) is a neo-Nazi prison gang and an organized crime syndicate that is based in the United States and has an estimated 15,000–20,000 members both inside and outside prisons. The Southern Poverty Law Center ...
. Zobelle refuses police escort, and the Mayans arrive in Charming to protect their investment in him. Zobelle's plans to skip town are delayed while Polly says goodbye to Edmond. Weston is also released, as Chuck's testimony is deemed unreliable because he is an ex-felon. Weston retrieves his children from state custody and uses their presence to protect himself from SAMCRO's reprisal. SAMCRO is able to isolate him in the bathroom of a
tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes ...
parlor, where Jax kills him with a silenced pistol. Cameron Hayes calls his son Edmond, and orders him to kill Agent Stahl to prove his loyalty to the IRA. Edmond retrieves a gun hidden in his bathroom but fails to execute her. Stahl kills him when he attempts to run, then texts Cameron from his phone claiming that the deed is done. Meanwhile, Gemma spots Polly shopping for flowers and follows her to Edmond's home. Polly goes inside and sees Edmond's body, and when Gemma follows her in with her gun drawn, Polly assumes that Gemma killed Edmond and tries to shoot her. Gemma shoots Polly in the chest before the latter can, killing her, and Stahl emerges, offering Gemma a chance to get out before she is pursued. As Gemma turns to leave, Stahl tosses Gemma her own 9mm, and Gemma catches it instinctively. Stahl trains Polly's pistol on Gemma and tells her to drop the gun; Stahl plans to use Gemma's fingerprints to frame her for both deaths. Gemma calls Unser, who picks her up before the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE), commonly referred to as ATF, is a domestic law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice. Its responsibilities include the investigation and prevention ...
ATF can. Zobelle and the Mayans leave without Polly; SAMCRO takes off in hot pursuit. When Stahl reports the killing of Polly and Edmond over the radio, Cameron Hayes overhears over the report on a
police scanner A radio scanner or simply scanner is a radio receiver that can automatically tune discrete frequencies, scanning over a frequency band to find a signal until the initial transmission ceases. The term ''scanner'' generally refers to a communic ...
. Seeking revenge, he goes to Jax's house, holds up Tara, and kidnaps Abel. When Half-Sack tries to stop him, he is stabbed in the stomach. Jax arrives to find Sack dead, Tara tied up, and Abel missing. He calls Clay, who pulls the rest of the men pursuing Zobelle to rescue his grandchild. They chase Hayes to a
marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...
, but it is too late: Hayes has disembarked in his gunrunning boat, Abel in tow.


Reception

Ahead of the airing of the third season,
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
rated Polly Zobelle's and Edmond Hayes death #5 while A.J Weston's was voted #2 in IGN's "SONS OF ANARCHY'S BEST DEATHS". IGN commented on Weston's death by saying; "Rollins' final moment with his son, where he tells his boy to be brave for his brother and that he's always loved both of them, was a wonderfully complicated twist on an easy-to-hate character. And then he just sits in the bathroom stall - our final view of him is his boots still sitting up on the toilet seat. Even in death, he's rigid and unrelaxed. Because he was such a great character, I hated seeing Weston die, but in this case, the saying is true: it's better to burn out than fade away." Zach Handler of The AV Club gave "Na Trioblóidí" a B+ rating, stating; "The way things stand now, with Gemma on the run, and a grief-stricken Cameron kidnapping Abel, means, well, who the hell knows? The trouble brewing between Jax and Clay, temporarily put on hiatus, is bound to come back now—with Jax out of his mind with fear for his son, and Gemma's uniting influence, Daddy's memoirs may be making a come back very soon. After all, the lost baby comes, in a way, from the club's Irish connections, connections based on gun-running that I don't think Dad would've approved of in his day."


References

{{Sons of Anarchy 2009 American television episodes Sons of Anarchy episodes Television episodes directed by Kurt Sutter Television episodes written by Kurt Sutter