Boardwalk Empire – Acres of Diamonds

Season Four: Episode Three

Directed by: Allen Coulter

Written by: Terence Winter

The Spin:  Series creator Terence Winter takes the reign and finally puts up the first episode this season worth talking about.  Wisely he chooses to ignore the Midwest shenanigans of Muller the dope and Capone the cliché, and somehow even manages to make the otherwise dull-as-dishwater plotline involving Eli’s son at Temple worth watching.

But what was really interesting was the display of ladies tonight: a pawn, a lost soul, a hero, and a Sally saucy as all get out.

After getting into the heroin business with Rothstein, the increasingly crafty Narcisse (the incomparable Jeffrey Wright) uses a beautiful jazz chanteuse as bait to make it seem like he’s smoothing things over with Chalky (Michael K. Williams).  Little does Chalky know, Narcisse is about to turn his man Dunn against him.

Then we have our gal Gillian (the ever-fetching Gretchen Mol) gettin’ all domestic-like with the Office Space/Piggly Wiggly guy (Ron Livingston) only to have Jimmy’s murdered doppelgänger’s friend approach her at the soda shop leading her to shoot up just when things were starting to look rosy.

Meanwhile, out in the portion of the Midwest I give a damn about, Harrow is confronted by the man who hired him to go on that killing spree left incomplete, only to have his sister Emma (Katherine Waterston) come to his rescue.  This turn of events, or course, leads Harrow to have to go on the run again, but at least he knows the stoic and moral Emma can hold her on without him.

Lastly, and most intriguingly, down in Tampa, Nucky lays his ears to the ground and figures his dumb pal Bill is putting up a lousy deal.  A saucy barmaid named Sally (Patricia Arquette – totally money) says some smooth stuff that makes Nucky second-guess his prospects there.  But then his dumb friend puts things all wonky (unbeknownst to Nucky) at the very last minute.

Wait Until Next Week:  I’m starting to really dig this Chalky vs. Narcisse stuff, as well as the theme of Nucky always being the smartest guy in the room only to be foiled by his idiot friends.  Meanwhile…here’s to more Arquette.  And will Margaret and the cheeeeldrun finally make an appearance after getting their first mention this week?

Commentary by David H. Schleicher

To my readers and Boardwalk strollers: Thoughts, reactions, comments?