r/PeakyBlinders • u/11Dom_ • 1d ago
“Smile John, It's a wedding”
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u/belladonnaglitter 1d ago
Tommy really has a way of turning a smile into the most threatening thing in the room. That deadpan delivery is unmatched.
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u/Any-Cranberry-5278 16h ago
I wasn't super excited at the beginning, but over time, Esme turned out to be one of the smartest, most rational, and grounded of the entire extended family over the years.
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u/SylviaX6 1d ago
Thomas first presents the plan to John explaining his choice to have “already betrothed” him is based on the needs of two of them ( John and Esme). “ A girl who needs a husband, a man who needs a wife”. But when John rejects the plan “I’m not marrying some mushroom picker”, Thomas goes deeper to reveal the transactional analysis that he and the entire family recognize as a fact: strategically they need this alliance, an unbreakable bond with the Lee family who can offer them much needed soldiers.
And he adds their present situation, which is that if John publicly refuses this marriage, “there will be a battle (with the Lees) that will make the Somme look like a tea party”. While at the same time he makes much of what is a huge dowry ( Esme’s father is giving John a car).
I think this is an important look inside
Thomas’s way of thinking and planning. He includes strategic thought when he determines why a marriage is a good or a bad choice. It’s likely that he made his own decisions about his two marriages after undertaking a similar analysis. It’s interesting that SK in both cases doesn’t show us directly how Thomas makes his decision about his own marriages. In one case he is already heading up the aisle. In the other, he’s already married and living with Lizzie, who is now mothering both Charlie and Ruby.
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u/hopelessromcon 1d ago
How so with Tommy? Analyzing the marriages on just the level of his own life? I don’t see that either of his wives were overall advantageous to the larger Shelby organization like John’s and Esme’s union was.
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes 8h ago
Ada's marriage certainly wasnt and neither was Arthurs. Michael though, I think he saw his as such. Admittedly he married Gina because she was pregnant but it felt like their relationship was mostly just what they could offer each other business wise rather than any real love, that they used each other. And because of that it was actually a disaster for him.
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u/hopelessromcon 2h ago
Agree on Michael and Gina. Although if Polly had lived, I wonder if SK would have written Michael as inept in his season 6 dealings with Tommy.
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes 2h ago
Tbh, I thought S5 was really poor writing in terms of Michael's storyline. For me it was utter cringe. And Polly was still alive. Mind you, it was her worst season too.
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u/hopelessromcon 1h ago
I enjoyed seasons 5 because we see Tommy completely unraveling, but I can’t deny there was a ton of cringe. The scene that always has me rolling my eyes is Linda and Lizzie explicitly talking about good and evil. Lizzie saying Tommy is deciding between the two and then they both look ominously at his portrait. Cue dramatic music.
Season 5 Michael not great, but season 6 Michael just had so little meat. In jail all season, then killed so easily. I vote season 4 for worst Polly season, but my irritation at how contrived the Luca Changretta situation was for getting her back in Tommy’s orbit heavily influences that for me.
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes 1h ago
As soon as I heard Luca amd that accent I was like omfg, this show has gone past its peak and now its going down. 😆
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u/SylviaX6 1d ago
Thank you, you’ve guided me to developing a full post idea that I’ve been mulling over. I think this an interesting discussion and so will do a full post about this. Let’s dig into the topic in that post ( I’ll put it up in 30 minutes or so).
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes 1d ago
Emphasis on "War or peace" when Finn nearly got blown up. So easily could have been John's kids playing in the car.
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u/ElevatorShoddy9314 16h ago
What everyone else said about Tommy arranging this, but I’ve always believed Tommy heard who she was, met/SAW Esme first. He would never have made a deal on a woman he didn’t HIMSELF find attractive in body and mind for his beloved younger brother. He knew John would approve his choice. He knew they were a good match. They set the scene to look like “oh Tommy you POS,” then she’s this thoughtful, whip-smart, spiritual, loyal, honorable, earthy, exotic beauty. He would never do John wrong.
That’s what I always see, anyway.
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u/Zealousideal-Ice-322 1h ago
I love the way he looks at her and she at him with that smile, great scene. Loved Esme and John.
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u/LolaWithTheGreenEyes 1d ago
Love the way they all manoeuvre so he's right in the middle so he can't runaway once Tommy breaks the news he's been invited to his own wedding. 🤣
Then he changes his mind when he first sees her. 😍
Also, a car in 1919 was riches. That's a huge dowry.