Peaky Blinders: Season 1 Episode 1 Review

So, I have to admit that people have been telling me to watch Peaky Blinders for years, but, somehow, I never got around to it, which is strange because, on the surface, Peaky Blinders is everything I like in television. It's a period drama, set in England, with a dark, brooding, leading man; I should love it, right? Well, I'm not sure why I resisted watching it for so long because this show is FAN-TASTIC. I mean, I've only seen the first episode at this point, but I can already tell that it is really and truly wonderful.

First of all, where has Cillian Murphy been all my life? How is he like the best actor ever, and I've never heard of him? Maybe he's big in the UK and not so much in the US? Or maybe I've been living under a rock? I don't know. (After I saw him in this show, I did look up his filmography, and I realized that I must have seen him in Girl with a Pearl Earring, In the Heart of the Sea, and Cold Mountain, but I haven't seen any of those movies in a while.) Anyway, I think he should be in every single movie because he's just. so. good. Plus, I'm pretty sure he has the most beautiful eyes that I have ever seen on a human being. 

THEY'RE SO BLUE!

I also have to say (because I love clothes and cosmetics and all of that) that I love the way they styled Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy) for this show. I mean, I love the way that they styled all of the characters, but him especially. I don't know what it is about that haircut, but it gives me LIFE! I also feel like Ada is going to be a fashion ICON in this show. I love her flapper style already. 

Anyway, I guess I should describe this episode a bit. To start off, we're introduced to the Shelby family who run a criminal gang called the Peaky Blinders (because they have razor blades in their hats, which seems like a better way to injure yourself than to injure other people, but I digress). The Peaky Blinders (which I think I'm going to abbreviate to PB because my fingers are getting tired of typing Peaky Blinders) are involved in horse races, theft, and general mobster-esque activities. However, it doesn't seem like they've been in involved in any big crimes until this episode, when Tommy confesses to his Aunt Polly that his men accidentally stole a crate of guns that the British government was sending overseas.

Apparently, this is a pretty big deal because the government sends an Irish cop who worked on breaking up the IRA after the guns. We've only met this guy on screen a couple of times, but already I can tell that he's really going to annoy me. He has a certain smugness about him. And I do not like smugness. 

Around the same time, a new barmaid turns up at the PB's pub. Her name is Grace, and I have a feeling that she's going to be Tommy's love interest in this show. I mean, he introduces himself to her with such romantic words ("are you a whore? If not, you shouldn't be he here.").  Unfortunately, she also works for the Irish cop (I have yet to learn his name), and is passing info about the PBs to him, so I'm sure that won't create any problems at all (heavy sarcasm in case you couldn't tell). 

We also learn in this episode that Ada, Tommy's sister, is having some sort of fling with a local communist leader, who has some sort of history with Tommy, although I don't have a good grasp of that plot point yet. 

Speaking of backstory, most all of the men in the show seem to have served in WWI, and it definitely casts a shadow over all of them. There's one guy in particular named Danny who is clearly suffering from severe PTSD. While he's having some sort of flashback, he accidentally kills an Italian man, and Tommy is forced to "kill" him to prevent a war with another gang. Once you know that Tommy didn't actually shot Danny, his "death" scene has some dark humor. I love that Danny asks him not to bury him any place muddy when there is mud literally everywhere in this show.

Anyway, as I said, I'm loving this show so far. It reminds me majorly of one of my favorite shows of all time, Sons of Anarchy. Aunt Polly and Gemma are like twins separated at birth, and Tommy Shelby gives me major Jax Teller vibes; although, to be fair, he makes Jax look like a happy-go-lucky dude with a sunny personality. Jax is definitely more outwardly compassionate in season one of SOA, but I have a feeling that we'll eventually see a softer side to Tommy. But, right now, he's ICE COLD, and I like it. 

Rating: 8/10