While I still can’t completely warm up to HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire,” Sunday night’s Season 4 premiere promises a slate of exciting new episodes coming down the pike.
I’ve never found the series particularly compelling — maybe there are just too many “era” shows on TV — but Sunday’s opener paces itself nicely as we revisit the world of Atlantic City bootlegging king Nucky Thompson (Steve Buscemi).
When we last left Nucky, he’d consolidated his power in Atlantic City after settling a few old scores, particularly with Gyp Rosetti (Bobby Cannavale), who was dispatched to kingdom come while relieving himself on the beach.
“I want peace. That’s all,” Nucky says at the start of Sunday’s episode, but it’s unlikely he’ll find it anytime soon. It’s now early 1924, and with Chicago crime boss Al Capone (Stephen Graham) feeling his oats and thinking big, it looks like Nucky will have his hands full.
Meanwhile, he has to deal with the messy aftermath of Dunn Purnsley’s (Eric LaRay Harvey) run-in with one of Owney Madden’s henchmen, while marksman Richard Harrow (Jack Huston) — he of the disturbingly scarred face, thanks to a war injury — is on a bloody rampage.
Hardcore fans will appreciate the interwoven, intricate storylines, and what the show lacks in “oomph” is partly compensated for by terrific cinematography and solid acting. For diehards only.