Chris: It was
like a tease when he beat the shit out of Gemma and you're like "Alright, Jax,
go get him!" and to have that a second time... it was very manipulative. Speaking
of manipulative, Gemma was in full form this whole season. I was thinking about
questions about her and I was like "Man, she just has everyone wrapped around
her finger." Unser will do anything for her. Tig has that motherly thing,
Oedipus almost with her. Bobby, too. Gemma has so much sway over everyone. Tara... that war is going to be something to
watch. But giving Gemma just kind of this depth to control all these different
characters... she's the master manipulator.
Kurt: Yeah, and I
think again Gemma would never see herself as a manipulator. In her mind, she's
just doing what she needs to do to protect her family. I think that people are
drawn to Gemma because she's strong and incredibly nurturing. It's what makes
Katey so great at the role because it's so natural to her. She has that
nurturing, maternal energy and she really is the mother to all these guys. Like
the scene we did last season with Chibs. When Chibs breaks down it's like
that's who she is for these guys. Yes, it's manipulation, but there's something
these guys get out of it as well because they go to her for that level of
comfort and trust. There's things about all these guys that probably Gemma is the
only one who knows. I love the idea that Tara says to her "I'm smarter than you
are" and Gemma has not really dealt with many people who are smarter than she
is. She's ultimately created a little
bit of a Frankenstein with Tara and what does that look like?
Chris: I love
that scene. That line, I was going to talk to you about it. Tara has learned so
much from Gemma and you can see that as her character developed over the
seasons. And even how wardrobe plays a factor. That black tank top on Tara?
She's badass, man. When she says "I'm smarter" it was one of those things where
you're pitting experience versus smarts and that's going to be a hell of a war
to watch.
Kurt: Yeah,
that'll be fun. The interesting thing for me is once Tara knew what Gemma was
doing and knew she would take out those letters and let Jax read them... but also
she realizes she has the ultimate leverage against Gemma. Even though the
letters are gone, yes Clay knows it, but Jax wouldn't believe anything Clay
said at this point. But he would absolutely believe something Tara told him. So
Tara realizes she has the ultimate leverage on Gemma. She has the capacity to take away what Gemma
loves most. To me, it's what sort of gives her that ultimate sense of
empowerment which is basically "now you're my bitch." Don't forget, at the end
of the season Tara's in an incredibly dark place. She won't be there forever,
so it's not like next season Tara will revert back to the old Tara. She'll
definitely be impacted all the things that happened this season. She's got a
little ways to go before she becomes Gemma and I don't know if Tara has the
capacity to be Gemma. She's smart enough and can be manipulative enough...
Chris: She's a
doctor.
Kurt: She's a
healer and yet to me, I put it this way... When she slides that needle to Jax and
says this is how you kill Clay. If it was Gemma, the needle would already be in
Clay's tube. There wouldn't be any middle man, she'd just go and get the fucking
job done. And to me, that's something Tara does not yet have the capacity to
do. I think it flies in the face of everything she's tried to become over the
last 10-12 years. So it'll be a different kind of struggle. It won't be am I in
or am I out? It'll be I'm in and how do I rectify that? Not unlike the journey
that Jax will have in terms of now that I'm at the head of the table, how do I
rectify that? So it'll be a different kind of struggle, but it'll still be a
struggle. It's not like she's a
completely different person.
Chris: I like the
fact that in the finale love factors in. Tara needs the affirmation not only
from Jax, but from Gemma, because even though they're rivals, as a wife and
mother tend to be, there is love there. That makes it more fascinating because
it's more human. One question, though. How is a sober Wendy going to stand up
against the combined forces of Tara and Gemma?
Kurt: I don't
know. I don't know what that story is. I know I've signed Drea up for six and
we did two this season, so I'll have her for at least four next season. I just
love the actress and I think it's an interesting character. I'm not quite sure
if we'll ultimately pit her against those two. I don't know if that's a fair
fight, but I think it's something to definitely play out with the reality of
who she is and her role in all of that. So, I'm not quite sure what her story
will be but we'll definitely bring her back for a few.
