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Review: #SOAFX Sons of Anarchy, S4, Ep 403 “Dorylus” (Flesh-eating ants & a game of hoops gone wrong)

Air Date: Tuesday, September 20, 2011 10:00 PM E/P on FX

Rating ★★★★★

Before I jump into the main characters, I must comment on the “tiny” guest stars this episode is aptly named for. If you’re squeamish or hate bugs, I recommend you skip the next paragraph of my review. If you haven’t seen the episode, you may want to have a vomit bag handy when watching.

Dorylus is a genus of African and Asian predatory nomadic ants often referred to as driver or safari ants. “Their bite is severely painful, each soldier leaving two puncture wounds when removed. Removal is difficult, however, as their jaws are extremely strong, and one can pull a soldier ant in two without it releasing its hold. Large numbers of ants can kill small or immobilized animals and eat the flesh. A large part of their diet is earthworms.” [http://medlibrary.org/medwiki/Dorylus]

After seeing how the Wahewa Indians deal with their Russian POW, I am even more grossed out by ants than ever. Remind me to never visit any East African or tropical Asian areas. So how did the Wahewas get these flesh-eating ants to the reservation? Are they cultivating them specifically for this purpose? I think I’d rather be shot.

Kozik (Kenny Johnson) gets his ass handed to him by two teenage thugs after a game of hoops, subsequently losing the truck of Russian guns meant for the Galindo Cartel. Even though Kozik shoots great hoops, he took his eye off the real ball – the guns. If you’re in an MC that’s just made a huge deal with a very well connected drug cartel, a $10-a-point game of hoops is chump change in the grander scheme. I don’t blame Jax (Charlie Hunnam) for being so upset.

Mark Boone Junior as Bobby

They eventually learn another local entrepreneur’s two sons Luther (Damion Poitier) and Vandross (Carl McDowell) were trying to score a side gig without mama Vivica (guest star Marianne Jean-Baptiste) knowing. First of all, their names are Luther and Vandross. That right there makes me not take them seriously. I wonder if we’ll be seeing more of Vivica and her sons.

“You’ve got my word.” Maybe it’s me but Clay’s (Ron Perlman) word is becoming worthless. It may escape someone like Charlie Horse (Randolph Mantooth) who doesn’t know Clay intimately but Bobby (Mark Boone Junior) ain’t no fool. At first, the secretive hush-hush quality time Clay initiates seems legit. I almost believe Clay when he says he wants to give Bobby the President’s patch after he steps down, but after telling Charlie he’s not up-charging the ammo he’s selling to the Galindo Cartel by giving his “word,” I feel the air in my balloon hissing out.

Clay wants to make as much money as he can so he and Gemma (Katey Sagal) have a nest egg but he’s going against the rules set forth by the club – no drugs. Is it wrong I keep thinking there’s a code book for bikers like the one Morgan and Bartholomew wrote for pirates? Clay says they’re mules and not dealing, but the way drugs have touched some members of the club runs deep. I do find it ironic that they’re ok with gun running and killing but say “no” to drugs.  Of course, Gemma is unaware of what’s going on, that is until Piney (William Lucking) chimes in. This doesn’t bode well with Clay. Not only does Clay get a little forceful with Gemma, he threatens Piney, “I’ll slit your throat.” I guess he’s losing his grip on more than just his handle-bars.

Are you surprised to learn Juice’s (Theo Rossi) father is “black?” And, by the way Sheriff Roosevelt (Rockmond Dunbar) speaks about him – he is of the darker variety. I know Clay says the club doesn’t have a problem with “color” but they still don’t have any black members. Roosevelt holds this over Juice’s head because no one in the club knows Juice’s true ethnicity. I’d like to think the guys wouldn’t care after all Juice has done for the club, but you never know. True colors don’t always bleed loyalty.

Rockmond Dunbar as Sheriff Roosevelt

I love Dunbar as Sheriff even though he’s a little ruthless. I was surprised in last week’s episode, “Booster,” with his inability to restrain from smashing up the club house. I know finding four dead bodies after standing guard all night is like someone shitting on your front lawn, but I was expecting him to be more calculating and less retaliatory. He’s letting the cracks in his armor show.

I’m so over the letters right now. Tara (Maggie Siff) has them and with all Gemma’s snooping and unannounced visits to her office, Tara knows she knows. Confused? Join the club. Tara needs to take a note from Gemma and learn how to lie better. There is more to the mystery – something Gemma is trying to cover up by throwing a red herring into the mix. She reveals the truth about Jax’s father, John Teller (voiced by Nicholas Guest), and his secret life with Maureen (Paula Malcomson) in Belfast, Ireland, hoping this will curb Tara’s curiosity. What I find even stranger is Tara’s boss revealing that Tara wanted to leave town two months ago for a job in Rhode Island. Two months ago Jax was still in prison. If Tara was planning to leave, was she planning on leaving before Jax got out of prison? The plot thickens.

Tune in to Sons of Anarchy, Tuesdays at 10:00 PM E/P only on FX.

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Judy Manning

Dream chaser extraordinaire! Judy tends to be a tad sarcastic and kind of goofy! She is an avid admirer of all things supernatural, paranormal, celestial and mystical. She loves to read, write, and watches way too much TV. She enjoys many genres of film and music (and let's be honest, most music from the 80s). She also has a wicked sweet tooth. Cupcakes beware.

Judy Manning

Dream chaser extraordinaire! Judy tends to be a tad sarcastic and kind of goofy! She is an avid admirer of all things supernatural, paranormal, celestial and mystical. She loves to read, write, and watches way too much TV. She enjoys many genres of film and music (and let's be honest, most music from the 80s). She also has a wicked sweet tooth. Cupcakes beware.