I'm often late to the OTT party. A nephew had recommended Peaky Blinders (on Netflix) to me a while back and recently I started to watch it at long last. It is a story about the underworld and protection mafias and bootleggers, so normally I wouldn’t be interested. However, it is a period drama, for which I'm something of a sucker. The series has interesting characters and a gripping narrative. Now, these Peaky Blinders memes make sense:
This is a series where your sympathies lie with the guys on the wrong side of the law because the really nasty guy is the top cop.
Thomas Shelby heads his clan and all his dealings are shady, he does not hesitate to double-cross people when it suits him. But he’ll do anything for his family, is a very shrewd strategist and… well he has baggage. Plus he looks like this. Needless to say, he is the mainstay of the show.
He is the ambitious criminal looking to grow his enterprise. He has all the vices, but you know how audiences like a bad boy? That.
He served in the world war and is a decorated hero. Death doesn’t scare him but he has nightmares and possibly PTSD – a complex, layered character.
The women are far from being the weaker sex in this series. Polly, Ada, Grace are strong, they run the ‘business’, offer sound advice, and are generally quite badass.
The series is simply brimming with toxic masculinity and much of the violence is gratuitous. As for the racial and communal stereotypes… the series is replete with those as well.
The series currently has 5 seasons of 6 one-hour-long episodes each on Netflix. It is certified as binge-worthy by those who know about that sort of thing. There is also a sixth and final season which is not yet available.
The setting is that of post first world war England with its grimy streets and the old fashioned automobiles and the fashion of the time.
Like all good mafia-related stories – the story is about blood being thicker than water, loyalty, betrayal, vengeance, scheming, love, hate…
The accents are thick in Peaky Blinders and can be difficult to decipher – thank goodness for the subtitles.
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