Peaky Blinders Season 5 Episode 2 Recap – Black Cats

[00:01:00] Tommy was getting ready for his day. He took a sip of dope and noticed something odd in the field outside his mansion. Tommy took a peek through his window and decided to go out there to check it out for himself. He took a machine gun with him and hurried to the field. The phone rang in his office, but he wasn’t there to answer it. He saw a scarecrow dressed like a Peaky Blinder, which had an envelope with his name on it. Tommy opened the envelope and read the letter. It read, “Look down on Earth and see the seeds you have sown.” Tommy looked around and saw a land mine near his feet. He was a few centimeters away from getting blown to bits. Tommy slowly made his way back, checking for mines.

[00:04:00] Tommy saw another mine not far from the scarecrow and decided to end his life. He raised his right hand and planned to punch the mine in order to trigger it. In the end, he hid his hand inside his jacket to stop himself from committing suicide. He heard someone calling out to him, so he looked up. Charlie was running down the field to fetch him. Tommy dropped the machine gun and ran back to stop Charlie. He met Charlie halfway and carried him out of the field. Tommy told Charlie to go back to the house as he caught his breath outside the field. Charlie told Tommy that someone was calling the house, so he had gone out to look for him.

[00:06:00] Tommy smoked a cigarette and decided to go back out on the field for his machine gun. He picked up the machine gun and started shooting the scarecrow. Tommy emptied a full clip in it, but that wasn’t enough. He reloaded the gun and started shooting at the mines. One by one, the mines exploded around him. When he was done, Tommy came back to the mansion and made a call. He asked the operator for the number of the call he had missed earlier. Tommy called the number, and Michael was on the other line. He was tied up to a chair with a gun to his head. A woman named Captain Swing spoke to him instead. She told Tommy that Michael was making deals with people that wanted him dead. Michael shouted that Swing was lying.

[00:08:30] Swing gave Tommy the option of allowing Michael to come home or allowing them to kill him. Tommy opted to send Michael home. He asked Swing why they were doing him a favor. She responded that people from high places had told them about his switch to the social cause, which made him an ally of the angels. After their conversation, Swing ended the call. After a few minutes, Frances entered Tommy’s office to ask him what the explosions were earlier. Tommy told Frances that it was just fireworks. Charlie also came to his office to show him what he had learned from violin classes. Charlie played what he had learned, but it wasn’t very good.

[00:11:30] The next day, Tommy and Arthur went over to the pub, only to find that it was a wreck. There was a whore sleeping on one of the tables. Tommy woke her up and sent her away. Arthur took a glass of whisky and poured it on Finn, who was also sleeping on one of the tables. Tommy ordered Finn to sit down as a sermon was coming. Tommy wanted to know what he needed to do for Finn to do as told. He was running around with a gun in his hand. Finn pointed out that someone needed to run around with a weapon on hand. Arthur told Finn that they had people to do the killing for them. Finn wanted to know what he was to the Peaky Blinders. Tommy told Finn that he was a general because he was a Shelby.

[00:13:30] Tommy told Finn that he shouldn’t be around the blood and puke since he was a general. Arthur seconded Tommy’s statement and told Finn to stand up. Arthur was at his wit’s end with Finn. He was ready to beat him up, but Tommy stopped Arthur. Tommy gave the bullet to Finn and told him that it was the bullet that Aberama had pulled out of his arm. He wanted the bullet to be the first and last for Finn. Arthur told Finn to get cleaned up before he left the pub. Finn told Tommy that he had met a girl and wanted to marry her. Finn wanted to marry the girl because she liked their lifestyle. Tommy told Finn that he needed a girl that hated their lifestyle in order to achieve what Arthur had.

[00:15:00] While Finn got cleaned up, Tommy asked Arthur if Lizzie and Ruby were still at his place. Arthur confirmed this and told Tommy not to worry as they would come home soon enough. Tommy was worried about Michael’s return. He suspected Michael was trying to take over the business and told Arthur to pick Michael up at the Liverpool station with Polly. Tommy told Arthur to bring a weapon. Back at the House of Commons, Adam ran down the corridor to find Tommy. He told Tommy that the police were looking for him. Tommy knew the police weren’t allowed inside the House of Commons, but Adam responded that the policeman looking for him wasn’t in uniform. The officer wanted to question Tommy regarding the death of Mr. Levitt. They had found in Levitt’s diary that he had had a meeting with Tommy the night before he had died.

[00:18:00] Tommy tried to turn things around by asking the officer what he was doing questioning him. He told Tommy that Mr. Levitt was a queer. Tommy didn’t care if Mr. Levitt was a queer; Tommy told the officer that he shouldn’t be asking him about Levitt’s death regardless of what they had found in his diary. The officer was about to tell Tommy about Levitt’s notebook when the clock struck three in the afternoon. Tommy told the officer that his time was up, so he had no choice but to leave. Meanwhile, Michael arrived in Liverpool, where Arthur and Polly were waiting for him. Michael introduced Gina Gray to Polly. He told Polly that the ship captain had married them on board. Polly didn’t care about Gina; she asked Michael about the truth for Tommy. Gina tried to defend Michael; she offered to go home before they talked about business.

[00:20:30] Michael seconded Gina’s idea, but Polly told him that she didn’t have a home unless he told her the truth. Arthur exited the phone booth to welcome Michael and Gina to Birmingham. Polly still wanted to know the truth, so Michael told her what had happened. The ship had docked in Belfast, where two men had taken him off the ship. Gina told Polly that Michael had been taken at gunpoint, but Polly reiterated that she was just talking to her son. Michael took offense at how they were treating him and his wife. The two of them tried to leave, but Arthur stopped them. Michael told Gina that this was his family. Michael shouted at them, saying that he hadn’t betrayed their family. He asked Polly if they could now go home. Tommy’s orders were to bring them to the Midland Hotel.

[00:22:00] Michael told Gina that the hotel was Tommy’s kingdom, where every one of his employees did his bidding and reported anything to Tommy. Arthur told Michael that he could treat his stay at Midland as quarantine until they were sure that he was clean. Michael cursed Arthur. Gina called Michael over to her side, so he could calm down. Polly vouched for Michael in order to end their dispute. Arthur agreed and called Tommy to let him know what had happened. Before Michael and Gina could leave, Polly officially welcomed her into the family. Tommy continued to attend meetings at the House of Commons to further the cause. Ada attended one of the meetings to witness Tommy’s speech first hand. She saw Oswald and knew something wasn’t right about him.

[00:24:30] Later that evening, Ada and Tommy met with Oswald at a pub. Tommy introduced Ada, and she started by explaining she was pregnant. Oswald told Ada that they loved Dangerous people. After a few minutes, Oswald told Tommy that he used to have a horse named Dangerous. Ada was curious as to how Oswald knew about the horse. He told them that they had a mutual acquaintance in May Carleton. Ada wanted to know what May had told Oswald; however, he asked Tommy if they could speak in private. Tommy told Oswald that Ada was his political advisor. Ada told Oswald that her political advice was not to meet with him in the first place. Their talk went from politics to Irish scotch to Ireland itself. Ada told Oswald that she had had enough and wanted to leave.

[00:27:00] Oswald tried to offer Tommy a proposition about Ireland, but he turned it down and left with Ada. As soon as they left, Tommy told Ada to investigate Michael’s dealings in Boston. He knew that there was a traitor in their midst and thought it was Michael. Tommy went back to Birmingham to meet Michael along with Polly and Arthur. Polly would be the middle man of their meeting. She asked Arthur and Tommy to take out their weapons and empty them to ensure no one got hurt once emotions ran high. Arthur and Tommy obliged, but he told Polly about his black cat dream. He knew that the black cat dream meant that there was a traitor among them. Polly told Tommy that the dream could mean a lot of things, but Tommy stuck to his beliefs. Michael and Gina arrived, so Polly let them in the pub.

[00:30:00] Michael introduced Tommy to Gina and went straight to business. He confessed that he had betrayed Tommy, but only in his heart. There was a time back in America that Michael had thought about stealing from the company and moving to California. Michael wasn’t done explaining when Tommy cut him off and told him to sit down. He sat down with Gina while Tommy asked him to explain the events that had transpired at Belfast harbor. Michael told Tommy that he had decided to marry Gina on board, but they needed a witness. A man from Belfast got friendly with them and decided to stand as a witness for their marriage. The man told Michael that he knew a bunch of people making whisky from Glasgow and wanted assistance in moving their product into America. Michael saw a business opportunity and told the man to invite them onboard.

[00:32:30] When they got onboard, Michael realized that they were Scottish and didn’t make whisky. Things got heated, so Michael asked Gina to leave. That was when the Scotts had started swearing and talking about Tommy. They told Michael that Tommy was too caught up in politics, that now was the best time to take over the family business. They wanted to know if Michael was with them, but before he could respond, the coppers had arrived. Michael had thought they were coppers, but in reality, they were with the IRA, who had phoned Tommy as soon as they got Michael. Captain Swing told Michael that the men from Glasgow were called The Billy Boys. Arthur knew who the Billy Boys were. Polly also knew that Michael didn’t know who the Billy Boys were. Michael told them that he was too excited to tell them the good news.

[00:34:00] Michael had married Gina because she was pregnant, which meant that Polly was going to be a grandmother. Tommy believed Michael; however, he threatened to kill his unborn child if he found out that Michael was lying. Michael took offense and tried to get in Tommy’s face. Arthur stopped Michael and pushed him back. Tommy told Michael that he had lost the company a lot of money by not listening to him. He wanted Michael to pay him back with work for the company. Tommy pointed out that he had been close with Michael previously, and he wanted him closer than ever before. Gina stepped in and convinced Michael that Tommy needed his help. She invited Michael to leave, and Polly followed them. Tommy wasn’t mad anymore after hearing Michael’s explanation. He told Arthur that a black cat dream wasn’t wrong, and he intended to find the traitor.

[00:36:00] Aberama was cooking stew when he felt something was off. He stood up and stared at the woods behind him. All of a sudden, someone shot him in the shoulder. Men started singing and came out of the woods with a wooden cross. They were singing a hymn introducing themselves as the Billy Boys. They dragged the wooden cross into the camp as Bonnie came out of the wagon with a sawed-off shotgun. The Billy Boys told him to drop the weapon, but he didn’t listen. They beat Bonnie and tied him to the wooden cross. Aberama wasn’t able to do anything as one of the Billy Boys kept him pinned to the ground. They released Aberama only for him to witness the death of his son. He did his best to get up and defend Bonnie, but he couldn’t.

[00:39:00] Jimmy of the Billy Boys shot Bonnie in the face ensuring a swift death. He told Aberama to deliver a message to Tommy. It was time to share, or he would be next to be crucified. Jimmy told Aberama that they would take the racing tracks for their own. Aberama couldn’t do anything but wince in pain as he stared at Bonnie’s lifeless body on the cross. Meanwhile, Arthur, Finn, and Isaiah went to the Garrison Pub to hear Billy Grade sing. Arthur introduced Finn and Billy to each other and offered him a drink. Billy objected to drinking, but Arthur convinced him. He remembered the days when Billy had made a living on football fields. Billy thanked Arthur for inviting him to sing at the Garrison pub, but he hadn’t invited Billy to sing.

[00:43:00] Billy asked Arthur what he really wanted. Arthur made Finn explain why they had invited Billy over. He also threatened Billy using Isaiah if he didn’t cooperate. Finn told Billy to write a name and number beside each football team’s name on a piece of paper. Isaiah explained that they were trying to fix football matches and needed his help. Billy didn’t have a choice. He started writing, and Finn welcomed him to the Peaky Blinders. Arthur returned home to find Linda telling him about a letter that she had written. Arthur wanted to read the letter, but Linda hadn’t finished it yet. She added that she was no longer drinking, and she had thrown all the cocaine down the drain. Arthur was doing his best not to get mad at Linda. Arthur asked if the letter was about him. Linda confirmed that it was about him, their future, and the company’s future.

[00:46:00] Arthur blew self-control out the window. He confronted Linda about her letter and her plans with Lizzie. Linda told Arthur that Tommy had blown all their money overseas and had now settled into fixing horse races and football matches. Arthur told Linda that all she needed to do was be a good wife. Linda told Arthur that she had written two letters and was deciding which of the two she would give him. Since Arthur had thrown the first letter to the fire, Linda was left with no choice but to give him the second letter. Arthur lost it as he asked Linda what the second letter was. Meanwhile, Lizzie also confronted Tommy and asked him about her letter. Tommy responded that he had burned the letter, but he had read it first. Lizzie told Tommy that Arthur had burned the letter without reading it.

[00:48:00] Lizzie told Tommy that it was Ruby’s birthday today. She had taken her to Arthur’s because she was afraid of Tommy. Ruby knew that Tommy wasn’t coming home, which always set her in a bad mood. Lizzie was about to leave when Tommy called her back. Tommy explained things about his moods and his PTSD that he couldn’t write in a letter. He told her that things were the same for Arthur. Lizzie responded that she would take over the company legitimately since she was his wife. She just wanted assurance that there would be something left of the company to take over. Tommy told Lizzie that he was still alive and, therefore, she didn’t need to worry about the company yet. The phone rang, and Tommy sent Lizzie away to answer it.

[00:51:30] Lizzie, Charles, and Ruby celebrated her birthday in the drawing-room away from Tommy. He continued his investigation into Michael and his dealings over the last few years in America. Arthur returned home, drunk, only to find a letter on top of their fireplace. Tommy heard a car pulling up in their driveway. Lizzie heard the car too, so she pulled Charles and Ruby to bed. Charles wanted to know who was coming, but that was the point. They didn’t know who was coming. Tommy took out his machine gun and waited by the door. Johnny Dogs fell out of the passenger side while Aberama got out of the driver’s side. He told Tommy that Johnny Dogs was a traitor. Meanwhile, Charles went to the door to see what Tommy was up to.

[00:53:30] Johnny Dogs told Tommy that Aberama had gone mad. Tommy asked Aberama if he had injured Johnny Dogs. He confessed that he had done it with one arm and a hammer. Aberama told Tommy that his son was dead. Tommy wanted to know who had killed Bonnie, so Aberama took out a piece of paper and threw it at Tommy’s foot. Tommy took the paper and opened it. It stated, “By order of the Billy Boys,” making a mockery of their catchphrase, “By order of the Peaky Blinders.” Aberama continued to accuse Johnny Dogs of being a traitor because only he had known where the two of them were camped. Tommy stopped Aberama from killing Johnny. He tried to convince Aberama to leave Johnny Dogs alone and avenge his son’s death the proper way. Aberama picked up Tommy’s machine gun, but before he could kill Johnny Dogs, Lizzie came out of the house.

[00:55:00] Lizzie carried a pistol with her and fired two warning shots. She declared the house was hers and told them to leave. She told Tommy never to return as she feared for the safety of her children. Tommy approached Lizzie and took the pistol from her. He took the machine gun from Aberama and told him that they would take down the Billy Boys. Tommy told Lizzie to call an ambulance for both Johnny Dogs and Aberama. Tommy helped Johnny up from the pavement. He told Tommy that he wasn’t a black cat. Tommy acknowledged Johnny Dogs and told him that he was the only one he could trust.