The essential episodes of Boardwalk Empire
Watch these 15 in order and you've got Boardwalk Empire — each pick states its reason.
- 01
January, 1920. On the eve of Prohibition, Atlantic City's duplicitous Treasurer, Nucky Thompson, plots to make huge profits selling bootleg liquor. Later, he flirts with Margaret Schroeder, a pretty, pregnant wife with an abusive husband, and assures WWI vet Jimmy Darmody that his new job will lead to bigger things.
- 02
Nucky's attempts to usher in a joyous St. Patrick's Day are undermined by Eli, Margaret & Van Alden. In New York, Arnold Rothstein worries about his involvement in the fixed World Series, while in Chicago, Jimmy copes with the aftermath of a vicious attack orchestrated by Torrio rival Charlie Sheridan.
- 03
Nucky is forced to readjust his political alliances because of a Democratic mayoral candidate promising to wipe out corruption. Jimmy returns from Chicago to deal with the D'Alessio gang, which has allied with Rothstein to import Scotch from Europe through Atlantic City, but is arrested by Agent Van Alden for the massacre in the woods. Margaret intercedes with Nucky on Madame Jeunet's behalf, while Angela finds her romantic and artistic ambitions halted by Jimmy's return.
- 04
Nucky asks for Margaret's assistance in backing his mayoral candidate with the passage of women's right to vote, leaving her conflicted about her expanding role as his mistress. Doyle switches sides back from Rothstein to Nucky, which leads him to conspire with Chalky against Lansky and the D'Alessios. Angela witnesses Jimmy's violent side against her photographer friend, and plans a better future with his wife. Van Alden grapples with his emotions, and has forceful encounters with both Margaret and Lucy.
- 05
Nucky has emotionally charged conversations with both Margaret and Eli over his business and the killing of Margaret's husband, leading to dramatic shake-ups in his personal and political lives. Jimmy meets with his dying father for the first time in years, and in the process reevaluates his relationships with Nucky and both his parents. Van Alden and Agent Sebso's working relationship is pushed to the limit by Van Alden's suspicions, ending after a definitive confrontation at a river baptism. Angela prepares to flee from Jimmy to Paris, but learns her support system is not as strong as she believed.
- 06
Nucky faces Election Day in Atlantic City and pulls out all the stops to keep power in Republican hands. Torrio brokers a discussion between Nucky and Rothstein to resolve their growing gang war, as well as Rothstein's looming federal indictment over the World Series. Both Jimmy and Eli voice their growing resentment towards Nucky, and find they have an ally in the equally embittered Commodore. Van Alden seeks a sign on whether or not to leave Atlantic City, but receives unexpected news from Lucy. Margaret weighs new information about Nucky's first marriage and her uncertain future to make a final decision on her role in his life.
- 07
After paying lip service to his enemies, Nucky introduces a surprise guest speaker at a Memorial Day dedication for war veterans. With his options dwindling, Eli questions his allegiances, but ends up digging himself a deeper hole. Nucky gets a new lawyer; Jimmy is taught a painful lesson by a Commodore crony; Richard goes hunting deep in the forest.
- 08
Nucky orchestrates a risky liquor delivery in Philadelphia; Attorney General Daugherty faces a quandary that could complicate Nucky's case; Jimmy finds a new mentor in Leander Whitlock, the Commodore's longtime lawyer; Margaret confesses her sins; Lucy struggles in solitude, while Van Alden wrestles with his conscience.
- 09
Undercut by Nucky, who has a new source for alcohol, Jimmy and his partners look to cultivate a new revenue stream in Atlantic City. With the peak tourist season approaching, the Commodore's crew faces a choice in dealing with the city's striking workers: to negotiate or to fight back. Margaret approaches Father Brennan fearing that sin has led to misfortune.
- 10
Under God's Power She Flourishes
With Margaret pondering the consequences of sin, Nucky prepares her for a worst case scenario as Esther Randolph plays out her trump cards. Jimmy revisits his college days with Angela and Gillian; Mickey Doyle chafes at sharing his liquor profits; Eli refuses to cop a plea; and Nelson's past comes back to haunt him, tipping the scale in Nucky's favor.
- 11
Gillian makes her peace with Jimmy's death, though not with Nucky, as Gyp arrives to play ally. Working off his debt to O'Banion, Van Alden attends a meeting with Capone and Torrio; Nucky pays an unscheduled visit to Andrew Mellon; Margaret makes a stand on birth control; Nucky and Owen shop for a birthday pony; Billie eyes a future on the silver screen, to Nucky's chagrin.
- 12
Nucky reaches out to Gaston Means to keep Jess Smith quiet in Washington, and enlists Owen to neutralize Gyp's alliance with Joe Masseria in New York. Margaret considers an alternate future; Van Alden's side business backfires; Gyp fumes when a shipment comes up short; Harrow coerces an apology for Julia; Chalky sees opportunity in the ashes of a boardwalk institution.
- 13
Gyp makes his move in Atlantic City, forcing Nucky and Eddie to seek refuge with Chalky. With the Artemis Club overrun by Rosetti thugs, Gillian contemplates a business future that includes an unwelcome partner. Luciano makes a deal he'll come to regret; Harrow loses his house privileges.
- 14
Nucky heads to Philadelphia to deal with the fallout from Willie's liquor fiasco. Eddie Kessler is detained by Agent Knox, who uses physical and psychological tactics to elicit information about Nucky's organization. A desperate Gillian turns to an unexpected source to score a fix, and is rebuffed in her attempt to reunite with Tommy. In Cicero, Van Alden is recruited by the Capones to pay an election day visit to factory workers who are opposed to the Capones' candidate of choice.
- 15
After a shakeup, Nucky looks to relocate to Manhattan from Atlantic City. Margaret impresses Nucky and a grain company stockholder; Luciano tends to unfinished business while establishing a mob commission; Willie shares underworld details with his boss, the U.S. Attorney; Nucky visits Gillian at the hospital. In 1897, Nucky copes with a family crisis, while making a deal with the Commodore that will settle his future.
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