Family Limitation
Encyclopedia
"Family Limitation" is the sixth episode of the first season of the HBO television series Boardwalk Empire, which premiered October 24, 2010. It was written by supervising producer Howard Korder
and directed by executive producer Tim Van Patten
.
Kelly MacDonald
received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in this episode.
, Nucky suspects Luciano
is behind it.
Lucky, who is sleeping with Gillian, confides in her his problem with impotence. He is informed by Rothstein that Gillian is not Jimmy's wife, but rather his mother.
Margaret Schroeder asks Mrs. McGarry at The Temperance League for advice on a "financial, domestic, sexual" offer she’s received from a man (Nucky). McGarry advises her to do as she sees fit and gives her a copy of Margaret Sanger
's pamphlet Family Limitation.
In Chicago, Jimmy talks to Torrio
about the truce he is contemplating with Sheridan. He tells him that if they call a truce, they'll look weak. While meeting with Sheridan and his men, Jimmy and Al ambush them with guns that were hidden with their coats. They kill all four of them. Back at Johnny's hotel, Jimmy is getting praise from Torrio which angers Al
. This anger grows as Jimmy ridicules Al for his war record. Al later goes to visit Jimmy in his room and informs him his son is deaf and politely mentions that he didn't appreciate Jimmy making fun of him.
In Jersey, Margaret is at home with Nucky who offers her a new home and promises to provide for her. She accepts and moves away from her home. She later quits her job at La Belle Femme after a row with Lucy. But she later realizes that it isn't at all what she expected after Nucky stands her up.
Eli brings in Lucky who tells Nucky he doesn't know about the theft. Nucky doesn't believe him and sends him away.
Meanwhile, Van Alden discovers a picture of Margaret in her immigration records; upon discovering that the photo depicts her as a 16-year-old he performs self-mortification
on himself with his belt.
The A.V. Club
gave it a B+ rating.
Howard Korder
Howard Korder is an American screenwriter and playwright. He is the author of the 1988 coming-of-age play Boy's Life, which earned him a Pulitzer Prize for Drama nomination. His play Search and Destroy was adapted into a film in 1995. Among the screenplays he has written are The Passion of Ayn...
and directed by executive producer Tim Van Patten
Tim Van Patten
Tim Van Patten is an American television director, actor, screenwriter, and producer. As a director, Van Patten has directed episodes of The Sopranos, The Wire, Deadwood, Boardwalk Empire, Rome, The Pacific, Game of Thrones, Ed, and Sex and the City. Van Patten is perhaps best known for portraying...
.
Kelly MacDonald
Kelly Macdonald
Kelly Macdonald is a Scottish actress, known for her role in the independent film Trainspotting and mainstream releases such as Nanny McPhee, Gosford Park, Intermission, No Country for Old Men and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2...
received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in this episode.
Plot
Two of the D'Alessio brothers rob one of Nucky's bagmen on the Boardwalk in broad daylight. Because the thieves are perceived to be ItalianItalian American
An Italian American , is an American of Italian ancestry. The designation may also refer to someone possessing Italian and American dual citizenship...
, Nucky suspects Luciano
Lucky Luciano
Charlie "Lucky" Luciano was an Italian mobster born in Sicily. Luciano is considered the father of modern organized crime in the United States for splitting New York City into five different Mafia crime families and the establishment of the first commission...
is behind it.
Lucky, who is sleeping with Gillian, confides in her his problem with impotence. He is informed by Rothstein that Gillian is not Jimmy's wife, but rather his mother.
Margaret Schroeder asks Mrs. McGarry at The Temperance League for advice on a "financial, domestic, sexual" offer she’s received from a man (Nucky). McGarry advises her to do as she sees fit and gives her a copy of Margaret Sanger
Margaret Sanger
Margaret Higgins Sanger was an American sex educator, nurse, and birth control activist. Sanger coined the term birth control, opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, and established Planned Parenthood...
's pamphlet Family Limitation.
In Chicago, Jimmy talks to Torrio
Johnny Torrio
John "Papa Johnny" Torrio , also known as "The Fox", was an Italian-American mobster who helped build the criminal empire known as the Chicago Outfit in the 1920s that was later inherited by his protege, Al Capone...
about the truce he is contemplating with Sheridan. He tells him that if they call a truce, they'll look weak. While meeting with Sheridan and his men, Jimmy and Al ambush them with guns that were hidden with their coats. They kill all four of them. Back at Johnny's hotel, Jimmy is getting praise from Torrio which angers Al
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel "Al" Capone was an American gangster who led a Prohibition-era crime syndicate. The Chicago Outfit, which subsequently became known as the "Capones", was dedicated to smuggling and bootlegging liquor, and other illegal activities such as prostitution, in Chicago from the early...
. This anger grows as Jimmy ridicules Al for his war record. Al later goes to visit Jimmy in his room and informs him his son is deaf and politely mentions that he didn't appreciate Jimmy making fun of him.
In Jersey, Margaret is at home with Nucky who offers her a new home and promises to provide for her. She accepts and moves away from her home. She later quits her job at La Belle Femme after a row with Lucy. But she later realizes that it isn't at all what she expected after Nucky stands her up.
Eli brings in Lucky who tells Nucky he doesn't know about the theft. Nucky doesn't believe him and sends him away.
Meanwhile, Van Alden discovers a picture of Margaret in her immigration records; upon discovering that the photo depicts her as a 16-year-old he performs self-mortification
Mortification of the flesh
Mortification of the flesh literally means "putting the flesh to death". The term is primarily used in religious and spiritual contexts. The institutional and traditional terminology of this practice in Catholicism is corporal mortification....
on himself with his belt.
Critical reception
IGN gave the episode a score of 8.5 enjoying the relationship between Al and Jimmy "Another highlight is the relationship between Al and Jimmy, as they rise up the ranks of the Torrio crime family. The two debate the difference between "buddy" and "accomplice" as Jimmy plans how to take out Sheridan. During this time, Jimmy, a war veteran, calls out Al on his bullshit war record, which in turn makes Al look like he is overcompensating for being nothing more than a thug in a nice suit. These exchanges prove that Al and Jimmy may have been friends once, but are on a path to being something much worse as their underworld careers advance."The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
gave it a B+ rating.