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'Peaky Blinders' season 5 episode 4 review: Arthur and Linda stand at death's door

The episode is slower than its previous counterparts but the suspense soon builds. In the fourth episode of 'Peaky Blinders', there is mud, blood and deadly blow at the end!

The review contains spoilers for 'Peaky Blinders' Season 5 Episode 4 — 'The Loop'.

It's funny how little time it takes for things to change as the clock ticks by. The fourth episode of 'Peaky Blinders' is just a reminder of that, and how. Until the last moment in episode three, The Billy Boys seemed to be a huge threat to Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy) but the new episode, marks a new beginning with the meeting of the two rivals. "We have friends in common. We should postpone the war," Tommy declares. The two make peace and the war seems to be over before it even began.

The episode is slower than its previous counterparts but the suspense soon builds. A visitor comes to meet Thomas and Arthur (Paul Anderson). Finn (Harry Kirton) is at gunpoint. A shot is fired. Who gets killed? This scene is sure to set your pulses racing. 

With all this action taking place all over the place there is much more brewing under the surface than we can comprehend. As the financial crisis looms over, Tommy chalks out new business plans and offers Michael the position of a Managing Director in the company as a chance for redemption.  And in the midst of all this is Polly Gray (Helen McCrory) who swings in style with total sass. Her entry in the episode is one of those stylish introductions you simply cannot forget. Seated in a wagon, she flicks off the cigarette butt with panache and puts her foot down in a muddy slush, enough to tell you that she means business she is not afraid to get dirty. 

A bigger conspiracy whizzes in the air. Aberama Gold (Aiden Gillen) wants to avenge his son's death. He comes to meet Thomas. Like a true tycoon, Tommy strikes a deal with Gold and tells him to wait to kill Jimmy McCavern in exchange for Polly's hand, after all now Tommy and the Billy Boys have a business deal in hand. "Polly instructs herself. She has her own strategies. She will marry you but only if you agree to postpone the killing of Jimmy McCavern," he tells Gold and the two shake hands. 

It may seem like Tommy is moving the chess pieces, but the true mastermind in the game is Oswald Mosley (Sam Claflin), who is simply sitting and observing the game from afar. "Now we're going to be conquering the world together, we should have no secrets," Mosley tells Tommy. The two have an intense discussion about each other's wives and sexual history. The twist in the tale comes when Mosley declares he knows Tommy's wife Lizzie (Natasha O'Keeffe) from when she was a mere prostitute. 

Robust and rigid in front of others, Tommy's insecurities crop up when he is left alone to face his darkness. Grace just doesn't go from his mind. "You don't even have to rub the lamp any more to summon the genie. It wasn't the bluestone, Tommy. It was you." The words make him shiver and shake. 

The Shelbys throw a party, and just like the last one, this one too seems to be cursed. The conversation between Polly and Mosley is one to catch you off guard. With slapstick remarks on the availability of "opium, cocaine and brandy" and whores in the house, she tells him: "I am a queen amongst the Romanies, and I too am unavailable."  As the close-up of each character comes into view, there is a mysterious glance between Gina and Mosley. Towards the end, Aberama proposes Polly as a beautiful swansong lights up the ballet performance on stage.

Just when the audience is caught up in this scene Arthur's wife Linda (Kate Phillips) who has been missing from the entire episode makes a dramatic entrance. Dressed in a ravishing gown, she comes to the party but only to threaten her husband. When Arthur goes to persuade her, she charges upon him and pulls out a gun. "May you Peaky Blinders rot in f**king hell!" she utters and fires the gun. 

There is blood. There is a loss of life. Who is dead? Arthur or Linda? As per our predictions, the episode marks Linda's death in the series. In comparison with the first three episodes, the fourth one takes on a slower pace and sets things straight instead of ruffling too many feathers.

However, the big shocker, in the end, will blow your mind. Episode four definitely paves way for more mayhem in the last two chapters of the season. It's time to put on your thinking cap as the fifth episode rolls out next week.

Missed the review of the third episode? Read it here: 'Peaky Blinders' Season 5 Episode 3 — 'Strategy'.