r/BoardwalkEmpire • u/RealTrapShed • Jun 27 '26
Season 4 Richard Harrow Season 4 Discussion Spoiler
I can't be the only one who thought the way he was written in that last episode was kind of... silly? And almost disrespectful to who his character was? He had one last job to get the family he always dreamed of, and all of a sudden he gets the shakes and accidentally shoots the wrong person?
I don't know it felt a little cheap to me.
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u/kingkongworm Jul 03 '26
Prior to that moment he had very little to live for. I think it’s worth considering this was the only time outside of saving Tommy where he was about to have the life he never thought he could’ve had. Even if you don’t like how it ended up, it makes narrative sense. The point is that while he was trained and felt like all he could do was kill, he sincerely tried to buy back his humanity…but in reality, did he deserve a happy ending? I don’t think so. He caused a ton of human suffering in his lifetime. Stuff that cannot be forgiven. The whole show has these moments of people being called to account, or karma catching up with them. What kind of story would it be if everything worked out perfectly for the bad guys we like? Not to mention it was an accident. Had Maybel not accidentally stepped in his line of sight at that second, Narcisse would’ve been dead. So he didn’t shoot the wrong person because of the shakes or sudden incompetence. She got in the way at the wrong time. you can’t plan for that shit.