Boardwalk Empire season 3 explained

Season Number:	3
Bgcolour:	791422
Network:	HBO
Num Episodes:	12
Episode List:	List of Boardwalk Empire episodes

The third season of the HBO television series Boardwalk Empire premiered on September 16, 2012 and concluded on December 2, 2012, consisting of 12 episodes. The series was created by Terence Winter and based on the book Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times and Corruption of Atlantic City by Nelson Johnson. Set in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era, the series stars Steve Buscemi as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (based on the historical Enoch "Nucky" Johnson),^[1] a political figure who rose to prominence and controlled Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition period of the 1920s and early 1930s. Taking place 16 months after season two, the third season begins on New Year's Eve 1922 and concludes in June 1923. The third season was released on DVD and Blu-ray in region 1 on August 20, 2013.^[2]

Cast

Main

Charlie Cox was promoted to main cast after recurring in the previous season, and Bobby Cannavale joined the cast. Michael Pitt, Aleksa Palladino, Paz de la Huerta and Dabney Coleman all departed the cast.

• Steve Buscemi as Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, the protagonist of the series. He is now the former treasurer of Atlantic City, Margaret's husband and Teddy and Emily's stepfather.
• Kelly Macdonald as Margaret Thompson, Nucky's wife and Teddy and Emily's biological mother who tries to open a women's hospital.
• Michael Shannon as Nelson Van Alden/George Mueller, a former FBI agent who is now on the run from them and is living in Chicago where he gets embroiled into Capone's conflict.
• Shea Whigham as Elias "Eli" Thompson, Nucky's younger brother and the former sheriff of Atlantic City who's looking to regain his brother's trust and help out his family.
• Michael Stuhlbarg as Arnold Rothstein, a New York gangster and gambler doing business with Nucky.
• Stephen Graham as Al Capone, Torrio's protege and an up-and-coming gangster who gets into a conflict with O'Banion.
• Vincent Piazza as Charlie Luciano, Rothstein's protege and Meyer's friend and business partner who hopes to be like his mentor.
• Michael Kenneth Williams as Albert "Chalky" White, a black gangster, Nucky's business partner and leader of Atlantic City's black community.
• Anthony Laciura as Eddie Kessler, Nucky's bumbling German butler suffering from his verbal abuse.
• Paul Sparks as Mieczyslaw "Mickey Doyle" Kuzik, a comedic and bumbling Polish-American gangster and bootlegger who now owns one of Nucky's warehouses and is partners with him.
• Jack Huston as Richard Harrow, a half-faced WW1 veteran who is also the caretaker for Tommy.
• Charlie Cox as Owen Sleater, Nucky's bodyguard and a former IRA assassin and bomb-maker who has a complicated love affair with Margaret.
• Bobby Cannavale as Gyp Rosetti, the main antagonist of the season. A hot-headed and impulsive Italian gangster from Sicily who strikes up an intense rivalry with Nucky while also flirting with Gillian.
• Gretchen Mol as Gillian Darmody, the owner of the Artemis Club, Richard's boss and Tommy's grandmother who has now gone deranged and suffering from delusions of her deceased son still being alive.

Recurring

• Chris Caldovino as Tonino Sandrelli, Gyp's right-hand man who secretly despises him.
• Anatol Yusef as Meyer Lansky, Luciano's business partner and friend
• Josie and Lucy Gallina as Emily Schroeder, Margaret's daughter and Teddy's younger sister suffering from paralysis.
• Meg Chambers Steedle as Billie Kent, Nucky's mistress. A showgirl who wants to be a major actress with Eddie Cantor.
• Declan and Rory McTigue as Theodore "Teddy" Schroeder, Emily's older brother and Margaret's son
• Stephen Root as Gaston Means, a bootlegger and politician who teams up with Nucky and Randolph to outwit Daugherty.
• Brady and Connor Noon as Tommy Darmody, the deceased Jimmy and Angela's son and Gillian's grandson living at the Artemis Club under the care of Richard.
• Ivo Nandi as Joe Masseria, a New York gangster and Gyp and Luciano's mentor who tries to stop any gang wars happening.
• Kevin O'Rourke as Edward L. Bader, the Mayor of Atlantic City and an associate of Nucky's.
• Wrenn Schmidt as Julia Sagorsky, a young and independent woman who later becomes Richard's love interest.
• Mark Borkowski as Paul Sagorsky, Julia's alcoholic father who's a veteran of the Philippine–American War.
• Glenn Fleshler as George Remus, a bootlegger from Ohio and member of the Ohio gang who faces off against Nucky.
  • Erik LaRay Harvey as Dunn Purnsley, Chalky's right-hand man from Baltimore Ed Jewett as Jess Smith, Harry's friend and aide who's also a member of the Ohio gang.
• Matt Hobby as Thompson House Servant Philip
• Heather Lind as Katy, Nucky and Margaret's former housemaid and Owen's fiancee
• Julianne Nicholson as Esther Randolph, the Deputy US Attorney who teams up with Nucky and Gaston to get rid of Daugherty, Smith and Remus.
• Christiane Seidel as Sigrid, Van Alden/Mueller's wife and Abigail's stepmother living with him in Chicago.
• Michael Zegen as Benjamin Siegel, Luciano and Lansky's young associate
• Joseph Aniska as Agent Stan Sawicki, a corrupt FBI agent who gives leads to Nucky and Mickey.
• Joe Caniano as Jake Guzik, a soft-hearted pimp and associate of Capone and Torrio
• James Cromwell as Andrew W. Mellon, a politician who mentors Nucky on Harry and Jess
• Stephen DeRosa as Eddie Cantor, a comedian and friend of Nucky's worrying about his relationship with Billie.
• Christopher McDonald as Harry Daugherty, Nucky's political rival and the season's secondary antagonist.
• Arron Shiver as Dean O'Banion, an Irish-American Chicago gangster, leader of the North side and Capone's rival
• Kevin Csolak as William "Willie" Thompson, Eli and June's teenage son who works at a lumber yard to provide for his family.
• Greg Antonacci as Johnny Torrio, the leader of the South side and Capone's aging mentor
• Dominic Chianese as Leander Whitlock, the deceased Commodore's former lawyer and now the financer for the Artemis Club.
• Nick Wyman as Dr. Robert Landau, an Atlantic City doctor clashing with Margaret
• Charlie Plummer as Michael Thompson, 1 of Eli and June's sons and William's brother
• Joseph Riccobene as Frankie Yale, a New York gangster and associate of Torrio, Rothstein and Luciano.
• Pearce Bunting as Bill McCoy, a rum-runner and ship captain who does dealings with Nucky.
• William Forsythe as Munya "Manny" Horvitz, a Ukrainian Jewish gangster, former butcher and associate of Nucky's who owns one of his warehouses with Mickey.
• Christina Jackson as Maybelle White, Chalky and Lenore's daughter, Lester and Adeline's sister and Samuel's fiancee who's interested in gangsters.
• Will Janowitz as Hymie Weiss, a Chicago gangster and second-in-command to O'Banion.

Episodes

Reception

Critical reception

The third season of Boardwalk Empire received positive reviews from critics, with Bobby Cannavale being singled out for praise. On the review aggregator website Metacritic, the third season scored 76/100 based on 15 reviews.^[3] Another aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, reported 89% of critics gave the third season a score of 8.7/10, based on 45 reviews, with the site consensus stating "As hot-headed mobster Gyp Rosetti, Bobby Cannavale brings a sense of danger and energy to this season of Boardwalk Empire, which remains lavish, twisty, and violent."^[4]

Awards and nominations

The third season received 10 Primetime Emmy Award nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards and won 5 altogether. Bobby Cannavale won for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and the series won the awards for Outstanding Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series ("Sunday Best"), Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series ("Resolution"), Outstanding Sound Editing For A Series ("The Milkmaid's Lot"), and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series ("The Milkmaid's Lot"). Tim Van Patten was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for "Margate Sands", and the series also received nominations for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series ("Margate Sands"), Outstanding Costumes for a Series ("Resolution"), Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic) ("Resolution"), and Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role ("The Pony").^[5]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Boardwalk Empire . The New York Times . Alessandra . Stanley . September 16, 2010 . September 2, 2013 . October 15, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131015145425/http://tv.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/arts/television/17boardwalk.html . live .
2. Web site: Boardwalk Empire - Blu-ray Disc and DVD Sets Announced by HBO for The Complete 3rd Season. TVShowsOnDVD.com. Lambert. David. May 10, 2013. May 11, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130607010737/http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Boardwalk-Empire-Season-3/18436. June 7, 2013.
3. Web site: Boardwalk Empire: Season 3 . Metacritic . October 6, 2013 . October 2, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201002150819/https://www.metacritic.com/tv/boardwalk-empire/season-3 . live .
4. Web site: Boardwalk Empire: Season 3 (2012). Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. April 25, 2014. June 6, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150606014129/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/boardwalk-empire/s03/. live.
5. Web site: Boardwalk Empire. Emmys.com. October 6, 2013. February 17, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130217053120/http://www.emmys.com/shows/boardwalk-empire. live.