Grace’s death was by far the most unexpected in Peaky Blinders. Just two episodes into the third season, where we’d finally seen her and Thomas reunited, she gets assassinated at a charity ball.
Not going to lie; when I first saw the episode, I was so sure we’d see her in the hospital next. Because no way they’d kill her just like that! It was too abrupt. No foreshadowing, no hints. Even if she was going to die, I assumed she’d wake up at least once and give Tommy the closure he needed.
But the next scene opened to her funeral, and my heart went down the drain.
It got me thinking, though:
1. Was Grace’s Death Necessary to the Storyline?
Turns out, Grace’s death was vital. Steven Knight, the creator of Peaky Blinders, said: “The point with Grace is that if she had lived, Tommy would have been happy. He wasn’t meant to be happy.” Grace would’ve healed Tommy back into the man he was before the war, and that would’ve made it impossible for the show to exist.
This makes sense, given how Grace always brought out a tenderness in Tommy. Eventually, Grace would’ve gotten Tommy back to who he was, which would’ve put an end to the show. Because Tommy, before the war, wouldn’t have felt this insatiable hunger for power he shows in the later seasons.
“His [Tommy’s] arc on the show is meant to be one of torture. The intention is to give Tommy Shelby redemption. That will be a happy ending.”
Steven Knight
Grace’s death also triggered the whole plot of Season four. The entirety of the season was majorly focused on the Shelby-versus-Changretta war, resulting in the deaths of significant characters like John Shelby and Alfie Solomons.
2. What Was the Impact of Grace’s Death on Tommy?
After Grace’s death, Tommy spirals back into trauma and PTSD. We used to catch glimpses of him smiling and joking in the first two seasons, but he rarely smiles anymore.
His family tries to reach out to him, but he doesn’t respond. He pours himself entirely into his schemes and, this time, Thomas Shelby is ruthless.
Though Tommy does marry Lizzie, this soon proves to be a love-less arrangement that only took place because of Lizzie getting pregnant with his daughter.
By Season five, his mental health has deteriorated to extremes. He’s constantly seen hallucinating of Grace, and though his demeanour suggests he has it under control, hints throughout the show indicate the fatality of his condition.
Tommy finally loses this control when Oswald Mosley defeats him. The fifth season ends with him breaking down and holding a gun to his head, while a hallucination of Grace suggests that he can “walk away from all of this.”
3. Why Did Vicente Changretta Kill Grace?
Grace was never the target. After John Shelby blinded his son in an attack, Vicente Changretta retaliated by ordering the assassination of Thomas Shelby. The assassin attacked Tommy at the ball, but unfortunately, the bullet hit Grace instead.
This later became the focus of the third and fourth season as the Shelbys and Changrettas declared war on each other.
The Shelby brothers kill Angel Changretta (Vicente‘s son) in the hospital before going after Vicente. In a very intense scene, Tommy decides to keep Vicente alive till the morning, promising to mince the man alive before he gives the final cut.
Arthur shoots Vicente before Tommy can do that, saving his little brother from becoming a monster. When John mentions that Mrs. Changretta is still alive, Arthur decides against hurting her. “We’re not those kinds of men,” he tells Tommy before walking out.
This proves to be a bad decision, however, when Mrs. Changretta brings her son Luca Changretta back.
Luca, an Italian-American monster, vows to bring the Shelby family to ruins to avenge his father and brother. He declares a vendetta against the Shelbys, resulting in the deaths of John Shelby, Alfie Solomons and himself.
4. About Peaky Blinders
Peaky Blinders is a British period crime drama television series created by Steven Knight. Set in Birmingham, England, the series follows the exploits of the Shelby crime family and their leader Thomas Shelby (Cillian Murphy) in the direct aftermath of the First World War.
The fictional family is loosely based on a real urban youth gang of the same name, active in the city from the 1890s to the early 20th century. It stars Cillian Murphy, Sam Claflin, Aidan Gillen, Helen McCrory, Paul Anderson, Finn Cole, and Tom Hardy
Netflix, under a deal with Weinstein Company and Endemol, acquired the rights to release the show in the United States and around the world. In January 2021, it was announced that the sixth series would be the last, followed by a spin-off film. The final series was broadcast in 2022.
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