Sons of Anarchy season 2

The second season of the American television drama series Sons of Anarchy premiered on September 8, 2009, and concluded on December 1, 2009, after 13 episodes aired on cable network FX. Created by Kurt Sutter, it is about the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club operating in Charming, a fictional town in California's Central Valley. The show centers on protagonist Jackson "Jax" Teller (Charlie Hunnam), the vice president of the club, who begins questioning himself.

Sons of Anarchy is the story of the Teller-Morrow family of Charming, California, as well as other members of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original (SAMCRO), their families, various Charming townspeople, allied and rival gangs, associates, and law agencies that undermine or support SAMCRO's legal and illegal enterprises.

Introduced in this season are white separatists called the League of American Nationalists (LOAN). LOAN arrives in Charming with leader Ethan Zobelle and Zobelle's enforcer, A.J. Weston, seeking to drive SAMCRO out of Charming.

Plot
White separatists called the League of American Nationalists (LOAN) arrive in Charming. LOAN's leader Ethan Zobelle and Zobelle's enforcer, A.J. Weston, seek to drive the Sons of Anarchy from Charming. To send a message to SAMCRO, Zobelle orchestrates to have Gemma kidnapped and gang raped by Weston and two others. Due to the improper handling of an internal problem, the rift between Clay and Jax continues to widen as Jax challenges most of Clay's decisions and comes to a head when a lone car bomb nearly kills another member of SAMCRO. The second season sees SAMCRO battling LOAN for control of Charming, Jax and Clay veering further apart in their individual visions for the club, and evading the ever-present threat of the ATF.

Main cast

 * Charlie Hunnam as Jackson "Jax" Teller, a disillusioned club member who is the Vice President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original in Charming. He discovers a written diary by his late father John that makes him question his life and the club. He is at odds with club President and stepfather Clay Morrow.
 * Katey Sagal as Gemma Teller Morrow, Jax's mother and the queen of Charming. She is the matriarch of the club. She is married to Clay
 * Mark Boone Junior as Robert "Bobby Elvis" Munson
 * Kim Coates as Alex "Tig" Trager
 * Tommy Flanagan as Filip "Chibs" Telford
 * Ryan Hurst as Harry "Opie" Winston
 * Johnny Lewis as Kip "Half Sack" Epps
 * William Lucking as Piermont "Piney" Winston
 * Theo Rossi as Juan-Carlos "Juice" Ortiz
 * Maggie Siff as Tara Knowles
 * Ron Perlman as Clarence "Clay" Morrow

Special guest cast

 * Adam Arkin as Ethan Zobelle
 * Ally Walker as Agent June Stahl
 * Tom Everett Scott as Rosen

Recurring cast

 * Dayton Callie as Wayne Unser
 * Henry Rollins as A.J. Weston
 * Taylor Sheridan as Deputy Chief David Hale
 * Winter Ave Zoli as Lyla Dvorak
 * Callard Harris as Edmond Hayes
 * Jamie McShane as Cameron Hayes
 * Sarah Jones as Polly Zobelle
 * Julie Ariola as Mary Winston
 * Mitch Pileggi as Ernest Darby
 * McNally Sagal as Margaret Murphy
 * Marcos de la Cruz as Estevez
 * Kristen Renton as Ima Tite
 * Kurt Sutter as "Big" Otto Delaney
 * Emilio Rivera as Marcus Álvarez
 * Tory Kittles as Laroy Wayne
 * Bellina Logan as Fiona Larkin
 * Michael Marisi Ornstein as Chuck Marstein
 * Patrick St. Esprit as Elliott Oswald
 * Dendrie Taylor as Luann Delaney
 * Titus Welliver as Jimmy O'Phelan
 * Kenneth Choi as Henry Lin
 * Jeff Kober as Jacob Hale Jr.
 * Glenn Plummer as Sheriff Vic Trammel

Guest stars

 * Tom Arnold as Georgie Caruso
 * Cleo King as Neeta
 * Olivia Burnette as Homeless Woman
 * Kenny Johnson as Herman Kozik

Production
Although Sons of Anarchy is set in Northern California's Central Valley, it is filmed primarily at Occidental Studios Stage 5A in North Hollywood. Main sets located there include the clubhouse, St. Thomas Hospital and Jax's house. The production rooms at the studio used by the writing staff also double as the Charming police station.

External scenes were often filmed nearby in Sun Valley and Tujunga.

Kurt Sutter, series writer and creator, said that Half-Sack was killed off in "Na Trioblóidí" because Johnny Lewis wanted to leave the show due to creative differences; He said: "We decided we'd find some noble way for him to go. It wasn't my intent to try to be sensational and kill off a main character."

Reception
The second season received critical acclaim. This season also saw a substantial increase in positive reviews in comparison with the first season. On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has a rating of 93%, based on 15 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Sons of Anarchy continues to intensify the drama with riveting storytelling brought to life by a talented ensemble." On Metacritic the second season has a score of 86 out of 100, based on reviews 6 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

IGN gave the second season an 8.4/10.0 rating, giving praise to Henry Rollins' character, AJ Weston, saying, "A decidedly stronger second season sees the gang unravel and knit back together."

Writing for Chicago Tribune, Maureen Ryan called the second season "engrossing". She elaborated that "the pacing is better [and] the plotting is tighter" and commended Sagal and Perlman for their performances. Variety’s Stuart Levine called the new season "compelling" and complimented the acting skill of Perlman, Sagal, Hunnam, and Siff. James Poniewozik of TIME called Sagal's performance "devastatingly powerful" and named the series on his list of Top 10 Shows of 2009.

Home media release
The second season was released in the United States on DVD and Blu-ray on August 31, 2010.