Kurt Sutter took audiences on a roller coaster ride of emotions over the seven-season run of Sons of Anarchy. Fans wanted to see Jax Teller get the life that he had dreamt of in season one - he wanted to get away from the club with love interest Tara Knowles. However, this would prove to be an untouchable fairytale as the show progressed.
The harder the pair fought to be together, the more they changed as individuals. By the time the sixth season rolled around, Jax and Tara were almost unrecognizable from the first season. This didn't stop fans from wanting to root for the star-crossed lovers and their happily ever after, though.
However, there are some things about Jax and Tara that left us scratching our heads. This list outlines several things that didn't add up about Jax and Tara's relationship. Some of these are due to either Jax or Tara's actions, and they leave us to wonder why they were put together.
With that said, here are the 20 Things That Make No Sense About Jax and Tara's Relationship In Sons Of Anarchy.
20. Tara's Departure From Charming
Tara and Jax were high school sweethearts, falling in love at 16. Their relationship teetered on Bonnie and Clyde territory. Tara was arrested at least three times while in Jax's company. The reasons for these arrests varied from public intoxication, possession of stolen property, and disorderly conduct. During this time, she got a tattoo of a crow on her lower back, signifying her connection to the club and to Jax as his old lady.
Tara left Charming when she was 19 years old because she thought that the town was too small, which is something that Gemma reminds her of in season 1's episode 4. Tara also left to get away from the influence of SAMCRO and it's less than legal ways. Her departure broke Jax's heart. However, it doesn't make sense that Tara would be willing to date Jax and involve herself with SAMCRO again.
19. Tara's Return to Charming
Tara returns to Charming from Chicago after a ten-year absence, taking a job as a pediatric physician at the local hospital. We first meet her at the hospital when Jax's son Abel is born ten weeks prematurely. Tara tells Gemma that she has returned to sort out some "family matters," following the passing of her father. Gemma, however, believes that she has come back because of Jax. While in Chicago, Tara dated an ATF agent Joshua Kohn, whom she had to get a restraining order against.
Fleeing Chicago for her hometown of Charming does not seem like the best way to hide from someone who knew your background.
Did she return to a place that she despised in the hopes that Kohn would follow? Tara would have known what Jax would do if Kohn did, in fact, come after her. Did she return so that Jax would rid her of Kohn for good?
18. Getting Together In The Room With Kohn's Body
As expected, Agent Kohn followed Tara to Charming. He claims to be investigating SAMCRO, though it is clear that he is there for Tara. As Tara and Jax become closer, Agent Kohn falls deeper into his obsession, even destroying Jax's room at the club. Tara tells Jax about Kohn. Jax reacts to this information in the only way we would expect him to - he becomes protective and threatening. Kohn's real motives are found out by local PD and he is forced to leave Charming.
However, Kohn attacks Tara in her home, and after some mental manipulation on Tara's part, she is able to grab a gun and shoot him. She calls Jax unsure of what to do and Jax delivers the fatal shot to Kohn, permanently ending his threat to Tara. The pair then proceeds to consummate things in the room with Kohn's body still warm.
17. Tara Becoming an "Old Lady"
In an odd change of tone, Tara delves deeper into SAMCRO by becoming Jax's old lady, despite the fact that she left Charming to get away from the club and everything that it stood for. In season 2, she is all too happy to take on the coveted role at Jax's side. Gemma explains to Tara that being an old lady comes with respect and privileges.
Tara seems to enjoy these perks and the notoriety that it gives her, but this doesn't stop her from trying to be the moral compass of the show.
This is a move that contradicts the expected 100% support and backing that an old lady is supposed to be. Tara wants Jax to change and leave the club, but she ends up being the one who changes a number of times in the series.
16. Tara Doesn't Show Jax His Father's Letters
During season 3, Jax and the crew head to Ireland to rescue his abducted son Abel. While there, John Teller's mistress hides letters in Jax's bag for him to find later. Tara ends up finding the love letters first after the guys have been hauled off to jail. In the letters, John says how lost he is in Charming and mentions that Gemma and Clay were growing closer together and that he knows he should be afraid but he feels nothing. They disclose his resignation with them wanting him out of the way.
One would think that Tara would go to Jax with the letters. Even though he is in jail, she could visit him. Instead, she goes to Piney with the information on the 85th day of Jax's incarceration. Piney tells her to leave it alone, as only bad things can come from it. Jax is finally told about the letters by Gemma in season 4.
15. Their Lack of Chemistry
Not all fans were sold on the bond between Tara and Jax. At the beginning of their rekindled relationship, the pair seemed very much in love. As the series went on, however, it became increasingly difficult to believe it. At times, it came across as forced and even flat.
There was more chemistry between the two before they became a couple.
The build-up lacked payoff. Though it was difficult to watch as Jax held Tara's lifeless body and wept, this was due more to Charlie Hunnam's performance. Some fans say that their lack of chemistry was due to actress Maggie Siff's portrayal of the character. Tara came off as one dimensional and lacked more than two emotions.
14. They Mirror John Teller & Gemma's Relationship
Neither Jax nor Tara wanted the club in their future. However, as the show progressed, Jax was made the leader of SAMCRO in season 5. Tara stood behind him as his old lady. This pose is eerily similar to a photo of Gemma and Jax's late father John. Their fate was sealed with this promotion. Jax began calling shots that he previously would have disagreed with Clay on - for example responding with violence first.
Tara at this point became a younger version of Gemma. She provided Jax with a syringe filled with a blood thinner and tells Jax how to administer it to take down Clay, who is in the hospital after being shot by Opie. Tara also became violent with her boss earlier in the series in a very Gemma-like way.
13. They Didn't Always Support Each Other
Throughout the series, Tara's support of Jax turns off and on at random. While Jax is attempting to put the club on the more legitimate business ventures, he has to deal with her roller coaster of backing. Tara was often cold and dismissive to Jax because of the club. Numerous times during the shows run, Tara was at odds with Gemma. Both are strong-willed women that Jax loves more than anything.
Tara often put Jax in the middle of her tiffs with Gemma, which created more rifts than it solved.
On the other hand, Jax increasingly involved Tara in club business, which pulled her further away from the hospital. Tara wanted to get the boys away from Charming and into a safe place, but Jax's priorities seemed to change.
12. They Never Chose To Leave Charming, Even Though There Were Many Opportunities
Tara left when she was 19 to get away from the club, only to come back 10 years later. She soon becomes deeply involved in SAMCRO once her relationship with Jax reignites. Tara suffered injuries multiple times and was even abducted over the seasons, making her eagerness to leave SAMCRO behind for good even stronger. Though she had several chances, it wasn't until season 6 that she put a plan in motion.
Jax pushes Tara away following Abel's abduction and tells her that it is for her protection, which she believed, since he blamed her for Abel's kidnapping. Jax and Tara had the opportunity to leave a number of times on the series but never took the leap.
11. Tara & Gemma's Relationship
As said by Juice in season 7, "Gemma knows every truth behind every lie inside every secret. She's the Gatekeeper." The matriarch of the family was never shy about her willingness to do anything to protect her son, Jax. This made Tara number one on her most hated list for a majority of the show. After all, Tara had broken her son's heart, so in Gemma's mind, she was back to complicate things for him.
Tara and Gemma were often at odds with each other, exchanging insults and threats. For a time, it seemed like things were fine between the pair. This was, of course, after Tara had become a younger version of Gemma. Tara was taken down by Gemma at the end of season 6. Gemma thought that Tara had turned rat and was protecting Jax by eliminating his wife. However, this act drove Jax even further into violence.
10. They Constantly Kept Secrets From Each Other
Throughout the series, Tara and Jax both want honesty from each other, as any couple would. This is something that neither of them was any good at, though. Jax would often lie to Tara about club business and flings.
Jax also lied to Tara when she confronted him about hurting Wendy.
Tara also has her own little secrets and schemes, including accepting a job offer in Oregon without discussing it with Jax or letting him know. The most vindictive of her lies played out in season 6. Tara plans to file for divorce from Jax and concocts an awful lie that would keep Gemma from the boys. This scheme of Tara's turned many fans off of her character. It all falls apart, however, when Jax learns the truth.
9. Jax Wasn't Faithful To Tara
Jax Teller never pretended to be the prince of morals, but one would think that he would stay true to Tara. This, however, was proven multiple times to be the furthest from the truth. He attempts to drive Tara away in season 3 by being unfaithful t her with a Caracara adult star. Later in season 6, his infidelity continues with a handler while Tara is in prison.
When the club members are on the road, there is an unspoken rule that whatever happens, stays on the road. This includes extramarital affairs. Though this may be a norm for characters like Clay, many fans believed that Jax would be better than that. Moreover, Jax told Tara that when he was with other women before her return, it was her face he imagined. So was this also the case with the women he was with after he and Tara got back together?
8. Tara's Fake Pregnancy
In season six, Tara tells Gemma that she is eight weeks pregnant. This was just the beginning of her plan to keep Gemma away from the boys for good. Tara has been meeting with lawyer Lowen about divorcing Jax and wanting sole custody of Abel and Thomas. She also enlists the help of Wendy and Unser. Wendy is tasked with telling Gemma that Tara is trying to take the boys away. Gemma then confronts Tara at the hospital, while Tara hides a bag of blood under her dress and provokes Gemma.
After Gemma holds back from hurting Tara, Tara screams and slams her stomach into the corner of the table. Gemma is stunned and Jax is beyond grief when Tara tells him that his mother caused her to miscarry their baby girl. Jax agrees to sign a restraining order against Gemma, disallowing her anywhere near the boys. Tara lied about the whole thing and was never pregnant.
7. Jax's Development After He Became Leader
From the beginning of the series Jax Teller wanted SAMCRO to move away from guns and into more legitimate business ventures. The harder he fought to break away from the club, the further in he found himself. Both he and Tara wanted to get away from Charming to have a better life for their boys. However, this became almost impossible when Jax took over the mantle of the leader of SAMCRO. This didn't stop Tara from trying to get him to leave, though, nor did it end the false promises that Jax makes to her.
Jax's inability to escape the club life drives him and Tara further apart.
Their once strong connection becomes unrecognizable by Tara's sixth and final season. Jax ends up taking the club to places that are even darker than they had ever been before.
6. Tara Wanted To Return To Chicago After Kohn Was In The Ground
After taking the life of Joshua Kohn, Tara tells Jax that she has made arrangements to move back to Chicago. Tara is afraid of the authorities finding out about Kohn. She tells Jax that she is doesn't believe that she is cut out for life in Charming, which obviously doesn't sit well with Jax.
First, she broke Jax's heart ten years ago, then returned to give him hope of another chance. Tara then turned to Jax for protection from Kohn and called on him after shooting her stalker. Jax reacted to this by committing a crime in a manner which he never had up to that point. He confided in Tara this information and how he was happy that she was back. However, after all of that, Tara is dedicated to returning to Chicago. This isn' the best way to thank Jax.
5. Jax Became What He Hated
By the end of the series, Jax had become the most violent, dangerous, and destructive members of SAMCRO. When Jax was VP of the club, he worked on moving the club away from Clay's illegal activities. Being a born leader, Jax had the loyalty, respect, and support of other members of the club. It seemed as if things would go the way he hoped - or at least it seemed like they would until he stepped into the new role.
Once Jax became the leader of SAMCRO, the club found themselves in a domino effect of bad situations. Jax evolved into something far from the character that we saw in the first season - he became much more violent and detrimental to the club than Clay ever was.
4. Tara Always Blamed Jax
Tara was not innocent throughout the course of the show. In fact, she often blamed Jax for everything. She did put her life at the hospital on the back burner for Jax and the club, but this was her own choice. Tara was not above putting herself in difficult situations.
Tara blamed Jax for every bad thing that happened and his lack of ability to leave the club.
While it can be argued that Tara's actions were influenced by Jax and Gemma, they did not dictate to her what to do. When Tara becomes Jax's old lady and threatens her boss Margaret, she has no one to blame but herself. Tara's nose dive down the rabbit hole of darkness was perpetuated by the decisions she made. Though Gemma and Jax's hands aren't clean in her extreme behavior, they cannot be blamed solely for it.
3. Tara Wanting Sole Custody Of Abel & Thomas
Jax may have had his problems with the club, but one thing is for sure: he loved his kids. In season 6, when Tara is seeking a divorce from Jax, she wants sole custody of Abel and Thomas. Tara doesn't want the boys to have any contact with SAMCRO, and this includes any contact with Jax.
They may have had their ups and downs, but to keep him from seeing his children is a bit much. Tara could have sought primary custody with limited visitation rights for Jax. Instead, she sought to eliminate his rights as a father. Jax would already be losing his wife in the divorce, but loosing his children takes it to a whole other level.
2. Tara's Tombstone
Following Tara's passing, her body is buried near Opie and Donna's. In the season 7 episode "Black Widower", Unser pays a visit to Tara's grave. Later, in the opening scenes of the finale, Jax goes to the cemetery. He visits Opie's grave before sitting in front of Tara's tombstone.
Engraved on the stone is "Tara Grace Knowles" and not "Tara Teller." It does read "Devoted Wife and Mother," but the absence of Jax's last name is curious. Jax and Tara were married at the time of her violent passing. Could it be that Jax was in prison at the time of her burial and Unser ordered the stone? Tara did keep her maiden name for work at the hospital after she and Jax were married, so it could have at least read "Tara Knowles Teller." This perhaps was one last sign of Jax and Tara's inability to be happy - an eternal sign of their lost love.
1. They Were Doomed From the Start
Tara and Jax were the that couple audiences wanted to root for in the beginning. However, like many famous love stories, theirs was doomed from the start. There were striking similarities over the shows seven-season run to two famous Shakespeare plays, Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet. Like Hamlet, Sons of Anarchy was full of betrayal, lies, and violence. Jax (Hamlet) is tormented by the ghost of his father and the ways of Clay (Claudius), who married his mother Gemma (Gertrude).
Then there are the Romeo & Juliet similarities: Jax and Tara battled to be together, away from the club's influence.
Jax was torn between his loyalty to his brothers and his love for Tara. Their relationship was full of violence, doubt, pain, and only glimpses of true happiness. Like Romeo & Juliet, Jax and Tara never stood a chance. Show creator Kurt Sutter spoke of this in an interview with the Huffington Post.
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Can you think of any other things about Jax and Tara's relationship that make no sense in Sons of Anarchy? Let us know in the comments!