Jax Teller
Encyclopedia
Jackson "Jax" Teller is a fictional character
and the central character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy
, played by Charlie Hunnam
. He is the Vice President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
's Redwood Original (SAMCRO) chapter based in Charming, California
, despite only being in his early 30s. He is 6' 1" and has a number of tattoos
, most notably his club's logo on his back, a tribute to his father John Teller on his right arm, his son Abel's name on his chest, and his second son Thomas on his arm. On his cut
, he wears patches reading "V. President" and "Men of Mayhem". He is also something of a "Nike
bikie" as he often wears stylish and fashionable clothing, such as sneakers, casual jeans and Original KD's Sunglasses. The motorcycle that he rides is a Harley-Davidson
Dyna-Glide, specifically a Super Glide Sport. He is also seen driving a grey Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck.
and John Teller and was born in 1978, and raised in Charming, California
. His father died in 1993 and his mother was re-married to Clay Morrow
, now the President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
. He lives with the genetic heart disorder ("family flaw" as Gemma calls it) that his brother Thomas "Tommy" Teller (January 8, 1984 – April 4, 1990) died from at the age of six. He is of partial Irish
and Russian Jewish descent on his mother's side. He carries a USMC
KA-BAR
fighting knife on his waistband.
At the beginning of the series, Teller serves as the club's Vice President, and works as a mechanic
at Teller-Morrow Automotive Repair. He has served time in prison
for smuggling
and gun-running, his last arrest was in 2003. He married Wendy Case, but filed for divorce because of her drug habit. After Wendy got clean, they reconciled and conceived a son, Abel; Jax left her while she was pregnant because Wendy was unable to maintain sobriety for any length of time. Abel was born 10 weeks premature and addicted to crank
in the pilot episode. Jax also has romantic ties to his high-school sweetheart Tara Knowles
.
Having recently discovered several of his father's old journals and an old manuscript titled The Life and Death of Sam Crow: How the Sons of Anarchy Lost Their Way, which collectively lay out the original manifesto for SAMCRO, he finds himself doubting the club's direction, causing friction between himself and his stepfather Clay, and spreading doubt amongst the other members. Another member of SAMCRO, Opie Winston, has been his friend since childhood.
talk to Sheriff Vic Trammel about the blaze, who claims that propane tanks inside the building blew up, and that he suspects arson due to the bootprints inside. Trammel then shows them the burned corpses of the people hidden beneath the building, who were illegal immigrants. It is later revealed that they were Mexican prostitutes "owned" by the club's Sergeant-at-Arms, Tig Trager
. When he returns home and begins looking through storage, he finds old photographs of his late father and a journal titled The Life and Death of Sam Crow: How the Sons of Anarchy Lost Their Way written by him, and for his sons Jackson and Thomas (who had already died at the time of writing). He is then called away to a group meeting ("Church") where all of the chapter's members meet. These are Clay Morrow (President), Bobby Munson
(Treasurer), Tig Trager (Sergeant-at-Arms), Chibs Telford
(Medic), Piney Winston
(Co-founder), Juice Ortiz
(intelligence officer) and Happy. Clay announces that Juice has located the guns and that they were stolen by the Mayans, a rival motorcycle gang. They decide to go and get some payback the next day despite Jax's suggesting that the club look into other ways of earning money instead of dealing weapons, especially with so many rival groups on their back.
Meanwhile, Gemma finds Jax's pregnant ex-wife Wendy Case collapsed in her home, and he rushes to the hospital. Dr. Tara Knowles tells him that track marks were found on Wendy's hands and feet, and that they had to perform an emergency C-section on her, leaving the baby ten weeks premature. Because of this, the baby has a heart defect and a tear in his abdomen. The latter is from Wendy's drug abuse, but the former problem is likely a genetic defect. Together, both defects are near-fatal. The baby has just a 20% chance of survival. Jax and Tara were high school sweethearts, and she personally requested to help on his case. Jax decides not to visit his baby boy, named Abel, and instead flees the hospital. He then goes to a local bar with Bobby and beats Wendy's dealer, who is a member of the Nordics gang, repeatedly with a pool cue. Later on, he visits Opie Winston, a former SOA member who was recently released from prison and promised his wife and children that he would never return. Jax convinces Opie to ride along with him the next day, however. Jax later goes back to visit Wendy in the hospital, who promises that she'll get clean. She also says that the doctors told her Abel is getting stronger, but she is facing a charge of fetal abuse as she has a stash drawer at home. She asks him to get rid of the stash before she faces time in jail. Jax turns up at Wendy's house, which he finds his mother feverishly cleaning. Jax tells her that Abel is going to die, which angers Gemma, who slaps him and tells him that he is the only one his son has got. Jax asks her about his father's original vision of the club and she responds that it was to create a brotherhood and a family. Jax tells her about the writings he found, how his father wanted a social rebellion, not an outlaw club. When she leaves, Jax flushes Wendy's stash down the toilet and takes her gun. Clay and Gemma begin to worry that Jax is abandoning the club and what it stands for. The next day, Clay, Jax and Bobby meet Ernest Darby
, the Nordics' leader, and tell him never to bring methamphetamine
or any other drug into Charming again. That night, as they prepare to go and get their guns back from San Leandro
, Jax tells Opie not to come because of the situation with his family and Bobby is occupied performing his Elvis act at a club in Lake Tahoe
. When they arrive at the industrial storage warehouse and find the guns, three Mayans turn up in a car outside. Clay and Chibs then shoot and kill the Mayans and another man, who has a number of Nazi
and White supremacist
tattoos. He was a member of the Nordics, a local skinhead gang who are allied with the Mayans, and it later emerges that his name was Whistler. Jax was also armed but hit a mental barrier before he could fire a shot. They then escape with the weapons and destroy the building using explosives.
Wayne Unser
, the Chief of the Charming Police Department, has always gotten on well with the Sons of Anarchy during his time in charge, and even employed them as muscle at times. However, he is dying from cancer and will retire at the end of the month, handing power over to his Deputy, David Hale, who is overtly suspicious of the SOA and will almost definitely begin an investigation into the club. Hale talks to Jax, telling him that when he becomes Chief he won't look the other way with the Sons of Anarchy like his predecessor did. To distract the police from their activities, the burnt down warehouse in particular, Jax, Chibs, and Half-Sack Epps
(a Prospect in the club) acquire two dead bodies from the local morgue and set them up in a fake shoot-out. The set-up shooting is made to look like a racist murder involving the Nordics. On his way back to town, Jax is cut off on the road by a man driving a red muscle car
. He later catches up with this man at a petrol station and beats him up. The driver then pulls out a pistol and attempts to shoot Jax, but is wrestled to the ground and then killed by the Pakistan
i shopkeeper, who hits him with a fire axe. The trio then steal the CCTV tapes and flee the scene. Later, Jax visits baby Abel, and Tara tells him that he will make a full recovery. She also says that Wendy is being put through sedated detox, and she will be out for a couple of days.
Local businessman Elliot Oswald goes to Clay after his 13-year-old daughter was raped at a carnival, and asks the Sons of Anarchy to hunt down the rapist and kill him, in exchange for money. Clay refuses the money but insists that if they catch him, he must carry out the punishment himself. Juice and Gemma find out that the rapist is one of the carnies
and the gang capture him and bring him to Oswald, who tries to castrate him but can't bring himself to do it. Clay then carries the punishment out, but wears gloves whilst doing it. He then blackmails Oswald for the crime, as only Oswald's fingerprints are on the knife, because Oswald was about to sell off much of the land around Charming to big business and housing, which would challenge the SOA's reign over the town. Jax is unhappy that Clay did not tell him of the plan, however, and tells clay to always inform him on his future motives.
When a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
agent arrives in Charming and begins investigating the club, the SOA decide that they should move their weapons to Indian Hills, Nevada
, where their brother club, the Devil's Tribe, are based. Clay sends Bobby and Jax to inform the Devil's Tribe that the Sons of Anarchy will be patching over them and storing guns on their property. On the way there, they encounter a group of Mayans on the road and engage in a shootout
, although no one is killed. Later, the pair run into a couple as they leave a petrol station. The man is extremely disrespectful to the woman, named Suzi, and they beat him up. Jax then picks Suzi up for sex and carries on with his journey. When they arrive at the Devil's Tribe clubhouse and inform them of the news, their President, Jury, is not pleased but eventually accepts that it is the best decision for both clubs. After the patch-over party, Jax goes for a ride and attracts the attention of a group of Mayans. He then draws them back to the clubhouse, where the Sons of Anarchy are waiting for them. A large shootout ensues, during which Jury is shot and injured. After having sex with Jax, Suzi leaves and returns to her old boyfriend. The ATF agent has been following Jax the whole time, taking photographs. He sends a picture of Jax and Suzi having sex to Tara, his former lover.
Otto Delaney and a number of other imprisoned SAMCRO members have been protecting Chuck in Stockton
prison
. He is wanted by the Triads because he stole money from them, then informed on a number of their members when he was arrested. When Clay and Jax visit Otto in prison, he tells them that if they protected Chuck when he was released, he would inform them where the Triads keep their money. They agree and pick him up from prison and bring him to the clubhouse. SAMCRO intends to wait until the restaurant, where the money is stored, closes before raiding it, but Chuck's frequent unconscious masturbating is unbearable for them and they decide to raid the restaurant straight away. At the restaurant, Jax uses his knife to cut open a newly-plastered patch on the ceiling where the bag of money is. However, just after they steal the money and some counterfeit
ing plates, the Triads turn up. Instead of starting a war, Clay decides to make a deal; SAMCRO hands over Chuck and the plates, and the Triads let them keep the stolen money. Meanwhile, Kyle Hobart, a disgraced former SAMCRO member, goes to Jax and asks him if the Sons want in on his deal selling stolen car parts. Jax accepts and invites him to the clubhouse that night. This is a setup
, however, to punish him for not having his SOA tattoo removed after being disowned by the club. At the clubhouse, they tie him up and Tig uses a blowtorch to burn off the tattoo.
Jax and Piney sell five AK-47
s to Nate Meineke and his right-wing state militia. They then use these guns to ambush a prison convoy
and free one of their members, Frank Cison. A police officer and two bystanders are killed during the assault. Meineke drops his cell phone at the scene, and his last calls have been to Clay Morrow. When the ATF finds the phone, they arrest Clay and raid the clubhouse. Clay is later released because no evidence is found, meaning he can no longer be kept in custody. Meanwhile Jax, Piney and Opie decide to kill Meineke and his gang to prevent them from snitching
if they are apprehended by the authorities. They pretend to sell them more weapons. The "boxes of guns" are actually filled with explosives, however, and the militia loads their trucks with them. All of the militia are killed when the bombs are detonated.
When Tara tells Jax that ATF agent Josh Kohn
has been stalking her, Jax threatens to kill Kohn if he goes near Tara again. Jax also reports him to David Hale, who in turn informs the ATF. Upon learning that the authorities have not yet apprehended Kohn, Jax hunts Kohn down, himself. Jax found him at the local barber shop, and a brawl ensues with Jax emerging the victor. Kohn is then arrested for breaching Tara's restraining order against him.
While riding his motorcycle on the highway, Jax comes across a truck driver, who has been badly beaten, on the hood of his truck. The trucker says that the Nordics had beaten him because he owed them money. They also later took his truck and tanker full of fiesel fuel. Jax and Opie then hijack the truck back from the Nords and sell it is to Wayne Unser, who runs a trucking company. This then gives SAMCRO enough money to buy weapons from the True IRA. Later that night, Jax goes to Tara's house, after she phones him and asked him to come over. Kohn has broken in and tried to rape her, but she grabbed his gun and shot him in the stomach. Jax then kills Kohn and has sex with Tara.
Cameron Hayes, a member of the True IRA, offers SAMCRO a free shipment of guns if they will carry out a hit on Brenan Hefner, the man who killed his cousin Michael McKeavey. Jax, Bobby and Opie then go to the hotel room, where he sees his African American mistress. Opie is supposed to shoot him when he leaves the room, but freezes and Bobby steps in and shoots him at close range with a silenced pistol.
The ATF arrests Luann Delaney and Cherry, the women of Otto and Half-Sack, and threatens them with prison if they do not give information on SAMCRO. Bobby, Piney and Tig start a brawl at a local bar and most of the town's small police force have to go to the scene to break it up. This gives Jax and Opie an opportunity to break into the police station, with the help of Unser, and free Cherry. Luann stays behind because the ATF are about to get Otto to plead to a case that he thought was harmless, to secure him and Luann a deal, but in fact would lead to the arrest of every club member. So Luann has to get the message to Otto.
When Bobby is arrested for the murder of Brenan Hefner, Agent Stahl makes it seem that Opie is the one who identified him. Jax never tells Clay and the other club members that Opie lost his nerve and failed to shoot Hefner, forcing Bobby to shoot Hefner from the other side of the door, where the girl saw him. Still thinking that the Hefner shoot went down clean, and thus the only people who could have seen were the other SOA members, along with all the evidence engineered by Stahl, it seems extremely likely that Opie is the rat. Jax defends him, however, and convinces some of the club that the ATF has set him up. Clay has Tig check Opie's car for wiretaps, and he finds them. Tig and Clay are convinced Opie is guilty and decide to kill him.
Jax begins living at Tara's house, or at least sleeping with her on a regular basis. When he and Tara are kissing at the hospital, Wendy sees them and later confronts Tara. The next day, Jax goes with Clay, Tig and Opie to make an arms deal with the Mayans in Oakland. The One-Niners attack the deal, however, and they escape while the Mayans and Niners fight. Clay and Tig had made a deal with the Niners, but didn't inform Jax or the others; the Niners were supposed to eliminate the Mayans after the SOA left, but they decide to take them out also. Later that night, Abel is released from the hospital and a party is held in celebration. Tara again kisses Jax at the party, purposely in plain view for Wendy to see. Jax then pulls Tara aside, and asks her not to flaunt their relationship in front of a newly-recovered Wendy, and "to be cool with whatever this is". Tara, incensed, slaps Jax and storms out. When Opie leaves the party, he takes his wife's car to take his children home in, and his wife takes his pick-up truck. Tig thinks Opie is driving the car and shoots Donna.
Wendy tells Jax that she wants to give their relationship another chance now that they have a child, but he refuses, saying that things will be no different than before. When he later visits Tara, she tells him that she is afraid of being caught for killing Kohn and that she is moving back to Chicago. He admits that she is the only woman he has ever loved and that he only married Wendy because he was lonely. At Church, Piney says he wanted to kill Laroy as revenge for killing Donna, so Jax tells Half-Sack to follow him and make sure Piney doesn't do anything unnecessary. Half-Sack then calls and says that Piney had gone into a bar in Oakland and is holding a Niner hostage. When Jax and Chibs arrive, they manage to get Piney out and have a talk with Laroy, who says it wasn't his gang who killed Donna. When he visits the police station to ask Unser if he had any leads on Donna's killing, David Hale approaches him. Hale tells Jax about Stahl's setting up Opie, and Jax then realises that it was SAMCRO who killed Donna. He confronts Clay about this at the clubhouse and asks him if Clay had anything to do with Donna's death. Clay denies it. As Jax leaves the clubhouse, Juice tells him that the witness to Hefner's killing is a 17-year-old girl and that Chibs, Happy and Tig are on their way to kill her. Jax then drives out to San Joaquin
on his motorcycle and stops Tig from killing her at gunpoint. He tells Chibs and Happy to leave and threatens the witness into leaving the state. He then beats Tig up because he killed Donna. Jax spends the night in the graveyard, drinking vodka
. The next morning, he goes to Donna's funeral, which is attended by Sons of Anarchy from all across the country. He and Tara shared one last kiss, and the season ends as he stands and looks at his father's and brother's gravestones.
After L.O.A.N. burns down CaraCara, Jax suspects it was Clay, since Clay did not want the porn business around after Luann is murdered. This drives Jax over the edge, and he decides to go Nomad. The vote is unanimous and Jax removes V. President patch and his Redwood Original patches in preparation to go Nomad, but after learning of his mother's rape at the hands of L.O.A.N., he comes back in as the Vice President of SAMCRO wanting revenge on L.O.A.N., specifically A.J. Weston. After finding out that Tig has told Opie the truth about Donna's death, Opie leaves the clubhouse looking for Stahl. Jax assumes that since Stahl is investigating L.O.A.N. Opie will be after Zobelle and his crew, and goes off to follow Zobelle. While following Zobelle, Jax learns that Zobelle is dealing with the Mayans behind Weston's back.
In the Season 2 finale "Na Trioblóidí", Jax finally gets revenge on A.J. Weston by killing him in a tattoo parlor bathroom. However, at the end of the episode, Cameron Hayes, who mistakenly thinks Gemma killed his son, stabs and kills Half-Sack and kidnaps Jax's son Abel, fleeing on his motorboat to an unknown location. Jax is last seen distraught and crying on the docks while Clay and the other Sons console him, watching Hayes speed off with his son.
It should be noted that Jax's appearance differs slightly than in season 1. At the start of season 2, Jax has grown more facial hair, has a slightly larger build, and stands up straighter.
When Jax finds out that Abel is in Belfast (despite Jimmy O'Phellan's diversions), he puts into motion a deal with Agent Stahl to give her Jimmy and the True IRA in Northern California in exchange for her dropping the charges against his mother Gemma and reducing the federal gun charges that SAMCRO has against itself. Jax knows all too well that this deal is very dangerous for himself because he will be going behind Clay and SAMCRO's backs. In the episode "The Push", Jax asks Tara for help moving black market meds and she agrees. The San Joaquin Sheriffs Department raids the SAMCRO clubhouse based on a tip from Ernest Darby (who saw the deal go down) and Jax feels that Tara is risking too much by being involved with him and the club. He breaks up with her and ends up having sex with Ima, one of the former Cara Cara pornstars. The next morning Tara walked in on him and Ima. When he sees her later in the day he apologizes for what happened earlier, but she is not interested in listening, because she believed he meant for it to happen in order to hurt her. She thinks he blames her for Abel's kidnapping. He continues to say it is to protect her, but she doesn't believe him. He, Clay, and Tig later pick up Gemma from the hospital to take her to Belfast with them. When they arrive Jax and the club are stopped by the police and are in danger of being deported back to America. After interrogating the officers it discovered that someone not only called them, but paid them to deport SAMCRO. Once they reach the clubhouse belonging to the Belfast chapter, Jax meets Maureen and Trinity Ashby. Trinity is Jax's half sister, which is not known by neither of them yet. There are subtle hints that Jax and Trinity may be attracted to each other. Jax later meets with father Kellan Ashby. Father Kellan explains to Jax that the Real IRA wants to get rid of Jimmy O'Phellan and that they want SAMCRO to do it, because the Real IRA doesn't want to resort to killing one of their own leaders. Father Kellan promises Jax that he will give Abel back if Jax kills Jimmy.
In the episode "Turas", when SAMCRO are nearly killed by a bomb hidden in a gun shipment put there by the SAMBEL Sgt. at Arms, Jax has a shell shock
ed vision of his biological father speaking to him, but it turns out to actually be his stepfather, Clay Morrow. The next day SAMCRO, with the help of Sean Casey, interrogates Liam O'Neill about his connection to Jimmy. O'Neill confesses that he blew up the truck that killed members of the Real IRA and SAMBEL. He also admits that McGee is working for Jimmy. After a shootout with Jimmy and his crew, Jax chases Jimmy but can't get to him in time. He makes it back just in time to watch Clay kill McGee for betraying the club. Later that night, Jax and the club meet with the IRA council to present the evidence that Jimmy has flipped and learns that it will not be he who kills Jimmy. Back at the clubhouse, Jax and Trinity come close to having sex, but Gemma and Maureen walk in on them. Jax learns from his mother that Trinity is his half-sister. He takes it well, even joking that in two more minutes he would have been in Tig's territory. After talking to his mother, he meets with Father Ashby to find out where Abel is. Father Ashby admits that he never planned to give Abel back, because he knew of John Teller's desire to keep Jax out of the life and decided if he couldn't help Jax he could try to help Abel by giving him to a better family to raise him. Jax becomes furious and attacks Ashby, only to be thrown over a table. After Jax threatens to kill Sean Casey at gunpoint, Ashby then finally tells Jax where he can find Abel. However, Ashby tells Jax that if he loves Abel he will let him go. When Jax finally finds Abel, his emotions and Ashby's advice don't allow him to decide whether to rescue Abel or leave him with his new adoptive family. Gemma is furious that Jax might give up her grandson, and she tells him that Tara is pregnant with a sibling for Abel. Jimmy O'Phelan kills the Irish adoptive parents and takes Abel hostage. After this happens, Jax decides that he is done taking his father's manuscript to heart and feels that if he never listened to Ashby, his son wouldn't be that situation. Jax and the Real IRA make a deal with Jimmy to trade Abel for a new hostage, Father Kellan Ashby. Right before leaving Belfast, Jax receives an undisclosed phone call from Tig, which might have been about Tara's abduction.
Once Jax and SAMCRO return from Belfast, they begin looking for Tara. The Mayans help in the search because Salazar is a threat to their new heroin operation in Stockton Prison. They find two women dead in the road. One is Salazar's girlfriend and the other is a woman Salazar killed for her car. Jax is worried about Tara's safety and Bobby promises him that they will bring her back safely. They discover that Salazar not only has Tara, but has taken Hale hostage as well. When Salazar reveals that he will trade Tara for Jax, he is ready and willing. Jax proceeds to get into a fight with Salazar. Salazar runs, only to end up cornered in the hall, where Jax stabs him to death and makes it look like self-defense. Later, he goes with Tara to have an ultrasound
to make sure the baby is healthy. Jax later meets with Stahl, who is still determined to see the deal through. In the finale it is revealed that his dealing with Stahl was set up by the club; when they were let in on his plans is not clear at this point. When she inevitably reneges on her promise of secrecy, he acts the part knowing that she will soon be dead and they will serve light time. In a letter to Gemma, Jax assures her that he is not his father and would never rat on the club. However, Tara reads a letter from Jax's father to his mistress Maureen Ashby, after the club is arrested, which strongly suggests that Gemma and Clay were responsible for Teller's death. This knowledge may prove to change Jax.
Continuing the tradition started in season 2, Jax's appearance again differs slightly than in previous seasons. At the start of season 3, Jax's facial hair is grown out even more and his appearance is generally more disheveled.
After he returns home to Tara and their two sons, Abel and newborn Thomas, they make love. During a post-coital discussion, Jax proposes to Tara, with the ring wrapped in the tiny fist of his second son, Thomas. She accepts. The newly-engaged couple then have a discussion about their future as a family, in which Jax admits to wanting to leave the Sons once Clay has stepped down as President. Later, he attends Opie's wedding as his best man. After the ceremony, Jax goes with Clay and the Russians to shoot a gun given to Opie as a wedding gift from the Russians. While Clay is testing the gun, he shoots Putlova's bodyguards and Jax stabs Putlova to death in revenge for trying to kill him in prison, saying it's "just business". Jax then returns to the reception to dance with his fiancee, Tara. The next day, Jax and Tara are having breakfast with their sons when they see a news story about four dead bodies found at the Charming Heights construction site. She asks Jax to tell her all he knows about it. He tells her that it was retaliation for his getting stabbed in prison. After breakfast, he goes with Clay to the deal they had set up with the Galindo Cartel. At the deal, Jax learns that Clay has set it up for SAMCRO to mule
cocaine for the cartel and the Mayans. Clay tells Jax that everything that has happened the last two years has left him and Gemma with no money and that he needs Jax to help him sell it to the rest of SAMCRO. Jax tells Clay that he will back him as long Clay lets Jax out of SAMCRO and that the president's patch goes to Opie. Clay agrees to the deal. Jax and Clay meet with the rest of SAMCRO try to convince them that the drug transporting would be good for them, financially. Jax shows them the money they made from the first deal to convince them. After the meeting, Jax and Opie go to the Indian Reservation to see about the ammunition. They are encountered by some vengeful Russians. The Russians threaten to kill two Native Americans they are holding hostage if they don't get their guns returned. After a scuffle, Jax agrees to call SAMCRO to get their guns to them. Jax and Opie are eventually rescued by the Galindo Cartel, which kills all but two Russians, one of whom is given to the Native Americans for retribution. When Jax and Opie return to the Clubhouse, they discover it has been wrecked by Sheriff Roosevelt. To lighten the mood, Tara announces their engagement. During the celebration Jax catches a glimpse of Bobby, who pours some liquor on the ground to signify the end of SAMCRO is near. Gemma finally reveals the letters to Jax, angering him and vowing to kill Clay himself with a blood thinner given to him by Tara.
" and "rebel who never lives by society's rules". However, they also highlight how the birth of Abel and the discovery of his father's memoirs transformed him as a person. The Chicago Tribune remarked that Jax is "the heir apparent to the gang", but "has a great deal of nostalgia for his father’s more hippie-ish early hopes for the motorcycle club".
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
and the central character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy
Sons of Anarchy
Sons of Anarchy is an American television drama series created by Kurt Sutter about the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club operating in Charming, a fictional town in Northern California...
, played by Charlie Hunnam
Charlie Hunnam
Charles Matthew "Charlie" Hunnam is an English actor. He is perhaps best known to UK audiences as Pete Dunham in Green Street Hooligans and as Nathan Maloney in the Channel 4 hit drama Queer as Folk and to US audiences as Vice President of Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original Jackson...
. He is the Vice President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
The Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original or SOA, is a fictional outlaw motorcycle club and organized crime syndicate from the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. The club was formed by John Teller and Piermont "Piney" Winston, two Vietnam War veterans, in 1967 in Charming,...
's Redwood Original (SAMCRO) chapter based in Charming, California
Charming, California
Charming is a fictional town in the television series Sons of Anarchy. It is located in the San Joaquin Valley of California. According to a sign on the edge of town, its population is 14,679 and its motto is "Our Name Says It All"....
, despite only being in his early 30s. He is 6' 1" and has a number of tattoos
Criminal tattoo
Tattoos are commonly used among criminals to show gang membership and record the wearer's personal history—such as his or her skills, specialties, accomplishments and convictions. They are also used as a means of personal expression. Certain designs have developed recognized coded meanings...
, most notably his club's logo on his back, a tribute to his father John Teller on his right arm, his son Abel's name on his chest, and his second son Thomas on his arm. On his cut
Cut-off
A cut-off, also known as a kutte or "battle jacket" in heavy metal subcultures, is a type of vest or jacket which originated in the biker subculture and has now found popularity in the punk and various heavy metal subcultures...
, he wears patches reading "V. President" and "Men of Mayhem". He is also something of a "Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
bikie" as he often wears stylish and fashionable clothing, such as sneakers, casual jeans and Original KD's Sunglasses. The motorcycle that he rides is a Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson , often abbreviated H-D or Harley, is an American motorcycle manufacturer. Founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the first decade of the 20th century, it was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression...
Dyna-Glide, specifically a Super Glide Sport. He is also seen driving a grey Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck.
Biography
Teller is the son of GemmaGemma Teller Morrow
Gemma Teller Morrow is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Katey Sagal. Gemma is the wife of Clay Morrow, widow of John Teller, and mother of Jax Teller...
and John Teller and was born in 1978, and raised in Charming, California
Charming, California
Charming is a fictional town in the television series Sons of Anarchy. It is located in the San Joaquin Valley of California. According to a sign on the edge of town, its population is 14,679 and its motto is "Our Name Says It All"....
. His father died in 1993 and his mother was re-married to Clay Morrow
Clay Morrow
Clarence "Clay" Morrow is a fictional character in the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. He is played by Ron Perlman. He is the President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, but is also something of a vigilante as he does everything in his power to ensure that drug dealers and rapists stay...
, now the President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club
The Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, Redwood Original or SOA, is a fictional outlaw motorcycle club and organized crime syndicate from the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. The club was formed by John Teller and Piermont "Piney" Winston, two Vietnam War veterans, in 1967 in Charming,...
. He lives with the genetic heart disorder ("family flaw" as Gemma calls it) that his brother Thomas "Tommy" Teller (January 8, 1984 – April 4, 1990) died from at the age of six. He is of partial Irish
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
and Russian Jewish descent on his mother's side. He carries a USMC
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
KA-BAR
KA-BAR
KA-BAR is the contemporary popular name for the combat knife first adopted by the United States Marine Corps in November 1942 as the 1219C2 Combat Knife , and subsequently adopted by the United States Navy as the U.S. Navy Utility Knife, Mark 2...
fighting knife on his waistband.
At the beginning of the series, Teller serves as the club's Vice President, and works as a mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
at Teller-Morrow Automotive Repair. He has served time in prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
for smuggling
Smuggling
Smuggling is the clandestine transportation of goods or persons, such as out of a building, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.There are various motivations to smuggle...
and gun-running, his last arrest was in 2003. He married Wendy Case, but filed for divorce because of her drug habit. After Wendy got clean, they reconciled and conceived a son, Abel; Jax left her while she was pregnant because Wendy was unable to maintain sobriety for any length of time. Abel was born 10 weeks premature and addicted to crank
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
in the pilot episode. Jax also has romantic ties to his high-school sweetheart Tara Knowles
Tara Knowles
Dr. Tara Knowles is a character on the FX drama Sons of Anarchy played by Maggie Siff. She is the love interest of the main character, Jax Teller, and the mother of his second child Thomas Teller.-Early life:...
.
Having recently discovered several of his father's old journals and an old manuscript titled The Life and Death of Sam Crow: How the Sons of Anarchy Lost Their Way, which collectively lay out the original manifesto for SAMCRO, he finds himself doubting the club's direction, causing friction between himself and his stepfather Clay, and spreading doubt amongst the other members. Another member of SAMCRO, Opie Winston, has been his friend since childhood.
Season One
Season One begins with the Sons of Anarchy finding their weapon storage warehouse being burned down. The SOA rush to the scene, where local police officers are already investigating. Jax and ClayClay Morrow
Clarence "Clay" Morrow is a fictional character in the FX television series Sons of Anarchy. He is played by Ron Perlman. He is the President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, but is also something of a vigilante as he does everything in his power to ensure that drug dealers and rapists stay...
talk to Sheriff Vic Trammel about the blaze, who claims that propane tanks inside the building blew up, and that he suspects arson due to the bootprints inside. Trammel then shows them the burned corpses of the people hidden beneath the building, who were illegal immigrants. It is later revealed that they were Mexican prostitutes "owned" by the club's Sergeant-at-Arms, Tig Trager
Tig Trager
Alexander "Tig" Trager is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Kim Coates. He was the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club's Charming, California chapter and is the gang's second most violent member. Trager is extremely fond of women, and...
. When he returns home and begins looking through storage, he finds old photographs of his late father and a journal titled The Life and Death of Sam Crow: How the Sons of Anarchy Lost Their Way written by him, and for his sons Jackson and Thomas (who had already died at the time of writing). He is then called away to a group meeting ("Church") where all of the chapter's members meet. These are Clay Morrow (President), Bobby Munson
Bobby Munson
Robert "Bobby Elvis" Munson, is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Mark Boone Junior. He is the Secretary of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club's Charming, California chapter...
(Treasurer), Tig Trager (Sergeant-at-Arms), Chibs Telford
Chibs Telford
Filip "Chibs" Telford is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Tommy Flanagan. He is a Medic & member of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club and, unlike most of the gang's members who are American, he is Scottish...
(Medic), Piney Winston
Piney Winston
Piermont "Piney" Winston was a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by William Lucking. He was a member of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, and was one of the Club's founders .-Character biography:...
(Co-founder), Juice Ortiz
Juice Ortiz
Juan Carlos "Juice" Ortiz is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Theo Rossi. He is the Intelligence Officer for Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club...
(intelligence officer) and Happy. Clay announces that Juice has located the guns and that they were stolen by the Mayans, a rival motorcycle gang. They decide to go and get some payback the next day despite Jax's suggesting that the club look into other ways of earning money instead of dealing weapons, especially with so many rival groups on their back.
Meanwhile, Gemma finds Jax's pregnant ex-wife Wendy Case collapsed in her home, and he rushes to the hospital. Dr. Tara Knowles tells him that track marks were found on Wendy's hands and feet, and that they had to perform an emergency C-section on her, leaving the baby ten weeks premature. Because of this, the baby has a heart defect and a tear in his abdomen. The latter is from Wendy's drug abuse, but the former problem is likely a genetic defect. Together, both defects are near-fatal. The baby has just a 20% chance of survival. Jax and Tara were high school sweethearts, and she personally requested to help on his case. Jax decides not to visit his baby boy, named Abel, and instead flees the hospital. He then goes to a local bar with Bobby and beats Wendy's dealer, who is a member of the Nordics gang, repeatedly with a pool cue. Later on, he visits Opie Winston, a former SOA member who was recently released from prison and promised his wife and children that he would never return. Jax convinces Opie to ride along with him the next day, however. Jax later goes back to visit Wendy in the hospital, who promises that she'll get clean. She also says that the doctors told her Abel is getting stronger, but she is facing a charge of fetal abuse as she has a stash drawer at home. She asks him to get rid of the stash before she faces time in jail. Jax turns up at Wendy's house, which he finds his mother feverishly cleaning. Jax tells her that Abel is going to die, which angers Gemma, who slaps him and tells him that he is the only one his son has got. Jax asks her about his father's original vision of the club and she responds that it was to create a brotherhood and a family. Jax tells her about the writings he found, how his father wanted a social rebellion, not an outlaw club. When she leaves, Jax flushes Wendy's stash down the toilet and takes her gun. Clay and Gemma begin to worry that Jax is abandoning the club and what it stands for. The next day, Clay, Jax and Bobby meet Ernest Darby
Ernest Darby
Ernest Darby is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Mitch Pileggi. He is one of the show's early antagonists and is the leader of the Nordics, a White supremacist drug dealing street gang.-Biography:...
, the Nordics' leader, and tell him never to bring methamphetamine
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
or any other drug into Charming again. That night, as they prepare to go and get their guns back from San Leandro
San Leandro, California
San Leandro is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is considered a suburb of Oakland and San Francisco. The population was 84,950 as of 2010 census. The climate of the city is mild throughout the year.-Geography and water resources:...
, Jax tells Opie not to come because of the situation with his family and Bobby is occupied performing his Elvis act at a club in Lake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe
Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. At a surface elevation of , it is located along the border between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America. Its depth is , making it the USA's second-deepest...
. When they arrive at the industrial storage warehouse and find the guns, three Mayans turn up in a car outside. Clay and Chibs then shoot and kill the Mayans and another man, who has a number of Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
and White supremacist
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
tattoos. He was a member of the Nordics, a local skinhead gang who are allied with the Mayans, and it later emerges that his name was Whistler. Jax was also armed but hit a mental barrier before he could fire a shot. They then escape with the weapons and destroy the building using explosives.
Wayne Unser
Wayne Unser
Chief Wayne Unser is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Dayton Callie. He was the Chief of the Charming Police Department, but is also corrupt in that he deals with the Sons of Anarchy whom he sees as a benefit to the town, because the Sons successfully...
, the Chief of the Charming Police Department, has always gotten on well with the Sons of Anarchy during his time in charge, and even employed them as muscle at times. However, he is dying from cancer and will retire at the end of the month, handing power over to his Deputy, David Hale, who is overtly suspicious of the SOA and will almost definitely begin an investigation into the club. Hale talks to Jax, telling him that when he becomes Chief he won't look the other way with the Sons of Anarchy like his predecessor did. To distract the police from their activities, the burnt down warehouse in particular, Jax, Chibs, and Half-Sack Epps
Half-Sack Epps
Kip "Half-Sack" Epps is a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Johnny Lewis. He was a prospective member of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club, which often results in hazing and him being given undesirable tasks...
(a Prospect in the club) acquire two dead bodies from the local morgue and set them up in a fake shoot-out. The set-up shooting is made to look like a racist murder involving the Nordics. On his way back to town, Jax is cut off on the road by a man driving a red muscle car
Muscle car
Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." Usually, a large V8 engine is fitted in a...
. He later catches up with this man at a petrol station and beats him up. The driver then pulls out a pistol and attempts to shoot Jax, but is wrestled to the ground and then killed by the Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i shopkeeper, who hits him with a fire axe. The trio then steal the CCTV tapes and flee the scene. Later, Jax visits baby Abel, and Tara tells him that he will make a full recovery. She also says that Wendy is being put through sedated detox, and she will be out for a couple of days.
Local businessman Elliot Oswald goes to Clay after his 13-year-old daughter was raped at a carnival, and asks the Sons of Anarchy to hunt down the rapist and kill him, in exchange for money. Clay refuses the money but insists that if they catch him, he must carry out the punishment himself. Juice and Gemma find out that the rapist is one of the carnies
Carny
Carny or carnie is a slang term used in North America and, along with showie, in Australia for a carnival employee, as well as the language they employ...
and the gang capture him and bring him to Oswald, who tries to castrate him but can't bring himself to do it. Clay then carries the punishment out, but wears gloves whilst doing it. He then blackmails Oswald for the crime, as only Oswald's fingerprints are on the knife, because Oswald was about to sell off much of the land around Charming to big business and housing, which would challenge the SOA's reign over the town. Jax is unhappy that Clay did not tell him of the plan, however, and tells clay to always inform him on his future motives.
When a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is a federal law enforcement organization within the United States Department of Justice...
agent arrives in Charming and begins investigating the club, the SOA decide that they should move their weapons to Indian Hills, Nevada
Indian Hills, Nevada
Indian Hills is a census-designated place in Douglas County, Nevada, United States. It lies in the south side of the Carson City metropolitan area...
, where their brother club, the Devil's Tribe, are based. Clay sends Bobby and Jax to inform the Devil's Tribe that the Sons of Anarchy will be patching over them and storing guns on their property. On the way there, they encounter a group of Mayans on the road and engage in a shootout
Shootout
A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups. A shootout often, but not necessarily, pits law enforcement against criminal elements; it could also involve two groups outside of law enforcement, such as rival gangs. A shootout in a military context A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups....
, although no one is killed. Later, the pair run into a couple as they leave a petrol station. The man is extremely disrespectful to the woman, named Suzi, and they beat him up. Jax then picks Suzi up for sex and carries on with his journey. When they arrive at the Devil's Tribe clubhouse and inform them of the news, their President, Jury, is not pleased but eventually accepts that it is the best decision for both clubs. After the patch-over party, Jax goes for a ride and attracts the attention of a group of Mayans. He then draws them back to the clubhouse, where the Sons of Anarchy are waiting for them. A large shootout ensues, during which Jury is shot and injured. After having sex with Jax, Suzi leaves and returns to her old boyfriend. The ATF agent has been following Jax the whole time, taking photographs. He sends a picture of Jax and Suzi having sex to Tara, his former lover.
Otto Delaney and a number of other imprisoned SAMCRO members have been protecting Chuck in Stockton
Stockton, California
Stockton, California, the seat of San Joaquin County, is the fourth-largest city in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California. With a population of 291,707 at the 2010 census, Stockton ranks as this state's 13th largest city...
prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
. He is wanted by the Triads because he stole money from them, then informed on a number of their members when he was arrested. When Clay and Jax visit Otto in prison, he tells them that if they protected Chuck when he was released, he would inform them where the Triads keep their money. They agree and pick him up from prison and bring him to the clubhouse. SAMCRO intends to wait until the restaurant, where the money is stored, closes before raiding it, but Chuck's frequent unconscious masturbating is unbearable for them and they decide to raid the restaurant straight away. At the restaurant, Jax uses his knife to cut open a newly-plastered patch on the ceiling where the bag of money is. However, just after they steal the money and some counterfeit
Counterfeit
To counterfeit means to illegally imitate something. Counterfeit products are often produced with the intent to take advantage of the superior value of the imitated product...
ing plates, the Triads turn up. Instead of starting a war, Clay decides to make a deal; SAMCRO hands over Chuck and the plates, and the Triads let them keep the stolen money. Meanwhile, Kyle Hobart, a disgraced former SAMCRO member, goes to Jax and asks him if the Sons want in on his deal selling stolen car parts. Jax accepts and invites him to the clubhouse that night. This is a setup
Frameup
A frame-up or setup is an American term referring to the act of framing someone, that is, providing false evidence or false testimony in order to falsely prove someone guilty of a crime....
, however, to punish him for not having his SOA tattoo removed after being disowned by the club. At the clubhouse, they tie him up and Tig uses a blowtorch to burn off the tattoo.
Jax and Piney sell five AK-47
AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
s to Nate Meineke and his right-wing state militia. They then use these guns to ambush a prison convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
and free one of their members, Frank Cison. A police officer and two bystanders are killed during the assault. Meineke drops his cell phone at the scene, and his last calls have been to Clay Morrow. When the ATF finds the phone, they arrest Clay and raid the clubhouse. Clay is later released because no evidence is found, meaning he can no longer be kept in custody. Meanwhile Jax, Piney and Opie decide to kill Meineke and his gang to prevent them from snitching
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
if they are apprehended by the authorities. They pretend to sell them more weapons. The "boxes of guns" are actually filled with explosives, however, and the militia loads their trucks with them. All of the militia are killed when the bombs are detonated.
When Tara tells Jax that ATF agent Josh Kohn
Josh Kohn
Agent Joshua "Josh" Kohn was a fictional character on the FX television series Sons of Anarchy, played by Jay Karnes. He served as one of the main antagonists on the show's first season and is an agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives...
has been stalking her, Jax threatens to kill Kohn if he goes near Tara again. Jax also reports him to David Hale, who in turn informs the ATF. Upon learning that the authorities have not yet apprehended Kohn, Jax hunts Kohn down, himself. Jax found him at the local barber shop, and a brawl ensues with Jax emerging the victor. Kohn is then arrested for breaching Tara's restraining order against him.
While riding his motorcycle on the highway, Jax comes across a truck driver, who has been badly beaten, on the hood of his truck. The trucker says that the Nordics had beaten him because he owed them money. They also later took his truck and tanker full of fiesel fuel. Jax and Opie then hijack the truck back from the Nords and sell it is to Wayne Unser, who runs a trucking company. This then gives SAMCRO enough money to buy weapons from the True IRA. Later that night, Jax goes to Tara's house, after she phones him and asked him to come over. Kohn has broken in and tried to rape her, but she grabbed his gun and shot him in the stomach. Jax then kills Kohn and has sex with Tara.
Cameron Hayes, a member of the True IRA, offers SAMCRO a free shipment of guns if they will carry out a hit on Brenan Hefner, the man who killed his cousin Michael McKeavey. Jax, Bobby and Opie then go to the hotel room, where he sees his African American mistress. Opie is supposed to shoot him when he leaves the room, but freezes and Bobby steps in and shoots him at close range with a silenced pistol.
The ATF arrests Luann Delaney and Cherry, the women of Otto and Half-Sack, and threatens them with prison if they do not give information on SAMCRO. Bobby, Piney and Tig start a brawl at a local bar and most of the town's small police force have to go to the scene to break it up. This gives Jax and Opie an opportunity to break into the police station, with the help of Unser, and free Cherry. Luann stays behind because the ATF are about to get Otto to plead to a case that he thought was harmless, to secure him and Luann a deal, but in fact would lead to the arrest of every club member. So Luann has to get the message to Otto.
When Bobby is arrested for the murder of Brenan Hefner, Agent Stahl makes it seem that Opie is the one who identified him. Jax never tells Clay and the other club members that Opie lost his nerve and failed to shoot Hefner, forcing Bobby to shoot Hefner from the other side of the door, where the girl saw him. Still thinking that the Hefner shoot went down clean, and thus the only people who could have seen were the other SOA members, along with all the evidence engineered by Stahl, it seems extremely likely that Opie is the rat. Jax defends him, however, and convinces some of the club that the ATF has set him up. Clay has Tig check Opie's car for wiretaps, and he finds them. Tig and Clay are convinced Opie is guilty and decide to kill him.
Jax begins living at Tara's house, or at least sleeping with her on a regular basis. When he and Tara are kissing at the hospital, Wendy sees them and later confronts Tara. The next day, Jax goes with Clay, Tig and Opie to make an arms deal with the Mayans in Oakland. The One-Niners attack the deal, however, and they escape while the Mayans and Niners fight. Clay and Tig had made a deal with the Niners, but didn't inform Jax or the others; the Niners were supposed to eliminate the Mayans after the SOA left, but they decide to take them out also. Later that night, Abel is released from the hospital and a party is held in celebration. Tara again kisses Jax at the party, purposely in plain view for Wendy to see. Jax then pulls Tara aside, and asks her not to flaunt their relationship in front of a newly-recovered Wendy, and "to be cool with whatever this is". Tara, incensed, slaps Jax and storms out. When Opie leaves the party, he takes his wife's car to take his children home in, and his wife takes his pick-up truck. Tig thinks Opie is driving the car and shoots Donna.
Wendy tells Jax that she wants to give their relationship another chance now that they have a child, but he refuses, saying that things will be no different than before. When he later visits Tara, she tells him that she is afraid of being caught for killing Kohn and that she is moving back to Chicago. He admits that she is the only woman he has ever loved and that he only married Wendy because he was lonely. At Church, Piney says he wanted to kill Laroy as revenge for killing Donna, so Jax tells Half-Sack to follow him and make sure Piney doesn't do anything unnecessary. Half-Sack then calls and says that Piney had gone into a bar in Oakland and is holding a Niner hostage. When Jax and Chibs arrive, they manage to get Piney out and have a talk with Laroy, who says it wasn't his gang who killed Donna. When he visits the police station to ask Unser if he had any leads on Donna's killing, David Hale approaches him. Hale tells Jax about Stahl's setting up Opie, and Jax then realises that it was SAMCRO who killed Donna. He confronts Clay about this at the clubhouse and asks him if Clay had anything to do with Donna's death. Clay denies it. As Jax leaves the clubhouse, Juice tells him that the witness to Hefner's killing is a 17-year-old girl and that Chibs, Happy and Tig are on their way to kill her. Jax then drives out to San Joaquin
San Joaquin, California
San Joaquin is a city in Fresno County, California, United States. The population was 4,001 at the 2010 census, up from 3,270 at the 2000 census. The nearest high school in the area is Tranquillity High School in Tranquillity...
on his motorcycle and stops Tig from killing her at gunpoint. He tells Chibs and Happy to leave and threatens the witness into leaving the state. He then beats Tig up because he killed Donna. Jax spends the night in the graveyard, drinking vodka
Vodka
Vodka , is a distilled beverage. It is composed primarily of water and ethanol with traces of impurities and flavorings. Vodka is made by the distillation of fermented substances such as grains, potatoes, or sometimes fruits....
. The next morning, he goes to Donna's funeral, which is attended by Sons of Anarchy from all across the country. He and Tara shared one last kiss, and the season ends as he stands and looks at his father's and brother's gravestones.
Season Two
In the first episode of Season 2, Jax and Clay go head to head over Donna's death. The only reason Jax does not tell Opie the truth is because he loves Opie too much and does not want him to lose the only family he's got left—the club. Jax insists on coming with Opie, Chibs, and Tig to murder a Mayan member who SAMCRO frames for Donna's murder. After the Mayan is killed, Opie carves the Sons of Anarchy symbol into his stomach (so the Mayans will know why the man was killed). Jax removes the symbol and disposes of the body in Mayan territory, putting up 9 fingers to make it look like the Niners killed the man. Jax has gotten a new tattoo: his son Abel's name on his left pec. He is seen saving Tig from bounty hunters with Chibs, Happy, Half Sack, and Piney. He assumes that Ethan Zobelle and L.O.A.N. will fight an underhanded war against SAMCRO and he is against Clay's plans to strike at the Aryans head on. Jax finds fault with most everything that Clay says and the two grow farther and farther apart.After L.O.A.N. burns down CaraCara, Jax suspects it was Clay, since Clay did not want the porn business around after Luann is murdered. This drives Jax over the edge, and he decides to go Nomad. The vote is unanimous and Jax removes V. President patch and his Redwood Original patches in preparation to go Nomad, but after learning of his mother's rape at the hands of L.O.A.N., he comes back in as the Vice President of SAMCRO wanting revenge on L.O.A.N., specifically A.J. Weston. After finding out that Tig has told Opie the truth about Donna's death, Opie leaves the clubhouse looking for Stahl. Jax assumes that since Stahl is investigating L.O.A.N. Opie will be after Zobelle and his crew, and goes off to follow Zobelle. While following Zobelle, Jax learns that Zobelle is dealing with the Mayans behind Weston's back.
In the Season 2 finale "Na Trioblóidí", Jax finally gets revenge on A.J. Weston by killing him in a tattoo parlor bathroom. However, at the end of the episode, Cameron Hayes, who mistakenly thinks Gemma killed his son, stabs and kills Half-Sack and kidnaps Jax's son Abel, fleeing on his motorboat to an unknown location. Jax is last seen distraught and crying on the docks while Clay and the other Sons console him, watching Hayes speed off with his son.
It should be noted that Jax's appearance differs slightly than in season 1. At the start of season 2, Jax has grown more facial hair, has a slightly larger build, and stands up straighter.
Season Three
In the first episode we see Jax is still distraught over the loss of Abel. As the Sons go out to look for Cameron, he remains neutral. He attempts to break up with Tara because he believes that he is ruining her life, but she remains loyal to him and refuses to leave. At Half-Sack's wake, Clay tells Jax that he has to be strong to inspire his SAMCRO brothers. When a woman's son is shot in the drive-by after the wake, Jax finally loses it and continually bashes the gunman's head into the pavement until his fellow Sons pull him away. Also in more episodes he increasingly tries to push Tara out of his life.When Jax finds out that Abel is in Belfast (despite Jimmy O'Phellan's diversions), he puts into motion a deal with Agent Stahl to give her Jimmy and the True IRA in Northern California in exchange for her dropping the charges against his mother Gemma and reducing the federal gun charges that SAMCRO has against itself. Jax knows all too well that this deal is very dangerous for himself because he will be going behind Clay and SAMCRO's backs. In the episode "The Push", Jax asks Tara for help moving black market meds and she agrees. The San Joaquin Sheriffs Department raids the SAMCRO clubhouse based on a tip from Ernest Darby (who saw the deal go down) and Jax feels that Tara is risking too much by being involved with him and the club. He breaks up with her and ends up having sex with Ima, one of the former Cara Cara pornstars. The next morning Tara walked in on him and Ima. When he sees her later in the day he apologizes for what happened earlier, but she is not interested in listening, because she believed he meant for it to happen in order to hurt her. She thinks he blames her for Abel's kidnapping. He continues to say it is to protect her, but she doesn't believe him. He, Clay, and Tig later pick up Gemma from the hospital to take her to Belfast with them. When they arrive Jax and the club are stopped by the police and are in danger of being deported back to America. After interrogating the officers it discovered that someone not only called them, but paid them to deport SAMCRO. Once they reach the clubhouse belonging to the Belfast chapter, Jax meets Maureen and Trinity Ashby. Trinity is Jax's half sister, which is not known by neither of them yet. There are subtle hints that Jax and Trinity may be attracted to each other. Jax later meets with father Kellan Ashby. Father Kellan explains to Jax that the Real IRA wants to get rid of Jimmy O'Phellan and that they want SAMCRO to do it, because the Real IRA doesn't want to resort to killing one of their own leaders. Father Kellan promises Jax that he will give Abel back if Jax kills Jimmy.
In the episode "Turas", when SAMCRO are nearly killed by a bomb hidden in a gun shipment put there by the SAMBEL Sgt. at Arms, Jax has a shell shock
Shell Shock
Shell Shock, also known as 82nd Marines Attack was a 1964 film by B-movie director John Hayes. The film takes place in Italy during World War II, and tells the story of a sergeant with his group of soldiers....
ed vision of his biological father speaking to him, but it turns out to actually be his stepfather, Clay Morrow. The next day SAMCRO, with the help of Sean Casey, interrogates Liam O'Neill about his connection to Jimmy. O'Neill confesses that he blew up the truck that killed members of the Real IRA and SAMBEL. He also admits that McGee is working for Jimmy. After a shootout with Jimmy and his crew, Jax chases Jimmy but can't get to him in time. He makes it back just in time to watch Clay kill McGee for betraying the club. Later that night, Jax and the club meet with the IRA council to present the evidence that Jimmy has flipped and learns that it will not be he who kills Jimmy. Back at the clubhouse, Jax and Trinity come close to having sex, but Gemma and Maureen walk in on them. Jax learns from his mother that Trinity is his half-sister. He takes it well, even joking that in two more minutes he would have been in Tig's territory. After talking to his mother, he meets with Father Ashby to find out where Abel is. Father Ashby admits that he never planned to give Abel back, because he knew of John Teller's desire to keep Jax out of the life and decided if he couldn't help Jax he could try to help Abel by giving him to a better family to raise him. Jax becomes furious and attacks Ashby, only to be thrown over a table. After Jax threatens to kill Sean Casey at gunpoint, Ashby then finally tells Jax where he can find Abel. However, Ashby tells Jax that if he loves Abel he will let him go. When Jax finally finds Abel, his emotions and Ashby's advice don't allow him to decide whether to rescue Abel or leave him with his new adoptive family. Gemma is furious that Jax might give up her grandson, and she tells him that Tara is pregnant with a sibling for Abel. Jimmy O'Phelan kills the Irish adoptive parents and takes Abel hostage. After this happens, Jax decides that he is done taking his father's manuscript to heart and feels that if he never listened to Ashby, his son wouldn't be that situation. Jax and the Real IRA make a deal with Jimmy to trade Abel for a new hostage, Father Kellan Ashby. Right before leaving Belfast, Jax receives an undisclosed phone call from Tig, which might have been about Tara's abduction.
Once Jax and SAMCRO return from Belfast, they begin looking for Tara. The Mayans help in the search because Salazar is a threat to their new heroin operation in Stockton Prison. They find two women dead in the road. One is Salazar's girlfriend and the other is a woman Salazar killed for her car. Jax is worried about Tara's safety and Bobby promises him that they will bring her back safely. They discover that Salazar not only has Tara, but has taken Hale hostage as well. When Salazar reveals that he will trade Tara for Jax, he is ready and willing. Jax proceeds to get into a fight with Salazar. Salazar runs, only to end up cornered in the hall, where Jax stabs him to death and makes it look like self-defense. Later, he goes with Tara to have an ultrasound
Medical ultrasonography
Diagnostic sonography is an ultrasound-based diagnostic imaging technique used for visualizing subcutaneous body structures including tendons, muscles, joints, vessels and internal organs for possible pathology or lesions...
to make sure the baby is healthy. Jax later meets with Stahl, who is still determined to see the deal through. In the finale it is revealed that his dealing with Stahl was set up by the club; when they were let in on his plans is not clear at this point. When she inevitably reneges on her promise of secrecy, he acts the part knowing that she will soon be dead and they will serve light time. In a letter to Gemma, Jax assures her that he is not his father and would never rat on the club. However, Tara reads a letter from Jax's father to his mistress Maureen Ashby, after the club is arrested, which strongly suggests that Gemma and Clay were responsible for Teller's death. This knowledge may prove to change Jax.
Continuing the tradition started in season 2, Jax's appearance again differs slightly than in previous seasons. At the start of season 3, Jax's facial hair is grown out even more and his appearance is generally more disheveled.
Season Four
Jax and the other club members are released from prison. He has abdominal scars stemming from a prison stabbing incident involving the Russian mob. Also, Jax's appearance is different. He has cut his hair and trimmed his beard.After he returns home to Tara and their two sons, Abel and newborn Thomas, they make love. During a post-coital discussion, Jax proposes to Tara, with the ring wrapped in the tiny fist of his second son, Thomas. She accepts. The newly-engaged couple then have a discussion about their future as a family, in which Jax admits to wanting to leave the Sons once Clay has stepped down as President. Later, he attends Opie's wedding as his best man. After the ceremony, Jax goes with Clay and the Russians to shoot a gun given to Opie as a wedding gift from the Russians. While Clay is testing the gun, he shoots Putlova's bodyguards and Jax stabs Putlova to death in revenge for trying to kill him in prison, saying it's "just business". Jax then returns to the reception to dance with his fiancee, Tara. The next day, Jax and Tara are having breakfast with their sons when they see a news story about four dead bodies found at the Charming Heights construction site. She asks Jax to tell her all he knows about it. He tells her that it was retaliation for his getting stabbed in prison. After breakfast, he goes with Clay to the deal they had set up with the Galindo Cartel. At the deal, Jax learns that Clay has set it up for SAMCRO to mule
Mule (smuggling)
A mule or courier is someone who smuggles something with him or her across a national border, including bringing in to and out of an international plane, especially a small amount, transported for a smuggling organization. The organizers employ mules to reduce the risk of getting caught...
cocaine for the cartel and the Mayans. Clay tells Jax that everything that has happened the last two years has left him and Gemma with no money and that he needs Jax to help him sell it to the rest of SAMCRO. Jax tells Clay that he will back him as long Clay lets Jax out of SAMCRO and that the president's patch goes to Opie. Clay agrees to the deal. Jax and Clay meet with the rest of SAMCRO try to convince them that the drug transporting would be good for them, financially. Jax shows them the money they made from the first deal to convince them. After the meeting, Jax and Opie go to the Indian Reservation to see about the ammunition. They are encountered by some vengeful Russians. The Russians threaten to kill two Native Americans they are holding hostage if they don't get their guns returned. After a scuffle, Jax agrees to call SAMCRO to get their guns to them. Jax and Opie are eventually rescued by the Galindo Cartel, which kills all but two Russians, one of whom is given to the Native Americans for retribution. When Jax and Opie return to the Clubhouse, they discover it has been wrecked by Sheriff Roosevelt. To lighten the mood, Tara announces their engagement. During the celebration Jax catches a glimpse of Bobby, who pours some liquor on the ground to signify the end of SAMCRO is near. Gemma finally reveals the letters to Jax, angering him and vowing to kill Clay himself with a blood thinner given to him by Tara.
Origins and critical response
Teller was named as one of TV's best dads by Dadcentric.com, and they described him as a "brutal anti-heroAnti-hero
In fiction, an antihero is generally considered to be a protagonist whose character is at least in some regards conspicuously contrary to that of the archetypal hero, and is in some instances its antithesis in which the character is generally useless at being a hero or heroine when they're...
" and "rebel who never lives by society's rules". However, they also highlight how the birth of Abel and the discovery of his father's memoirs transformed him as a person. The Chicago Tribune remarked that Jax is "the heir apparent to the gang", but "has a great deal of nostalgia for his father’s more hippie-ish early hopes for the motorcycle club".