1. Nucky Thompson(01 of10)
Open Image ModalNucky's taken a step up in the bootlegging business, appointing himself a liquor wholesaler who's selling to Arnold Rothstein and only Arnold Rothstein. Thompson seems emboldened after besting the political coup against him, and more cold-blooded too, casually ordering a thief shot in his first scene of the season.He also now has the new advantage of being freed from the burdens of playing politician, in the traditional sense anyway. Nucky's traded in his job as Atlantic City Treasurer for a public role as an accidental philanthropist. His lackies still control Atlantic City's government, but now Nucky's got the time to focus on being a gangster full time. (credit:HBO)
2. Arnold Rothstein(02 of10)
Open Image ModalRothstein is now serving as Nucky's chief distributor after maintaining an alliance with him through last season's tumult. He's poised to become the King of New York, which should make his young crew of Luciano & Lanksy plenty of cash, but he may have a big problem brewing in his own backyard. (credit:HBO)
3. Gyp Rosetti(03 of10)
Open Image ModalWell, here's the character "Boardwalk" brought into the story to fill the void left by Darmody's departure and make trouble for Nucky this season. After coming to Atlantic City for New Years only to be told that Nucky won't be selling him booze anymore, Rosetti is pretty pissed. And the guy has demonstrated that he's capable of pretty much anything. Rosetti's played by Bobby Cannavale, who recently co-starred in the Chris Rock play "The Motherfucker With The Hat," and you get the feeling that's a nickname we should probably start calling him. (credit:HBO)
4. Richard Harrow(04 of10)
Open Image ModalHarrow is currently living in Gillian Darmody's whorehouse and living out his family scrapbook fantasy by playing "caretaker" of Jimmy's kid. And as we learned when he blasted Manny Horvitz's face off with a shotgun, he's also biding his time, waiting to avenge his friend's death. Is there a chance he could go after Nucky? (credit:HBO)
5. Gillian Darmody(05 of10)
Open Image ModalJimmy's mother ... I mean lover ... I mean mother ... appears to have set up a whorehouse in the Commodore's former mansion and named it the Artemis Club. That's gangster. Also, she's brainwashed Jimmy's son into into calling her Mom, and let's face it: she's probably manipulating Harrow in his revenge scheme too. (credit:HBO)
6. Al Capone(06 of10)
Open Image ModalYoung Capone is getting into his own North vs. South turf war in Chicago, against his boss Johnny Torrio's wishes. But let me make a not-at-all bold, entirely historically-based prediction: that's a war Capone will probably win. (credit:HBO)
7. Margaret Thompson(07 of10)
Open Image ModalAs it turns out, Margaret's seemingly bizarre decision to sell Nucky's land to the church wasn't a fit of religious guilt, but instead a calculated move to re-invent herself and her husband as benefactor and philanthropist's wife. She's spearheading their charitable cover, but still doing some good: they built a hospital and she's fighting the Catholic policy of not giving women pre-natal care and basic information about hygiene and women's health. (credit:HBO)
8. Nelson Van Alden(08 of10)
Open Image ModalWorking as a door-to-door iron salesman in Chicago after he fled Atlantic City, wouldn't you know that Van Alden backed his way into the feud between Capone the Irish North-siders? It would be quite an awesome character evolution if he went from fervent Prohibition agent to muscle for O'Banion. He also appears to have married his mail-order nanny, which proves there is love after Paz de La Huerta. (credit:HBO)
9. Mickey Doyle(09 of10)
Open Image ModalDoyle left a warehouse of booze unguarded while he was dropping a deuce, and as tends to happen, it was robbed. Nucky called him an "imbecile," which means that Doyle and his weird laugh probably won't be in Nucky's inner circle much longer. He's already been thrown off a balcony, but you get the feeling something worse is coming his way soon. (credit:HBO)
10. Manny Horvitz(10 of10)
Open Image ModalThe butcher/murderer they called Munya finally got what was coming to him when Richard Harrow gunned him down on his front porch. "Boardwalk's" twisted universe has its own perverse order: the man who killed Jimmy's wife Angela was gunned down in front of his, and the man without a face shot somebody else's face off. (credit:HBO)