The crime drama action show Sons of Anarchy, created by Kurt Sutter, followed Jackson “Jax” Teller (Charlie Hunman) and the lives of an outlaw motorcycle club in California. As the seasons continued, the show explored struggles surrounding love, loyalty, brotherhood, and betrayal. After SOA wrapped up its seventh and final season, a few years later, Sutter decided that the motorcycle world is not over, and felt it was only right to create a spin-off series, Mayans MC, who were actually rivals of SOA, though later joined forces and became allies.
Mayans MC takes place two years after the events of Sons of Anarchy and focuses on the struggles of Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes, who is a prospect for Mayans MC and whose life has been turned upside down by violence. Now, as he holds much anger, his need for revenge leads him to a life he had never expected. Although we are given a brand-new story, with brand-new characters at the center of it, Mayans MC is still a spin-off, so we were still expecting a crossover, and were pleased to see some familiar faces here and there like Gemma Teller (Katey Sagal), who appears in a flashback scene. Although, it still holds questions to how exactly it relates to the show it is based on.
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SOA and Mayans MC Are Tied
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Throughout Mayans MC, we do see similarities to the original show, Sons of Anarchy, especially like the themes that run through them, like loyalty, betrayal, and family. Mayan MC’s main character, EZ could also be seen as similar to Jax from SOA; whether that was the intention or not, the two are very similar and creates a familiar feeling connecting each show, as EZ is confused and lost about where he belongs, we see a young Jax shine through. In fact, similarities between characters pop up quite often in Mayans, like president of the Santo Padre charter, Obispo ‘Bishop’ Losa, seems awfully familiar, and could be seen as a similar character to Clay from SOA; both characters were soldiers, after all.
Not only do SOA character traits appear in the new Mayans characters, they also actually appear throughout the storyline, and let’s admit it, they show up in the most unexpected ways. Especially Happy Lowman, who was brought into the Mayans MC story in a way we did not see coming. In the spin-off show, we were given a jaw-dropping shock when we found out who murdered EZ’s mother; we did not expect to find out it was tied to SOA, and see characters from that show appear.
Happy Lowman wasn’t the only SOA character to get mentioned in Mayans, and it was nice for fans to hear Jax Teller’s name get dropped too when the Mayans were discussing a new arrangement for supplying cartel. When they decided that SAMCRO could help by going “under the radar,” fans were delighted to see the tie between Mayans and the original show and their relationship continue long after Jax’s death (even if it does turn sour). In season two, the way that Mayans MC showed its relation to SOA was subtle, clever, and critically acclaimed.
Mayans and SOA Continue into Season Five
Season three of Mayans MC brought more drama, was more intense, and carried on the tie-ins between Mayans and SOA. Fans were especially surprised to see the return of U.S. Attorney Lincoln “Linc” James Potter from SOA, who is now investigating the Mayans motorcycle gang, as well as Happy Lowman, for the death of EZ’s mother. Lincoln’s re-appearance, as well as other characters’ throughout the first few seasons, gave hope to SOA and Mayans MC fans that the Sons of Anarchy will live on throughout the Mayans gang for the rest of the show, and they’re not going anywhere, as season four showed.
In season four, the war between the Mayans and SAMCRO brought back SOA, although they never left our hearts, and was a fantastic way to tie Mayans MC to the show it’s based on. Luckily for fans, the war continues, and it won’t be the last time we see SAMCRO. Co-creator and showrunner Elgin James even commented on the war between the two clubs:
So, fans can be assured that the link to SOA is not over and will carry on, as season five was confirmed during the show’s panel at Comic-Con in July. It has been eight years since the final season of SOA, but the creation of Mayans MC has brought life back into the club and its characters, and fans of both shows are surely excited to see it continue.
“We start [the season] off with a bang; we come out swinging. There’s more action in the first episode than there was in the three earlier seasons. We will take our time and be patient because we also have to reset ourselves emotionally. But once it starts rolling again, there’s no stopping it. [The war] is definitely going to take a season, and it may take the rest of these characters a lifetime.”
