‘Sons of Anarchy’ Fans Weigh in on ‘Mayans M.C.’ Premiere

Expectations were high ahead of the Mayans M.C. premiere Tuesday night, and Sons of Anarchy fans did not hold back on their opinions of the new spinoff series.

Spoilers ahead for Mayans M.C. episode 1.

Taking place around four years after Jax Teller’s (Charlie Hunnam) death, the show follows Ezequiel “EZ” Reyes (JD Pardo) as he attempts to make his way up the ranks of the Mayans motorcycle club after getting out of prison.

In the action-packed season premiere, the Mayans investigate the hijacking of a cartel shipment by the Samoan crew. The precarious situation leads the club, led by president Obispo “Bishop” Losa (Michael Irby) to ask questions from some old friends.

The M.C. recruits Oakland charter president Marcus Alvarez (Emilio Rivera) to ask the help of the Sons of Anarchy’s San Bernardino Charter. Their appearance in a tense scene made fans jump for joy seeing a reference to the club, despite it not being the same Charter as on the flagship series.

That was not the only surprise shoutout to the original series, during the episode’s opening sequence viewers saw a coyote eating a crow by the U.S. Mexico Border.

Seconds later, viewers saw as EZ was riding along and he crushes the crow with his bike, a clear message to viewers that SAMCRO and the Sons are not the main characters of this story anymore.

Fans were also delighted by the appearance of fan-favorite Gemma Teller (Katey Sagal) in a quick flashback scene. Fans first see EZ, who at that point was serving a twenty-year prison sentence, breaking up with then-girlfriend Emily (Sarah Bolger).

As the fight gets heated and Emily walks away, prison guards retrain and beat up EZ for him to calm down, as viewers see a glimpse of Gemma who says only one word: “A—holes.”

After setting up the world of the new show, the episode pulls out one final twist already sending fans down a rabbit hole of anxiety: EZ was let out of prison early with the promise to rat on the Galindo cartel for his freedom, in the hopes that once the operation is done he can leave the outlaw life for good.

The shockers did not end there, as the final moments of the epic series premiere signaled a tragic fate for Emily. We’ll have to tune in to see how that plays out.

Mayans M.C. airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX.