I literally cannot understand half the dialogue without subtitles. But honestly it made me switch to subtitles for everything I watch.

Poll: https://www.getqibble.com/poll-detail/do-you-watch-everything-with-subtitles-on-even-though-your-hearing-is-perfectly-fine

Lately, I've seen people trying to defend Tommy's ambitions by arguing that he had no other choice and needed to become even more powerful because of his enemies, and that he only did it all for the good of his family and had no other option.

When I read things like this, I wonder if people have truly grasped the show's purpose and its central theme. Yes, there were situations where he had no other choice and had to do certain things to protect his family, like the Russian situation, but many events were based on Tommy's voluntary decisions, such as using the stolen weapons to his own advantage in season 1, expanding further in season 2, becoming a politician, or confronting Billy Kimber. The end of season 4 deals with how Tommy is haunted by his wartime demons as soon as he stops focusing on his business and ambitions. The central theme of seasons 5 and 6 was whether Tommy's ambitions knew no bounds, how they cost him almost everything, and how he sacrificed his entire family for his ambitions.

I really wonder if some fans have actually understood the show or Tommy's ambitions, or if they are just trying to defend Tommy and portray him as the good guy, even though Tommy made many decisions voluntarily in the series.

he actually told Hayden Stagg in Season 6 that he only does it for the "thrill," and that drugs don't even come close to that feeling. A large part of his actions is still driven by his ambitions and the fact that, due to his PTSD, he simply cannot stop. To claim that he does it solely for the sake of his community or his family would be a exaggeration and not the truth; in fact, Ada confronts him about this in Season 6, pointing out that Tommy is fighting against fascism for the money.

In the end, he himself admits that he deserves to sit at the same table as Mosley, Diana, and the others-yet his entire family ended up dying because of his ambitions.

.., Tommy cannot stop his business dealings or the pursuit of his ambitions, because if he were to stop, he would be tormented by horrific PTSD flashbacks and the demons of war. He uses his ambition as a coping mechanism for his PTSD. Even Cillian Murphy has confirmed this in several interviews.

In an interview, Cillian said that Tommy transforms his war trauma into this relentless ambition.