Empire: One Before The Other

It seems a lot of  people have just turned off their TVs now that the election is over and are trying to find something, somewhere else to distract them as ratings were low for this mid-season premiere and pretty much across the board last night. Even my Below Deck recap isn’t getting a lot of love.  I am ready for something completely different so I am taking an hour out of moderating the political forum, which is still moving along somewhat respectfully, with a few hiccups, to immerse myself in Empire.  This probably will not be a recap because I’m having some memory issues lately and I have a hard enough time keeping my names straight with shows I am quite familiar with these days. I am not sure what this is yet. I just really needed me some Taye Diggs tonight.

I could do without Shyne and his lion hunt. I am distressed that Taye is listed as a guest star. A commercial reminds me I haven’t watch more than the first episode, or perhaps two of Pitch. I like that show.

For me the family dynamic is the most intriguing part of this show. Lucious seems to love and hate Cookie and his boys in equal measure. Except perhaps for Jamal. Lucious is not ever going to fully accept having a gay son.

I love Gabourey Sidibe. SO MUCH.

I do not understand Lucious’ objective with his sons. I fail to see how a parable of sorts by Kahlil Gibran really fits Hakeem’s situation when his father gives his the book. It’s essentially about a beggar trying to find work, and food and a place to live who after many earnest efforts says fuck it and turns to a life of crime.  I can see how that applies to a lot of people trying to make a living, but Hakeem is a Lyon and rich. But apparently, Lucious knows his sons and how to push their buttons because that story that, Lucious was reading to Bella, Hakeem’s biological daughter by Lucious’ now wife (it’s complicated) when Hakeem dropped by.  This episode, Lucious seems to be planting bad seeds again with all of his boys to make the feel like they are all as morally corrupt as he is.  Andre, who is off is bipolar meds already feels like he is a bad seed, so that one was easy. This was his way of getting Hakeem on the corruption train with him. Only his homosexual son, Jamal is holding out, trying to protect Hakeem especially from bad influences by suggesting they drop a positive live stream in defiance of their corrupt father.  Lucious doesn’t have any values other that criminal objectives to instill into his sons. It’s sad.

I love how Anika continues to save Lucious’ ass.

Taraji P Henson is so pretty. And I love me some Cookie.

Commercial note. I was sent an invite to an advanced showing of Fantastic Beasts. I get so many invites to stupid shit in my email all the time, and I don’t DO events.  But I had no idea it was Harry Potter!!!  By the time I did it was fully booked. It was on the complete other side of town anyway, but I guess I will be trying to motivate to go to a movie soon. Not sure when I can really do that.

Oh I get it now. Lucious just wanted to pit the boys against each other so there would be a big fight on a live stream and all their family business would be shit he manufactured. It was about money. Of course it was. Who cares about his sons.  He agitated Hakeem by telling him that Andre was sleeping with Nessa who he has a thing for and he went buckwild  on Andre and then went in on Jamal attacking his sexuality and PTSD issues.  What a lovely father figure.

Angelo fixes Cookies issues with her probation officer cause by Lucious. And he calls her baby girl. And he promises to fight for her even if it means fighting Lucious. In those thirty seconds this show gave me ERRYTHANG I needed.

Oh wait, it wasn’t Lucious  messing with Cookie’s parole!

Lucious has Hakeem in the palm of his hand now. He lets him hold his daughter. Whatever baby is playing Bella has the most beautiful head of hair.  But are we supposed to believe Lucious has ever swaddled a baby?  It seems that Lucious has stolen Hakeem’s brand back from Cookie.  Now that Hakeem is indoctrinated by the whole Kahlil Gibran parable, Lucious says he is going to turn Hakeem into a destroyer of souls.

This was a really good episode. I probably won’t be doing a lot of recaps of this show. Like I said, I just needed a glimpse or two of Taye Digggs. And that is about all we got.

Are you watching?

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