Lucious begins to unveil the root of his demons.
Jamal and Cookie reconnect, positioning Jamal as the force to bind or destroy the family.
Hakeem doesn't have any clear direction for his story arc.
Mirage a Trios's storyline is weak. Lauren is not an interesting secondary character.
Episode 7 “True Love Never” writer, Ingrid Escajeda, pushes us to evaluate the hope and destruction caused by love in the den of the Lyon pride
This week’s episode of Empire is a reflection of the many facets of love; past, present and future, for the Lyon pride. Writer, Ingrid Escajeda, challenge viewers to delve deeper into the intensions of the characters. Escajeda, whose writing credits include “Justified” and “Better Off Ted”, has a bold style that brings additional depth and layers to our already complicated cast of Empire.
RELATED: EMPIRE 2×06 REVIEW: “A HIGH HOPE FOR A LOW HEAVEN”
Episode 7 focuses on Lucious’s battle with past demons and finding the truth in his music, Jamal and Cookie bridging the gap in their relationship, Andre’s trials of faith, and Hakeem’s continual growth into manhood and the business. Needless to say this is a short list of all the happens within the dysfunctional world of the Lyon pride, but they help drive the show forward and keep us wanting to know more about the madness that is Empire.
Get the behind me…Demons have many faces. Empire brought them out full force to challenge our thinking.
Lucious (Terrence Howard)…we straddle the line of wanting to passionately kiss him and slap him across the face. Yep, he’s that guy. While we applaud the development and eagerly take this journey with Lucious, there are so many things happening that are questionable, like the whole scene with Mimi (Marisa Tomei) and a club groupie, April. It’s not okay to be gay, but if it’s a threesome with your lesbian business partner, then it’s all good. Come on, Lucious. Double standards anyone? Maybe it gets some shock value points, but brought nothing of real value to the episode. It also waters down Lucious’s character by diminishing his convictions and creating confusion about his conflict with Jamal in season 1.
“Don’t run from it. You embrace and merge with the pain.” – Lucious Lyon
But his flashbacks of his mother has us tilting towards kissing him as the show unravels his layers to help us better understand a kid trapped in the mist of his mother’s mental disease. Who didn’t yearn to reach out and hug young Lucious tight as he watched his mother desperately search for the bullets for her gun? The pain on his face was gut wrenching when she found the one bullet he failed to hide. Failure. Failing the one he loved the most. The demon that haunts Lucious like the Grim Reaper lurking in the darkness…waiting to consume him, wreaking havoc in the lives of those close to him. We watch as he embraces his past, fueling the power of his music, as he and Freda Gatz (Bre-Z) continue to perfect his rap “Boom Boom Boom Boom.” But can Lucious merge with the ugliness of the truth? Can he take his own advice he gave to Freda?
Andre’s (Trai Byers) demons attack him from all sides. Lucious sends Andre to the Assistant Mayor’s office take care of a gang injunction for Freda Gatz. In season 1, the bad boy Andre handled his encounter with Rachael, the Assistant Mayor, physically. Sex solves everything. A little quid pro quo. The new, reformed Andre reaches out to his pastor for guidance. Makes sense, right? Well, sometimes even the devil gets in church without bursting into flames. This episode shines a light on the clash of morality when working towards the end game. Is it ever okay to do the wrong thing for the right reasons? Andre frustrate us at times due to his vulnerability to outside forces. He’s easily manipulated into doing the wrong thing when he grasps so tightly to wanting to be a good person. He makes us want to root for him but it’s like being the most loyal fan to the most losing team. It never ends well.
Building bridges: Is Jamal the gateway to reconnecting the Lyon family? Loving the transition of his character over the past couple of episodes!
Jamal’s (Jussie Smollett) song “Heavy” vocalizes of the weight of Jamal’s current relationship with his parents, his sudden growth in the music industry, and his loyalty to Empire Records. No matter what anyone say, children (and parents) tend to have a special connection to one parent or the other. It’s usually the one we tend to neglect or take for granted. Jamal isn’t immune to this phenomenon. He’s a momma’s boy, no matter how much he thirsts for his father’s love. He needs Cookie (Taraji P. Henson). This episode rewards us with the mending of that relationship. It also begins to build back the conflict in Jamal’s character that is missing from season 1. He’s positioned as the bridge between the two sides of the Lyon family. His involvement with his mother can be the catalyst that brings the family closer together or the match that ignites the flames that burns the bridge completely.
“Daddy raised a soldier whether he knew it or not…” – Jamal Lyon lyrics from “Heavy”
Jamal and Cookie meet for dinner to celebrate his invitation to music legend, Huey Jarvis’s (Clarence Williams III), Living Room Session. We see the warmth and love between mother and son. In additional to the emotional connection, this scene also showcases a Cookie Fashion Favorite. Okay. It may not be the fashionistas fave pick, but she rocked the black and gold skirt set with the front split so high we can almost see Cookie’s cookies. Couldn’t make out if it was liquor bottles or perfume bottles printed on it, but loving it on her. The talk of this episode is the Tom Ford pink sheer blouse, Oscar De La Renta teal jeweled pants, Rochas Raffia sandals and Iradj Moini Ring, which is a softer, classier over the top look. Big props to costume designer, Paolo Nieddu, who was nominated for an Emmy with Rita McGhee for their work on season 1 of the show. Nieddu’s high-end, runway styling is understandable with his prior experience as assistant costume designer on “Sex and the City.” He’s made Cookie Lyon a fashion icon with the good, the outlandish, and the Oh, my damn!
The baby Lyon wants to roar. Hakeem steps up and continues to show his growth as a man and a business mogul.
Hakeem (Bryshere Y. Gray) seems to have made a nice quick recovery from last week’s mental breakdown. In this episode, he proves he can take the lead and make decisions, although the writing for his character was the weakest of this episode. The show struggles to show consistency in his character’s growth. Hakeem steps up in the meeting with Heavy to show Cookie he can negotiate and make decisions. At least that’s what kind of happened. Cookie was a little flippant with her, “Is that alright with you?” at the end of the transaction. Poor Hakeem is all over the place and his girl group, Mirage a Trios, isn’t much different.
Lauren (Jamila Velazquez), the lead singer for the group and Hakeem’s newest love interest, doesn’t have the heart to stand as the lead of the group. Cookie is quick to tell Hakeem to replace her with one of the other girls in the group. Determined to prove his choice was right, Hakeem works with Lauren to boost her confidence. Now…How many of us think that a couple of pointers on how to move by Tiana (Serayah McNeill) and an outside the train station rendition of “Yo Viviré,” the Spanish version of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive,” will fortify our fears and give us enough confidence to go snatch back our spotlight? This was the most unbelievable plotline this season.
Hakeem’s character has so much potential. Hopefully, the writers will determine a more solid course for his story arc. We’re anxious and nervous to see where the show takes our Lyon cub.
Final Verdict: Empire took some interesting turns this week. Some worked and some should’ve ended on the cutting room floor.
Empire took some interesting turns this week. Some worked and some should’ve ended on the cutting room floor, like Lucious’s and the Mimi’s crazy threesome gone wrong. We all sensed Jamal’s happiness when Cookie walked into the restaurant. It felt right to see them together. Hakeem and Lauren? Not sure if this will go over well. Tiana was a better match for Hakeem and the show. Cookie is and will always be Cookie, except Laz’s deception will crank up her crazy tenfold. Can’t wait to see what happens when she finds out!
Here we are almost mid-season and still unsure on how we feel about season 2. The writers are finally reviving some of the characters back to their season 1 status. There seems to be a defined path for Jamal. They’re allowing us a more intimate view into the troubled thoughts of Lucious. Cookie has stood strong, but what is a queen if her court is filled with weak knights? The first seven episodes have battled to keep viewership. This is make or break time for Empire.
We want to see clearly defined goals, motives and conflicts for Hakeem. He doesn’t have a solid role in the family or the music business. We want to understand who he is and why. The show has scaled back the conflict between Lucious and Hakeem with Lucious’s focus on Freda. The surrogate relationship with Freda isn’t enough. Time for Lucious to fight for the real thing, his son.
We’re ready to fill in the plot holes. It’s been like being blindfolded on bumpy ride down a windy lane. Feeling like kidnapped Hakeem. Where the heck are you taking us?? What’s the scoop with Laz, Heavy and their beef with Cookie? It can’t just be about the money. If it is, then it’s not enough. No one schemes and plots this much for a few hundred thousand and a security position. Don’t get us wrong. We enjoy watching Adam Rodriguez each week, but we need more than eye candy to watch the show in primetime.
Thankfully, each week the writing gets stronger. Characters are beginning to take shape. The old connectivity to Jamal, Lucious, and Cookies grows episode by episode. Empire is still an epic culmination of music, fashion, and drama. Will Empire take us back to the VIP section we visited last season popping bottles of Cristal or have us sipping cheap wine from a red plastic cup in a hole in the wall? We wait to see where the journey takes us.
Questions, Comments & Concerns:
- Terrence Howard as a rapper?? Yea or Naw? Struggling with it.
- Laz is tiptoeing the line. Who will he choose – Cookie or Heavy? Better choose wisely. Hell hath no fury…
- Cookie’s Cookout. Straight hood! Lyon Dynasty line up with a total of what…two acts? Can’t wait to see it!!
- Who missed Becky and her new boy toy?
- What’s Mimi’s end game? That chick’s up to something.
Empire 2×07 Review: “True Love Never”
Vivi Dumas