9/4/2017 Power Season Finale Recap: St. Patrick’s Go Godfather And Attempt to Settle All Family BusinessRead NowIn last night’s season finale of Power, the St. Patrick family went scorched earth in an attempt to avenge Raina’s death and settle family business. You Can’t Fix This was emotional, engaging, and the St. Patrick’s will never be the same.
The episode opens in the aftermath of Raina’s murder at the hands of dirty undercover cop Ray Ray. At this point, only Tariq knows who committed the murder and he is consumed by guilt and ultimately vengeance. Tariq has become a master liar and uses his skills when questioned at the police station. The other set of footprints mentioned by the investigator belong to Ray Ray and Tariq needs to settle that score. Tariq’s evolution as a character has been remarkable this season. In truth it has been happening ever since Shawn was killed but the curve really accelerated this year. For most of the season many of us wanted to see him get clipped for all the lying, disrespect, and overall sucker behavior. But Tariq is a new man now. Gone is the innocent kid from season one. His coming of age marred by tragedy, his parents’ fall from grace, and his indoctrination into “that life.” Ghost and Tasha are faced with the worst horror imaginable, the death of their child. In the parking garage scene before entering their penthouse, we see a tremendous amount of emotion, and Omari Hardwick and Naturi Naughton acted brilliantly in this scene. Throughout the series’ run, the Hardwick and Lela Loren (Angela) on screen chemistry gets a lot of praise, and rightfully so. But, Hardwick and Naughton really have a special on screen dynamic, and because of who their characters are and what they’ve been through; it has a different level of richness. Speaking of family bonds, nothing like tragedy to get the gang back together. One of the enduring themes of this series is the power of family. In the end, when everything is at its worse, and you have nowhere to turn family is all you got. For better or worse. This particular family is built on a criminal enterprise, which of course adds its own set of drama. How dope was it to see Ghost and Tommy back together, dressed in all black everything, gun toting and laying waste to everyone in their path? Ghost’s initial thought that the Jimenez cartel was behind the hit was proven incorrect when he and Tommy used the nail gun to torture Uriel. Imagine getting literally nailed to a chair and then shot in the head? Part of the problem with acting solely off assumptions and half-truths, particularly if you’re in a state of revenge, is the collateral damage. Uriel has nothing to do with Raina’s death but Ghost does find out he was behind killing Julio at the behest of Dre. Stick a pin in that storyline. Meanwhile, back at the penthouse Tasha is holding down the fort while Ghost is out on the revenge tour. Their spot is filled with family members offering condolences, and Tasha’s new lover Terry Silver drops by. Nice of him to pay his respects but anybody see it as kind of disrespectful that he professes his love to Tasha the day after her daughter gets killed? Silver does say as much, so I guess we can’t be too hard on him. Love won’t be denied and all that. It was interesting watching the Terry and Tasha scene, specifically when he asked her if she knows anything. Terry knows Ghost is a criminal, and I’ve always thought he’s suspected Tasha had some level of involvement. He finds out later in the episode when Tasha choses protecting Tariq instead of being his lover. Ghost takes a brief stop on his killing spree to make “funeral arrangements” and meets up with Councilman Tate and the charlatan church minister. You all saw the shakedown coming right? Tate may not be a criminal in the most literal sense but he is a shady dude. Using Raina’s death as an opportunity to create a media narrative is foul. Tate also seems adept at pulling the moral high ground card on Ghost, telling him innocent men’s daughters sleep safely in their beds at night. That moment with Tate and the minister registered in Ghost’s subconscious. The death of his daughter obviously means he will never be the same, but it also means the past will never escape him. The dream he once had of going legit is dead and maybe for the first time he truly believes that. When Tommy learns the identity of Raina’s killer from Kanan and informs Tasha who the intended target was, she goes into full mama bear mode. I’ve always enjoyed the way Power frames these moments. The eerie music in the background and all the machinations going through her head was tremendous. The sequence of finding out the news, asking the assembled guests if they’ve seen Tariq, the realization he went to the office and the search for the gun was brilliant. Then calling Ghost only to realize his cell is in the desk. Tasha will go to the ends of the earth to protect her son, and she does, enlisting the help of an unlikely ally. Angela is now the head of the eastern district’s criminal division and that means trouble for the St. Patrick clan. Maybe not in the short term, but in the long run it will be problematic. Angela helps Tasha locate Tariq because he’s Ghost’s son. Despite their complicated relationship Angela still loves Ghost and will do just about anything to help him. She warns Ghost at the beginning of the episode not to do anything to jeopardize his future and she tells Tasha the same thing when she asks for help in locating Traiq. The moral predicament that the series places Angela in is interesting. She knows Ghost’s family and wants to help, but she is an assistant United States attorney. Her mission is to uphold justice and prosecute offenders of the law. Angela, like most of the characters in the series, lives in a gray world. There is a clear right and wrong, but life isn’t lived in black and white. The choices made have consequences, and actions that seem right in the moment often have unintended negative repercussions. The episode builds toward a pivotal moment in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in upper Manhattan. Tariq is on a mission to kill Ray Ray; Ghost is on his way to do the same, when he sees his son entering the building. Tommy and Tasha arrive on the scene as well. This was one of the most powerful moments in the show’s four-year run. Tariq gets the revenge he sought and killed Ray Ray. In this moment Tariq sees the family unit in a way he knew was there but is now undeniable. He knows what his father and Tommy are going to do with the body; he knows they are escaping law enforcement. The moment it all comes together is when Tariq and Tasha are back at the apartment and they stop in the basement to burn his clothes (evidence) in the furnace. Tasha then gives him explicit instructions on how to scrub himself from all the residue linking him to the murder. This was such a powerful moment for mother and son. We may not have liked Tariq for much of the season, but dude is a man now. One of the things I enjoy about the way Courtney Kemp manages the series, is the subtle winks and smiles she has with the audience. She senses when “we need a win” and she gave it to us at the end of the episode. The sight of Ghost, Kanan and Tommy in the car together plotting their takedown of Dre was perfect. An excellent way to end the episode and set us up for what is to come in season 5. This episode was tremendous, the perfect way to end the season and leave the audience with anticipation for what’s to come. Obviously the major plot point will be the triumvirate (Ghost, Kanan, and Tommy) trying to take down Dre. What a meteoric rise for Dre this season. He is the new super bad on the show. Now that he is in with the Jimenez cartel and has a solid group of primeras, taking him down won’t be so easy. When the authorities begin to investigate the death of Ray Ray, what evidence will they find? The only bullets fired were from Tasha’s gun. Will the ballistics match to anything? Angela suspects Ghost is responsible. Will she start a crusade to bring him down or is she barking up the wrong tree? If she finds out it was Tariq, what does she do? Maria is back and is telling tales about Ghost killing Miguel Alvarez all the way back in the pilot episode, how will that play out? For now, Ghost, Kanan and Tommy are aligned, with the introduction of Tommy’s Italian connections, how long before things start getting muddled? A few extra thoughts:
What do ya’ll think? Get at me on twitter @jshector Please share with your friends and people you think would enjoy the show. This will obviously be the last recap until next season begins. I want to thank all of you for riding with me this season. Recapping this show is a labor of love and I do this for the people. Keep reading BSO and following me for unique content in sports, entertainment and pop culture.
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