Lots to expect from the upcoming episode of Empire, but until then, let's talk about last week's session.
The best thing about True Love Never is that Marisa Tomei's character, Mimi Whiteman, is back and ready to reveal a few layers of character some of us might have not expected. And for that matter, so is Lucious Lyon.
And in a similar realm of showing some realness and vulnerability, we've got Cookie Lyon, the diva who allows herself to feel the pangs of love with her new lover Adam Rodriguez, the undercover member of the crew who kidnapped her son not long ago. Instead of going to work, she gets sucked in into a mini vacation of love making and meals in bed. At the end of it, however, she comes up with the idea of having a summer jam that she's going to call Cookie's Cookout. The love session is interrupted by the lover going to supposedly get the paper, when instead he meets with the crew members to plan how to take more money from Lyon Dynasty.
But even more interesting than those two's relationship is Lucious and his new protegee, Freda, whom he gave his song to when Hakeem rejected it. They're in his studio recording the new track but he's not pleased. "What did your daddy do to you!?" he yells. "What did yours do to you?" she yells back. Their dynamic is old news, but I like to see it, plus at the end of it there's usually some great rap flow from Freda. But this relationship is not just about Freda replacing the prodigal son, Hakeem, it's also about Lucious finding his mojo, digging deeper into his own issues and coming up with a musical flow of his own. For that, we have a few flashbacks to remind us of his suicidal mother, and to move the action forward we see Lucious meeting with Huey Jarvis, a guy who holds sessions in his living room and would love to have Jamal perform there. Moreover, he'd love to see Lucious create something pure of his own.
Back at the Lyon Dynasty, Cookie sells Cookie's Cookout to her staff as if it's the next best thing. However, the prospect of it is shadowed by Mirage à Trois and their lack of leader. Carmen isn't very good at being the alpha, so her group colleague is trying to take her spot by literally pushing her off the stage. When she sees this, Cookie asks Hakeem to replace Carmen, but instead, he has his ex girlfriend teach her how to be a diva. Her final lesson is standing in a plaza in the middle of the city and catching people's attention with her singing and her presence. She sings "I will Survive" in Spanish and people gather around, while Hakeem films the whole thing. To show her appreciation, Carmen kisses him.
What about Jamal, you might ask? Indeed, he has some issues of his own and they have to do with not being able to finish his song (post break-up), not with his father's help anyway. So, he asks for help from his mom but makes sure that no one finds out about it. As expected, Cookie works her magic, tunes in into what Jamal really wanted to express and helps him wrap up the song. They even go out to dinner to celebrate. Then, after a few bottles of champagne, they go to the Lyon Dynasty studio to take advantage of the momentum and record something. Not surprisingly, Hakeem almost catches them.
The Huey thing happens and Jamal is amazing, so amazing that even his own father is jealous, plus I think he suspects Cookie is behind it. However, he's got his reasons to celebrate and they involve Mimi and whole lotta money. You could say that what happens next is the highlight of the episode because Mimi and Lucious connect to a whole new level. Apart from talking and actually sharing feelings and thoughts - aka intimacy - they almost share a girl. I say almost because Lucious sees the girl's tattoo and completely loses his mood. After he leaves, Mimi does too. We can't wait to see where this is going.
In the meantime, check out a couple of relevant clips from the upcoming episode.
The battle is on!
- TV Muse