The first person you saw on the screen during Empire‘s season two premiere episode was Swizz Beatz. If you were taking shots of liquor for every cameo, you would have been freshly buzzed by the second commercial.
CAMEO’S FOR DAYS
The parade of notable guests included Andre Leon Talley, Reverend Al Sharpton and even that Mr. Lawrence dude from Real Housewives of Atlanta. But the main special guests were Chris Rock, as a thugged out (seriously) drug dealer named Frank Gathers and Marisa Tomei as Mimi Whiteman, a lesbian with bank.
50 CENT SLANDER
Worth noting was Cookie Lyon commenting on 50 Cent being thirsty on Instagram. Shots! Of course, Fif already responded.
https://instagram.com/p/8APjQxsL1E/?taken-by=50cent
#FREELUCIOUS
As for the plot, the show opened with a concert in honor of the jailed Lucious Lyons. If FOX hasn’t whipped up a big batch of “Free Lucious” promotional t-shirts, they’re hustling backwards. The scene played out awkwardly with Cookie wearing a gorilla outfit while in a cage. She went on a rant about the criminal justice system and the prison-industrial complex. Fair enough, but let’s not like act like Cookie and Lucious didn’t actually do the dirt that landed both of them in jail.
During the concert we learn that Cookie, Hakeem, Andre and Boo Boo Kitty are trying to make a hostile takeover of Empire Records, which last year fell into the lap of Jamal. The gay son of the clique has been busy running the label, but still had time to perform in the deepest v-neck he could find.
We also quickly learn Tomei’s character is lesbian, and Cookie isn’t shy about flirting with her, to get that investment money. Meanwhile, Lucious has been in prison three months and spots Cookie canoodling with Whiteman, and the jig.
In the bing, Cookie’s cousin, Deray Davis, seeks aide from Lucious, who is comfortable in prison among a set of goons. It turns out Frank Gathers is coming to the facility, and he’ll surely seek retribution for the death of his boy last season. However, Deray gets shunned, so it’s pretty much over for him.
TWERK BOO BOO KITTY, TWERK
Cookie and rest of her hostile takeover crew throw a party to woo Whiteman. This set the Internets on fire as Boo Boo Kitty proceeded to twerk for Maggie from A Different World.
https://twitter.com/MaggieFurlong/status/646858722594033664/photo/1
SPIT SOMETHING
Gathers gets a visit from his daughter, who spits some decent bars for him. Lucious spots them after dismissing a prosecutor who came to offer him a deal. After noting that the kid has talent, he’s called to another meeting…
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
DOUBLE CROSS
The hostile takeover is on, with Cookie, overacting Hakeem and company rolling up on a board meeting to announce that they now own a majority stake in Empire Records.
Unfortunately, Jamal got his own investor, Mimi Whiteman, who reveals that she got a better deal from Lucious. Doh!
Cookie tells Boo Boo Kitty she can’t even “dyke right” when she learns she still got double crossed despite sleeping with her. Bruh…
HEAD IN A BOX
Cookie returns to her crib, where her sister managed to let herself in. She warns Cookie that those roses she got really are from Frank Gathers (last season, we learned his crew’s calling card for your impending doom was the arrival of a rose). When they open a gift box, they see their cousin’s severed head (sorry Deray).
Before Deray lost his head, he mentioned to Gathers, after catching a brutal fade, that it was Cookie that put the hit on his homie, and that snitched on him.
So of course, Cookie figures seeking help from Lucious is a good enough reason to finally visit him in prison.
CHESS NOT CHECKERS
Lucious goes along to meet Gathers, with the latter revealing that Cookie is about to get got. Lucious says him and Gathers are “cool” but then adds going to war with Cookie is going to war with him.
Gather instructs the goons to murder Lucious. However, it turns out that Gathers’ men are actually loyal to Lucious. My how the tables have turned. So yeah, Pookie from New Jack City‘s turn on Empire lasted a grand total of one episode.
Cold game.
This episode definitely set what’s sure to be a season of obscenely crazy plots twists and turns. Let us know what you thought in the comments.
—
Photos: FOX
