Empire Review: The Devils are Here (Season 2 Episode 1)

Damn, y’all. Empire’s season premiere “The Devils are Here” did not disappoint. Major spoilers ahead.

In true Empire form, the episode kicks off with a concert, benefiting – what else? – the #freelucious campaign, and the boys perform (so glad to have the musical numbers back). I gotta say, I know Lucious has murdered a whole bunch of people, but I definitely want him out of prison ASAP.

Not to be upstaged by Lucious’s incarceration, Cookie makes her grand entrance at the concert in a full guerilla costume. Oh, and she’s in a cage. She’s lined up tons of acts, rallies the crowd against the injustice of mass incarceration, and gets a bunch of important people to show up. But it’s all an act. Cookie wants Lucious to rot in prison. She’s just trying to woo some new investor so she can stage a hostile takeover. But, it turns out the new investor, who is being primed to spend a cool 200 mil on Empire (giving Cookie and the boys a controlling share of the company) is a lesbian. She is also a major flirt. Not missing an opportunity to cater to a potential business partner, Cookie throws a big party, complete with naked ladies everywhere, and convinces Anika (or, Anita, as Mimi the investor calls her) to sleep with her.

Too bad Lucious is keeping a close eye on Cookie from prison (with the help of Jamal). He catches on to the potential takeover and makes Mimi a better offer. And because Lucious can never actually be upstaged, he announces it via videoconference just as Cookie, Hakeem, and Andre are telling the board about their takeover. After laughing maniacally for a few moments, Lucious brings things full circle by sneering, “game over, bitches.” I seriously love that Lucious keeps delivering with the one-liners.

Lucious may be ruling the outside world with an iron fist, but trouble shows up in prison when Frankie (the man Cookie gave up to the Feds for a lighter sentence way back when) transfers in. He plays nice with Lucious, but when he gets confirmation that Cookie is the snitch, he sends her a severed head. Seriously. In a box.

And then the best thing ever happens. Cookie puts her family on lockdown and rushes to visit Lucious to ask him to take care of things. Lucious sets up a meeting with Frankie (played impeccably by Chris Rock). At first it looks like Frankie has the upper hand, but when he tells his bodyguards to kill Lucious he realizes that they are actually on Lucious’s side now. Despite being mad a Cookie, Lucious still loves her. In one of the more romantic gestures I’ve seen take place in a prison, Lucious tells Frankie that if he has war with Cookie, he has war with him. Then he calmly explains that he rules the world and walks off triumphantly to the sounds of Frankie being brutally murdered. And yes, I just called a prison murder romantic. I don’t even care. #freelucious.

Meanwhile back on the outside, Jamal seems to be really trying to fill his father’s shoes. He takes a cold-blooded approach to running the company and even kicks his mother out of Lucious’s house. But then he slumps into the closed door and cries for a minute, so I’m pretty sure my sweet Jamal is in there somewhere.

I really couldn’t have asked for more from the premiere. I mean, seriously, we got performances, epic Lucious behavior, a (beautifully) gift-wrapped head, and another murder.

And a lot seems to be brewing. I’m guessing, for example, that Roxanne (who briefly visited Lucious in jail) isn’t finished with him yet, and Andre seems ready to crack under the pressure of having killed someone.

You know I can’t wait for next week.

What did you think of “The Devils are Here?” Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Empire airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Fox.

Amanda Coyne

Amanda is an associate editor for Tell-Tale TV. She is a writer, teacher, and pop culture enthusiast with a love for 30 Rock and The Mindy Project. She is also the proud mother of two orange cats. Follow @amandarcoyne