Empire Review: My Bad Parts (Season 2 Episode 8)

Oh man. Just when I thought Empire was getting stale! This week’s episode, “My Bad Parts,” sure did change my mind. Spoilers ahead.

I don’t even know where to begin so here are all the things I love, in no particular order:

• Anika’s pregnancy – I did not see this coming. Hakeem used to get on my nerves, but I’m starting to feel bad for him. He seems to be genuinely falling in love with Laura and he has no clue that Anika is pregnant. And he’s being honest with everyone for once. AND Freda and Lucious are coming after him. Hard. Also, Anika seems to be nearing a breakdown. This is going to be so dramatic.
• This rap battle thing – How stressful. Poor Hakeem is such the underdog. And can I just say, I do not appreciate that Freda keeps calling Hakeem a girl. That’s not an insult. Come on, Freda. Come on, Lucious. I just love that Hakeem knocks it out of the park. And that he drops his last name. I am still having a hard time feeling for Lucious, even when we get more backstory for him. If he keeps thinking about how bad it was to be abandoned by his mom, why can’t he realize he’s doing the same thing to his children?
• The Pepsi song – Amazing things are happening. Jamal is basically my hero. His idea for an album that is equal parts Cookie and Lucious is everything I’ve ever wanted. I’m seriously hoping that this means we are one step closer to a family reunion.
• Cookie hits the promoter – Cookie is back! I was hating her bending to the promoter last week, so y’all know how happy I am to see her hit him after he goes after Hakeem. Hopefully this means that their relationship isn’t going to be a long term one.
• Stocks?? – Something is happening with Empire’s stocks. It’s kinda boring, but Lucious eating a sucker while negotiating is pretty epic.
• Candace? – And then we meet Candace. Cookie’s sister who we didn’t know about. Things sure are getting interesting.
• Blonde Anika – Really interesting. Poor Laura.

Empire is doing everything I want it to. Lucious and Cookie are dancing around each other. Anika is back and crazier than ever. Hakeem is making a name for himself. I’m back to dying to know what happens next.

What do you think of this week’s episode of Empire? Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments below!

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Empire airs Wednesday 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