Warrior Review: If You Don’t See Blood, You Didn’t Come to Play (Season 2 Episode 4)

A pattern starts to form near the halfway point of Warrior Season 2 Episode 4, “If You Don’t See Blood, You Didn’t Come to Play:” Chao, Sophie, and Blake are going into situations half-cocked and without certainty.

Chao may be the most prepared, but his need for so many pieces to align doesn’t entirely inspire confidence at first glance. He likely has a better chance of a positive outcome than Sophie and Blake, however, whose emotions run too hot for their own good.

It falls into contrast with Bill, who should be using his emotion to strike back at Zing and the Fung Hai, but finds himself in a holding pattern as he holds out hope for Chao’s plan. It’s not a complete surprise that Bill’s wife, Lucy, intends to leave with the kids for good, but this puts him at his most alone.

Even Lee, now knowing the truth (or at least he thinks he knows the truth), has effectively run from him. Bill could end up being unpredictable, having lost so much, but for now he looks to be following Chao’s plan.

Lee, on the other side, has turned to a stronger sedative for help. The question is, will he become addicted and a pawn for Ah Toy in the police department, or will this potentially be his saving grace? He’s been beaten and betrayed enough, he could use some peace.

Ah Toy makes mention to Chao almost like it’s an investment, helping Lee, so it’s likely this will tip in the direction of extortion.

But at the same time, Lee is the most well-versed in the blade of the Chinese killer, so maybe this will bring him closer to learning the truth, for better or worse.

Alongside the theme of half-made plans is the theme of control. Asserting dominance and instilling fear can go a long way in taking things from people, but it doesn’t inspire respect or a fruitful relationship in a long-term sense.

Mai Ling may extort businesses only looking for help and intimidate Ah Toy for respect, but she’s not exactly winning anyone over. She’s doing all she can to appear strong, but in doing so, she’s icing out those she could create partnerships with.

Li Yong continues to see all of this from her side, and he may be part of Chao’s big plan coming up, but we still don’t entirely know where his loyalties are. He follows Mai Ling’s every move, despite appearing hurt by some of her choices, but he still stands next to her, despite it all.

Chao’s plan will be the big wake-up call for the entire cast of characters, most likely. With Bill and Ah Toy ready to help that plan, it will be curious if this will spark a war, the very thing Chao mentions he doesn’t want, or if this will be a sudden snap to completely change the board in an instant.

Without Zing, Mai Ling stands to potentially lose her mad dog, and with Ah Sahm and Young Jun losing their stash in Penelope’s factory, everyone could be back at zero and ready to take out their anger.

The political side leaves Blake trying to bully Penelope and Buckley successfully steering Blake. Part of the fun of these scenes is seeing how a very slight mention of a change in the wind can manipulate their view.

Buckley is still impossible to read, like he has more to this game than simply being the man manipulating Blake. With Mai Ling sending someone off in search of a compromising picture, perhaps this is the chance to see Buckley in his entirety for the first time.

The thing is that he may be a darker figure than we’re expecting. Fourteen episodes deep, he’s the one we know the least about. He watches people with great intelligence and curiosity, giving the impression that he’s more than a simple puppetmaster.

Sophie, though, is well in over her head. We don’t quite know where her head is at after the incident at the factory, though the assumption is that she’s realizing how poorly she’s chosen. It could be that she’s scared of what will happen to her and her sister, since she hasn’t witnessed bloodshed at Leary’s hand so closely before.

She’s game for street fights, but the horrors she sees in the factory are a far cry from that. Sophie is a strong character, but she’s coming into this hoping to help the Irish community get better financial security.

Now that there are dead men and a complete destruction of her sister’s business (and hers, to an extent), this is too much, too fast for her.

The question is: where does this leave her? Guilt worms its way out eventually on Warrior, and if she ices out Leary, he could become a problem. But at the same time, if she continues down this path, it’s likely she will not be the same.

It’s smart of the show to soften Leary first before Sophie sees the other side of him. Having Sophie watch Leary help out and provide for his people is the kind of thing that builds on his character beyond a tough enforcer, and hopefully continues, even after this may turn Sophie from him.

Plans have a way of getting ahead of some, but there are those, like Ah Sahm, who look to be playing the long game. We hear for the first time of his intentions of building something, a surprise when he’s been a little lost over the course of the first season.

Perhaps he means his intentions of taking over the Hop Wei, or perhaps he means settling things with the Tong wars and moving on to his own thing. But now that Leary has completely dismantled his business with Young Jun, and its fallout could potentially hurt Penelope, those plans may be farther than ever.

One thing is for sure: this episode may appear slow on the surface, but it’s brilliantly collecting every plot point together all at once. Penelope, Ah Sahm, and Young Jun have effectively lost their moneymaker; Chao is lining up his pieces for a big play; and Leary may have lit a match he can’t blow out.

As a whole, all of these are giving Warrior a chance for an explosive moment that could change the trajectory of the show from here on out. This is a fantastic place to be in.

Some stray thoughts on the episode:

• Young Jun coming to Hong’s defense keeps their friendship in focus, which is always great to see.
• Nellie’s surprise at Ah Toy willing to help one of her girls will hopefully bring them closer together. Though they see things somewhat differently, they also believe in helping people, something that is in short supply on the show at the moment.

 

What did you think of this episode of Warrior? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Warrior airs Fridays at 10/9c on Cinemax.

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