Power Season 5 Premiere Recap: “Everyone is Implicated”

Power Season 5 Poster

Season 5 / Episode 1, “Everyone is Implicated” / Starz

Iiight yo, the streets was talkin so BNP decided to get into this Power recap game. Just like this premiere, these Power episodes are full of dramatic and bloody content, so expect that OG recap each and every week.

From the Rooftop

We pop off with Angela Valdez, USDA, contemplating the magnitude of all the crooked choices she made last season. She’s on the roof looking like Jean Grey in the middle of every mission, ’bout to pass out. A cop brings her downstairs to the crime scene of dirty cop Raymond Jones’ murder. We all know that Tariq pulled the trigger but Valdez is in the dark about what actually went down. Now she gotta deal with the fallout of providing Tasha with all that info: Detective Jones’ location and the bullet found in the wall, that was fired from a familiar .380 handgun. A new face in the Power 5-0 characters pops up at the scene and looks suspiciously at the head of the Criminal Division of the Eastern District. It doesn’t help Valdez that the cop who grabbed her off the roof told this mystery officer of the law that Angie asked to be left off the report for finding the bullet in the wall.

Kanan kept it 100 in his first scene of the season. The homie-turned-enemy-turned-homie is down to murk Dre for all his scheming the last 2 seasons. He genuinely wants to kill him, but he lying too, actin like Dre ain’t know he was back. Kanan playing both sides, what else is new?

Kanan

This vengeful girl, Maria Suarez is really out here snitchin’ to Saxe and the Feds’ new boss, Tameika Robinson. Saxe ready to jump into the deep end to try and bring down our titular character: James ‘Ghost’ St. Patrick. Jon Mak is a ‘lil skeptical cuz Maria’s only ID’ing him based off voice recognition.

Making Plans

Angela went to press Tasha about the likelihood of Jamie taking out Detective Jones, AKA Ray Ray. Tasha wastes no time denying it was her or Ghost, and admits that Tariq killed the little girl-murdering SOB. They both realize they have about 24 hours before forensics cross-matches the bullet from the wall to the record of Tasha’s gun that’s in the system. Logging into the system under another name, Angela goes to get rid of Tasha’s gun record log. Unfortunately, her new boss, Tameika, walks in on her Maxine Waters swag and reminds Angela that she’s the reason this Department has caught heat for shady backdoor shit. Shorty gets cold feet, which forces her to reconsider erasing the gun record.

Cristobal and Dre, the supreme scheme team, meet to discuss events. The Taino men sent to kill Kanan are as dead as Father Callahan, murdered by Dre in cold blood. A dirty priest he was, but a priest nonetheless. Dre low-key shook cuz he knows Kanan basically hood Superman, while Cristobal slowly realizing how real shit ’bout to get. They try to figure out who told Ghost and Tommy they set up Julio. Dre might have come out on top in season 4 but he got 3 hungry-ass pit bulls breathing down his neck.

After the Funeral

James and the St. Patrick family meet the pastor for Reina’s service. Councilman Rashad Tate is an absolute savage in his sly media inclusion. Tasha was tight, but he got James on board sounding like a cronie and even convinced Tariq to do the eulogy. Kanan and Tommy had a ‘lil static outside the church while they waited, but that’s regular hood G-checking shit.

Back at the penthouse, Ghost and Tasha get in Tariq’s ass about killing Ray Ray. They go in on his involvement with Dre, Kanan, and how he is directly responsible for Reina’s death. It’s a tough scene that forces all 3 of them to realize the consequences of their actions and secrets.

Our mystery cop from earlier is revealed, as she pops up on Angela like a nosey-ass jack in the box. NYPD Internal Affairs investigator, Bianca Rodriguez, pays our girl a visit and immediately comes for her neck! She really hit Angela with the raw “I know you up to some shit” questioning. After code switching to the proud fellow Latina — wishing her well in the native tongue — she bounces! Bianca gone be a problem this season.

Tommy runs into a young buck who tells him Father Callahan got shanked up. The kid tells him that it was probably the “new connect”, meaning Dre. Tommy demands all the info, then sets up the squad moves. Ghost and Kanan really out here reminiscing in the whip on some Disney princess movie shit like they ain’t got bodies to catch in the next hour. Tommy arrives and the three form up like Voltron.

Form Up Like Voltron

They try to roll up on Dre and his boys in a warehouse, and a mean shootout ensues. They lose. Dre popped Ghost wit a slug, so Kanann has to save em. They dip to get patched up and seek advice from Ghost’s old attorney, Joe Proctor. He ain’t even got his license right now so he chucks up the deuces after Tommy calls them Family. Subtle warning? Definitely something. Turtle Proctor gets rolled up on by Angela in the lobby of his building, and they share a perplexing conversation.

Ghost finally shows his human side, breaking down because of his daughter’s death. On top of that, Tasha looks in on him, saying he better not leave her a widow. Tasha and Keisha soon have their own grieving session, then Keisha tells her that she a day 1 and got her back on that alibi she asked for. Family and all that. Looks like Tasha will be covered for the night of Ray Ray’s death.

After realizing that Dre will expect Black assailants, Tommy and the Targaryens decide to use a combo of white and Black hitters to take Dre out. Tommy goes to see his new caucasian Teresi homies about becoming his new distributors in the streets. He agrees. Looks like being Teresi’s son is gonna turn out to be a blessing, when it was looking real wack that this was the storyline they had settled on for Tommy. Outside, our wild cocaine-loving maniac recruits two Caucasian goons to cancel Christmas on Dre.

The funeral goes down and is beautifully done, save the dramatics involving Tommy arriving late and not being allowed to sit in the front row. Tariq drops a beautiful eulogy speech, then turns back into the little piece of gullible shit he has descended into! This ‘lil shit gives Dre the heads up on the hit coming his way.

Like a fuckin’ magician Dre bolts, beating all odds to escape death a second time! They had that man dead to rights, caught in a damn sheet like a fly in a spider web. Instead, he popped those fools full of lead and made it out alive: leading to our impressive final scene. The cinematography is gorgeous, powerful and dark as we end with Dre surprising Ghost at Raina’s grave. He flexes the ultimate power move and tells Ghost that after those 2 failed assassinations, he better back the fuck off or Jiminez and their insane gang will kill him, Tommy and his entire family. Mic dropped!

Power Moves

    Detective Rodriguez goes to Destiny’s crib and catches the child lying about Angela going to see her.
    Angela officially deletes the Tasha gun record. Will her lightly salted crooked moves come back to haunt her?
    Kanan dropping that glorious twenty-eleven line gave me LIFE!!
    Tasha still ready to be Silver’s bae. Mom Dukes peeped in the stairway doe…

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  • Ja-Quan is a NYC teacher and artist holding a B.A. in Sociology and History from SUNY New Paltz. On his journey to become Hokage, the Lord of The Speed Force and Protector of the Recaps can be found North of The Wall, chopping it up on Twitter @OGquankinobi

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