BWW Recap: Pride in the Name of Lyon on EMPIRE

Well that is certainly one way to get rid of a couple villains. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say we aren't going to have any Marisa Tomei cameos this year?

As the new CEO, Hakeem holds his first press conference and announces Cookie as the head of A&R, Dre will remain CFO and President of Gutter Life and Jamal will step aside to work on his music. At a staff party, Hakeem performs and unveils their new logo which is just a profile of his face. He introduces Laura to Camilla who still wants Hakeem to get rid of her. She knows Mimi is gonna die soon and she wants Hakeem back. Charming.

When a reporter provokes Lucius into a rage, he tries to focus on his video shoot for Freda and "Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom." Camilla slashes his budget, but Cookie comes in to save the day and remind him that they used to direct their own videos for barely anything.

Jamal is accosted outside of Empire by a gay flash mob accusing him of "flip flopping" between gay and straight. When he asks Jameson why the gay community has turned on him, Jameson tells him that it is Lucius who has been spreading rumors about his flip flopping. Irritated, Jamal performs a song about what a liar Lucius is and how Lucius Lyon isn't even his real name. Lucius invites the reporter back for an exclusive tell all interview about the real person who became Lucius Lyon.

Cookie informs Tiana that Camilla won't approve her tour budget, but comes up with the idea to send Mirage a Trois with her as her opening act. This will get Laura on the road and away from Hakeem, a plan in which Camilla likes and approves the budget. Laura agrees to go even though Hakeem isn't pleased with Cookie's scheming. He takes matters into his own hands and seduces Camilla and records their encounter to send to Mimi. Mimi immediately sells her stocks in Empire.

Dre tries telling Ronda that he had a vision that someone pushed her and she thinks he's off his meds. Dre is starting to crumble as he and Ronda attend counseling sessions with his Pastor. He accuses her of cheating on him when in actuality, she was assisting Cookie in the plan to bring down Cookie. He starts to really lose it until his brothers perform a song they wrote for him about pain and the loss of his child. Dre is touched and is able to show emotion in a calm way.

Lucius pays Camilla a visit at a hotel where he finds her standing over Mimi's dead body. She poisoned her. He tells Camilla that it was Hakeem who sent Mimi the tape, not Lucius and that she should just kill herself... and she does.

I really like it that there are still shows on the air that prove that a musical number can solve any problem. They can be used as protest, they can calm a grieving brother, they can reveal a new company logo, they can win back the hearts of the gay community... anything! Also, did I miss when Cookie hired her sister on as her assistant? Not that I don't enjoy the conflict it is causing, but I don't remember that happening.

Let's Talk Music:

• Power/Hakeem - Not one of his stronger hits, but a cocky little presentation of his even cockier new logo for EMPIRE.

• Look But Don't Touch/Tiana - Oh I'm sorry, was she singing? I'm assuming it was a catchy songs but I couldn't take my eyes off her... talent. Girl sure can dance!

• Like My Daddy/Jamal - I love when Jamal gets all mad and takes on Lucius. He's been soft lately, but this was a nice throwback to his daddy issues. (I feel ya, Jamal!)

• Good People/Jamal and Hakeem - Okay, a little schmaltzy, but it was a really nice song and a really nice moment for the brothers. Good to show that throughout all their drama, they can still manage to support each other. And it's been too long since we had a brothers duet!

I'm worried for Dre. And the sad thing is, whether it's a vision or what, he is right. Ronda was pushed. Are they going to wind up committing him and then finding out he was really the sane one? So now Camilla and Mimi are dead... anyone expecting this arc to last just a tad bit longer? Like first Episode back, we're here and we're gonna rule the school. Episode Two? We dead. And since Lucius left without seeing her actually dead, this isn't going to be one of those things where she's gonna show up again or start appearing to him like Hamlet's father, is it?

Here's a preview for next week's all new episode:

Photo Credit: FOX

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