Fans were understandably upset when the decision came down to end Power Book II: Ghost.
The Power spinoff was seemingly in its prime and became even more popular than the original in certain ways.
I mean, they did the impossible: they made us root for Tariq.
So, why end it now? More importantly, how will you end it satisfyingly for fans who’ve been following this universe for the past ten years?
We’ll find out on September 6, 2024, when the series returns for the final five episodes of its historic run. Now that we’re a month out, it’s time to start seriously thinking about how this ride will end.
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And it has the potential to be messy. And not the good kind of messy.
I’ve been an ardent supporter of all things Power and always will be.
It’s THAT show when it wants to be.
Rarely do shows hovering right around an hour have you captivated from start to finish. You’ll be laughing, cringing, boohooing, and everything else during an episode of Ghost, Force, or Rasing Kanan.
With Ghost in particular, when that Joe and 50 Cent theme song drops, you know you’re about to be in for a chaotic, unexpectedly funny, complex story about family, crime, and the things we do to protect the people we love.
Plus, that song just slaps overall. You hear it, and you automatically get hyped.
Power was originally the story of James “Ghost” St. Patrick. While Power Ghost has been about Tariq’s story, Ghost’s presence has been steadily lingering in the background the whole time, and it feels like in these final hours, he’ll play a bigger role than ever before.
And I’m not sure how to feel about that.
On the one hand, it’s a given that we’d get to a place where Tariq would have to face his feelings about his father. He killed the man, and he’s spent four seasons running away from that fact and any comparisons to him.
Yet, he’s turning into everything his father warned him he would be, and it’s about time he finally came to grips with himself and who he is at his core.
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I’m ready for the show to dive into that, as they briefly touched upon during Tariq’s acid trip during Power Book II: Ghost Season 4 Episode 5, but I’m also not sure they can really encapsulate everything that relationship was and continues to be in the short time they have left.
And that’s to say nothing of the 75 other plotlines left dangling out there.
One of my biggest critiques of this season is that there is too much going on. This isn’t a new phenomenon, but in the past, you could get away with it because there was no end date in sight.
Now, there is one. These stories need to be wrapped up at the end of this, and they have A LOT to cover.
Fans were rightfully frustrated with the midseason finale because it was atypical of what we’ve come to expect from the series. We’re used to shocks and crazy reveals, and instead of something big happening, they went out sad.
I’m all for Tariq doing what he feels he needs to do and potentially going out in a blaze of glory, but when the midseason finale drops and everyone forgets about it 24 hours later, that’s a problem.
There’s plenty of time to correct that when the series returns, but there are also many moving parts right now, and only so much time.
We need Tariq to exact his revenge, finally understand he is his father’s son, and make good on his promises to protect the family he has left.
We need Brayden to determine who he wants to be independent of Tariq and the Westons.
We need Monet to determine what’s more important to her: the business or her family.
We need the Tejada children to forge their own paths.
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We need the show to remember Davis exists.
And that’s just the storylines of the people we really care about. Noma and her daughter are still out there, as are Paz and the crooked cops.
In my perfect world, Noma gets got right away, and all the other subplots can disappear for all I care right now. Things end with the final showdown between Tariq, Bradyen, and the Tejadas.
May the best criminal faction win.
Unfortunately, that’s not looking to be the case, but knowing this is Power, and the first half went light on the deaths, it’s easy to assume that half of these people may not even make it to the end.
What if Paz kills Tariq? Or if Brayden kills Cane? OR if Tasha and Monet go out while protecting their children?
My brain is overloading, y’all! There are so many scenarios, and I need so many things to happen, and I don’t have faith that they’ll be able to get to everything in a satisfying manner.
I want to believe, but I’m scared! There is so much at stake, and the start of the season has left me feeling more pessimistic than ever, even if the installments were decent in the grand scheme of things.
They may have a stellar track record in terms of entertainment value, but things are different now. This is it. They can’t course correct next season and try to fix the broken things with a fresh set of episodes.
They need to hit the grand slam to win the World Series — it’s not even a need — it’s a must.
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The newly released trailer for the back half of Season 4 looks promising, though. We see all the major players, guns, hospitals, and everything else that makes a Power season.
They have five more hours to make history. Let’s see what they can do.
Check out the trailer for the final episodes below, and let me know in the comments what’s on your must-see list before they wrap things up!