journalism16

I enjoyed your opinion on the show, but I am just wondering why don't you like Tiana/Serayah? Is it something about Serayah you don't like, (besides her pictures)?

The season premiere was really good. I am so glad that Eddie is gone, his stay was long past over. I wonder what Giselle is going to do at Empire going forward. The boys are definitely going through it, but I do wonder how much time Andre still has to do in prison? And Hakeem will hopefully heal from everything that's happened to him. The kids are adorable. Tiana seems to be doing well, and now that they have the new baby, we will see her in mommy mode. Treasure is going to be an interesting character, and like someone said, she has the same range as Tiana, but Tiana has been at Empire, and Cookie and Lucious are taking on Treasure. It will be interesting going forward, but I am curious about who may have died, now, at the end. And I wonder who Diana was talking about burying one of their own? This premiere was great, and I look forward to next week.

I think Grace Byers wanted to pursue other projects, which I can't wait to see, and I think she knew that while Anika was motivated by jealousy and spite to do the things she did, after Anika killed Andre and Rhonda's baby, and then Rhonda herself, she could no longer redeem herself; and even after she had Bella, she never really cared about her, and always used her as a pawn against Hakeem and the rest of the family, and that is why once she gained custody of Bella for a short time, Diana said, "It's good to see you among people of your stature." But it showed that she only cared about herself and not Bella. So Grace saw Anika's death as justice, for what she had previously done to the Lyons. But we will see what will happen, and see what her parents will decide to do when they find out their daughter is dead.

I love all of the seasons, and now I know why. I definitely can't wait until fall. I loved this season finale, but was definitely saddened by Tori's death because she was a great friend and performer, as well as another confidant to Jamal. Seeing Anika die and receive her karma was satisfying, and I look forward to seeing Grace in other projects. And Rhonda coming back to finish the job, was also even more satisfying. I am glad that Tiana came to her senses, and it seems as though Hakeem and Tiana will move forward together with Bella, and the new baby. I truly hope they are okay because we don't yet know if Tiana and Hakeem were hurt, and I hope they weren't, because I absolutely love them together. I think Jamal getting away for a while will be good for him, to clear his mind, and begin to grieve for Tori. I look forward to seeing how Cookie and Lucious's marriage will work out, but Eddie and Giselle and all the others need to go, because the storyline is boring, and as for Tiana siding with Eddie, I think it's safe to say she's back siding with the Lyons, since she and Hakeem are back together for good. Also, since Eddie acquired Empire from the Lyons, why did he look sad and guilty as they were taking down the Empire logo in the building?

She probably does, I'm sure. But why do you think Tiana is an unimportant character?

I am absolutely in love with this season.

I agree with everything you said. With that being said, I was very upset with the way Jamal and Hakeem treated Andre, that's his mother, too. And they weren't quite angels themselves in previous seasons. Given the way Jamal treated Cookie after he started running the company in Season 2, and this is how he repaid her? And let's not forget Hakeem. While in Season 1, Hakeem wanted nothing to do with his mother after she came home, because he was so upset, I will give him a pass, but when they began building their relationship, and he was kidnapped, her heart would be ripped out if something happened to him, because she wanted so much to protect him. But they both should realize that if they're mother had passed away, none of them would get her back, especially Hakeem, and they would not know what to do. And as for Hakeem, if she had passed away, then Hakeem would have lost her twice. What I mean by this is, Hakeem is the youngest, and while she was in prison, he did not get to see or know his mother, while before she was sent away, Andre and Jamal were older, and knew her well, while Hakeem was a baby and would not remember her. When she first came home, he wanted nothing to do with her, until the middle and end of the first season, when she tried to get to know him, as well as trying to discipline him; and of course, he was not receptive, nor did he want to listen to her; so she kept him at an arm's length, while trying to teach him that he should respect her, and Jamal told him, "How long did you think I would continue to let you disrespect our mother, when all she's trying to do is help you grow up." And, if they didn't start building their relationship in Season 2, I wonder where they would be now, because if she had passed away, he would not have her once again, and that would have been another wake up call for all of them. So both Jamal and Hakeem should both remember how they treated her, before they assume their "holier than thou" attitudes toward Andre, when it concerns their mother. I truly hope Becky changes her mind about the abortion. And Hakeem and Tiana working together to help Cookie rest and feel better was sweet. The entire episode was so good, and I can't wait until next week. And I'm glad that Jamal has been there for Becky.

Their mother will be played by Alfre Woodard, we will meet her in episode 16.

I agree with everything you said. I am looking forward to next week as well.

Tonight's episode was good. With all of the stress that Cookie has been under, this is really sad. I wanted to hug Andre, and Hakeem and Tiana shouldn't get married right now, given everything that is going on. Even after Tiana said she was all in for this tour, I could tell that she seemed very skeptical about the whole thing, after Eddie told her she shouldn't have any distractions. The girl group was a nice touch.

I like Warren and Jamal together, too.

I absolutely loved this episode. And it was interesting that Pamela never existed. And to know that I thought she was possibly another set up by the Dubois family was quite the twist I never saw coming. Jamal and Hakeem, it's great that they are recording music again, but I am so afraid that Jamal may not be able to control himself with the alcohol and pills. And Hakeem, he needed that slap and definitely deserved it, because he needs to start realizing that Tiana was just trying to help him. And Shine giving Hakeem advice was nice, and I hope he listens, but that might be easier said than done with him, because he won't listen. Cookie throwing Diana's mother's ring into the street was interesting. I can't wait until next week.

I cried throughout the entire hearing and definitely at the end. It was heartbreaking to watch.

I love that Lucious regained his memory and it is going to be interesting with the court case concerning Bella, because it seems as though the Dubois family and Anika may be able to celebrate for a while, they may have won this part of the battle but they will never win the war. And Hakeem will forever love their daughter.

It did not air for me as well, it will return next Wednesday November 8.

That is fine, and again, you are welcome. We will all have feelings about this show about the characters and how we feel about them, are our feelings, and we all will have to learn to agree to disagree with each other sometimes.

You are welcome. I think whether we agree or disagree, we all can have healthy discussions about Empire, a show we all love, without becoming angry with each other, even though at times, it happens.

You are welcome, we just have different ways of looking at things, especially when it comes to this show.

When I said that I was a writer I was referring to myself because I write stories, it is great that you write as a hobby, I don't write for any shows either, but I do aspire,to become a published author. I am not bashing you at all, and believe me I am invested in the characters as well, not as a viewer, but as a writer as well. I love certain shows because of the compelling storylines and everything for entertainment. I enjoy a lot of shows just as much as you do for entertainment as well as writing because it gives me ideas for stories. I am sorry if you thought I was bashing you, when I wasn't. And you are right, I look at this show like Scandal, These are characters that are not good, nor are they bad, it is all mixed up in that lovely gray area, which I love as well. I'm sorry you felt like I was bashing you, my apologies.

I am a writer as well, but I am invested in all of the characters even the ones I don't necessarily like, and I enjoy the compelling storylines that are happening within the Lyon family, and the other characters, but I absolutely love the characters because they are complex and endearing, and that's what I love about not only this show, but others that I watch as well.

I agree with everything you said, while responding to Dee. In the pilot, as we are introduced to these complex but endearing characters, we see that all of the boys did live lavishly, so it was not just Andre. Andre was having a very difficult time finding the funds for Jamal and Hakeem's careers. I remember in season 1, episode 5, "Dangerous Bonds," when Hakeem demoed his song "Drip Drop," to his father and Anika, (such a catchy song, but will never listen to it again in the episode, it takes me at least two weeks to get it out of my head, lol). Lucious told Andre to find whatever money he could to produce the video, and later on, when Rhonda calls him to see what was going on between Tiana and India, she noticed that her husband was frustrated and stressed, as he told her, "I've got to find the money to fund my demise." So he was very stressed about this. Lucious has never been able to deal with Andre's mental issues because he was probably never able to process and understand what was going on with his mother as a child, so when he took him to that fake grave, it seemed as though even with their grandmother still alive, maybe he felt like it would be better to have her in an institution than to have her meet his family, but then Andre found out the truth from the journalist Harper Scott. But perhaps, Lucious could not accept that his mother and son have this illness because he is not only very ashamed, but terrified about what the world would think about his family. And I agree it was very sad how he found out, as well as Cookie, Jamal, and Hakeem. I loved that he gave his mother the leverage she needed to get what she knew she deserved from Lucious, (even though it wasn't everything she wanted at first) and in the pilot he apologized to his mother for not coming to see her while she was in prison. And I definitely agree with everything else about how he felt when it comes to his family. But the game they started, was him wanting Empire, and he knew that either Jamal or Hakeem would get the keys to the kingdom, and at the end of Season 1, Jamal inherited it, but of course, in Season 2, Jamal's music suffered as he had to take over everything while their father was in jail, and later on, when Hakeem voted their father out as CEO and Chairmen thanks of course, to Camilla, his music suffered as well.

I know, but to me it felt like it was a few days, and sometimes in television a few weeks can still be considered the same day.

I agree that Hakeem and Anika had more of a platonic than a romantic relationship, when we watch the show, but maybe offscreen it may have been implied that they had a more established relationship, but I digress. Hakeem was in love with Camilla much more than Anika, and the relationship building with Cookie suffered. But when Hakeem was ready to stop the motherly relationship he had with Camilla she was not happy about that because he wanted to start to build a relationship with Cookie, and Anika nor Camilla could do anything about that because they had no say. Andre, Jamal, and Hakeem are Cookie and Lucious's sons, so they could not control the relationship that would ultimately happen between Cookie and Hakeem. And let's not forget that Anika was threatened by Cookie the moment she came home because she knew that Cookie and Lucious had history and children, she knew she couldn't hold onto him, because of the connection they would always have, while Anika did not have that connection with him. I agree that Anika did push herself onto Hakeem and they had more of a platonic relationship in Season 1, and with Cookie coming back to reclaim part of the company, and rebuilding a relationship with her two oldest children, while also trying to help Hakeem grow up, and build a relationship with him, Anika had much more to lose in Season 1, than Cookie ever did because she didn't have Lucious's children, and Cookie did. I agree with you, I think he needed to feel like a man again as well, as I remember that scene in my head too, but she does end up going to Hakeem's condo to tell him that she is pregnant, and he tells her that he is in love, and she doesn't tell him after that. But it must have happened in the scene where she is going home after walking and he's waiting for her, but a few days after that, Rhonda was staying with Anika and Andre comes over so he can talk to her, and Anika ends up throwing up after eating, and Rhonda asks her if she's pregnant, and Andre asks her who the father is, and she reveals that it's Hakeem, which then prompts both of them to help her tell the family in Season 2 Episode 14: "Time Shall Unfold." And that's where the family finds out, and Hakeem is surprised, but asks, How you know the baby's even mine? And she says, "You're the only one I've been with, after your father." And the family is not thrilled about this. But you are right, it wasn't bad intentions. But you also have to remember, he didn't end up at home until the end of the episode in Season 2 Episode 6, he goes to Anika first, because when Cookie opens the van door, she finds that Hakeem is not there, and they ask the driver with urgency, "Where's our son?!"

Yes, Hakeem was in love with Laura, he told Camilla this, and she wanted him to get rid of her, and he broke up with her briefly, to get Empire back, so he made that tape and sent it to Mimi, and she ultimately drinks something that she gave Mimi after Lucious finds out she killed her wife. When Hakeem tells Anika that he is in love with Laura, she doesn't seem phased by it, but was definitely jealous and hurt; however, when Anika learned that she was pregnant, she tried to contact him several times. I agree that Hakeem had the most love for Anika, because she was around him before their mother came home, but as far as a relationship was concerned between Hakeem and Anika, he never loved her; but he was genuinely in love with Laura, and I thought their relationship was very sweet.

Just for future reference, the character's name is Warren.