S02.E09: Bout That Life

[Trini]

McCall becomes ensnared in a deadly battle between rival rap crews when she is hired by the wife of a famous rapper, Dilemma (Rick Ross), to prove the musician is innocent of murdering a fellow artist.

Airdate: Jan. 9, 2022

Edited January 9, 2022 by Trini

[AnimeMania]

GUEST CAST:
Rick Ross  (Dilemma)
Maxwell Whittington-Cooper  (Daoud)
Ade Chike Torbert  (Brawlah)
Nathaniel McIntyre  (Cameron)
Jordan Aaron Hall  (Nasir)
Narsi Regina  (Deirdre)
Andre Tucker, Jr.  (Recording Engineer)
Lucky Ray  (Sidney “Sid” Rodgers)
Lemarvae Staples  (Young Man)
Stephen Foster Harris  (Security Guard)
Darius “Nastyelgic” Jackson  (Dre Bids)
Jason Babinsky  (Jacob Styles)
Faiven Feshazion  (Assistant)

[wanderingstar]

Missed opportunity not having Queen Latifah rap in this one. Robyn advising Sid about being a female rapper was sweet (loved the MC Lyte mention) 

This week's story was fine. I liked the performances of all the guest cast, especially the sons.

Disused subway tunnel as Harry's new hideout? I dig it.

[janeta]

I confess I didn’t miss Delilah last week…

[Starchild]

Subway? Very "Person of Interest".

So no one cares that Harry is probably risking life in prison here? "Never use a computer again? Sure Mr. President whatever you say [wink]"

[janeta]

The disused subway is the same place he was in before, “they” just wiped it off the city maps this time.

[paigow]

8 minutes ago, janeta said:

The disused subway is the same place he was in before, “they” just wiped it off the city maps this time.

The FBI database with the arrest report is also erased... in addition to the brains of every participating agent????

[dwmarch]

So the bar doesn't have an office? When Melody needs to do some paperwork she just stands there in her vinyl pants and giant heels and fills it out at the bar?

I couldn't take the rap beef story seriously. All these "hardcore" rappers and not one cuss word? Equalizer, please.

[Raja]

1 hour ago, janeta said:

The disused subway is the same place he was in before, “they” just wiped it off the city maps this time.

I guess the out of thin air "they" will be Bishop's replacement.

[threebluestars]

I think instead of just name dropping MC Lyte she should play Robyn's next nemesis 😀

[Trini]

1 hour ago, janeta said:

The disused subway is the same place he was in before, “they” just wiped it off the city maps this time.

LOL - It's definitely the same set! But now Harry's even more underground - literally.

I feel like they didn't really need to do all these change-ups just for Harry to be a free man; or if they were going to do all that, make a better story out of it, but whatever. Back to the status quo.

It was funny though, seeing Harry doing his computer-fu from various random locations. And I think this was only the second time we've actually seen Mel's bar doing business?

The main plot had sooo many characters to get through! I did really like Queen Latifah as Robyn giving advice to the aspiring young rapper.

Really liked Robyn's hairstyle in this one. Can someone do that on my head, please??

[AnimeMania]

Harry can't use a computer, but he can use a phone, they are essentially the same thing. He can use a phone to access his computer and stay technically legal.

Dilemma's kid shoots somebody two times and they pretend like it never happened, I see this a lot on TV.

Who did Dilemma call on the cell phone, was it that sleazy record company owner that Robin went to visit, and was the sleazy record company owner the one that put out the hit on Robin using the motorcycle?

[paigow]

16 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

Who did Dilemma call on the cell phone, was it that sleazy record company owner that Robin went to visit, and was the sleazy record company owner the one that put out the hit on Robin using the motorcycle?

Brawlah is behind everything. He finished off Dre and ordered the drive-by

[AnimeMania]

Just now, paigow said:

Brawlah is behind everything. He finished off Dre and ordered the drive-by

Brawlah seemed a little clueless that Robyn was anything but a music reporter with weird questions, did he have her followed after the interview?

[wanderingstar]

10 hours ago, Trini said:

It was funny though, seeing Harry doing his computer-fu from various random locations.

I loved this. For me, the fun was guessing where we'd see him next.

[milkyaqua]

Decent epi but yes, Harry winds up back where he was and of course the feds are never, ever going to suspect he's back at it in the same spot only this time with different routing thing a ma jigs and such that no one would ever think to look...  Okay show.

Delilah wasn't a pest this epi (small steps show).  I liked Aunt Vi questioning the boyfriend and Robyn trying to check on him as well.

[possibilities]

The wealthy rap family having nowhere else to turn was a bit much. Maybe hire a PI? 

The writing on this show is just lazy. It's getting harder and harder to overlook.

[Trini]

16 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

Who did Dilemma call on the cell phone, was it that sleazy record company owner that Robin went to visit, and was the sleazy record company owner the one that put out the hit on Robin using the motorcycle?

I think Dilemma called the record company owner; but I think the motorcycle hit was from Brawlah - even though, yes, Robyn wasn't really that much of a threat when he met her.

[mythoughtis]

17 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

Dilemma's kid shoots somebody two times and they pretend like it never happened, I see this a lot on TV

Dilemma said that his son had some things to pay for when he thanked Robin for getting to the truth.  I think that was an acknowledgment that it wouldn’t be swept under the rug.  However since this som didn’t fire the the fatal shot,  he would most likely get off fairly  light. Given that Dad was in prison  even though he was innocent.

[paigow]

That kid should be in SingSing for Attempted Murder. Even if Brawlah never fired a shot, Dre was going to bleed out and die.

[ribboninthesky1]

20 hours ago, dwmarch said:

So the bar doesn't have an office? When Melody needs to do some paperwork she just stands there in her vinyl pants and giant heels and fills it out at the bar?

Or a utility closet, at least? Hell, where do they live? No reason that Harry couldn't do his thing from their home.  Couldn't have been any less reckless than doing it at the bar.  But then we would have missed the "hilarious" bickering, I suppose. 

19 hours ago, Trini said:

I feel like they didn't really need to do all these change-ups just for Harry to be a free man; or if they were going to do all that, make a better story out of it, but whatever. Back to the status quo.

It really was a convoluted way to do it.  Yeah, Harry is free to be in public.  But as a viewer, I couldn't care less if he can show his face at the bar or outside.  He's not much of a fighter, so it's not like he can do anything if Mel or Robyn were to get in a tight spot during a case.  

I though Delilah's boyfriend made a good argument against college, though I also think Delilah was right to call him out. If you're a straight A student, it's a lot easier to get a full scholarship to the school of your choice. I would have liked to hear more about what he wanted to do, like a trade.  The trades don't get much love on TV (or social media), but labor shortages in certain areas have persisted for years.  More physical labor yes, but also lucrative.  I can only hope he's not going for the generic "entrepreneur" BS.     

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

The writing on this show is just lazy. It's getting harder and harder to overlook.

I still enjoy the show, yet I understand.  I find most of the cases of the week forgettable.

Best part of the episode was Latifah's scenes with the young female rapper. 

[paigow]

2 hours ago, ribboninthesky1 said:

I can only hope he's not going for the generic "entrepreneur" BS. 

I think all the kids want to be an "Influencer"...Like Share Subscribe

[AnimeMania]

4 hours ago, paigow said:

That kid should be in SingSing for Attempted Murder. Even if Brawlah never fired a shot, Dre was going to bleed out and die.

If you look too hard at it, the whole murder thing doesn't make sense. Boy shoots Dre Bids twice, and Dilemma and Jacob Styles see what happens (vows never to speak again of what happened) and all of them leave? Dre Bids is still dying on the ground after everybody leaves, so that Brawlah can come along and shoot him again. His "So Called" friends didn't even call Dre Bids an ambulance, I guess they wanted to make sure that Dre Bids did not tell anybody that it was the son who shot him. Dre Bids was going to die that night no matter what happened.

[Court]

I feel robbed that Queen Latifah didn't sing or rap. I was waiting all show for it! She could have had a verse in that last song. Boo show. 

I LOVED her convo with the girl rapper. I enjoyed the Harry/Mel antics. 

I didn't give a crap about the case. 

[umgoblue]

❤️MC Lyte❤️!! 

NOW BRING HER ON!

That.is.all.

ETA: Okay, maybe not...Can we get Monie Love, too?!??!

Edited January 12, 2022 by umgoblue
Because one last thing...

[cameron]

Wish someone would do over Mel's makeup.  All I can notice is that startling red mouth.

[SnapHappy]

Am I the ONLY one who keeps hearing the theme song for "Living Single" every time QL is on the screen?   Especially with her, Delilah & Aunt Vi:

  Keep your head up, what?
  Keep your head up, that's right
  Whenever this life get tough, you gotta fight
  With my homegirls standing to my left and my right
  True blue, it's tight like glue

Anvil time 2 seconds after hearing Dilemma confessed, and had 2 teen boys - Of course he was taking the blame for one of his kids!  Way too obvious there, writers.  

Hard to see QL's sweater in the last scenes.  Editors need to tighten up on their full-view shots.  I need more to evaluate this season's wardrobe choices.  She's wearing too many basic jackets.  

[possibilities]

1 minute ago, SnapHappy said:

Of course he was taking the blame for one of his kids!  Way too obvious there, writers.  

I thought that, or that his family was being threatened and he made a deal where if he confesses, they'll be left alone, so his wife hiring Robyn was going to get them all killed (except Robyn was going to swoop in and save them, because that's how this show works).

This show is not subtle. Have to watch for some other reason.

[SnapHappy]

20 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I thought that, or that his family was being threatened and he made a deal where if he confesses, they'll be left alone,

Yep, it's always a false confession to protect a family member!  

[blackwing]

Count me among those who wanted/expected to see Latifah rapping during the episode.  I loved the scene in Season 1 when she was dancing and singing along to “Humpty Hump” when dropping Delilah off at school.    
 

Show missed a golden moment here.  How hard would it have been to have the final shot of the episode to be Robyn in the studio?  “Mind if I give it a try?”   She starts in with her own rap, jamming out and having a great time, as the scene fades out.  Then the credits have her entire song.

 

[WendyCR72]

I have no evidence for this, but maybe Latifah herself didn't want to rap? Maybe she thought it didn't fit Robyn, or something.

[paigow]

Or they shot a drunken karaoke duet of her with Bishop... And had to toss it

Edited January 17, 2022 by paigow

[Raja]

51 minutes ago, paigow said:

Or they shot a drunken karaoke duet of her with Bishop... And had to toss it

 

☺️Because even if Robyn was singing along with the Humpty Dance, Dana evolved to singing jazz standards years ago.

[snarktini]

On 1/16/2022 at 2:57 PM, WendyCR72 said:

I have no evidence for this, but maybe Latifah herself didn't want to rap? Maybe she thought it didn't fit Robyn, or something.

I think that's a good guess. She's so famous for rapping -- and I expected/hoped to hear her too! -- it's hard to believe no one thought of adding that to the script or soundtrack. Seems like something she'd have made a deliberate decision about.

[possibilities]

Does she rap anymore? I'm only aware of her acting roles for quite a while now. Maybe she didn't want to do it. Or maybe she wanted more money to do it.

[crowceilidh]

I enjoy the oncoming smooches of Robyn and Dante - their flirtations are full of charisma and believable chemistry.  They are both smart people who know how badly romance will eff up their working relationship, so I can only assume that they will verbally or physically consummate the epi that he's about to leave the show.  As I hope he doesn't leave the show, I am hoping for their growing bond to slow the frick down.

[kwnyc]

On 1/9/2022 at 10:46 PM, janeta said:

The disused subway is the same place he was in before, “they” just wiped it off the city maps this time.

While keeping it in storage when "Person of Interest" went off the air!

Seriously: Robyn=John; Harry=Mr. Finch; Mel=Shah; Dante=Taraji P. Henson. But as that was one of my favorite shows, I am happy with this re-imagination of it. 

[Johannah]

I can't think of any scenario in the episode where having QL rap wouldn't seem forced.  I'm actually glad they didn't go there.  But then, I probably would have enjoyed it.  Other incongruences in this show don't bother me.

Can't wait to see Harry dress up his bat cave again.

[mojito]

I only watch this show for that big scene where QL has four guns trained on her, the camera shakes, and then she ends up with someone's gun in her hand and the four guys on the floor. Wasn't much in this episode.

So add the lackluster pseudo action scene to the rap and the angry young men, and I was bored.

[Trini]

Re-watched this, and ironically, Harry and Mel squabbling over having to work on the computer together was the most I've liked them as a couple!

And shoutout to Robyn's 'graffiti' jacket. https://wornontv.net/264735/