Everyone knows Atlanta boasts one of the American South's biggest music scenes, full of exciting new acts looking to make names for themselves at clubs and festivals. But, did you know that a similar scene also exists for hair?

On Star Season 1 Episode 4, the girls performed at a huge hair show in Atlanta, where Miss Bruce was competing on behalf of Carlotta's salon.

Miss Bruce and the other stylists took turns creating looks onstage in front of a panel of judges to see who would be crowned the winner. I was not aware that live hair-styling with musical accompaniment was a competitive event!

This episode featured a very special guest in the form of Gladys Knight. Gladys appears to be following in the footsteps of Naomi Campbell's Louboutins, at least in regards to Lee Daniels television dramas; both previously guest-starred on Empire before popping up on Star.

In both shows, Gladys was cast as herself, and that's just fine, because why would you ever cast Gladys as anything but her fabulous self? After all, it doesn't get more quintessentially Atlanta than native daughter Gladys.

Did I ever tell you I was six months pregnant by Tyler Perry?
Miss Bruce

Permalink: Did I ever tell you I was six months pregnant by Tyler Perry?

As an aside: I went to one of Gladys Knight's fried chicken and waffle restaurants when I was in Atlanta, and let me tell you, the food and the atmosphere (including gold records on the walls, and videos of Gladys that played on retro television screens around the wood-paneled room) were well worth the visit.

I'm a big fan of sweet tea and Southern hospitality, what can I say. But, I'll stop reminiscing about my wonderful real-life vacation now (however reluctant I might be to do so) and get back to the misadventures of our fictional crew of wannabe pop stars.

Gladys' cameo was all too brief. Our girls have fine voices, but hearing them croon Gladys' old hits just made me want to hear the genuine article belt them out herself.

Despite their obvious weakness of not being Gladys Knight, the girls' performances at the hair show were refreshing after a few episodes full of the girls cooing similar sexy songs while wearing crop tops and tiny shorts.

I have no problem with this kind of music or fashion; I love Star's style in particular. But I also have no problem with mixing it up a bit and pushing boundaries beyond the expected.

Those impeccably styled Sixties helmet hairdos and long, loose pink dresses definitely did the trick. The first performance was great and the girls were flying high. Too bad their euphoria was all too short-lived.

Simone's evil foster father, Otis, showed up to be generally creepy and awful. In one of the more absurd scenes on this very absurd show, he attempted to apply for a job at Carlotta's salon to get close to Simone. How was that ever going to work?

Don't get it twisted, sweetie. I am more of a man than you will ever be and more of a woman than you will ever get.
Miss Bruce

Permalink: Don't get it twisted, sweetie. I am more of a man than you will ever be and more of a woman than

One, Star and Simone would just recognize him immediately and turn him in; they weren't going to just sit quietly by and let him hang out there. Two, it was entirely possible that Carlotta already knew about him from Star and Simone and could have turned him in on the spot.

Perhaps it was just a weird reconnaissance mission so that Otis could scope out the salon after being directed their by the social worker, but it still seemed pretty nonsensical to me.

Obviously Otis is a pretty evil guy; he drugged and raped his underage foster daughter for years. But, is he also that stupid?

I don't know. All I know is that I was thrilled when Otis was killed off. Honestly, I wasn't expecting it to happen so soon.

I was worried they were going to stretch out his obsessive quest to get Simone back for the entire season; now, it looks like they'll just drag out the mystery of his murder instead. But, Otis dead on the show is far, far preferable to Otis living, that's for sure.

Let's go handle business.
Jahil [to Carlotta]

Permalink: Let's go handle business.

Star attempting to stab him to death in the first place was ridiculous enough; now, it appears that Simone finished the job, though it's impossible to know for sure as the fatal act didn't occur onscreen.

Simone denies having killed Otis, but her mental state is so fragile it's entirely possible that she has blocked the memory of pulling the trigger.

If the killer wasn't Simone, the other obvious candidate is Jahil. We know he is ruthless and willing to protect his girls. He might be a pretty despicable guy in a lot of ways, but I did love seeing him and Carlotta team up to take down Otis together.

That brings us to another possible candidate: Carlotta. She's a fierce mama bear to these three girls, even if she thinks they're all crazy. Her fear that Star and Simone will succumb to the same tragic fate as their mother could have led her to kill Otis.

It's also possible that Cotton was involved. After all, she was the one who overheard Otis threatening Star. And she is fierce. I could see her stepping up to take out someone like Otis, a bully who preys on the vulnerable.

Carlotta [to Simone]: You've been through more in your sixteen years than most people have in a lifetime. But you listen to me: that chapter of your life is over.

Permalink: You've been through more in your sixteen years than most people have in a lifetime.

Either way, the show has taken a definite turn, and while it remains to be seen if it was the right one, it is definitely an improvement over the direction I thought he show was heading, which was more scenes of Otis torturing Simone.

In other news, the subplot involving Jahil and the human trafficking victim who hid in his car and followed him to his house remains ridiculous. It didn't gain much ground in this episode.

Right now, the woman feels like little more than a cipher, and I find it hard to care about her or Jahil. Especially now that we have a murder mystery to contemplate.

Carlotta: Sometimes it all comes down to what you don't say. That night, we all agreed: the devil is gone. For now.

Permalink: That night, we all agreed: the devil is gone. For now.

What did you think of "Code of Silence"?

Do you have any theories about who killed Otis? Will Simone be able to move on with her life now that he is dead? Will we ever get to see some of the Black Lives Matters events Derek is always talking about onscreen?

Remember, you can watch Star online via TV Fanatic.